JANEITE - i have got This Thing of Darkness out the library today...

[MayorNaze]

will hopefully read over weekend and report back

Oh you lucky thing - I am so jealous of your being just about to read it for the first time. You will LOVE it - am v confident about this!

There is a non-fiction book about it too. Will try and find you a link - it's v good but I can't remember the title.

It is called Savage: The Life And Times Of Jemmy Button I think.

I saw this today in an oxfam shop - but didn't have enough cash on me to get it I will go back and hope it's still there tomorrow

it is BRILLIANT I've been recommending it to anyone who'll listen ever since I read it - it's long, mind you ....

Long, but beautifully written and and not at all difficult to read.

I loved it too ]

Hoping that MayorNaze is so enraptured by it that she's nearly finished it already...waiting for the report back!

due to unforeseen circumstances (having to work over weekend ), this is taking longer to read than anticipated.

and glee is on later...

but i have to say that i am liking it. took a bit of getting into but by p32 i was humming sea shanties to myself...

will report back...

Next for your list -

The Worst Journey In The World

finished

and that author is dead!!

books like this are great, as tbh if you said "read about this period in history" i would be , but actually was v interesting and informative.

am going to buy it for dh and we NEVER read the same kind of books.

v curious to know where fugia and york ended up and what kind of life they had together/or not, as the case may be...

ended up as in what became of them in the years we don't know about that is, obv i know what happened to them in the end...

death was very routine, but indicative of the period...

felt sorry for FitzRoy but thought Darwin was a bit of a cock tbh...

though prob he was blinded/distracted by passion for his work? still a bit irritating though...

am talking to myself...will stop now...

Read the Jemmy Button book to find out what happened. So glad you enjoyed it!

Yes - I thought Darwin came out looking bad too. Poor, poor Fitzroy.

Ooh, read this for the first time over Christmas there and loved it. Wish real history lessons could have been brought to life like this.

So so sad for Fitzroy...it all went to shit really didn't it

jemmy button book??????

See my earlier post: a book called Savage: The Life And Times Of jemmy Button - tis v good.

• missed that...will see if library have it...

real shame author has passed away, he had a lovely fluency to his story telling, i thought

Fitzroy's buried in Norwood in south London - I was so moved by his story that I went on a little pilgrimage to his grave (only from Streatham mind you so it wasn't quite as bonkers as it sounds )

article about darwin in times yesterday - apprently lots of in-breeding led to congenital ill health

Love the story of going to see F's grave.

I've started TTOD too! It's good - and I've found I've stalled because I can tell I don't want to finish it.

How bonkers is that!

Didn't know about the Norwood grave, may go have a look. Norwood holds a lot of luminaries, from the edges of history, doesn't it.

I loved TToD and have been recommending it for years. Did you know they changed the name of the shipping forecast region from Trafalgar to Fitzroy some years ago in honour of the great man?

Another 'naval' book that I've just read and enjoyed is 'Mutiny on the Bounty' by John Boyne (who wrote the Boy in the Striped Pyjamas). It's excellent, wonderful original character as well as Bligh, Christian etc and a different perspective on the Mutiny.