Books

You might imagine that when it comes to a writer of Jane Austen’s towering and enduring fame that there must be almost nothing we don’t know about her. But in fact, thanks to the destruction of letters between Austen and her sister Cassandra, for reasons unknown, and no doubt history’s Continue Reading

Growing up as the son of a Baptist minister in a family heavily involved in the church, the world was presented as a starkly illuminated contrast of black and white, a demarcation between Christian morality which was, naturally enough, presented as good, and worldly values which were quite obviously and Continue Reading

We all want a simple life. One in which goodies are goodies and baddies are baddies and there is no massive murky grey zone spreading out between the black and white which are never close enough or as well defined as many of us would like. But that’s life – Continue Reading

In our rush to make some sort of liveable accommodation with the vagaries and contradictions of life, we often fall into the trap of lionising it without paying sufficiently heed to its drawbacks, losses and complications. It’s understandable – while the business of living might feel like a short and Continue Reading

It’s a rare thing indeed for great life changes to arrive without any trauma. In fact, many times, the sense of disruption and loss can be profound and while we usually emerge out the other side, we are changed, making a return to business as usual, which no longer exists Continue Reading

Life is messy. We all know this deep down and yet time and again, we seek ways short and long term, consciously and subconciously to bring order where there palpably is none and where, if we’re honest, we know there can never be. And yet we keep trying, shoving down Continue Reading

Where would you want to be at end of the world? With your loved ones or good friends? Favourite bar? The restaurant that serves your steaks just so? Most people, understandably would choose the first option if for no other reason than when everything is at its apocalyptically worst, you Continue Reading

The more things, the more they stay the same. This oft-repeated and frankly rather over-used phrase, which simultaneously sounds both very wise and extraordinarily obvious, is proof positive that humanity has a predilection for repeating its errant behaviour over and over again, no matter how disastrous or comically awful the Continue Reading

In the sometimes blighted age in which we now live, the concept of truth has taken rather a beating. A once inviolable idea that rested on the firm foundation of repeatedly verified facts, truth is now seen in certain quarters as a malleable quantity, something that can be dismissed as Continue Reading