However long you have been waiting for a thrilling and exciting finish to a series of some kind, no matter the medium, there is something inordinately exciting about coming to the end of a story upon which rides the fate of a particular group of people. Above all else, you Continue Reading
Books
Lost in a sea of beautiful words: My 20 favourite books of 2020
Books have always my go-to place to get away from the horrors and sadness of reality. Whether it was way back when I was a kid and bullying defined my (almost) every waking hour, or more recently when a pandemic has redefined life to pronouncedly for the worst that the Continue Reading
Merry pop culture Christmas to all … and to all a good night!
2020 – what a year! And not in the “Woohoo! What a great year!” sense either. I mean, it wasn’t entirely awful, but every time it seemed like things were on the improve, everything went south again in spectacular fashion; case in point, Sydney is once again in the grip Continue Reading
Book review: The Nine Lives of #Christmas by Florence McNicoll
All of us long for some kind of profound connection. More than that, we need it, in ways too complex and unknowing to articulate at times, and we often need more of it that we realise, especially at Christmas which, possibly more than most other festivals, near-demands an intense and Continue Reading
Book review: The Parisian #Christmas Bake Off by Jenny Oliver
Can Christmas transform your life in the most magical and transformative of ways? We all like to think so; there’s something about this most wonderful of seasons that makes most of us believe that it is somehow set up from the humdrum, pell-mell banality of life and thus is capable Continue Reading
Book review: A Dog’s Perfect Christmas by W. Bruce Cameron
If ever a Christmas called for some feel good love and wonder, it’s this one. Coming at the tail end of a year of pandemic, which shows no sign of bowing out gracefully for a 2021 unfettered by sickness and death, Christmas 2020 feels like it needs all the help Continue Reading
On 11th day of Christmas … I put 15 more pop culture ornaments on my tree incl. Toy Story, Back to the Future, The Muppet Show, Aquaman, The Golden Girls
Remember how I said I bought a LOT of ornaments this year? Well, here’s proof I wasn’t lying! All kinds of things contributed to my ornaments binge, among them the fact that if you see an ornament of a particular character on eBay then you must grab it or you’ll Continue Reading
Book review: The Book of Hidden Wonders by Polly Crosby
While there is a great deal to be said for the fact that the truth will set you free, what is often overlooked is now painful the embrace of that truth can be. It is necessary and far preferable to wrapping yourself in a suffocating blanket of lies and self-delusion Continue Reading
On 8th day of Christmas … I read In a Holidaze by Christina Lauren
Life, it has oft been noted, does not come with do-overs. It would be nice if it did since, despite our best intentions, we seem to keep doing things poorly that require a better, more improved iteration and we are, quite simply stuck with the consequences of our annoyingly flawed Continue Reading
#Christmas book review: The Christmas Surprise by Jenny Colgan
One of the loveliest things about the Christmas novel genre is how they often feel like a great warm, festive hug just when you need it the most. While Christmas is for many people the most wonderful time of the year, it does arrive hot on the heels of 12 Continue Reading