The Boat by Clara Salaman - Intriguing, shocking, disturbing; who said boat trips were boring...31/3/2014  I had this book for a while and it was on my to-be-read pile. Whilst taking a break from reading the Den Patrick book, I browsed this book...
The story was intriguing from the start and drew me in to read more and more until, I finished it! I really did get to know the characters very well due to the expertly descriptive nature used by Clara Salaman. I know this is not her first book and I did not read her first book (naughty me!) but Clara, the great actress that she is, can now classify herself as a great writer. The book had pace all the way through, never slowing and at times quite graphic but it enabled me the reader to become shocked yet addicted to finding out how the book would pan out. It really did surprise me and I wish I had read the book when I had first received it before publication. More fool me. And with the two main characters Clem and Johnny on their honeymoon, ehhh, more fool them for trusting the wrong..... (just read the book!) I know this is a short review and I don't know how many of you will be reading it as the book has already been released, don't let that put you off. I will end by saying that if you want to be surprised, shocked and addicted to a real page-turner of a gem, then look no further than this title! 8 out of 10 For a sample of this book - CLICK HERE
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 I did not know where to begin with this autobiographical book as it really did catch me off guard, I was expecting it to be sad and so-so serious (Cancer is serious and not a subject I like to think about), which it is, but, it is humorous and Sarah really did make me laugh at times when I was reading this book, it also made me extremely sad when reading what she went through, both as a child of 16 (her first meeting with the big C), and then again in her early 30's being diagnosed with breast Cancer. At this time she was married with two very young daughters and had a rock of a husband.
What they must have gone through, I, err, well, I can really understand based on my own personal experiences, it's just by reading this book, it puts everything into perspective; Sarah had and has a strong bond with her family, so much love from them and her friends also, she also after having her first breast Cancer operation decided that when she would have any further operations, she would get herself fit, eat healthy and then set a challenge of running the London Marathon! I don't want to give too much away as you really will smile, cry, adore this lady, be motivated, realise that life can be cruel but, it is how you deal with these issues, and Sarah writes in detail all of her up's and down's, and in heartwrenching detail at times, it does make you realise that if Sarah can come out of what she went though so positive, we all can and should take something from this. I finished this book with a smile, which when I was reading half-way through the book, I thought I would be crying at the end, I was not, I was so overjoyed at hearing how much money she raised for Breakthrough Breast Cancer and then to hear that HALF of the proceeds from this book are being donated to the NHS; remarkable, a remarkable lady. Everyone should read this book as we all need to be aware of Cancer and what it can do to you and your families, I am so much more enlightened by having read this and will make the most out of my life as you never know what bad news is around the corner! I will not mark out of ten as I don't think this would be high enough! I looked on Amazon and to give you an idea, this book has 56 five star reviews and nothing less! Buy it now Click Here Souk to Souk by @RobinRatchford - Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria, Yemen, Lebanon, anyone?, ANYONE?6/3/2014  I was promised a travel book with a difference, the difference being that most of the destinations visited by Robin in this book are not your usual, albeit due to recent wars or political issues, destinations on most peoples bucket lists to visit. Robin saves us all the worries of venturing to some of these destinations by giving the reader a mesmerising account, often serious, frequently light hearted, always historically accurate; this book is a journey, and one that I am so envious yet one that I would/could not dare to go on, as he visited such incredible countries as Syria, Yemen, Afghanistan, Iraq, Lebanon and then also to Israel, Oman, Dubai, Qatar - with the last four being destinations not so much a worry to visit!
He visited some pre-current tensions/situations but most post such as Afghanistan and Iraq. He even describes landing in Kabul and being the only tourist on the plane with the rest being Non-Government Organisation staff or Private Security staff, and yes, he really did go on a tourist holiday to Afghanistan - think I will give that a miss for the time being! Robin describes the great impoverishment of Yemen and then the vast opulence of Qatar/Dubai, without being condescending towards either, even though both are at opposite ends of the Arabic speaking Worlds financial spectrum. Sana'a in Yemen is one of the poorest places, if not the poorest, of the Arab speaking World, it is drying up yearly, so you will learn from this book, yet Robin does go on to say that the Yemeni people are some of the friendliest he has even met, much to what he and we all thought/think by being shown the news stories from Yemen and it being a no-go area for Westerners! He describes his journey to Damascus and Aleppo, now scenes of chaos and with the latter, mass destruction but, he visited before the current hostilities and provides a picture of places of culture and friendliness, which I can relate to based on my meetings with Syrian's in certain Arab speaking countries. It is sometimes hard to review a book that is non-fiction and is aimed at a reader of a niche genre but this book captivates you, mostly because of what has been shown on the news for the last few years but, it takes those visions you have of these places and brings to life the love, the culture, the vast differences, the happiness of the people, the history and the true identity to give you a better understanding that real people live in these places of current or recent crisis, yet they go about there day to day business like we all do. They get on with life, just like you and I, it just makes you realise that you should never be swayed by what you watch on the news! 9 out of 10 - I cannot wait for Robin's next travel tales... For Amazon orders - CLICK HERE |