Author: Richard Carter

by Madsen Pirie The use and abuse of logic. I heard about this book via the Merseyside Skeptics Society's excellent podcast, Skeptics with a K. The book classifies and describes the different sorts of tricks and logical fallacies people tend to use—either deliberately or inadvertently—in arguments. Pirie's thesis is that, by learning to recognise such… Continue reading How to Win Every Argument

by Jonathan Meades Writer and TV presenter's childhood reminiscences. I am a huge fan of Jonathan Meades's intelligent, entertaining, thought-provoking, irreverent, and amusing television programmes, so I really looked forwards to reading this memoir of his childhood in Wiltshire. I wasn't disappointed. As expected, the book was intelligent, entertaining, thought-provoking, irreverent, and amusing: a real… Continue reading An Encyclopaedia of Myself

by Virginia Woolf Stream-of-consciousness classic. I first read Mrs Dalloway in 1990. It inspired me to parody. Even so, it left a lasting impression, so I thought it was about time I re-read it. I'm glad I did. It is a remarkable novel, describing a single day in the criss-crossed lives of a number of… Continue reading Mrs Dalloway

by John Wyatt Living in the Lakeland woods. The Shining Levels is the late John Wyatt's account of a year spent living in a Lakeland forest as a forestry worker. To be honest, I enjoyed it less than many of the other classics of nature writing published by Little Toller books. Even though it was… Continue reading The Shining Levels

by W.G. Hoskins Classic study of how the English built their landscape. W.G. Hoskins's The Making of the English Landscape is rightly regarded as a classic. He describes how the English landscape as we see it today was determined by, and is a record of, our long and complex history. It's a fascinating read. If… Continue reading The Making of the English Landscape