Hello, Today, to mark the close of Women's History Month, we have a selection of books about women to share with you. They are filled with stories of inspiring, memorable and interesting lives: from an 18th century celebrity, to unsung women who made remarkable contributions in medicine, sport and social justice, via pioneers of…
Hello, Here on the blog we first posted our suggestions for 'Gifts that do Good' back in 2017. As it already seems to be the time of year when magazines and newspapers are publishing their lists of gift ideas for Christmas, we thought we'd bring you our updated collection, starting with some ideas from…
The Staircase 9 17 Bookshelf choice for December is A Child's Christmas in Wales, by Dylan Thomas (1914 - 1953) It's a nostalgic and funny account of Christmas time in Swansea, south Wales, during the years of Thomas's youth. Here's the description of what happens when there is a fire at the Prothero household:…
I thought I was the only one." Today's Friday Food for Thought comes from C.S. Lewis (1898 - 1963), English novelist and academic. His circle of literary friends, known as The Inklings, included J.R.R. Tolkien. They met regularly at the Eagle and Child pub in Oxford, nicknamed the Bird and Baby. Did you know?…
Our book recommendation for November is City of Light, by Lauren Belfer. City of Light is set here in Buffalo, New York, just after the turn of the 20th century. Five years before that, on 15th November 1896, Buffalo became the first city to have widespread electric street lighting, thanks to Nikola Tesla and the…
Our book recommendation for October is The Real Jane Austen: A life in small things, by Paula Byrne. Divided into chapters dealing with different items such as 'The East Indian Shawl', 'The Topaz Crosses', and 'The Box of Letters', it is a fascinating, readable and original exploration of the life of Jane Austen and the…
Dear Sam, I hope you had a great summer, too. Although the weather here is definitely autumnal, I'm still thinking of warm days as I'm busy getting ready for our holiday. We're taking the train to Lake Como via Milan, where we have a few days to explore. As it's our first visit there…