Time for fiction again, so I have started Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn, which was highly recommended by my daughter. Here is the blurb:
Just how well can you ever know the person you love? This is the question that Nick Dunne must ask himself on the morning of his fifth wedding anniversary, when his wife Amy suddenly disappears. The police immediately suspect Nick. Amy's friends reveal that she was afraid of him, that she kept secrets from him. He swears it isn't true. A police examination of his computer shows strange searches. He says they aren't his. And then there are the persistent calls on his mobile phone. So what did really did happen to Nick's beautiful wife? And what was left in that half-wrapped box left so casually on their marital bed?
29 Jun 2013
The Secret Life of Bletchley Park - by Sinclair McKay
This book was a very straightforward read. It is in more or less chronological order from just before WW2 up until the present day. It is a historical account of Bletchley and the work done there, but it is very much told from the perspective of the people who worked there.
Although I might have liked more detail about the technology of code breaking, I am sure that information is available elsewhere. Apart from the specific story about Bletchley, I was also interested in all the other snippets of information about everyday life in wartime England and aspects of the overall story of the war.
I am left thinking that I really must visit the place and Enigma by Robert Harris is now on my reading list.
Although I might have liked more detail about the technology of code breaking, I am sure that information is available elsewhere. Apart from the specific story about Bletchley, I was also interested in all the other snippets of information about everyday life in wartime England and aspects of the overall story of the war.
I am left thinking that I really must visit the place and Enigma by Robert Harris is now on my reading list.
9 Jun 2013
What I'm reading ...
I have started The Secret Life of Bletchley Park by Sinclair McKay. I though some solid non-fiction would be nice and this looked interesting. Here's the blurb:
Bletchley Park was where one of the war’s most famous – and crucial – achievements was made: the cracking of Germany’s “Enigma” code in which its most important military communications were couched.
This country house in the Buckinghamshire countryside was home to Britain’s most brilliant mathematical brains, like Alan Turing, and the scene of immense advances in technology – indeed, the birth of modern computing. The military codes deciphered there were instrumental in turning both the Battle of the Atlantic and the war in North Africa.
But, though plenty has been written about the boffins, and the codebreaking, fictional and non-fiction – from Robert Harris and Ian McEwan to Andrew Hodges’ biography of Turing – what of the thousands of men and women who lived and worked there during the war? What was life like for them – an odd, secret territory between the civilian and the military?
Sinclair McKay’s book is the first history for the general reader of life at Bletchley Park, and an amazing compendium of memories from people now in their eighties – of skating on the frozen lake in the grounds (a depressed Angus Wilson, the novelist, once threw himself in) – of a youthful Roy Jenkins, useless at codebreaking, of the high jinks at nearby accommodation hostels – and of the implacable secrecy that meant girlfriend and boyfriend working in adjacent huts knew nothing about each other’s work.
Bletchley Park was where one of the war’s most famous – and crucial – achievements was made: the cracking of Germany’s “Enigma” code in which its most important military communications were couched.
This country house in the Buckinghamshire countryside was home to Britain’s most brilliant mathematical brains, like Alan Turing, and the scene of immense advances in technology – indeed, the birth of modern computing. The military codes deciphered there were instrumental in turning both the Battle of the Atlantic and the war in North Africa.
But, though plenty has been written about the boffins, and the codebreaking, fictional and non-fiction – from Robert Harris and Ian McEwan to Andrew Hodges’ biography of Turing – what of the thousands of men and women who lived and worked there during the war? What was life like for them – an odd, secret territory between the civilian and the military?
Sinclair McKay’s book is the first history for the general reader of life at Bletchley Park, and an amazing compendium of memories from people now in their eighties – of skating on the frozen lake in the grounds (a depressed Angus Wilson, the novelist, once threw himself in) – of a youthful Roy Jenkins, useless at codebreaking, of the high jinks at nearby accommodation hostels – and of the implacable secrecy that meant girlfriend and boyfriend working in adjacent huts knew nothing about each other’s work.
The Lytro Camera: Learn About The Amazing Revolution - Jim Rice
I went straight on to this book. Here is the blurb:
The Lytro is the most interesting and Revolutionary camera to hit the market since HD and 3D. In this guide we will dive into the details of what makes it so different and special and will help you get better understanding of how to take advantage of it's features.Although it is not uninteresting, this very short book was not worth the £1.93 price tag. It is really just a collection of rather repetitive articles and reviews. I gave it a one-star review on Amazon.
Learn about the making and secrets to it's design What's the secret to cramming а super-long lens intо а camera thаt’s stіll small еnоugh tо pocket? How the Lytro team came together to design such a product. What does the Lytro mean for photography? Questions and Answers. It's Challenges and competition. Is this the future of photography technology? The Lytro's design and specifications. The Negatives; What to realize and watch out for. Learn the best uses for this type of camera and take advantage of it's benefits.
The Slap - by Christos Tsiolkas
I expected this book to be a retelling of the core events from the perspective of a number of those present. However, it is more like a relay race, where the story progresses from chapter to chapter, with the viewpoint changing.
The story progresses quite well and gives quite a lot of insight into the characters' lives and [maybe] what Australia is like. I felt that their lives seemed to be dominated by sex, drugs, alcohol and acquisitiveness. A certain amount of the sex was, IMHO, rather gratuitous - not needed for the story to make sense. I do not think that I actually liked any of the characters, but that doesn't matter if the story is OK.
The start of the story is strong and dramatic. Its progress is at a reasonable pace. The ending, though tidy enough, is a little weak.
The story progresses quite well and gives quite a lot of insight into the characters' lives and [maybe] what Australia is like. I felt that their lives seemed to be dominated by sex, drugs, alcohol and acquisitiveness. A certain amount of the sex was, IMHO, rather gratuitous - not needed for the story to make sense. I do not think that I actually liked any of the characters, but that doesn't matter if the story is OK.
The start of the story is strong and dramatic. Its progress is at a reasonable pace. The ending, though tidy enough, is a little weak.
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