Mum inspired a love of reading

Getting up at some ungodly hour on Christmas morning and running out to the tree to see what Santa had left holds very special memories for me. Amidst the colouring books, a new set of colouring pencils and the chokky treats there would always be a book. Santa seemed to know that I loved books and as far back as I can remember there was always a book under the tree every year!! I had my own little library collection as the years went by, now I have bookshelves floor to ceiling crammed full of books, you can never have enough books I reckon.

Even before I started school Mum would take us kids to the local library when we went to the local shops. It was only small, it didn't have a big selection like the libraries of today but I never came home empty handed. I was only allowed to borrow a couple of books as we had a fair walk home and since the books were my responsibility I had to carry them in my library bag, a calico bag that mum had lovingly made for me with my name fancy embroidered on the front. And so began my lifelong love of reading. I loved going to the library but found it so hard to decide what to borrow, I wanted to take them all. In the end it was mum who helped me, she suggested one fiction book and one non-fiction book, one for pleasure and one to learn from. To this day I always borrow a mixture of fiction and non-fiction books plus a few more biographies now. 

Thanks to my wonderful mum I now work in a library, each day surrounded by the many authors I grew up with and many wonderful non-fiction books that hold a wealth of knowledge. It always brings a smile to my face when a child borrows a book for the first time their journey just beginning.

The Essence of Santa Montefiore

After reading Santa Montefiore's The Italian Matchmaker I was hooked on her books. Santa's descriptive way of writing gets you in from the very first page. Once you start reading her books you will be swept away to the country that is the backdrop of the book. You will get so involved with the book's characters that you can't wait to turn the page to see what happens to them. This is my review of The Italian Matchmaker which would have to be my favourite of Santa Montefiore's novels.

"Gianluca is half-Italian, tall, dark, irresistibly handsome and very wealthy. After going through a painful divorce he decides to leave England for a while and heads off to the idyllic sun-drenched Amalfi coast of Italy to stay at his parents' home, the Palazzo Montelimone, a beautifully restored palatial building. While staying there he hopes to take stock of his life and find peace of mind and what better place to do it than Italy whilst basking in the summer sun. Did I happen to mention that as well as being incredibly handsome he can also see ghosts? Cosima is an intoxicatingly beautiful Italian signorina with such a sad past that it will pull at your heart strings. Will both of them find love or is the past too strong? Do you believe in love after death?"

A combination of romance, spiritual encounters and lively characters amidst a backdrop of lush vineyards and olive groves makes this an intriguing novel that is definitely hard to put down.