august 2022 books…

Wilding (Isabela Tree): This is our Bloke’s Books next book and tells the story of Charlie Burrell+Isabella Tree’s ‘leap of faith’ in handing their 3,500 acres of West Sussex farmland back to nature. The project started in 2000, when the couple were forced to accept that intensive farming of the heavy clay soils of their farm (Knepp Castle Estate) was driving them close to bankruptcy. Their project has since become a leading light for conservation in the UK – demonstrating how letting nature take over can restore both the land and its wildlife. It’s a passionate, articulate book and an inspiring story – well-researched and full of detail based on their own experiences, both the positives and negatives. It talks about how intensive farming has badly damaged the condition of our soil – resulting in the increased dependence of fertilisers and chemicals (which, in turn, fail to replenish micronutrients etc and eventually reduce crop yields) – and how re-wilding has reversed such declines. Sometimes, I found her enthusiasm somewhat off-putting but, overall, I found it a very impressive book (I learnt a lot) – although I think I’d avoid getting into a discussion with her at a party (What? Me, going to a party? Dream on!), as I could imagine her enthusiasm being a little too evangelical for me to take!
Falling Upward (Richard Rohr): I continue to struggle in my spiritual wilderness and a lovely friend lent me this book (“A spirituality for the two halves of life”) for reflection. Rohr is clearly a very intelligent, wise man (he’s a Franciscan priest) and his writings are full of astute insights… and many of my friends find him a huge support/encouragement on their own spiritual journeys. Somewhat embarrassingly, I’m afraid, I struggle with his books. I’ve previously read 2 or 3 of them and, each time, have found that they don’t really ‘speak to me’ in the way I’d hoped they would. On the face of it, I thought that this book (focusing on the ‘second half of life’) would provide a helpful roadmap on my own ‘journey’ and, while it did provide useful insights into what he described as the “mature spirituality” of growing old as a Christian, it didn’t tackle the important matter, for me, of ‘self-doubt’ (and, to be fair, the book never pretended that this was its prime objective). I think I probably need to read Brian McLaren’s book “Do I Stay Christian?”!  
Red Sauce Brown Sauce (Felicity Cloake): Cloake is (among other things) a food columnist on The Guardian newspaper and I read this book after Moira had said how much she’d enjoyed it. It’s essentially a travelogue of her cycle tour of the UK (plus the various train connections) to ‘investigate and celebrate the legendary Great British Breakfast’ – and in the process gauge the merits/popularity/preferences of brown sauce versus ketchup. I must say, she’s a very funny and entertaining writer and the book is full of her adventures, anecdotes, culinary details and amusing greed(!). Strangely, although it’s a really easy-to-read book, it took me quite a long time to finish it (it’s some 370 pages)… a very enjoyable read nevertheless.   
The Help (Kathryn Stockett): This is our next Storysmith bookgroup book… and, this month, it’s with a difference – we’re combining our get together with a viewing of the film at ‘20^th Century Flicks’. First published in 2009, the novel is set in Jackson, Mississippi in the early 1960s at the peak of racial segregation. The book is narrated by three very different women: a black maid who, despite her excellent cooking skills, frequently loses her job for ‘answering back’; another black maid who is raising her 'seventeenth white child'; and, in sharp contrast, a white woman who wants to be a writer (who was herself brought up by black maids). The ‘help’ are the black community who spend their lives bringing up the children of upper-class white families - with their own children being looked after by someone else. The privileged whites are shockingly discriminating and demand continuing segregation of the black and white communities. It’s long book (some 450 pages) and, I thought, quite an onerous challenge for our monthly bookgroup… but I found it an utterly compelling, unforgettable account and managed to read it within 3 days (the final 250 pages in a late night/early morning stint!!). The author (who herself grew up in the ‘deep south’) writes quite brilliantly - informative, shocking, saddening, amusing and uplifting. A wonderful novel… which will almost certainly be one of my ‘books of the year’.
Glucose Revolution (Jessie Inchauspé): I’m really not into reading books about food(!) and blame my great mate Jez for recommending* this one to me (* he was verging on the evangelical!). It’s essentially a book about balancing one’s blood sugar (I have no real knowledge of my own blood sugar characteristics, but hey). It seems that 90% of us suffer from too much glucose in our system – although most of us don’t know it – and this book describes ways in which we can ‘flatten our glucose spikes’. Inchauspé (@glucosegoddess) has a science/mathematics/biochemistry background and writes in a simple, but very accessible, way about factors which she maintains can transform a person’s health. Fortunately (from my perspective), it’s NOT a calorie-counting food book but one in which she provides a series of science-based ‘hacks’/tips, such as: how eating foods in the right order can also aid losing weight; adding a green starter to every meal; walking/exercising for 10 minutes after a meal; reaching for vinegar (I know!) before you eat… and much, much more. The book contains LOTS of sustainable, accessible, practical guidance and, although I’m not very good at taking advice(!), I will endeavour to take some of them on board. I’m hoping to persuade Moira to read the book too – in the knowledge that as our ‘principal cook’ (and therefore the reason I eat as ‘sensibly’ as I do)(obviously, that’s MY assessment!), she’ll be implementing and encouraging me to take on board some additional ‘new eating habits’. 

marching against trump…

They reckon a quarter of a million people were in London yesterday in protest against virtually everything the US president stands for and says (and there were lots of other marches around the country, including Bristol). The protesters were happy, peaceful, dignified, colourful, noisy… and DETERMINED to demonstrate to Mr Trump and the world (as if he would take any notice!) that the UK does NOT love him.
Indeed, we don’t!

Inevitably, today’s newspapers are all about Trump. I suspect that most will convey a similar message to our Guardian newspaper, so (perhaps for the benefit of my American friends?) here are just a couple of brief extracts to give you a flavour:

“The British government did its absolute best – given that the streets of the cities were full of protesters – to lay on a glittering welcome for Mr Trump this week. Blenheim, Sandhurst, Chequers, Windsor – you don’t get much more in the way of British establishment red carpet than that. But this reckoned without the Trump character and, more sinisterly, the Trump political project. The president undermined Mrs May before he even left America. He bullied and lied at the Nato summit in Brussels. He then gave an explosive and deliberately destabilising interview to Rupert Murdoch’s ‘Sun’ on the very day of his arrival in Britain…
This guaranteed that Friday’s press conference at Chequers would be purgatorial for Mrs May and maybe even a little chastening for the president and his team. And so it proved, in spite of what had clearly been the private reading of the diplomatic equivalent of the Riot Act to Mr Trump. But it was not just the rudeness that mattered – though rudeness does matter, a lot, both in personal and in public things. It was the political impact and consequence. That unmistakable consequence is that Mr Trump’s America can no longer be regarded with certainty as a reliable ally for European nations committed to the defence of liberal democracy. That is an epochal change for Britain and for Europe…
A president who supported the Atlantic alliance, the stability of Europe and liberal democratic values – in short, every other US president of the postwar era… would have tried to help, would have seen the EU-UK problem as one that needed solving, and would have used his influence to get America’s European allies to find a shared way forward after Brexit. Such a president would have been doing the right thing. But Mr Trump is not such a president. He is not our ally. He is hostile to our interests and values. He may even, if this goes on, become a material threat…
This week he deliberately inflamed the politics of Europe and of Britain” (Guardian Editorial 14 July).

“This was a far cry from Bill Clinton strolling through Hyde Park during his presidential swansong or Barack Obama dropping in on a primary school in Newport. For Trump, making his first visit to the UK as president, there was no park and no school, no 10 Downing Street, no Houses of Parliament and no Buckingham Palace. Nor was this the state visit that May had promised when she dashed to Washington shortly after Trump took office. The tens of thousands of people marching in the streets of London might have had something to do with it” (David Smith, The Guardian).

Rest assured American friends, there’s never been such UK press comment (and there will have been other similar comments in other newspapers today, I assure you) about ANY president in my entire lifetime!

In order to avoid a transport nightmare on the day itself, I’d travelled up to London the night before and stayed over in Bromley – thanks to my good friend Becki’s kind hospitality. It meant that I was able to get into central London quite early (and seeing the ‘baby trump’ inflatable in Parliament Square as a bonus!). I relaxed over coffee on the Southbank and the sun was shining… so I decided to make my way slowly across town to Portland Place (immediately adjacent the BBC’s Broadcasting House). Initially, I’d planned to take part in the main march (from Portland Place to Trafalgar Square - which was due to start at 2pm) but ended up walking with the Women’s March (Portland Place to Parliament Square – starting at noon) because, when I first arrived just after 11am, there were already crowds gathering. By an absolute fluke, I also met up with my great friends Diane and Steve Eyre, and so we were able to march together (what a very special bonus that was!).

Predictably (I’ve been on a fair few demonstrations in the past, so I know!), I didn’t actually need to have made my own placard – there were literally hundreds provided at street corner pick-ups. But, I’m glad I did… it was MY statement (although I could have added lots of other adjectives describing my opinion of Mr Trump!)… and it provoked lots of positive comment and endorsement.

 

Of course, we all knew that Trump was avoiding London like the plague… but it didn’t matter. Was it worth making the journey to the UK capital for a few hours “just to take part in a political demonstration” that was unlikely(!) to bring a change of heart to this so-called leader of the western world? Yes, absolutely. And, whatsmore, I felt that I was also there representing dozens of family members and friends who weren’t able to make the trip (one of the bonuses of retirement)… and, indeed, in solidarity with my friends from the USA.

Small voices against the extremes of political power… a token gesture? Well, maybe. But actually, I think it wasn’t just a message for Mr Trump… it was message to politicians/political parties throughout the world and, IN PARTICULAR, a message to our own politicians and parties here in the UK.

world turned upside down…

“World Turned Upside Down” is the name of a rather special exhibition that’s being curated by my amazing friend Si Smith (see note below) in Leeds. Although I feel a little out of my depth (understatement!), I am one of 17 artists (including daughter Ruth) contributing work for the exhibition. 
It’s a group exhibition responding to the Beatitudes.
The exhibition runs from evening Friday (evening) 20 October until Wednesday 15 November in St Edmund’s Church (Lidgett Park Road, Roundhay, Leeds LS8 1JN).
I previously participated in one of Si’s curated exhibitions at the Left Bank, Leeds in 2012… and it was stunningly impressive (not my stuff, I hasten to add!) – so I KNOW this one will be well worth seeing if you’re anywhere in the Leeds area.

Si Smith explains the unlikely, extraordinary inspiration for the exhibition as follows:

“At Donald Trump’s inauguration ceremony, the Beatitudes were read. That struck me as a truly dissonant moment and – whether deliberate or not – a pretty direct rebuke to the values that he represents. Because whilst we’ve succumbed to the belief that it’s the richest, the strongest and the most powerful who’ll always and inevitably triumph, the message of the beatitudes is that in the end, it is actually the meek who’ll inherit the Earth. As I pondered it, that idea of re-imagining a world turned on its head really appealed to me, and it’s something that our contributing artists have enjoyed grappling with too – I think that the work they are producing will make for a really interesting and thought-provoking exhibition”.

For the exhibition, I’ve put together twelve simple photographs of twelve rough sleepers (Chris, Daniel, Gary, Gemma, Geordie, Ian, Joe, Kim, Nathan, Paul, Phillip and Shaun) I’ve befriended over recent months. As I’m sure you’ll appreciate, here in Bristol – like most cities across the UK – there are SEVERAL dozen rough sleepers… (apparently, in the past six years, the number of rough sleepers in the city has increased NINEFOLD)(yes, ninefold!).

They each have their own stories, but I’m not providing any details or specifically identifying them. I think it’s better to let their portraits speak for them… (I’m not going to show the overall piece of work because one of the individuals didn’t want his photograph shown on facebook… and I don’t want to break his trust). They are individuals with lives to live – each with their hopes and aspirations, each with their fears and regrets.
Blessed be the meek…

This is what I wrote for my exhibition blurb:

“This year, I’ve spent more time talking to some of the rough sleepers in our city.
They’ve all got their stories…
The thing that has struck me most is their quiet dignity and their gentle friendliness.
I’ve never been threatened or verbally abused and they’re always happy to talk.
None of them likes the way they’re forced to live.
Some of them live in doorways.
Some live in small make-shift tents.
Some live in squats.
Some get the occasional respite of a night shelter.
Some are there because they lost their jobs and/or could no longer afford to pay their rent.
Some are there because of their own foolishness in the past.
Most are there due to circumstances beyond their control.
There are sad stories of broken relationships, broken homes… of being unable to cope.
There are sad stories of being verbally or physically abused by passers-by or rowdy drinkers.
There are sad stories of being robbed of what little money they had or having their tents slashed. 
Many feel ashamed by their circumstances.
Many just want to be given another chance.
Many simply feel hopeless… utterly hopeless.
Most feel that society doesn’t care about them.
The sad reality is that, once you’re down, it’s very difficult to get back on your feet again”.
I think the exhibition will provide plenty of food for thought.
Please see it if you can.
Photo: this is just ONE of the individuals I’ve spoken to over recent months… I chat to him regularly.
PS: Si Smith is a wonderful illustrator (as well as being a very special bloke)… who created, amongst LOTS of other work, the thought-provoking book “How To Disappear Completely”.

 

I Am Not Your Negro…

I went to the Watershed yesterday to see Raoul Peck’s “I Am Not Your Negro”.
James Baldwin (1924-1987) was an American novelist, essayist, playwright, poet, and social critic… frequently exploring racial, sexual and class distinctions in Western societies, most notably in mid-20th-century America.
Essentially, this is a documentary envisioning a book that Baldwin never finished. He left behind just 30 completed pages of a manuscript about the lives of three of his close friends – Medgar Evers, Malcolm X and Martin Luther King Jr. The resulting film is a radical view of race in America today – using Baldwin’s original words (narrated by Samuel L Jackson) and a mass of archival material (including Baldwin participating in various studio discussions and also at a Cambridge Union debate in 1965). Again and again, Baldwin criticises the romantic perception of the “American Dream” and it has adversely affected African Americans.
I’d seen a preview of the film and knew that it would be difficult viewing.
Most of us are well aware of seeing footage of some of the horrific, vicious, racist scenes from the 1950s and 60s – including shameful scenes of police violence, the frightening, humiliating, anti-black protests by whites and a reminder of an awful time in the USA when white and black were segregated. Director Raoul Peck, in the Watershed’s programme notes, said this: “Because there were some victories with the Civil Right’s Movement - we have Martin Luther King day, we have Black History Month - most people think everything is good now, we’ve solved all of the problems. We have monuments; we have museums. But, that’s not the case”.  
The film represents a timely, powerful challenge to the definition of what America stands for today – especially in the light of relatively recent #BlackLivesMatter ‘incidents’ and since President Trump’s inauguration (and his various comments during the presidential campaign).
But, of course, sections of America aren’t alone in adopting such intolerant attitudes… in Europe, we have the migrant crisis (amongst other things) and here in the UK, after the depressing Brexit vote, we have seen an alarming rise in reported hate crimes.
Sadly, thirty years on, Baldwin’s words feel as urgent and as articulate as ever.
*NotInMyName*
It’s a difficult, shocking, compelling and saddening film to watch, but I urge you to see it.

racism

I was absolutely appalled by Monday night’s “Panorama” programme “Undercover – hate on the Doorstep”. The behaviour of the young people featured in the documentary against the two Asian reporters (who posed as a married couple living in Southmead, Bristol) made feel physically sick. I just can’t comprehend how anyone can behave like this towards another human being – it was just barbaric. Yes, I realise that it’s probably only a tiny minority of young people in the area who behave in such a manner, but that doesn’t make it any more tolerable. I’ve just looked on the BBC website and Batook Pandya (Support Against Racist Incidents) is quick to point out that “there's a lot of good work going on in Southmead by the council, the police, everybody else who is with the youth service”. I don’t doubt that this is true, but I found the following quote from Barbara Janke of Bristol City Council somewhat predictable and painfully depressing: “Are we doing enough with young people in schools? Are we doing enough in other agencies within the city to tackle this level of prejudice?”.
It always seems to come down to “are the schools doing enough?”. Very rarely is there ANY reference to the role of PARENTS in all this.
I strongly suspect that the parents of most of the young people we saw on our screens last night are sadly lacking in anything approaching decent parenting skills. The depressing truth is that Monday night’s featured young people will themselves become parents in the not-very-distant future and one can only imagine, and fear for, what is likely to become of their offspring.