What I'm reading

I needed something to get my teeth into, so I have started The Girl Who Played with Fire by Stieg  Larsson. Having enjoyed the first volume in the trilogy, I am looking forward to being immersed in this one.

It's Not What You Think - by Chris Evans

I was not a Chris Evans fan. I am not really into music radio generally and what I had seen of him just made me think that he was a bit of a jerk. However, my partner persuaded me to listen to his new [at the time] Radio 2 breakfast show a bit and I had to admit that he is a very skilled operator. She also read this book and recommended it.

I have turned around in my views. Evans is clearly a very special guy. He is smart and creative and this book really feels like he wrote it himself. The honesty shines through. He is very happy to blow his own trumpet, but, when he has screwed up (and he's done that a few times) he never tries to blame anyone else. The story has terrific pace and the idea that each chapter starts with a "top 10" is ingenious. His focus and determination are quite inspiring.

At the end I had the feeling that I would really like to meet him. Maybe he can be on my fantasy dinner party guest list. I look forward to reading the second volume of his story.

What I'm reading

I was getting a little tired of Map of a Nation, so I am giving it a rest. It is not that it is a bad book or uninteresting. I just found it hard going and the reverse on un-put-downable. So, I have started It's Not What You Think by Chris Evans. I used to have a rather low opinion of the author, but my partner has guided me to appreciate him more and recommended the book. As I always like autobiographies and this one is not ghost-written, I thought it worth trying. Here's the blurb:

The story of how one council estate lad made good, really very good, and survived – just about – to tell the tale…Chris Evans’s extraordinary career has seen him become one of the country’s most successful broadcasters and producers. From The Big Breakfast to Don’t Forget Your Toothbrush and TFI Friday, Chris changed the TV landscape during the ‘90s; and on Manchester’s Piccadilly Radio, BBC Radio 1’s Breakfast show and as owner of Virgin Radio he ushered in the age of the celebrity DJ.But this is only part of the Chris Evans story. In this witty and energetically written autobiography, Chris describes the experiences that shaped the boy and created the man who would go on to carve out such a dazzlingly brilliant career. Born on a dreary council estate in Warrington and determined to escape, Chris started out as the best newspaper boy on the block, armed with no more than a little silver Binatone radio that he would take to the newsagents each day and through which he would develop a life-long and passionate love affair with the music and voices that emerged.From paperboy to media mogul, It’s Not What You Think isn’t what you think - it’s the real story beyond the glare of the media spotlight from one of this country’s brightest and boldest personalities.

What I'm reading

I have started Map of a Nation by Rachel Hewitt. I have always liked maps and learning history in relation to something familiar can be interesting, so this book appealed. Here is the blurb:

Map of a Nation tells the story of the creation of the Ordnance Survey map - the first complete, accurate, affordable map of the British Isles. The Ordnance Survey is a much beloved British institution, and Map of a Nation is, amazingly, the first popular history to tell the story of the map and the men who dreamt and delivered it. The Ordnance Survey's history is one of political revolutions, rebellions and regional unions that altered the shape and identity of the United Kingdom over the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. It's also a deliciously readable account of one of the great untold British adventure stories, featuring intrepid individuals lugging brass theodolites up mountains to make the country visible to itself for the first time.