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  All right, I'll come clean, I haven't finished this book but it will be heading back to the library this afternoon and I won't make any effort to renew it. It's well written, of course it is, it's by the very well educated Anthony Holden, (he who is famous for writing biographies of members of the Royal Family) but you know, I just didn't feel any connection with him and it turns out I need that feeling if I am to carry on with an autobiography. I liked it to start with, and I particularly took to his grandfather Ivan, but all too soon he was off to Oundle school followed by Merton College Oxford, and he began to mix with the kind of society that I can only dream about.  His friends have become the literati of his generation and Gyles Brandreth found the book 'Funny, moving and telling, a rollercoaster of a good read' so don't let me put you off.  There are famous names on every page, and if that's your thing, enjoy!

  This is one of those books that you can really become invested in.  By the end, I felt as though I knew the writer Joe Hammond and that the memories shared in the book were actual memories of things he had told me about in conversation. Joe was diagnosed with Motor Neurone disease when his two boys were very young, and he had to face the reality that he would never see them grow up to be adults.  It's a heartbreaking situation and no matter how hard anyone wishes to fix it, there is no cure. In some respects, a terminal diagnosis frees the mind making it possible to view relationships objectively and write with a kind of honesty that fears no payback.  Hard truths are faced and shocking incidents recounted, but all the way through he keeps a sharp sense of humour and a clever turn of phrase. Joe has written pieces for the Guardian and developed a loyal following, but I regret to say that I had never heard of him before I read this book. That makes me feel as though...