Boots and books

For me, the two most important things I pack to go on holiday are my walking boots and at least one book for every two days I am away. Long stomps through forests or up mountains by day and then evenings lazing on a blanket (if we are camping) or on a sofa reading, are what I like to do best on holiday. The last two weeks in North Yorkshire have seen plenty of boot and book action and have left me feeling very relaxed and peaceful.


I managed to finish one book, read five more and start another while I was away. This is what I read:

• Theft by Peter Carey. I had started this before I left London, and found it very tough going, but I must have needed the holiday as once I was no longer distracted by everyday chores I enjoyed it. Its a strange book, but satisfying at the end.
• Further Under The Duvet by Marian Keyes. This book is a collection of articles by Marian Keyes and was a freebie from somewhere which I hadn't particularly expected to enjoy. But it was such an entertaining read after the seriousness of Peter Carey, that I went out and bought one of Keyes' novels to read as well.
• Anybody Out There by Marian Keyes. A satisfyingly chunky book and well written. Quality chick lit.
• The Great Stink by Clare Clark. By far the best book I read all holiday. I loved every minute of it and wished I had written it. Its a thriller set in the sewers of Victorian London - original, brilliantly written and very exciting.
• The Memory Keeper's Daughter by Kim Edwards. Many people I know have read this and enjoyed it. I did too. Its an American book, which would always predispose me to like it, but the idea for the plot was fascinating, and the characters were really well thought out.
• The House at Riverton by Kate Morton. This was, by a long way, the book I enjoyed the least. The writing was clunky and cliched and the much-mentioned huge guilty secret which was revealed at the end was a big disappointment.
• The Bird Woman by Kerry Hardie. I haven't quite finished this one, but it gets the second place rosette from me. It is original and slightly strange; I am very much enjoying it. Kerry Hardie explores the differences between how people from Northern Ireland and Eire view each other, which is something I've not come across in fiction before.

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Because reading and walking is what G and I do on holiday, the children have no choice at the moment but to do that too. I wonder sometimes if this is something they will deeply rebel against when they are older. I must try not to be too disappointed if they choose to go on beach holidays in Spain or villa holidays in France instead.

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At the moment, however, I seem to have children who are happy to fall in with my plans (or maybe they're just not old enough to stage an effective rebellion...we shall see).