BOOKS AND WELSH LAMB

I have returned home after our short break in Hay on Wye with a healthy supply of books, and a not very healthy cold. I did have a slight sore throat before I left so I can't blame the Welsh border weather for this cold. In fact the worst of the rain and storms were during the drive up through Somerset.

Hay on Wye is a book lover's delight and I spent far too much money on a varied selection of books. In crime fiction I was able to pick up for a £1 each:

The Colombian Mule, Massimo Carlotto

The Fields of Grief, Giles Blunt

Betrayal, Karin Alvtegen

The Bone Yard, Paul Johnston

That should keep me busy for the next few weeks.

In the true crime field I purchased Evelyn Nesbit and Stanford White, Love and Death in the Gilded Age by Michael Macdonald Mooney. This famous case features in both E.L Doctorow's Ragtime and the recent best selling crime novel The Interpretation Of Murder by Jed Rubenfeld. So I will enjoy reading about the real life characters.

My history book purchases were mostly about the 1920s and 1930s, for example Mussolini's Italy by Max Gallo, and The Siege of the Alcazar by Cecil Eby. I was convinced after reading the introductions that the world situation was a lot worse 71 years ago in 1936.

"They say they are going to shoot me if the Alcazar does not surrender. But don't worry about me. "

"If it is true," replied Moscardo, "commend your soul to God, shout "Viva Espana!" and die like a hero. Good-bye, my son, a kiss."

"Good-bye, father, a very big kiss."

................................"The Alcazar will never surrender!"

Sometimes real life events are far more dramatic than any fictional thriller.