This week Hazel reviews Starling House by Alix E. Harrow. Hazel says: "I picked this book up from the library not entirely sure I would like it. Reviews online had led me to believe it was more of a gothic romance than a gothic horror (and romance isn't really my thing) but they were entirely …
Category: And finally
What are we reading: Kitty Cat Kill Sat
This week Claire reviews Kitty Cat Kill Sat by Argus. Claire says: "Lily ad-Alice is a 400-year old, super-intelligent cat who owns a space station orbiting a post- apocalyptic Earth. Lily spends her time using the space station’s extensive weapons array to shoot down weird creatures that threaten the surviving humans, and also sometimes shooting …
What are we reading: Room
This week Annabel reviews Room by Emma Donoghue. Annabel says: "Room is told from the perspective of Jack, a five year old boy who lives in Room with his Ma. Both are being kept captive by Old Nick who visits Ma at night while Jack sleeps in Wardrobe. Jack knows very little about Outside and …
What are we reading: Moby Dick
This week Geoff reviews Moby Dick by Herman Melville. Geoff says: "I have just finished reading Moby Dick which is an absolute tome of a book. I first tried reading it in about 1982 but abandoned it just after the 100th page. I picked it up again about 6 months ago and it has entertained me …
Who was John Henry Brookes?
The largest building on Headington campus (and home of Headington library) is the John Henry Brookes building, or JHB to its friends. But who was John Henry Brookes? John Henry Brookes, OBE (1891-1975) was an English craftsman, artist, educator and administrator. His art training and craft workshop experience encouraged him to apply for and secure …
What are we reading: The sentinel
This week, Charlie reviews The Sentinel by Lee Childs. Find out more about our What we are reading series here. "Brampton picked up the book in the charity shop. She knew people loved Jack Reacher thrillers but had never read one. Until now. There is lots of action. And fights. And curious verb-less short sentences. Brampton had …
What are we reading: Touching the void
This week, Sandra reviews Touching the void by Joe Simpson. Find out more about our What we are reading series here. "My admiration for alpine mountaineering drew me to this book. It's a gripping true account of Joe and Simon's successful attempt to be the first to reach the summit of the Siula Grande in the Peruvian …
What are we reading: Cardiff, by the sea
This week, Robert reviews Cardiff, by the sea by Joyce Carol Oates. Find out more about our What we are reading series here. "It's always great to discover a 'new' author you like who has actually been around for quite a while and has written a lot! On a recent trip to my local library in Maidenhead where …
What are we reading: Before the coffee gets cold
This week, Annabel reviews Before the coffee gets cold by Toshikazu Kawaguchi. Find out more about our What we are reading series here. "I’ve been dabbling in translated fiction recently, inspired by the International Booker Prize, with varying levels of success. The first book I read, The Discomfort of Evening – winner in 2020, was enough to …
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What are we reading: Black Victorians/Black Victoriana
This week, John reviews Black Victorians / Black Victoriana by Gretchen Gerzina. Find out more about our What we are reading series here. "I borrowed this specifically for the chapter on ‘Pablo Fanque, Black Circus Proprietor’ (Beatles aficionados will understand). Fanque, real name William Darby, was clearly an impressive fellow, rising through the ranks during the 1830s …
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What are we reading: Black History Month special
Normally, we use our What we are reading feature to share a single book that one member of the library team has enjoyed. But we've scaled things up for Black History Month! This post focuses exclusively on Black writers; and gives us an opportunity to share our discoveries of Black authors, old and new, with …
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What we are reading: Aviatrix
This week, Gerard reviews Aviatrix by Elinor Smith. Find out more about our What we are reading series here. "Elinor Smith was a precocious pilot, having gained a flying licence at the age of just 16 in 1927. She almost lost said pilot's licence in late 1928 when, for a bet, she flew underneath all four …
What we are reading: The Promise
This week, Hazel reviews The Promise by Damon Galgut. Find out more about our What we are reading series here. "My book group's just read the 2021 Booker Prize winner, Damon Galgut's The Promise. I thought it was brilliant. I don't know his work at all but his evocation of pre- and post-apartheid South Africa through …
What we are reading: The draw of the sea
This week, Maureen reviews The draw of the sea by Wyl Menmuir. Find out more about our What we are reading series here. "Focused mainly on Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly, this beautifully written book recently won the Roger Deakin Award. Although I am a fan of Roger's classic Waterlog, I loved The draw …
What we are reading: The book of tea
This week, Saffron reviews The book of tea by Okakura Kakuzo. Find out more about our What we are reading series here. "I'm re-reading this book I read about 10 years ago and loved. It was written by a Japanese author in 1906 at a time when East and West were starting to get to …
Introducing: what we are reading
We have an internal library newsletter (LR Bulletin) that gets emailed to all library staff each Thursday. This includes links to minutes of recent meetings, news of upcoming training events and details of any staff changes. Useful, but not necessarily fun or interesting. So, a few years ago, some of our team decided to introduce …
We visit … Harris Manchester College Library
Central panel of the stained glass window in the vestibule of Harris Manchester library On a recent trip with other library staff, we had the opportunity to visit Harris Manchester College, part the University of Oxford. We were able to look around not only the library, but also the Special Collections and archive. The history …
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We visit … Oxfordshire Central Library
Our annual Learn and Laugh week is an opportunity for Oxford Brookes library staff to explore new things and new places. On a damp morning in May we were treated to a visit to Oxfordshire County Library. This is the county’s flagship library, and sits at the entrance to the Westgate centre in central Oxford. …
My pandemic Library School experience #2
A university is just a group of buildings gathered around a libraryShelby Foote The beginning I’ve always loved libraries, and I’ve always loved learning. I spent much of my childhood in my local library and then in my school one. I didn’t get the internet at home until I was 13 (in 2009) and my …
My pandemic Library School experience #1
Face-to face teaching halted overnight, the Easter holidays were brought forward a week and we all became distance learners When I finished my undergraduate degree in 2009 at Brookes, I had little thought of doing any further study. I had been working at Oxford Brookes Library in Circulation and the Audio-visual unit initially and then …
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