What I'm reading

After a couple of fiction books, I thought it time to go back to non-fiction. I fancied a change from biography, so I have started The World's Greatest Idea by John Farndon. It looked like my kind of book, with lots of miscellaneous facts about the world. Here's the blurb:

An exploration of mankind’s greatest-ever ideas, from the author of the bestselling Do You Think You’re Clever?Where would humanity be now without fire, vaccinations, farming … or wine? A great idea is one that has changed the path of human civilisation. But which is the greatest of them all? John Farndon, author of the bestselling Do You Think You’re Clever?, has set out to find the answer.A distinguished panel of experts agreed on a list of 50 ideas, and each chapter of The World’s Greatest Idea sees Farndon explore the argument for a different one. The candidates are intriguingly varied: Electricity grids enable us to power our cities, but then sewers allowed those cities to grow. Without the wheel, modern civilisation would be pretty much impossible, but take away Logic and we’d lose the essential structures for rational thought ... But then what would be the point of all of this without the idea of romance?The World’s Greatest Idea is an enthralling voyage of discovery through the most powerful intellectual, social, scientific and creative brainwaves humans have ever had. They are ranked in the book determined by a public vote on www.theworldsgreatestidea.com But will you agree with the verdict?

Limitless - by Alan Glynn

This was quite a book! The basic premise - about a drug that provides the mental equivalent of the performance-enhancing drugs that sportsmen use - is quite straightforward. We hear the story from Eddie Spinola, who is a user of the drug, talking retrospectively. The story is gritty with some surprising twists. I suppose I was broadly sympathetic with Eddie and began to care about his fate.

The book soon had me hooked and turning the pages. I plan to get the DVD to see the movie.

What I'm reading

I have started Limitless by Alan Glynn. I thought that a lighter weight novel might be in order. I seem to recall that I got this at a bargain price and understand that it was made into a film earlier this year. The main premise of the story is the existence of a drug that greatly increases intellectual performance and the cumulative effects of such added capabilities.

Long Song - by Andrea Levy

This book is the story of the life of a slave girl in Jamaica in the mid-nineteenth Century, told in her own words. It is a very graphic story, some of which illustrates how horrifically some people can treat their fellow human beings. It is more than just a study of the life and conditions, it is a true life story with lots of insight into the characters of the people around the author - both black and white.

I was impressed by the use of language. It is written in the appropriate patois, but this is rendered with a light touch, with just enough unusual words to give it a genuine ring, but not so much that it gets in the way of clarity. I found it quite straightforward to read and it kept me turning the pages. I read it amazingly quickly, helped by dead time during a recent business trip.

I had high expectations of the author's work and I was not disappointed.

What I'm reading

I have started Long Song by Andrea Levy. Time for some more fiction. I don't think that this book will be an easy read, but I read Small Island a while ago [and saw the film], which was excellent, so I know that it will be worthwhile. It was recommended by a friend who read it for her book club and said that some of the description of how slaves were treated is rather harrowing.

Moab is my Washpot - by Stephen Fry

Having read the second volume of Stephen Fry's autobiography, I had high expectations of this, the first volume. I was not disappointed. The book covers all his early life up until he went to university. He writes with almost shocking honesty, covering very personal things like his early sex life and homosexuality, his criminal exploits and an attempt on his own life. One of the clearest things, that I observed, is that he never seems to try to put himself in a good light, as many celebrities do - quite the reverse, in fact. Maybe it's a kind of double bluff.

The book is written in the inimitable Fry style, which means that it is always entertaining and his penchant for unusual words meant that I was glad to be reading it as an e-book and could do dictionary lookups so easily.

I still don't understand the title.