Tag: Coronavirus

Tony Hawks – One Hit Wonderland | Review

March 27, 2020
Authors F-J (By Surname)Non-Fiction

Title: One Hit Wonderland

Author: Tony Hawks

Type: Non-Fiction

Page Count: 310

Rating: 4/5

I picked this one up after seeing it in a charity shop and reading and enjoying Round Ireland with a Fridge. Hawks has a quirky sense of humour, but it’s one of the rare instances where someone’s sense of humour comes across really well in the written page and where it doesn’t annoy me.

Here, we basically follow what happens when Hawks decides to head abroad to try to record a follow up to a one hit wonder that he had before I was even born. He meets a colourful supporting cast of characters along the way of course, and overall we end up with a fun little book that you can whizz through in a couple of days.

I actually read this while everyone was locked down because of Coronavirus, and it was the perfect read for that because it helped to take my mind away to a time where the world wasn’t quite in the state that it’s in today. It’s weird, I haven’t seen anyone I know for a week or so, and so just the very idea of going outside and spending time with people feels like something I did half a year away.

All in all then, I was pretty happy with this book and I still plan to eventually read everything that Hawks has published. The list is disappointingly short, and he must be about due something by now, but perhaps he’s no longer taking silly bets and going off on crazy madcap adventures. I don’t know, I haven’t looked him up.

Would I recommend this one? Definitely, and it’s actually one of those where I think you’ll find something no matter what kind of stuff you normally read. It’s just loads of fun.

Learn more about One Hit Wonderland.

William Shakespeare – Much Ado About Nothing | Review

March 23, 2020
Authors P-T (By Surname)Fiction

Title: Much Ado About Nothing

Author: William Shakespeare

Type: Fiction

Page Count: 268

Rating: 4/5

I’m not sure how I hadn’t got to this play yet, but I’m glad I picked it up. I think it’s actually one of the easiest of Shakespeare’s plays to follow, and I flew through it because I have a weird edition. The left pages have the notes on and the right side has the play, but I didn’t need the notes except for the introductions to each scene to make sure that I knew what was going on.

One of the things that interested me here is that it focusses on a case of mistaken identity, which Shakespeare has done elsewhere. He does it well, and this play is a fantastic example of that. At the same time, it was much easier to understand and to follow the action than it was in The Comedy of Errors, which has some similarities.

But this also stands up on its own as a fantastic little play and something that’s going to stick with me for a while. There’s also a little bit of romance in there, presumably to give it some more mainstream appeal, and the humour is of the kind where I think anyone could enjoy it. That makes it a play for all the family, and I hope that at some point I get to see a performance of it.

We’ll see, though. That might have to wait until after all of the coronavirus stuff has blown over. But Shakespeare was quarantined too, I hear.

Learn more about Much Ado About Nothing.