The Primacy of Your Eye

The Primacy of Your Eye is a fascinating book by author, artist and qualified art historian Allan W. Beckett.

It is a handbook that belongs on the bookshelf of anyone with even a passing acquaintance and interest in art and really should be owned by every public library, school library and university library in the country.

This will make a superb stocking filler for every art student and every lover of art.

He has researched for this book by watching people in art galleries. He acknowledges that they clearly enjoy what they are seeing on the walls of the art galleries, but believes they move too quickly from one work of art to another because they are unsure of what they should be looking for.

Beckett looks in broad depth at every topic that he has covered in his book, in an attempt to open the eye of the viewer of art to come to an understanding of the history of art, what the artist's intentions may well have been, what approaches they would have taken to their subjects and the varied array of artistic techniques and styles they would have used.

He also examines the influences that would have informed the work of the artists, from the early Renaissance period right through to modern times with contemporary art, via Modernism.

It is is intention -and a noble one, at that- to help people learn to appreciate the art in the world, but to do this in a non-threatening and non-elitist fashion.

The book is well-illustrated and the author executes his intention with a deft touch and a very welcome panache.

It is published by Matador at £12.99 and is available for purchase here >>> https://goo.gl/m5aVoo.

The Rhyming Diary of Jason Smith

If you have a teacher or a child to buy a Christmas present for, then you really should get a copy of veteran schoolteacher Trevor Cattell's highly amusing book, The Rhyming Dictionary of Jason Smith.

Retired teacher and author, Trevor Cattell has drawn on his over 30 years experience at the chalkface, as they say, to come up with his first book for children.

Jason Smith is a fairly standard boy of 11, with the exception that he enjoys being a diarist, keeping a record of events and occasions that had, for one reason or another, made a deep and lasting impression on him.

Days so recorded included the incident when a dog decided to go to school, what happened when he wore odd socks, the problem of racing infants, or should that be of infants, racing?) the misery of his untidy room, how he played at being Howard Carter one afternoon, and forgot what he should have been doing, and all told in rhyme!

This is a cleverly disguised, highly inventive and most amusing book of poetry for children, teachers and adults.

It is published by Matador at £8.99 and will make a very welcome addition to many Christmas stockings this year!

You can purchase it, and lots of other Christmas books and gifts,  here >>> https://goo.gl/m5aVoo.

Chasing Cloud

If you have to buy a Christmas present for a lover of historical fiction, here's a book that will fit that bill perfectly.

Chasing Cloud by David M. Smith, which is set on the island of Malta in 2500BC.

We meet Laxme who is the priest at the Tarxian temple.

He devotes his life to the worship of the goddess of fertility and has over his many years at her temple worked diligently to become a master of not only the temple rituals but also of the theology of the goddess' religion.

He believes his life life to be perfect. Well, nearly perfect.

Suddenly his life of order and ritual is replaced with a new life that is unexpectedly filled with adventure and danger.

He finds himself searching for a missing woman, called Cloud, who he knew from his childhood, and he also joins a young sculptress, Pebble, on a quest to the distant island of Sicily in order to help her find a copper idol that she requires for a carving that she is undertaking.

Will Laxme be able to complete both tasks, or neither?

Will his chasing Cloud result in her being found?

Can he help the young sculptress attain what it is that she needs?

This is a very interesting novel, it is a whimsical and romantic novel which will be a welcome Chirstmas gift for the lover of stories set in the past.

It is well written and the historical research is also first rate.

It is published by The Book Guild at £8.99 and is available for purchase at our own Christmas gift shop which you will find here >>>>  https://goo.gl/m5aVoo.



  

The Key to the Half Worlds

Andrew Chaplin's debut children's novel, The Key to the Half Worlds, is published by The Book Guild at £8.99.

It tells the exciting story of Richard Cranfield, a rather ordinary boy of 13, who suddenly finds himself launched into another, utterly alien, but strangely familiar, world by way of the school bus.

He is fortunate as he has an equally youthful companion with him on this extraordinary journey, his best friend Tom.

They realise that they are in an alternative reality, an Earth where magic is real and where all sorts of amazing and mythological creatures and beings actually live and breathe, side by side, as it were.

Sorcerers practiced their sorcery, and dragons and elves were commonplace and, in effect, ordinary living creatures.

Richard and Tom are amazed at first, but then they realise how dangerous and frightening this alternative version of their world really could be.

They meet a young female elf and assisted by a wizardly elf the boys become embroiled in a desperate plot to stop a wicked sorcerer elf from bringing the two realities together as a part of her campaign to dominate everything and everyone.

Could the boys help be the key to thwarting this evil design to bring about domination?

Would they save both versions of the world?

Would they be able to return home?

This book is published by The Book Guild at £8.99 and will make a superb Chirstmas present for any child who likes a touch of magic in their reading material. It'll also be great fun for parents, grandparents and older siblings, too!

It is available for purchase from our very own book and gift shop which you will find here >>> https://goo.gl/m5aVoo.

Deathling of Dorn

Deathling of Dorn, by John Timmis, is an ideal Christmas gift for the lovers of Fantasy Fiction in your life.

It tells the story of the inhabitants of the Southlands and of Dorn who have known safety, peace and security for many millennia under the benevolent and protective rule of Virdil, their wizard.

But on one great and terrible day, the unthinkable happens! The evil and vicious sorcerer Venain has slain Virdil, their protector!

Now the denizens of the Southlands and of Dorn fall prey to the vile Baeths, hostile and barbaric killers who are lusting after the spoils of the conquests they can so easily make, now the people's champion and protector is no more!

But the people of the lands strive to continue some semblance of normal life and for them concepts of honour and love are still adhered to by them.

They try to fight off the evil despoilers of their lands but great and terrible events are taking place and these events and the ensuing chaos bring about the spawning of a Deathling.

What could this mean? What will the consequences be? Nobody could know, but the results could mean life or death.

What will happen to the lands, to the people? Will they ever know peace and happiness? Or will their lives forever be blighted?

Published by Matador at £8.99 the book is available here at our own bookshop >>> https://goo.gl/m5aVoo.

That's Books and Entertainment: All About Cruising

That's Books and Entertainment: All About Cruising: All About Cruising is a new and highly amusing look at cruiseships and those who cruise around the world on them. It is a mixture of car...

Hidden by the Leaves

Hidden by the Leaves is a new novel by S D L Curry, which draws upon his extensive knowledge of the history of Medieval Japanese society.

It is part of S D L Curry's 'Hidden' trilogy of novels (it is the first book) and is inspired by events that actually took place in Japan.

It tells the story of a Jesuit Priest in Japan, Father Joaquim Martinez.

He is residing in a tiny peasant village which is within the Hizen Province. Unfortunately the Provincial ruler is a man who is not only self-serving but also capable of acts of immense cruelty, Daimyo Matsukura.

He issues Father Jaquim and his two young catechists, Miguel and Tanya, with banishment orders.

However, the trio take the dangerous decision to defy the order of banishment, as they prefer to remain in the village to assist and help the villagers who they now consider to be their family.

The novel relates how they, and the peasant villagers, strive to remain free and safe from the clutches of a variety of enemies including shogun known for their legendary viciousness, the implacable Daimyo Matsukura and the ranks of all-powerful Samurai who are at their disposal.

But what they had not counted on was the absolute faith and tenacity of Father Jaquim and a range of miraculous events including assistance from some very unlikely quarters.

This is an amazingly well-written and well-researched novel and will make a most excellent Chirstmas present for lovers of adventure, history or who just revel in a finely executed novel.

It's published by The Book Guild at £8.99 and is available for purchase here >>> https://goo.gl/m5aVoo.