A little bit of background📃 Matt Haig (born 1975) is an English author and journalist. I have followed him on Instagram for some years now, and I find myself nodding on the regular at his posts about life, politics, and humanity. His values align with mine and I admire that he uses his platform for good. He is open about his mental health struggles and these struggles form the basis of his books. While Matt has written both fiction and non-fiction for children and adults, he

A little bit of background📃 I must confess to never having read anything much about the incredible scientist, Marie Skłodowska-Curie. I could see that the subtitle of the book on display at the library suggested a focus on the pathway that Mme Skłodowska-Curie forged for female scientists, but I was still keen to start somewhere to better understand the most notable female scientist of all time. The elements of Marie Curie: How the glow of radium lit a path for women in scie

A little bit of background📃 It's been 20 years since the first Devil wears Prada film. I loved the first one, largely for Emily Blunt's sarcasm in her turn as ambitious assistant, Emily Charlton, and the thinly-veiled dig at Anna Wintour, editor of Vogue, played faultlessly by Meryl Streep in the form of Miranda Priestly. The devil wears Prada is an iconic film whatever your feelings about it, so I eagerly lined up for number two. Did it live up to my expectations? Read on t

A little bit of background📃 The whole concept of Unruly had me from the get-go. A comedian's take on history? Cool. A journey through the history of England's kings and queens? Also cool. Did the book live up to my expectations? Read on for my thoughts. Unruly: The ridiculous history of England's kings and queens | Published September 2023 | Read May 2025 The author✏️ David Mitchell (born 1974) is a British comedian, actor and writer. He has numerous comedy television cred

A little bit of background📃 Jojo Moyes is one of my go-to authors when I am looking for a break from my usual dark and disturbing reads. Sure, her books are predictable and a little schmaltzy, but they are absolutely a comfort read for me. You can check out my review of the Jojo historical fiction titles I've read, her first book, Night music, and my favourite book to date, Someone else's shoes. I bloody love that book! We all live here | Published February 2025 | Read May 2

A little bit of background📃 Naomi Klein has only recently come into my orbit, largely for her criticisms of Israel's recent actions in Gaza. I'd heard something of her activism and finally had the chance to read three of her books, The shock doctrine, Doppelganger, and No is not enough. I learnt so much from these books so I urge you to give them a go. I have nothing but respect for Naomi Klein now, and I can't wait to read the rest of her work. She is clever, insightful, se

A little bit of background📃 History, politics, culture, sociology and social anthropology are totally my jam, but I am yet to find a single book that gives me a broad yet comprehensive overview of the history of humankind. I am not sure such a book even exists. I picked up the two books in this review at my local library, hoping for some insights from the similar approaches to being human and how we have grown and changed as a species. The species than changed itself: How

A little bit of background📃 I waited over six months for a copy of The Nazi mind after putting it on hold at my local library. The 2025 publication is clearly in demand! I was looking forward to reading the book, not only because of the long wait but because of its claimed psychological perspective on the heinous crimes the Nazis committed. Did the book live up to my expectations? Read my review to find out... The Nazi mind: Twelve warnings from history | Published May 2025