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Bren, like you, I wondered what on earth the poem itself would be like, but you're right; it's easy to read and there are some very fine moments in it and quite a lot of good ideas. Obviously that all gets lost in the ensuing manipulation of it by Kinbote – but I suppose it has to stand on...

One of the worst things I've read this year was David Bret's Piaf, which was dire. I wanted to throttle the author, who seemed to spend much of the book attempting to insert himself into the story. And it was written as a gossipy, sensationalistic piece of pulp trash. Piaf deserves so, so...

The Hive by Camilo José Cela The Hive (La Colmena) is 1989 Nobel laureate Camilo José Cela's most famous work. Published first in 1951, it's set over three days in 1943, and uses 215 vignettes to describe picture more than 300 characters in Madrid, as their lives interweave and their paths...

PS: And not to forget the detailed 'index' at the end – amazing stuff.

Belle de Jour by Joseph Kessel Séverine Serizy is a beautiful and naïve young woman, happily married to Jean. But she doesn't enjoy sex – she dutifully allows Jean his conjugal contact, but her own enjoyment is non-existent. However, when she hears from a friend that a mutual...

That was sweet, yes. The whole portrayal of Jimmy Snr's reaction is delightful.

Pale Fire by Vladimir Nabokov Poet John Shade has been murdered, 999 lines into a 1,000-line poem in four cantos – the Pale Shade of the title. So what we have here is Shade's unfinished final work, sandwiched between a foreword and extensive commentary from his editor and friend, Charles...

The Snapper by Roddy Doyle The second volume in Roddy Doyle's Barrytown Trilogy, this again features working-class Dublin family the Rabbittes, and opens with daughter Sharon announcing to her parents that she's pregnant. But as she refuses to reveal the identity of the father, Doyle gradually...

From A to X by John Berger A'ida and Xavier are lovers, but the latter is serving a life sentence for terrorism and their relationship continues by letter. The central conceit in this slender volume is that author John Berger has come into possession of two packets of A'ida's letters...

I have one tattoo – at present – but am planning a second, which will be much more 'important' and will demand a much better artist. I had three piercings but only have one left – I can't see those developing at present.

And why not have a proper, state-run health system for everyone, so that nobody has to worry about whether their employer is a skinflint when it comes to their health or not? Such a system, of course, is not set up with the intention of making a profit for shareholders who are fortunate in the...

Hey, how many hundreds of thousands of innocent men, women and children is the current immoral, cretinous twerp in the White House (together with his reactionary cronies) responsible for murdering? But if it keeps the military-industrial complex happy (and provides 'free' money for his mates...

You used one anecdotal example to lambast "liberal education" and to complain about the lack of "moral education" in public schools. Please make your mind up. If the US situation is anything like the UK, then I suspect, as shown time and time again by the UK census, a considerable majority...

Nice negative post. Not a single, solitary shred of evidence in it, but it leaves a lovely, negative glow. I tell you what – how about teaching children that rape and murder and abuse follow marriage and the forming of many relationships, eh? I do assume that you've heard of domestic abuse? Or...

And what values are these that are unique to Christianity? And what "permissive" values are these? I'm curious to see the evidence for all this – imagine, mass swathes of teachers shagging and smoking dope in front of the children! Oooo, I can feel the outrage already. Now, obviously you have...

Excellent post. The UK and the US have the highest rates of teenage pregnancy in the West – the Netherlands has the lowest. One has to wonder why. To develop the theme slightly, according to UN figures for the past five years, the UK has higher rates of rape than any other western...

Why teach abstinence any more than promiscuity? Are any schools actually telling children to 'go out and have sex'? You know, I rather suspect that they're not. So why teach children 'do not go out and have sex'? Either would be foisting an opinion on students – teaching a subjective 'moral'...

Hi Joderu – just got back yesterday (24 hours late due to some freaky snafus), but the holiday itself was wonderful. Many thanks for asking. Syb

I didn't say that any schools taught "creationism as science". Did I? :twisted: I said that there are schools (including in the UK), where evolution in condemned and creationism is proclaimed. That is not the same thing. Anyway, I'm glad that I'm wrong and a large percentage of the...

So what is this 'non-liberal' education, then? I mean, if there's a 'liberal' education, there must be a 'non-liberal' education, mustn't there? Can anyone define it? I assume you'll have brilliantly easily defined the 'liberal' sort first, mind. But, rather shockingly, nobody has done that...