User Profile

Paul

pwaring@ramblingreaders.org

Joined 1 year, 3 months ago

Reader of a wide range of genres, including a lot of non-fiction. I’m an active member of a sci-fi book club and occasional attendee at a post-apocalyptic book club.

Trying this out as an alternative and hopefully replacement for Goodreads, though I'm posting on both sites at the moment.

I don't follow from here, my main Fediverse account is: @pwaring@fosstodon.org

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2025 Reading Goal

50% complete! Paul has read 25 of 50 books.

J. K. Rowling: Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (2014, Salani) 4 stars

When mysterious letters start arriving on his doorstep, Harry Potter has never heard of Hogwarts …

Review of "Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone" on 'Goodreads'

4 stars

Although they came out at about the right age for me to read them on first publication, I never picked up the Potter books until I was an adult and noticed annoying gaps in the films (nothing major, but little bits that seemed unexplained or missing). My sisters insisted that I read the books and suddenly everything made a lot more sense - especially the final two films.

Whilst it’s not my favourite of the series, I’ve re-read The Philosopher’s Stone recently and bumped it up from three to four stars. It’s not the greatest work of literature - the later books improve and get a bit deeper with character development and backstory - but it’s an enjoyable and easy read that I can get through in a few evenings.

Like many readers, I’ve pondered which house I would be sorted into. I’d like to think Ravenclaw but pretty much …

Richard Coles: Fathomless riches ; or how I went from pop to pulpit (2015) 3 stars

The Reverend Richard Coles is a parish priest in Northamptonshire and a regular host of …

Review of 'Fathomless riches ; or how I went from pop to pulpit' on 'Goodreads'

3 stars

Not a bad autobiography, Coles thankfully doesn't spend half the book on his youth as some authors do. He's open about his own failings, has some witty anecdotes and isn't too preachy about his conversion.

Margaret Thatcher: Path to Power (2012, HarperCollins Publishers Limited) 2 stars

Review of 'Path to Power' on 'Goodreads'

2 stars

Thatcher's pre-political life was, by and large, rather dull, and certainly not worthy of 600 pages. A better writer could have made the occasional gem sparkle (and indeed Charles Moore appears to have managed this) but a boring subject matter discussed at length in an equally tedious writing style results in a long hard slog that isn't worth the effort unless you are a student of political history.