Nick Hornby: Juliet, Naked

Having just read High Fidelity when I first saw the posters on the Tube announcing the new Horby’s book I couldn’t wait to get home and do my Amazon book shopping. Having read it I am not as overwhelmed as I hoped I would be. It’s not as funny as High Fidelity and not as engaging.

Juliet, Naked is a story of two people, Annie and Duncan, stuck together in a not the most exciting relationship of all, sharing a bed but not necessarily sharing their outlook on life. Duncan’s an obsessed fan of Tucker Crowe, an American singer who mysteriously disappeared years ago and didn’t record anything since. Annie is a museum worker who for fifteen years has been sharing Duncan’s obsession about Crowe but starts realising that there isn’t much more than this that they have in common.

It’s not the best book I read recently and not my Hornby’s favourite but there are some little jewels in Juliet, Naked that I enjoyed.

First one is Malcolm, Annie’s old fashioned and judgmental psychotherapist. Who is probably more dependant on her than she is on him given she’s his only patient. Malcolm could have done with some more wit but he made me smile as a character.

Another one is Gooleness as a place and the way Nick describes it. Only having lived in the UK for a couple of years I find this small seaside town atmosphere really fascinating. It’s not any seaside town, it’s an English seaside town that I’ve seen a few of and they all have a similar feel to them. Feel of remoteness and lack of freshness as if only old people lived there. The exhibition Annie is preparing is just one example of that. Nice one Nick!

It made me smile, it made me live in a seaside town for a few days, it showed me slightly different side of English life and that’s what I expect from a book. Will it stay in my mind for long? Probably not.

My rating: YYYYY

My intro to the world of blogging

Who would have thought that writing could be so easy! Technology still overwhelms me. And I always thought only old people were allowed to say that.

Anyway, I thought I'd give it a go and do some writing on my own. I spent a while thinking what I could write about. So who do you go to when you need advice? And so I Googled "what to blog about" but none of the top 10 links inspired me.

So I turned into my inner self - I probably should write about what I like. Easy. So here's a starter:

1. Photography - yes, could do. I like it, I take a few photos when I travel (some say far too many), some of them are good some are better ;). But I love photography for the moment, emotion and beauty it captures and I can't talk exposure, white balance and aperture...
2. Travel - I love travelling, seeing places, meeting people, experiencing cultures. I have been to a few countries around but it's a still tiny proportion of what I would like to see. So maybe not ready for a blog yet.
   
3. Movies - similar to photography - I like experiencing movies more than talking about them. So that most likely disqualifies writing too.
   
4. Books - books are my second world, books have always been in my life. Since I learnt to read I spend days and nights with books. By the way, reading under a duvet with a torch not to wake up your parents - not a good idea. I wear glasses because of that now (makes me look smarter I like to think...). Books are magical. They let me do all the other things I like - travel to other countries and worlds even when there's no holiday left in the year or no money to give to the airlines, experience emotions and beauty on the photos in my imagination. Books are like movies and photos and travel all in one. Brilliant! So books it is!
   

So there we go - my new world of blogging about something I love. And to make this new experience even more exciting I am going to set myself a reading challenge. Any suggestions?