Just so's no one wonders where I've gone (or worries that MI5 have finally acted on Alastair Campbell's all-too-insistent pleas), I'm quiet because of loads of family crap. Nothing major, just lots of things I've had to sort out for the ailing parents and feckless sister.

I shall be back on full form after the school Summer Holidays, as I like to spend time off out with Little 'Un during that, which doesn't leave much spare time.

Have a nice summer!

Ooooh, very belated writing this week, I'm so behind in so many things, and am organising a birthday party for Friday.

But I SOOOOOOO enjoyed Dr Who on Saturday, I loved the comedy bits of it, loved the sad bits, had a little cry at the end, it was great.

It'll be interesting to see how the new companion goes. I felt like Rose was more Christopher Ecclestone's companion. I know they tried for some sexual tension with David Tennant, but it didn't really work - Rose was too tomboyish and you kind of got the feeling she'd squash him. Actually, this wasn't true in the 'kiss' episode, because of the different character inhabiting Rose's skin - so I think it was more of a 'Rose' thing than a 'Billie Piper' one.

The end of that epi really felt like it was written for CE too. I had a little sniff, but if it had been CE sayng those lines and losing Rose, I'd have sobbed 'til I spewed. Very sad.

I was never so keen on DT as on CE, but now it's all finished there is a big hole in my Saturday (I can now go out before 7.45!). I've put a Dr Who background on my computer, and I get a little shiver every time I switch on now. Bloody hell, could I actually fancy a normal bloke?

Ooops, forgot I read this one!

Douglas Coupland: Generation X
I have loved all DG's books except Shampoo Planet (tedious characters, a reliance on literary tricks and superficial treatment of themes explored more satisfyingly in his other books), so no surprise that I really enjoyed this one too. The only surprise really was that I'd always assumed that Generation X was younger than me, but it isn't. I am apparently a Generation X-er.

It's the story of Andy and his friends who have McJobs, live in Palm Springs and like to tell stories. The bit I really identified with was how they have imagined how they would respond in the case of a nuclear strike, how they grew up in fear of it, have imagined the mushroom cloud etc. My only quibble is that they seem a bit old to be so aimless, and they inhabit nice bungalows and have cars, so his picture of 'drop-outs' sounds a bit sanitised to me. But as usual, it's so well written you don't care.

Considering the hype surrounding this book, I was expecting it to be a bit crappy, so it was a nice surprise that it's up to Coupland's usual high standard.
(85/100)

I don't seem to have read much this month. Dunno why.

Maille Meloy: Half in Love
This is a collection of short stories, and although they were worth the read, I felt like they were more about the atmosphere and characters they created than the stories they had to tell. There were a couple of brilliant ones - ones which really were fully developed shorts with a single idea perfectly explored - but on the whole I felt like a more punchy storyline or thread would have benefitted most of them.
(57/100)

Salley Vickers: Mr Golightly’s Holiday
This one was bloody brilliant! It was one of those books I just picked up on the off-chance as I saw it in the library: I really didn't have any big expectations. The story was strong from the off. Mr Golightly is a businessman who takes a long holiday let. He is hoping to re-work his magnum opus - a one-time bestseller that has become neglected by a modern audience, and that he is sure would benefit from a soap-style revamp. He arrives in a chocolate-box village which seems sleepy, and is soon caught up in the dramas of the residents.

Usually I can see the ending to a book a mile off, but this book was different. I immediately had to go back and re-read the whole thing - which is probably why I've read so little this month, come to think of it. I can't recommend this highly enough - it's going to be a classic.
(93/100)

PJ Tracy: Dead Run
Workmanlike page-turner. Nothing wrong with it. Fine beach read, enlivened by me being unable to imagine the Grace in the book as anyone other than Grace from Big Brother, even though I'd read the previous book in the series, Want to Play?.
(55/100)

John Bird: How to change Your Life in 7 Steps
This book's strong point is that it is really easy to follow, and he has some excellent ideas - that I can see would work. I personally found the '3 per cent' rule really useful - when a task seems overwhelming, just set out to do 3 per cent of it.

The weak points were his personal anecdotes. He's the guy who set up the Big Issue, and so I'm sure that yes, he's had a tough life and come through it. But with his prison anecdotes it came a cross more as if he was saying 'ooooh, I'm hard'. There's no stupid psychobabble though, and he empowers people rather than pushing them into being victims, so for a self-help book it is a good one.
(60/100)