The Whole Day Through by Patrick Gale

After hearing the Book at Bedtime version by Samantha Bond and Nathaniel Parker I got very curious about this book. To my surprise I was able to order it at a Dutch webshop. So 2 days after I ordered the book it arrived and I started to read straight away. The thing is that I couldn't stop reading. I love to read, but this book really is one of the best I read so far. I want to get more books by Patrick Gale for sure. I never heard of the author before and this was a very welcome introduction.

The story is about Laura who moved from Paris to a small English village to take care of her mother. In that little village she meets Ben, a former lover from school. They haven't seen eachother in 20 odd years, and she doesn't recognise him at first. They have dinner together and he tells her that he moved to this village to take care of his brother, who has down syndrome. They take on a passionate affair and Ben wants to ends his marriage. Do they end up together or not?

This book is very well written. You can picture the characters in the book and I love the style of the author. I think that this book is a great read. It is funny, sad and witty. I am really looking forward to read more by this Patrick Gale. The Book At Bedtime Story was very well abridged, but I was very happy to read the book and discover more about Laura, Ben and the other characters in the book.

Riding my Storm by Timmy Murphy

I was finally able to finish this wonderful book. Since a short time I am into horse racing and am interested in a few jockeys and horses. Timmy Murphy is one of the jockeys. I was able to get this book through Ebay and it was a great read. I started and it was hard to put it down. Timmy wrote this book together with someone else, but it is like you are Timmy. He is very open about himself and his past and present. It was great to read where Timmy came from and I have nothing but respect for him. He told me all about his alcoholproblem, which lead him to jail for a few months. He thought his carreer as jockey was over, but he came back stronger than ever. I really like the way this book is written. It is like Timmy himself is talking to you. Especially when he describes the Grand National of 2008, when he won on Comply or Die. It was a wonderful to see the race from Timmy´s point of view.



They were a wonderful team, but Timmy also talks about other horses like Beef or Salmon, which was one of his favorites. This book is a great read for people who love to know more about the person behind the jockey. This book tells about the comradery in the weight room, but also about the downsides of being a jockey. It was a great pleasure to read this book. I read a lot of books once and when they are "just nice" I sell them again, but this is a book for keep. I enjoyed reading it and I was a bit sad when it was finished. I am reading another book now, but I will be reading Timmy's book another time soon. I recommand this book to all who loves horses, as it shows that jockeys really care about their horses. It must be frustrating when you think you have been good on your horse and some others think you are not and get fined or banned. I am sure that race horses are well looked after, and this book is a proof of that. Well done Timmy and I hope to see you many more years to come as jockey.