This book is the complete guide to one of the greatest tennis players of the 21st century, winner of 21 grand slam men’s singles titles, and undisputed King of the tennis court, Spain’s raging bull, Rafael Nadal. This fully illustrated biography charts his journey to the top, from his early ... more >
Romola by George Eliot This is one of the last George Eliot books I had unread. I’ll confess that early on I thought about dumping it, but I persevered. As a book written in the 19th century about the 15th century and centered quite a lot on philosophy and the ... more >
In 1254 the teenage heir to the English throne married a Spanish bride, the sister of the king of Castile, in Burgos, and their marriage of thirty-six years proved to be one of the great royal romances of the Middle Ages. Edward I of England and Leonor of Castile had ... more >
Alexander Hamilton by Ron Chernow I had long wanted to see Hamilton, Lin-Manual Miranda’s award-winning musical based on this book, and I finally got a chance on my 50th birthday in 2019. I liked it a lot, though it wasn’t the magical experience for me that I know it was ... more >
At Bletchley Park, some of Britain’s most talented mathematicians, linguists, and intellectuals were assembled to break Nazi codes. Kept secret for nearly thirty years, we have now come to realise the crucial role that these codebreakers played in the Allied victory in World War II. Written by Dermot Turing – ... more >
She-Wolves: The Women Who Ruled England Before Elizabeth by Helen Castor This book was a bit dense for flighty me, but it was also a very absorbing and informative history of the four women who attempted to sort-of-kind-of rule England before Elizabeth I. Those women were the Empress Matilda, who ... more >