I’ve been reading Margaret Oliphant, I’m reading Amber Reeves, and I may fit in another books before the Persephone Readathon hosted by Jessie @ Dwell in Possibility draws to a close.

What I lack is time to think and write about them. I might get there in time but, just in case I don’t, I thought I would do what I often do at times like this.

An A to Z …

* * * * * * *

A is for AMOURS DE VOYAGE by Arthur Clough. This will probably be the next Persephone book I read, as I need a book from 1858 for my ‘100 Years of Books’ project.

B is for BIANNUALLY. It is always a red-letter day when the latest Persephone Biannually arrives, with articles, short stories, reviews, events, so much to peruse.

C is for COMING SOON.  ‘Despised and Rejected’ by Rose Allatini, ‘Young Anne’ by Dorothy Whipple and ‘Tory Heaven’ by Marghanita Laski will all be published in April.

D is for DOROTHY CANFIELD FISHER, one of a select bank of authors to be published by both Virago and Persephone.

E is for EARTH AND HIGH HEAVEN by Gwethalyn Graham. I have an old edition, and it is one of a small collection of books that I chose to sit on top of my Persephone Bookcase.

F is for FRANKIE BARNABY, the young narrator who finds that she has much to learn in ‘Hetty Dorval’ by Ethel Wilson.

G is for GLADYS HUNTINGDON. My copy of ‘Madame Solario’ is sitting on my bedside table, and I hope it won’t be too long before I to find the time read it.

H is for HOSTAGES TO FORTUNE by Elizabeth Cambridge was one of the best books that I read last year.

I is for INDIA. I loved following a young woman’s journey to India in ‘The Far Cry’ by Emma Smith.

J is for JACQUELINE MESNIL-AMAR. My kind of generous Virago Secret Santa sent me two Persephone books from my wishlist, and her memoir ‘Maman What Are We Called Now?’ was one of them.

K is for KAY SMALLSHAW, author of ‘How to Run Your Home Without Help. It’s a book I would love to read, to remind me of some of the changes that my grandmother lived through.

L is for LIBRARY.  I read a library copy of ‘The Village’ by Marghanita Laski, I aspire to a Persephone copy, but I have an elderly hardback rescued from a bargain bin for now.

M is for MARINA by Monica Dickens. The heroine’s name was inspired by Tennyson’s poem.

N is for NORAH HOULT, one of many authors to be found in the beautifully curated ‘Persephone Hook of Short Stories.’

O is for OLGA, the irrepressible title character of ‘The Runaway by Elizabeth Anna Hart; one of a handful of very well chosen stories for children in the Persephone list

P is for PAPER. Persephone books are printed on lovely, thick paper.

Q is for QUEEN ELEANOR. She appears in the second of the pair of novellas by Mrs Oliphant that Persephone published a few years ago.

R is for RUTH HOLLAND. Susan Glaspell tells her story in Fidelity, and, if you haven’t already, you really must find a copy and read it.

S is for SUFFRAGE. ‘No Surrender’ by Constance Maud is a passionate account of the suffragette movement written by one who was there. It hit me emotionally, and it taught me a great deal that I hadn’t known.

T is for TIRZAH GARWOOD. The Man of the House bought me her autobiography – ‘Long Live Great Bardfield’ for Christmas. I was so pleased, because I have read so much praise for this book.

U is for UNREAD. My copy of ‘Miss Buncle’s Book’ by D.E. Stevenson has been sitting waiting to be read for a long time. The right moment hasn’t come, but I’m sure that it will one day.

V is for VERSE. The first novel in verse that I read was ‘Lettice Delmer’ by Susan Miles. I doubted that such a book could hold me, but I put my trust in Persephone and I found that it was utterly compelling.

W is for WOMAN ABOUT THE HOUSE  from’Tell it to a Stranger’ by Elizabeth Berridge. It’s an odd little story, but it still speaks profoundly.

X is for EXHIBITION.  The Persephone Post offers’ a parallel in pictures to the world of
Persephone Books every weekday.’

Y is for YOU MUST LOOK INSIDE .The dove-grey covers make books look alike, but the endpapers within, chosen to match the period and the style of each one, highlight the differences beautifully. I’ve chosen a few favourites to illustrate this post.

Z is for ZINNIA, the very last flower in the index of ‘Gardener’s Nightcap by Muriel Stuart.

* * * * * * *

Now that there are 125 books in the Persephone list it’s impossible to fit every gem into an A to Z. So please tell me, which books and authors you couldn’t have left out, which are your particular favourites, and which are you most looking forward to reading?

A is for ALAIN-FOURNIER’S LOST ESTATE. It’s a lovely mixture of book, biography and travelogue, and it’s still available on BBC iplayer.

B is for BLACK FOX RUNNING by Brian Carter. This lost classic of nature writing looks wonderful, and  I’m planning to read it very soon.

C is for CINEMA PARADISO. I was sorry to lose LoveFilm, but this is much better for the old films and the foreign films that are much loved in our house.

D is for DUSTY IN MEMPHIS. Not the album, a song by the Dreaming Spires that has been stuck in my head lately.

E is for EXHIBITION. It’s been lovely to see Kristin Vestgard at the Cornwall Contemporary Gallery and Catherine Hyde at the Lighthouse Gallery again.

F is for FRANZISKA. I just have one sleeve to knit and then I’m done.

G is for GLADYS HUNTINGTON. ‘Madame Solario’ is one of the books I’m hoping to read over the Christmas break.

H is for THE HAPPY READER. I’d dropped my subscription, but Annabel convinced me that I should pick it up again.

I is for INCOMING BOOKS. I was restrained for quite some time – until Karen mentioned the Verso Books sale …

J is for JAY GRIFFITHS. I love her opening piece in the Little Toller woodland anthology ‘Arboreal’ and I think I’m going to be looking more of her work.

K is for KNITTING NEEDLES. I realised that I had far too many and that I hadn’t used the long straight ones for quite some time; so I paired them all up and threw them in a charity shop bag.

L is for LESLEY BLANCH. I was delighted when the Man of the House found a copy of ‘On the Wilder Shores of Love in a charity shop and brought it home.

M is for MOTHS – something that every knitter dreads. I’ve lost a cardigan, I’ve saved a jumper, and I’ve ditched a wicker storage chest.

N is for NATASHA KHAN – better known as Bat for Lashes – is a genius, and I have played ‘The Bride’ so much recently.

O is for OCTOBER SUNRISE. This is my simple knitting project of the moments, for times when I want something do do but don’t want to look down at what I’m doing or look at my pattern too much,

P is for PLAYLIST.I love the appearance of my ‘best of the year’ playlist on Spotify. It always reminds me of something lovely that I haven’t heard nearly enough.

Q is for QUEENS’ PLAY. My second Dunnett is well underway, and it’s still love.

R is for ROOF. It’s lovely to be going into the winter with a brand new roof, and not having to worry nearly as much as we did last year when the weather turns stormy.

S is for SARAH EMSLEY, who has just launched a new series – ‘Youth and Experience’ – celebrating ‘Northanger Abbey’ and ‘Persuasion’.

T is for TIDE TIMES. We can look out of the window, but I need to buy a little yellow book showing tide times and heights for the new year so that we can plan ahead for beach walks and know when the biggest high tides are coming.

U is for UNDER THE GREEENWOOD TREE. The next book in my chronological re-read of Thomas Hardy is ready and waiting.

V is for VASS. I bought a set of Deborah Vass’s cards for my godmother, and I am sure she is going to love them.

W is for WATER. I thought that I’d taken a fairy standard ‘happy dog on a beach’ picture, until I saw the sky reflected in the surface water.

X is for XAN BROOKS. I’ve been disappointed with three of the books listed for the Costa First Novel Award, and I’m hoping that ‘The Clocks in the House All Tell Different Times’ by Xan Brooks will break my bad run.

Y is for YOKED SWEATERS. They seem to be everywhere at the moment, I’ve never knitted one, but maybe it’s time. I’m leaning towards Arboreal, and I’m thinking that I’m reading a book with the same name and maybe that’s a sign.

Z is for ZOE OLDENBOURG. I have been meaning to read ‘The World is Not Enough’ for so long, and I think – I hope – its time has finally come.

A is for ALIAS GRACE. I was planning a re-read before the television series, I was sure I had a copy but LibraryThing told me I didn’t. I have a library copy for now but I suspect I will need to buy a copy to keep.

B is for A BOOK AT BEDTIME. It was lovely to hear Rachel Joyce reading her own abridgement of ‘The Music Shop.’

C is for COLOUR-WORK. I’ve really improved by technique knitting Franziska. I can’t do the two-handed thing that many people recommend, but holding two yarns over two different fingers is working well for me.

D is for DOCTOR THORNE – my next Trollope!

E is for ELIZABETH TAYLOR. The Virago Book Club has finally picked I book that I have, that I haven’t read and that I want to read – In a Summer Season by Elizabeth Taylor.

F is for FRANZISKA – growing slowly and steadily.

G is for GRIEF – it comes in waves,

H is for HOME IMPROVEMENTS. We’re waiting for scaffolding to go up and works to begin on our roof.

I is for IT’S GONE. I’ve been hacked more than once, so the email address I used for my old home on the internet is no more.

J is for JETTISONING a bag of books and a bag of clothes I hadn’t worn in a long time at a charity shop last Saturday.

K is for KNITTING ALONG. After two blankets – which wouldn’t have worked in our house and, though they were beautiful, I know I wouldn’t have enjoyed knitting – Marie Wallin’s Fair Isle Club is knitting a garment. I couldn’t resist signing up.

L is for LOVE HENRY JAMES. A wonderful season of programmes on Radio 4 has inspired me to do some reading and re-reading.

 M is for MIND THE GAP. We put the dog blanket that we brought home from my mother’s nursing home down next to Briar’s chair. She seems happy to have it there, and it holds the curtains back a little so she can see out.

N is for NAKED FLAGPOLES. The promenade flags have been taken down but the (removable flagpoles) have been left behind. Strange, especially at the height of the visitor season …

O is for O’FARRELL. There was a wonderful piece about Maggie O’Farrell and her soon to be published memoir in The Guardian yesterday.

P is for PATRICIA WENTWORTH. ‘The Chinese Shawl will be my next Miss Silver mystery, and it’s one of the few that I own.

Q is for QUEEN’S PLAY – my next Dunnett!

R is for ROWAN. The new autumn/winter magazine is the best for some time. It feels like a return to old-school Rowan values; there are two things I want to knit right now and lots of other interesting possibilities.

S is for SUNFLOWERS. I’m so pleased that I spotted Sunflowers Live

“In 1888–9 Vincent van Gogh produced one of the most famous series of paintings in the world – seven glorious variations of the ‘Sunflowers’. Today, five of these masterpieces hang in five art museums around the world, and are being united virtually in a world-first Facebook Live relay this August.”

T is for THIRKELL. The Man of the House often spots VMCs I already own in charity shops but this week he found one I didn’t have – ‘Northbridge Rectory’ by Angela Thirkell.

U is for UNCHAINED MELODY by Lykke Li – I love this!

V is for VICTORY. The current birthday-to-birthday Scrabble tournament ends next Saturday and – unless we Up the rate of play considerably – I have a winning lead.

W is for WAR AND PEACE. Reading five or six chapters a day and plucking a quotation from each chapter has proved to be the perfect way to read for me. I’m nearly half way through now.

X is for EXHIBITION. I couldn’t place John Armstrong – subject of this autumn’s exhibition at Penlee House – but when I looked him up I recognised one of his paintings from the cover of a Virago Modern Classic by Margaret Atwood.

Y is for YOU AND I by Tori y Moi – another new addition to the soundtrack of my life.

Z is for ZOLA – an author I still have to fit into my 100 Years of Books project.

A is for ALEXANDRE DUMAS. I have ‘The Black Tulip’ lines up to fill the 1850 slot in my 100 Years of Books project.

B is for BLANKET. Briar usually takes a while to get used to knew things, but she sat on the new blanket I bought for her visits to my mother’s nursing home room the first time I laid it out.

C is for CELEBRATION. I’m delighted that Lory will be hosting another celebration of Elizabeth Goudge’s birthday on 24th April.

D is for DARE. I made it to the end of the TBR Dare for the very first time!

E is for ELIZABETH VON ARNIM. Author of the Month for April in the LibraryThing Virago Modern Classics Group.

F is for FOUR BAGS left the house last time we did a charity shop drop.

G is for GREEN PENGUINS. I picked up eight books, including titles by Anthony Berkeley, Mary Fitt and Elspeth Huxley, in my local second-hand bookshop. Someone with very similar taste to me – and I think I know who – has been thinning out their shelves.

H is for HAIR. It’s that time of  year when we start thinning out Briar’s winter coat, putting the hair out in the garden, and then watching birds fly off with their beaks full.

I is for IN PROGRESS. My easy knitting project and my more complex knitting project are both close to completion, so expect a knitting post or two very soon.

J is for JUNE. Margaret Kennedy Day will be happening again on June 20th. More details will be coming soon.

K is for KAFFE FASSETT. I love the pattern on the cover of the new edition of Vogue Knitting, but with Felted Tweed held double it would be quite an investment.

L is for LYMOND. I’m smitten, I was tempted to pick up ‘Queen’s Play as soon as I put ‘The Game of Kings’ down, but I decided I shouldn’t rush and that I really should write about one book before I start the next one.

M is for MARGARET LAURENCE. Author of the Month for June in the LibraryThing Virago Modern Classics Group.

N is for THE 1951 CLUB. I have books by Margery Sharp and Howard Spring lined up.

O is for OXFORD WORLD CLASSICS. The new editions are lovely, but at the moment I am smitten with older editions that I picked up in a charity shop a week or so ago.

P is for PUZZLED. We ordered Briar some steps, to help her get into her chair now she’s getting a little older. When they arrived we couldn’t work out how the pieces could fit together. When I rechecked the packaging I found some brief instructions and realised that we had been sent a dog gate instead of steps.

Q is for QUIET – but not as quiet as it usually is this time of year, as we have major building works two houses away.

R is for READING LIBARY BOOKS AGAIN now that the TBR Dare is over is a lovely prospect, but I’m going to be very selective now that I’ve been reminded how many wonderful books I have in the house already.

S is for SPIN. The Classics Club Spin gave me ‘The Beth Book’ by Sarah Grand. I’m not thrilled but it is a book I want to read and an author I’d like to get to know.

T is for TINDERSTICKS. I hadn’t listened to them for years but when I heard The Waiting Room I was smitten.

U is for UP IN THE ATTIC is where I have to go to do some clearing out now that spring is here.

V is for VISSER. I love this design, and I hope it won’t be too long before I can start to knit.

W is for WILLA CATHER. Author of the Month for May in the LibraryThing Virago Modern Classics Group.

X is for (E)XHIBITION. A Casket of Pearls is going to be hard to follow, but a summer exhibition of works by Stanhope Forbes at Penlee House is very enticing.

Y is for YIN YANG DANCE. Here is a knitting pattern with a fascinating construction. You begin with an i-cord loop and knit outwards …

Z is for ZZZZZZZZZZ. Border terriers are very good sleepers ….

 

A is for A YEAR OF WAR AND PEACE is a lovely proposition.

B is for BRIAR. I can’t quite believe that the picture I rediscovered recently must be more than ten years old, or that my lovely dog is eleven years old now.

C is for CATHERINE MARTIN. Her novel ‘An Australian Girl’ is in a pile of lovely books I assembled on my bedside table, to help keep me on track for the TBR Dare.

D is for DOROTHY RICHARDSON. My Pilgrimage is over but I have a biography and a collection of short stories to read this year.

E is for THE EYE OF LOVE. This lovely book was my introduction to Margery Sharp, and I am so pleased that I decided to read it again

F is for FRUIT TEA, which has suddenly become my hot drink of choice.

G is for GAUGHAN. I really want a copy of Norah Gaughan’s Knitted Cable Sourcebook. I like trying different things but I’m a cable knitter at heart.

H is for HAP. Now that the weather has turned colder I’ve finally been able to wear the House Martin Hap that I made last summer. It’s wonderfully warm and cosy.

I is for IN THE LEAD. I’ve established a 2-0 lead in the household Scrabble tournament that will run from new Year’s Day to my birthday.

J is for JONI MITCHELL. I love this song.

K is for KRISTIN VESTGARD. It was lovely to see her paintings ‘in real life’ for the first time, at the Cornwall Contemporary Gallery.

L is for THE LIGHTHOUSE GALLERY and another lovely Christmas exhibition  Catherine Hyde is a new favourite (and you may have seen her robin in my Christmas post) and Michael Praed is an old favourite, who used to teach in the same school as my mother. That’s his painting of my father’s home town on the right.

M is for MARGERY SHARP DAY. I’m delighted to see so many people lining up books to read for the celebration on the 25th.

N is for NORDERNEY. It’s my most recent addition to my Ravelry queue and will be a good test of my resolution (see the letter Y!)

O is for ORIEL MALET. I took my copy of ‘The Horses of the Sun’ off the shelf to read later this month, and it looks lovely.

P is for PLANNING to finally start reading Dorothy Dunnett’s Lymond books this year.

Q is for QUEUE. I have a stack of books I read last year but haven’t written about, and so I’m going to have them form an orderly queue and then write about them in turn. At least, that’s the plan …

R is for READING MY OWN BOOKS. I’m sure I’ve said it before, but this really is the year I’m going to focus on the books I have and be sparing with new acquisitions and library borrowings.

S is for SLOW PROGRESS. Scilly is taken longer to knit than I thought, partly because of all the slipped stitches and partly because I haven’t been giving it too much time. I love the fabric, I’m sure the finished sweater will be lovely, but I’m definitely ready to be knitting something else.

T is for TO WALK INVISIBLE. I loved it!

U is for UP IN THE ATTIC. It isn’t so much that there are masses of things, but when I put the Christmas decorations away I realised that there were a lot of things that hadn’t moved for yours, and that  it was time to have a good clear-out.

V is for VIRAGO AUTHORS. Monthly author reads are underway in the LibraryThing Virago Modern Classics Group. Vita Sackville-West this month, Rebecca West next month, and then we choose more authors. Do come along to vote, read and talk.

W is for WEATHERLAND by Alexandra Harris. Another book on the bedside table.

X is for I’M (E)XTREMELY PLEASED to have discovered magazine clips and to finally have all of my knitting magazines tidy but still accessible in their new lever arch files.

Y is for YARN DIET. I’m not going cold sheep, but I’m saying that I can only buy more wool if I’m going to start knitting within a week of it arriving.

Z is for ZOE OLDENBOURG. Another author in that pile of books on my bedside table. ‘The World is not Enough is on my Classics Club list and I’ve been meaning to read it for such a long time.

A is for AUTUMN. The weather has definitely turned here on the Cornish coast, and the evenings are drawing in.

B is for BENJAMIN CLEMENTINE. His own music has passed me by, but I was very taken by his selection of tracks for 6 Music’s Playlist last Sunday.

C is for COUNTRY HOUSES. I’m moving up the library queue for a copy of Adrian Tinniswood’s ‘The Long Weekend: Life in the English Country House Between the Wars’ – I’ve progressed from 19th to 11th.

D is for DOROTHY HOWELL. I was delighted to be introduced to her by this post.

E is for ELIZABETH BERRIDGE. When I realised that I hadn’t read a Persephone Book or a collection of short stories for the year I knew that I had to take action. I picked up Elizabeth Berridge’s collection of stories from the 1940s – ‘Tell it to a Stranger’ – and I am so pleased that I did.

F is for THE FURROWED MIDDLEBROW PRESS is looking wonderfully collectable, with books by Frances Faviell, Rachel Ferguson and Winifred Peck soon to re-enter the world.

G is for GARTER STITCH. I have the yarn line up to knit a very simple – and very classic – jacket.

H is for HARRY RUTHERFORD caught my home town very accurately and from an angle I don’t think I’ve ever seen, when he painted the view looking back to town from the end of the pier

I is for IN PROGRESS. My major knitting project of the moment is a lovely sweater names Scilly.

J is for JEAN RHYS READING WEEK is in progress and, though it wasn’t the right time for me, it is lovely to see so many people reading her books.

K is for KNITTING ALONG. The Picture This KAL is turning many knitters’ images into lovely knitwear. My own inspiration was bookish ….

L is for JOHN LAVERY. After reading about him in Jane Harris’s ‘Gillespie and I’ I spotted his autobiography in the library’s art collection. It looks very promising.

M is for MARY STEWART. Celebrations for her centenary begin on Saturday, and I  shall be reading ‘Airs Above The Ground’.

N is for THE 1947 CLUB is coming soon and, though I seem to have more books from 1946 and 1948, I have found a couple of interesting possibilities.

O is for ONLY FOUR MORE BOOKS to the end of Dorothy Richardson’s Pilgrimage!

P is for PLANNING A PROJECT. I think that next year might be my year of reading Virago Travellers

Q is for THE QUINCUNX by Charles Palliser.  I picked up my copy from the shelf a few days ago because I think that the time and the season to read it is coming very soon.

R is for THE REMEDIES by Katharine Towers. This lovely little book of verse caught my eye in the library last weekend.

S is for SQUIRREL. Since their favourite tree in the park was cut down the squirrel population has spread out, and we have even seen one in our little sea-front garden. It ran along the top of the bench, jumped on to a spade that the Man of the House had left stuck into the ground, the along the wall and over into the garden next door.

T is for THYNNE. I didn’t really need to find another must-read author from the Golden Age of crime fiction but I have, and her name is Molly Thynne.

U is for THE UNSEEING by Anna Mazzola. It’s sitting on my bedside table, and it looks like just the right book for this time of year.

V is for VIRAGO SECRET SANTA. I know it’s early but I have to let you know that your new Virago Elves – Cate and I – will be starting the ball rolling next month; so do keep an eye on the LibraryThing Virago group. Old hands and newcomers will all be very welcome!

W is for WOOLLY DOZEN. I’m knitting my tenth hat in between other projects, and one day – when I have my dozen – I’ll make sure they are all photographed and give them a post of their own.

X is for EXHIBITION.  Compass’d by the Inviolate Sea was wonderful, and Penlee House is wise to follow that with something else very different and interesting for quite different reasons. I’m looking forward to visiting Wilhelmina Barns-Graham: A Scottish Artist in St Ives.

Y is for YOUNG IN ALL THE WRONG WAYS by Sara Watkins: a lovely recent addition to my life’s soundtrack.

Z is for ZINNIA. I don’t think I’ve ever mentioned that Zinnia is Briar’s pedigree name. Her breeder chose a different letter of the alphabet to name each litter of puppies.

A is for ANNA BILING. I found her painting ‘Lush Green Summer’ when I was searching for seasonal images.

B is for BRYHER. I’ve read three of her books now and I know that a small press has a few of her books in print but I do wish that she was better known and her books were more readily available.

C is for CENTENARY. Mary Stewart was born on 17th September 1916 – does anyone have any plans for celebrating her 100th birthday?

D is for DON’T GO OUT TONIGHT MY DARLING by Rachel Newton. I love this. I love the album ….

E is for ELIZABETH BOWEN. I’m reading ‘The House in Paris’ and I’m very taken with it.

F is for THE FISH LADDER by Katharine Norbury. This book passed me by until I saw the programme for our local literary festival, and when I heard the author ‘in conversation’ I knew that I had to buy a copy.

G is for GHOSTBIRD by Carol Lovekin was added to my library pile today.

H is for HAPS. I’m not really a shawl knitter but I am so taken with the history and the patterns in The Book of Haps.

I is for IN PROGRESS. And I’m knitting a Nut Hap.

J is for JUBILEE POOL. It’s been open for a while, but it was officially opened by the Prince of Wales last Monday.

K is for KIP – Darlene’s lovely puppy.

L is for LADY MAISERY. I am so pleased that their new album has been successfully crowd funded.

M is for MUSKETEERS. I’ve just finished reading ‘The Three Musketeers’ and I loved it at some levels but I was disappointed at others. It’s going to take a while to pull my thoughts together.

N is for NEXT UP TO READ is ‘I, Rachel’ by March Cost.

O is for AN OLD BOOK. I found a lovely World Book Club edition of ‘Kingfishers Catch Fire’ by Rumer Godden in a charity shop yesterday. It looks to be the fiction inspired by the real life events she wrote about in This Far But No Further which I read last year.

P is for PILGRIMAGE. This month’s book is ‘The Trap’. I’d planned to read it this weekend but I was distracted by other books and so now it is lined up for next weekend.

Q is for QUITE EASY WHEN YOU KNOW HOW.  I’ve learned how to do Japanese short rows, I love it, and I don’t think I shall ever wrap and turn again.

R is for RABINDRANATH TAGORE. Cirtnecce is hosting a readalong of ‘The Home and the World’ next month, to mark the book’s centenary. I must confess that I didn’t know a great deal about the book or the author, but I am intrigued.

S is for SIXTY. I’ve been looking at previews of Rowan 60 and there are many things I should love to knit and to wear.

T is for TO THE BRIGHT END OF THE WORLD by Eowyn Ivey is a wonderful, wonderful book.

U is for UNDERNEATH ALL THAT PAPER – is my desk. We have been incredibly busy, but I am very nearly top of things.

V is for VERY VIRAGO ALL AUGUST. The LibraryThing Virago Modern Classics group is gearing up for ‘All Virago All August’. I can’t do ‘All’ but I’m aiming for ‘Very’. Rebecca West, Willa Cather and Rumer Godden are the authors I have in mind.

W is for WOMEN IN TRANSLATION MONTH is coming and I have ‘Grand Hotel’, ‘The World is not Enough’ on my bedside table ready to start reading.

X is for XHIBITION. We have Marine Painting – from Turner to Wallis – at Penlee House this summer and I am quite sure it is going to be wonderful.

Y is for YOU SEE LOTS OF THINGS OUT OF OUR BAY WINDOW and a few weeks ago Briar saw a hedgehog. She went out to investigate – before we realised what it was – and she was bemused by the little spiky creature. We brought her inside and watched his progress across the garden. He was gone the next morning and we haven’t seen him again.

Z is for ZZZZ. After playing ball at the boating pond this morning and visiting my mother’s nursing home this afternoon a certain small brown dog fell asleep – and slept right through supper time!

… after being distracted by life for quite a few days …

A is for A SITE OF HER OWN. Ten of Margery Sharp’s novels are back in the world and her publisher – Open Road Media – is showing them off in a lovely little site of her own.

B is for  BLUEBELLS. I love the bluebell season, and I hope that we will find the time – and have the weather  – to take Briar for a walk in the woods while they are still flowering .

C is for CRASH! My computer went into meltdown at the beginning of the bank holiday weekend, it couldn’t be nursed back to health, and that is why I disappeared for a little while.

D is for DEADLOCK. This month’s book – the sixth of thirteen – in Dorothy Richardson’s Pilgrimage sequence. The reading hasn’t always been easy but the many wonderful things that these books have to offer make me so glad that I began my journey through them.

E is for EXHIBITION. I’m looking forward to an exhibition of paintings of Cornish seas, and then an exhibition of the work of Wilhelmina Barns-Graham, at Penlee House.

F is for FURTHER DOWN THE ROAD. Should you come to Penzance and think that our second-hand bookshop has vanished, don’t worry. It has moved to new premises just a little further down the road.

G is for GARAGE DOOR. Something else that went crash! It was very old, it was probable time to replace it, and when a cable snapped it forced the issue. A neighbour was very happy with the new garage door he had installed recently, and so we have asked the company he used to take a look and give us a quote.

H is for HAIR. It’s the nesting season, and so I’ve been grooming Briar daily, putting the hair out in the garden, and watching birds arrive and fly off with beak-fulls of the stuff.

I is for I WAS DELIGHTED TO FIND a lovely old hardback copy of Come Hither: An Anthology of Poetry collected by Walter De La Mare.

J is for JEAN. This is my main knitting project at the moment. The body is complete, the first sleeve cap is nearly done, and so it shouldn’t be too long before I’m finished. It’s a lovely pattern, and I’m pleased that my second project with top-down short-row sleeves is an advance from the first. The pattern said wrap and turn but I didn’t like the look of that and so I went back and used shadow wraps instead. They look much better.

K is for KATE IN THE KETTLE. When I caught sight of that name I just had to find out what she sounded like!

L is for LIBRARY. It’s open again, in the town hall now, alongside the one-stop-shop. I’m sorry that it’s much smaller than the old library, but I’m finding a lot to like, especially that the art library is much easier to look around than it was. And, I didn’t know until a librarian told me, they had a lot of trouble with damp in the old building.

M is for MARGARET KENNEDY DAY. It’s happening on 20th June, and it’s very simple. Just read a book between now and then and post about it on the day. I hope to read a book and hopefully give away a book or two between now and then.

N is for NEGLECTED. I am horribly aware that my 100 Years of Books project has been stuck at 67 for ages. I don’t want to be project-driven, I want the years to fill up naturally from books that I want to read, but I looked at the years that were unfilled and the books that I had in mind and now I have a small pile of books sitting on a table ready to help things along.

O is for O PIONEERS! by Willa Cather. I loved this book when I first read it, many years ago, and now that I have re-read it I think I might love it even more.

P is for PLUMBING. This has been our big domestic crisis. South West Water said that there was a leak under our boundary wall, and because it was our side of the boundary wall we had to find a plumber with listening equipment to find it and fix it. There aren’t many of those down here at the far end of Cornwall, but we found one who was willing to come and take a look in the end, I’ve got a quote, and they’re coming out to do the work next Tuesday.

Q is for QUEENEY. I have ‘According to Queeney’ lined up for Annabel’s Beryl Bainbridge Reading Week next month.

R is for RUAN by Bryher. There’s a line of library books sitting on top of the desk that I inherited from my godmother, and this is the one I have chosen to read first. It tells the story of a young boy in the 6th century who is destined to be a druid but dreams of the sea and a very different life.

S is for SUMMER. I see signs that summer is coming, and I’m particularly pleased to see a lovely new anthology, edited by Melissa Harrison for the Wildlife Trust.

T is for TWISTED STITCHES. I’ve finally mastered cabling without a cable needle, and now I’m thinking of knitting Birch Bay or – when I’m feeling brave – Aviara.

U is for UP TO THE VERY TOP. We haven’t been to Chapel Carn Brea for ages but we went last weekend, and we walked right up to the top of the highest hill in West Cornwall.

V is for VILLETTE. I missed Charlotte Bronte’s birthday, but several mentions of Villette in Dorothy Richardson’s Pilgrimage inspired me to pick up my copy and see if I might read it all the way through – after several failed attempts. I did!

W is for WENTWORTH. I was thinking of reading another Miss Silver Book when I noticed that the Dean Street Press had reissued lots of Patricia Wentworth’s other mysteries. I’ve read and enjoyed one and I’m sure I’ll be reading more soon.

X is for eXCLUSION. How do you explain to a border terrier that she isn’t allowed on the beach just outside the front door across the road between May and September? I know I’ve asked this before, but I’ve never found an answer!

Y is for THE YOUNG DOCTOR. I love Francis Brett Young’s writing, but this early, autobiographical work is not his best. It’s still interesting though, it’s still worth reading, and I will finish it soon.

Z is for  ZEE AVI. A lovely new addition to the soundtrack to my life.

* * * * * * *

…. and one or two other things.

A is for AEONIUM. I’ve entered a challenge to knit 12 hats in 12 months. 3 are knitted, 2 are in progress, and I think this will be the next one that I’ll cast on.

B is for BROODING OVER THE BRONTES.I have ‘The Bronte Cabinet’ lined up to read with Girl with her Head in a Book next month, and I’ve been meaning to re-read ‘Wuthering Heights’ for a while now.

C is for CLUNY BROWN is one of TEN Margery Sharp novels to be reissued by Open Road Media next month.

D is for DOD PROCTER is one of my favourite local artists, so I was very pleased to spot a book about her floral art in the library.

E is for ELIZABETH GOUDGE. I was delighted to find out that Lory will be hosting a celebration of her work next month. I have several novels I could read, and a book of short stories.

F is for FAME. The weather was windy but the tide was very low when I took Briar down to the beach one day last week. On our way back home we met a photographer from our local paper and he asked if he could take Briar’s picture for a piece about animals out in all weather.

G is for GRAHAM. I put this in when I started drafting this post and now I can’t remember why. Maybe it will come back to me ….

H is for HOCKING. Many of Mary Hocking’s books were reissued last month and Ali is hosting a week to celebrate her work next month. I have my copy of ‘Good Daughters’ sitting on my bedside table, ready to be read.

I is for THE IMPROBABILITY OF LOVE by Hannah Rothschild in the only book I’ve read from the longlist for this year’s Baileys Women’s Prize for fiction.

J is for JANET McNEILL. I was very pleased to spot a copy of ‘The Maiden Dinosaur’  when we were in Truro last week and I popped in to my favourite second-hand bookshop,

K is for KRISTIN VESTGARD. When I spotted an interesting young artist from Scandanvia I didn’t expect to learn that she had studied in Cornwall and that she would be having an exhibition in a local gallery in the autumn.

L is for LIBRARY. It’s open again and I’m very happy!

M is for MARGARET KENNEDY. As April is looking rather crowded I plan to have Margaret Kennedy Day on the day she left this life – 31st July – rather than her April birthday. More details will follow ….

N is for THE 1938 CLUB. Another reason to read good books next month – I have two titles by favourite authors lined up.

O is for OUIDA. I’ve been meaning to try her books for ages, an,d when I found Miriam reading one of them in the last part of ‘Pilgrimage’ I read, I took it as a sign that it was time.

P is for PRAWNS. We tried miso brown rice & broccoli salad with fiery prawns for the first time last Sunday, and I’m pleased to report that we both loved it.

Q is for QUALM on a triple word score after picking up the Q is the second round and not seeing a U until the game was nearly over. I’ve had a good start in our latest ‘birthday-to-birthday’ Scrabble tournament, but it still has a long way to go.

R is for RHODA BROUGTON. I brought a 1950s paperback copy of  ‘Not Wisely but Too Well’ home from  that Truro bookshop too.

S is for SEVEN SWANS by Rose Polenzani. The latest addition to the soundtrack to my life.

T is for THE TUNNEL by Dorothy Richardson. I’m loving the ‘Pilgrimage’ sequence of novels, this is the next book I have to read, and I plan to start reading very soon.

U is for UNDER THE TABLE. Briar used to spend her evenings in the bay window but lately she has relocated to her basket, and she moves under the dining table for short spells before going back to her bed again. We have yet to work out why ….

V is for VIRAGO. ‘The House on Clewe Street’ by Mary Lavin is my book in progress and it has led me to another book. I found it when I looked at the list of other Irish VMCs at the back of the book. It was listing as forthcoming but it never came and I had never heard of the title or the author. I couldn’t find out much but what I found I liked, and so I ordered a reasonably priced copy.

W is for WILD HEART by Starling. Another recent addition to my life’s soundtrack.

X is for EXPOSURE by Helen Dunmore. I’m in twenty-third place in the library queue for a copy, waiting none to patiently.

Y is for YOU KNOW THE HOLIDAY SEASON IS COMING when the bin by the steps to the promenade opposite our house comes back from wherever it goes for the winter.

Z is for ZOE OLDENBOURG. I have a copy of ‘The World is not Enough’ but when I spotted a very pretty, and much more portable, Penguin copy of the same translation I had to pick it up.