In Siberia by Colin Thubron
‘Siberia seems an appropriately bleak destination for these political times and Colin Thubron makes a superb guide. Fearless traveller, brilliant observer, diligent researcher and elegant stylist – for my money his only rival among contemporary travel writers is Jonathan Raban, wonderful on today’s America. But for the vast Siberian wastes and their desperate peoples, Thubron’s involved but impersonal approach could not be bettered. He makes Abbott’s Australia positively inviting.’ – Mungo
Oh, the Places You’ll Go by Dr Seuss
‘What a lovely little book about the natural, expected and unexpected mountaintops and pitfalls of life. I can definitely recommend sitting in a bunch of cushions on the floor with some kids with this book.’ – Eve
The Men Who Stare At Goats by Jon Ronson
The Men Who Stare At Goats made a moderately entertaining film, but Jon Ronson’s original book of that name is much better: a factual documentary about the US Army’s sinister First Earth Brigade and the many crimes and idiocies committed by the CIA and FBI over the last fifty years. Genuine history that is both horrifying and hilarious.’ – David
My Family and Other Animals by Gerald Durrell
This charming and comical autobiographical novel was first published in 1956, and has a decidedly youthful and frank charm reminiscent of The Catcher in the Rye (Salinger) – minus the cynicism and profanities. Penned by Gerald Durrell, a naturalist, it follows the innocent and playful antics of a 10-year-old boy, who has moved to Corfu from England with his bohemian widowed mother and his much older siblings. Durrell is completely absorbed with animals and the natural world… it is hard to not get a tad nostalgic for an era of great simplicity and joy… sans iPhones, Facebook, and all that jazz. Lovely! ~ Melanie
