Now We Are Six Hundred

This book is a collection of Doctor Who themed poetry, apparently written in the Time Lord's own actual voice, by the supremely talented voice-snatcher James Goss - and if that wasn't enough already it also includes a number of pretty stylish illustrations apparently by Russell T. Davies himself! The poems vary hugely in terms of content and tone, as you'd expect from one such as a Gallifreyan consciousness; but deal with the show's lore deftly and with utmost respect for the integrity of poetic form. A powerful, resonant collection in my book. Retiring really spoke to me with Twelve's distinct voice, while The Hard Stair struck me as a very timely almost whinge foreshadowing Thirteen - also there's a poem about a Dalek, which is fun, though later on I almost felt personally attacked as a poet and Whovian myself by the phrasing of one of the lines in Shortness of Breath, but that's another story for another time, probably never. To Her Coy Doctor is presumably by River Song, or Clara... or - and some of these seem to be about the Time War, which we can only presume is still going on in some kind of poetic format?* There's just so much mystery shrowding the show that it inevitably spills out when the showrunners start upselling that as pure poetic mindbombs etcetera, very enjoyable collection if you're a fan of the show. 11/10. and no that's not my score rating of 110% just a DT MS reference.

* As though the book's first inset page claims it was published in 2017 - I'm pretty confident I would have had a copy by now, and it's been retconned into reality this very year for sake of Chris Chibnall's metasocial ethical integrity for what he's doing to the Timeless Children of Sheffield and its surrounding countryside... They set giant spiders on us up here, you do know that down in London don't you? It's all a scareshow shitfest for maximal profit. Gross

Holes

This book by Louis Sachar is a marvel of young readers' literature in so many ways, but - and I hate that I have to do this, but I do - it's not as good as the film for two simple reasons:

1. The soundtrack
2. Shia Labeouf

And that is all I have to say about this book, other than that obviously it's a great read, with a really fun plot and satisfying ending, with a pretty interesting set of themes and one of my favourite side-characters from any kids' novel in the hero that is Zero.

Spider-Man: Full Circle

This book is a collaborative work by seven different writers as a celebration of the iconic character's 80th birthday since Spidey's inception by the late great Stan Lee - and to tell you the flat-up truth, I'm really not sure what happens in this comic at all, despite just having read the thing twice. It's a helter-skelter ride of apocalyptic fervour-dream wish-wash madness with werewolves and time travel and a fully circular plot and some kind of magical pixie escape clause or something or maybe Peter Parker's just hallucinating the whole thing while stranded dying in space... I don't know. It was very entertaining though, and there's also a really fun little appendix where the writers and editorial team are chatting about how to make the ending work along with the beginning (oh, should note, when the writers were working on this they knew what had just happened but not where the overall story was going or who'd be passing them, or taking, their plot relay torches at each step); shed some neat lights over the collective process of pulling off a story as crazy in content and methodological form as this one. 8/10 overall, might be higher on a further reading in the future, though also I found myself digging into the Omegaverse lore after being prompted into such a curiosity by this comic - and boy, lemme tell you, that's one rabbit-hole you don't want or need to find the bottom of. You've been warned. By a friendly neighbourhood Spiderman [not me].

the Prodigal God

This book by Tim Keller is an explosively insightful and well-considered re-exploration of the parable commonly misknown as the story about a prodigal son - when in fact, as Keller so adeptly points out, the story is a story about God's family, skewing its various three members narratively in ways that totally upend conventional contemporary wisdom about societal and religious norms. As a singular book I can only think of one or two that effectively provide a comprehensive theological overview of Christianity's core point more concisely and powerfully than this. Highly recommended as an apologetic evangelistic primer for believers looking to share their faith simply and authentically.

the Book of the People

This book by A. N. Wilson is a masterfully woven deep dive into how to read the Bible as emergent from its contained truth claims unpacked from history, context and intention. It is written with a poetic eye for detail and a rigorously pragmatic approach to problem-solving the tangles and conflicts of meta-historical academic considerations of Scripture - instead, Wilson is bent on showing us how Scripture comes alive when it is lived in, understood by meaningful participation in the story of God's people, and that is an immensely reinvigorating view of the Bible: regardless of your religious belief I think you would find this book a stimulating and freshly thought-provoking take on the tenets of biblical thinking. Highly recommended for apologetic reading if you're already a believer or an explorer.

Emil and the Sneaky Rat

This book by Astrid Lindgren is a hearty romp that will amuse the children just as much as the adults reading this to them - think what if Just William was Swedish, only with a far more elusive tone to the narration that lends an almost mythically folklorish bent to many of these tales; in which Emil, a young boy always getting into distinctly Emilian mischief, shocks and delights many people in his hometown and the surrounding villages. I highly commend this book for readers between five and eight as a rough bracket.

Romans 1-7 for You

This book by Tim Keller was a real treat. I read through the whole thing as a Bible study with my dad, which was a great means of digesting better the sheer amount of incredible commentary Keller brings to what many consider the theological cornerstone of New Testament systematic thinking - that being, obvs, the book of Romans itself. Tim writes to and for the laypeople, always considering well the many sides and dimensions to take into account when talking about the application of deeper passages of scripture to our modern lives, modelling ourselves as we must on Paul as he strives to emulate Christ... it was a bonus crossover for me having been reading through this weekly having also read Phoebe earlier this year, which is a great resource for understanding the original historical context and impact of the Romans' epistle.

Chapter & Verse: 1000 Years of English Literature

This book, which I can't find for sale anywhere on the internet so good luck clarifying the veracity of the text should you wish to track it down in real life... is a visually striking ramble through the history of the literary pinnacles of our great Albion's loremasters and bards... from Keats to Shakespeare, Beowulf to Liz Barrett Browning, Margaery Kempe to Kubla Khan - snippets of the original handwritten manuscripts are included to flag up the sheer beauty and tenacity of what writers had to do before keyboards came along. I know, right? Also, I will mention here out of gratitude that this book was gifted to me some years ago by Yunzhou, or Eve, a good friend of mine from university days - if she's reading this, which I doubt, but I want to thank you for the present anyway, and sorry it took me so long to get around to reading it!

the Tale of Three Trees

This book by Angela Hunt is a powerful short story about ambition, hope, competitiveness and nature versus nurture... The prides of each of our three protreegonists is thwarted, but then totally vindicated, when they're turned into, respectively, a manger, a fishing boat, and a Roman cross: the threesome had always wanted to be of usage deeply important and treasurable; and now because the Jesus story happens to these trees they have eternal significance for their part in the saga. Touching, if not the most theologically compelling of stories, but this is not a book designed to convert non-Christian children so much as to stimulate the humble imagination of all possible readers to the transcendent truths of the Crucifixion as it happened.