A Slightly Rude Joke

A man and a woman who had never met before, but who were both married to other people, found themselves assigned to the same sleeping room on a trans-continental train.

Though initially embarrassed and uneasy over sharing a room, they were both very tired and fell asleep quickly, he in the upper berth and she in the lower.

At 1:00 AM, the man leaned down and gently woke the woman saying, "I'm sorry to bother you, but would you be willing to reach into the closet to get me a second blanket? I'm awfully cold."

"I have a better idea," she replied. "Just for tonight, let's pretend that we're married."

"Wow, that's a great idea!'" he exclaimed.

"Good," she replied. "Get your own *&!**! blanket."

After a moment of silence, he farted.

The Spanish Civil War

I didn't start a new book last night - I was still dipping into yesterday's book about Scots volunteers in the Spanish Civil War. Britain took a non-intervention stance in this war but as Germany, Italy and Portugal were taking an active part that amounted to Britain failing to support the side of democracy. Members of the International Brigades who had to be repatriated to Britain were later sent bills for the cost by the government and, worse, many were not accepted for the armed forces in the Second World War because they were seen as Reds. Some did enlist and found themselves discriminated against. There is a memorial stone in Kirkcaldy to those who fought which I must go and see (there is also one in Princes Street Gardens in Edinburgh).

Homage to Catalonia by George Orwell

The writer George Orwell spent the first part of 1937 in Spain fighting against the Fascists who were attempting to overthrow the government. His memoir, Homage to Catalonia, describes the fighting he took part in as well as the boredom of waiting for action to start, and he also describes the confusion of the times. Despite contemporary newspaper reports it was not simply a case of democracy versus fascism: many of the working class aimed at revolution and complete social change. This was exemplified in Orwell's P.O.U.M. militia, where officers and men were on the same pay and nobody was addressed by a title. Events moved fast however, and by the middle of 1937 other political parties were in the ascendent. Orwell and his wife barely managed to escape prison before they fled the country. It is poignant to read this book with the benefit of hindsight, and to know that Orwell's fears of fascist victory actually came about. As well as reading this, I have been dipping into Voices from the Spanish Civil War: personal recollections of Scottish volunteers in Republican Spain, 1936-1939 (edited by Ian McDougall). It is amazing to read of the commitment and bravery of ordinary men and women who made their way to Spain to fight with the International Brigades. These were men from the mining villages of Fife, for example, some of whom must still be alive today - a direct connection to history.

On a completely different note I had an easy and enjoyable read next, with the children's book A Very Proper Fox by Jan Fearnley. It features a naughty rabbit and a knicker-ironing fox! This is a favourite of a little girl I know, but adults will enjoy the sly humour and witty illustrations nearly as much. It would be ideal for a 3 to 5 year old.

Then, inspired by the film Withnail and I, I decided to read the play Journey's End by R C Sherriff. I had read this at school, but was reminded of it when Marwood in the film was reading a copy (presumably for his audition). This is a cleverly-constructed play with many touches of humour and excellent characterisation. It conveys the idea that the trench fighting in many cases may have been completely pointless, but that the individual heroism was not. It is a tragedy nevertheless.

Day 113; Book 113

In which the reader must imagine rolling tumbleweed, whistling winds and Clint Eastwood as the High Plains Drifter arriving at a deserted town ...

Because today I have nothing to put in this lonely post, having failed to complete yesterday's book, George Orwell's Homage to Catalonia. I'm about half way through, so will be back tomorrow with my thoughts on this Spanish Civil War memoir.

Withnail and I: the Screenplay by Bruce Robinson

I watched Withnail and I on Sunday on dvd and loved it so much I decided to read the screenplay in case I had missed any of the lines. In fact it was well worth reading because the directions in the screenplay reveal a lot about the characters' motivations.

Withnail and I is a cult British film made in the 1980s but set in London and the Lake District in 1969. It is a semi-autobiographical tale by the writer and director Bruce Robinson. It's beautifully constructed with many hilarious but also a few touching moments, as the drugged-up protagonists approach the end of their own particular era. A definite must-see and must-read. Here is what seems to be the definitive review of the film, explaining its appeal.

The screenplay was fairly short so I was also able to read "T N Foulis: the history and bibliography of an Edinburgh publishing house". Again this was fairly quick to read as much of the work consists of lists of books and of illustrators associated with the publishing house. They were in business from about 1903 to 1926 and produced many beautifully illustrated books, many intended to be given as presents. Jessie M King was one of the Scottish artists who illustrated their works. The books are still available from second-hand shops and websites, but some are extremely rare. The "Friendship Booklets" form a particularly attractive series. Here is an example for sale on Ebay - scroll down for the best image.

Day 111; Book 110

Odd Hours by Dean Koontz

This took me ages to finish, probably because I wasn't really enjoying it. I loved the first Odd Thomas novel by Koontz, as it was so original and the character so sympathetic. It had an exciting story with a bit of a twist too. This is the fourth Odd Thomas novel though and I felt it was a bit predictable - not so much the writing as the concept. Odd is still a great character though, and some of the one-liners are really funny. Unfortunately the style of writing gets a bit wearing sometimes as Koontz ALWAYS seems to choose a long word over a short ...

Next I had an Agatha Raisin, and I was enjoying it so much I finished it in a few hours. This one was Agatha Raisin and Kissing Christmas Goodbye. The author has introduced a promising new character, but she still kept us up-to-date with all our old favourites (except the Boggles, sadly! Apparently they have moved away).

The next "book" was only 26 pages: Short Stories by Irvine Welsh, as supplied with Scotland on Sunday. Irvine Welsh, for those who don't know, is the author of Trainspotting. First was an extract from his novella 'I am Miami', which was perceptive but miserable! I won't be reading the whole thing. However, Vat '96 and Where the Debris Meets the Sea were hilarious in their different ways. Vat '96 is skillfully written in the classic short story format, and Where the Debris ... turns celebrity worship on its head. Both will leave you amused and horrified at the same time, although for different reasons. Lisa's Mum Meets the Queen Mum was again well-written but rather fizzled out for me.

Finally I decided to be celebrate Burns' Day with Rhymer Rab: an anthology of poems and prose edited by Alan Bold. The introduction provides a good recap of the poet's life, and then the middle section gives a choice of his most famous poems, followed by a selection of his prose writing including many letters. Any study of Burns seems to raise as many questions as it answers eg how did he reconcile his politics with his employment as an exciseman (necessity probably) and how did such a romantic explain his treatment of the many women in his life? It's not surprising that he is still read and studied more than 2 centuries later. This book does illustrate how well-read the poet actually was, even if he did play up the heaven-taught ploughman angle to his readers. I didn't manage to finish this one though, so I'm not counting it towards my Book-a-Day totals.


Day 110; Book 108

Foreign Affairs by Alison Lurie

Sadly I've come to the end of my borrowed stash of Alison Lurie books. It looks like I saved one of the best till last - Foreign Affairs won the Pulitzer Prize and was a great read, with the usual skillfull characterisation and witty observations. (Apparently it was serialised on TV as well). Once again, you couldn't exactly say the book had a happy ending but it did have a satisfactory ending. Again, several of the same characters cropped up from other books. It's funny for the hero in this one to have appeared as a 4-year old in Love and Friendship but very satisfying to imagine that Lurie's characters are living out their lives in real time. Thanks to Jo for introducing me to this author.

Day 107; Book 105