the pleasure of reading a good book,

[Dave G]

You might find it interesting cruising around rural Victoria and Melbourne. Robotham (Aussie born and Sydneysider) sets his series in Bristol. Good reading. 

[granny moss]

My story is about all I remember of life around me from when I was born to now. It goes from 1923 to 2013.   It starts with oil and paraffin lamps, charcoal burning smoothing irons, back yard toilets.....to todays en-suites...central heating, shopping malls .....Nearly 100 years of changes !!!!
I thought it would make a good record of the progress that took place and how amazing it has been in all fields !!!!  I am now revising, adding and correcting....just over 300 pages of it !. Done 30 pages of it !...It may be done by spring ?.....Just over 68.000 words.....so far....gmx

[Dave G]

That's good, Granny. As a youngster (in the country) I used to love listening to my elders' talking about their upbringing. It always had that touch of melancholy and (almost) romance to it.    I was raised on a banana plantation and we had an elderly Scotsman who had the knack of storytelling. He had no electricity (kerosene lamps and cooker) and always walked with a stoop to his gait. I loved him dearly.

[xetog]

I have been an avid reader as far back as I can remember and at the age of 10 my mother enrolled me in the local library (my first borrowed book was about London Buses which fascinate me to this day).  At the age of 12 a schoolfriend and I used to pass the library every day on our way home from school. One day we decided cheekily to pop in and ask to join the adult library (adult not having the same connotations then as it has now).  To our surprise the lady librarian agreed and from then on there was no stopping us.  That first day john and I discovered science fiction and although I have not seen John in 6 decades, I at least am still a fan.  In those days, rocketry was in its infancy and Dan Dare, Digby and the Mekon were the closest we got to real astronauts, but the world of 'what if' was wide open as were our minds.  I have subsequently tried novels, mainly thrillers and crime genres but have found all the popular authors rapidly become formulaic so I have to confess I have lost interest.  SF has also become synonymous with fantasy, which I dislike and non-fiction has become my only literary interest.  Sad really, but at least I still love busses (& trains & 'planes & ships & art) so I shall not go short of interesting reading.


Mike.X

[zoony]

I don't recall at what age the librarian gave me an adults ticket but being able to take out more than two books at a time was wonderful. Fortunately the same Library is still there and still less than 100 yds away..

[fortyone]

In the present climate that is lucky indeed. I still read and listen to many books but haven't used a library in years. The only time I've been in the one over the road from me was when the council had them handle senior bus passes and mine needed renewal. It's still there but I'm not sure it still will be come the next renewal.

[Johned]

Whenever I am "downtown", I invariably wander into our library to see if any of my surviving oppos might be lurking therein and I might sit down with a book off the shelves for a quiet half hours read.  However I seldom borrow a book anymore as I download them and read online from the Lincolnshire county library website.  At least, I don't have to worry about fines if a book is overdue!  A number of our county libraries have been closed in recent times as an economy measure during these austerity years and they say if you don't use it, you lose it!  As the first line in education reference, losing libraries is hardly conducive to Tony Blair's "Education, Education, Education!"  Libraries are one of those things we take for granted until we no longer have access to them.