The Return of The Dancing Master
Henning Mankell
It’s Sweden (again), but a different part of Sweden from the Ystad of Kurt Wallander and a different cast of characters. We’re in the North (around Sveg) and Mankell has produced a new policeman (Lindman) who has recently been diagnosed as having cancer of the tongue. It’s a decent enough thriller, fairly violent and (being Swedish) somewhat depressing. I miss Wallander however.
Michelin Guide Great Britain & Ireland 2006
Now that the UK guide to hotels and restaurants has become more established it gets better and more reliable with each edition. JSW in Petersfield keeps their deserved rosette (maybe I’ll make enough money to eat there again sometime), and I was startled to find that there is a highly recommended B&B hidden from view near Rogate which I pass on my drive to work each morning.
Naked Conversations
How Blogs are Changing the Way Businesses Talk with Customers
Robert Scoble & Shel Israel (foreword by Tom Peters)
Very rarely do I read the books I sell (I’ve never been over-interested in the way computers work) but I did pick up this one which evangelises corporate blogging and is more of a business book than a computer book anyway. Now corporate blogging could be a good idea and there are certainly some convincing examples of how blogs can alter a company’s interface with its customers. On the other hand it might just be a bit of hogwash which will act as a 5-minute wonder before blogging becomes a thing of the past. The authors’ enthusiasm leads me to think that there is a message there and I’m going to give it a go. You can preview my early draft on a new site http://spaces.msn.com/booksinspace/ but don’t get carried away.
Le Guide: Selected Autoroutes France
Karol Libura
Unless you have a caravan or a baby, or are in constant need of SOS telephones when driving in France, then this book is virtually useless. It takes the main autoroutes and describes each and every “aire” – whether or not there are picnic benches, nappy changing facilities, cash machines, etc. The only new thing about motorway stops in France that I learned was the reason that the A6 south of Beaune is adorned with strange coloured mushrooms (it’s all about the mushroom-themed “Aire de Jugy”. The book has advice for drivers in France (I didn’t know that the French for clutch is l’embrayage) or the difference in police fine between being caught at 180kmph (135 euros) and 190kmph (750 euros). However no mention is made of the rather complicated “diamond” road signs in Francewhich indicate priority to the right (or not) and which are only fully understood only by Frenchmen and the younger brother. I suppose the reason is that those signs are not to be seen on motorways while it is possible that the French motorway traveller might benefit from knowing "what colour wine to drink with chicken" on a stopover. I repeat this is a useless book.
