M J Johnson
  • Blog
  • Home
  • Books
    • Niedermayer & Hart >
      • Reviews for N & H
      • The Prologue
      • Sample the Book
      • Animations
    • Roadrage >
      • Reviews for Roadrage
      • Roadrage Sample
  • Contact Me

Wrong Twice!

14/12/2015

0 Comments

 
Picture
I listen to my wife’s advice on what to read for the following reasons:

1. Because after thirty odd years, she knows my taste.

2. She’s very well read herself (far better than I am - but don’t tell her I admitted it!).

However, advice and gentle suggestion are very different to being ‘told’ you have to read a certain title and are even issued with a timetable for completing the task. The ultimatum stated .... “Read it by 1 December or else I’ll start without you!”

Yes - not just bossy behaviour but behaviour that goes way beyond bossy!

I dug my heels in as you’d expect, and met her insistence and righteous fervour with sarcasm and the odd withering glance (mostly I withered when she wasn’t looking). But eventually, gentle reader, her eyebrow arched just one too many times, and my resistance collapsed.

Booohoohoo! (sound made by weeping man).

The book I was forced into reading, you’ll need to know?

The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying: a simple, effective way to banish clutter forever by Marie Kondo

Did I enjoy reading this book?

Nooo!

Do I think the author is a nut?

Yes.

Was it worth reading?

(Grudgingly) Yes.

Booohoohoo! (same sound of man weeping again).

Yes, this book was definitely worth reading. We were deluged beneath an ocean of clutter that had been acquired over decades. The simple points Marie Kondo makes, and her practical tips about getting rid of accumulated clutter, were definitely a new and useful approach for tackling this very real problem of having too much stuff!

And I should know about too much stuff - having had the unenviable task of reducing my late mother’s belongings shortly before she went into sheltered accommodation and a greatly reduced living space. I counted over twenty car journeys I made to the municipal tip/recycling centre, and approximately the same number to local charity shops. Mam hadn’t been able to throw out anything over her whole lifetime - hanging in a wardrobe were all my father’s clothes, despite him having passed away seventeen years before. It filled me with great sadness, and there were real tears shed at times; I vowed I wouldn’t leave such a legacy for my own son to have to deal with.

If you seriously would like to get rid of the clutter that surrounds you and lighten-up your life - then read this book! Fortunately, the book’s title covers a considerable percentage of the entire reading matter if you’re tackling it on Kindle - so, mercifully, not too much more to go!

Would I recommend this book as a practical aid to de-cluttering?

Yes, definitely.

Would I recommend this book as good reading?

Sorry, I must’ve dropped off, what was the question again?

 
However, I did read something over the same period that satisfied all criteria. From First to Last by Damon Runyon is a truly fantastic read . This is a companion volume to On Broadway by Damon Runyon and between the two they contain (I understand) just about all his stories. They are truly delightful, literally from first to last! The language, dialogue and cast of quirky characters are richly comic and unique.

We have had these books on our shelves since the late 70s and Jude had encouraged me time and time again to read them. I resisted, mainly because I told myself I didn’t like short stories much.
I don’t think I had a closed mind. It must simply be because short-story writing has improved.

Okay, I was wrong again!

0 Comments



Leave a Reply.

    Picture
    Available in paperback and ebook:
    Amazon.co.uk
    Amazon.com
    Picture
    Available in paperback and ebook:
    Amazon.co.uk
    Amazon.com
    Picture
    Available in paperback and ebook:
    Amazon.co.uk
    ​Amazon.com
    my read shelf:
    M.J. Johnson's book recommendations, liked quotes, book clubs, book trivia, book lists (read shelf)

    M J Johnson

    You can join Martin on
    Facebook
    If you'd like to subscribe to this blog, click on the RSS Feed button below

    RSS Feed

    Categories

    All
    Art
    Books
    Family Matters
    Film
    Historic/Factual
    Might Raise A Smile
    Miscellaneous
    Music
    Niedermayer & Hart
    Places Worth A Visit
    Roadrage
    Tea 'n' Coffee
    Theatre
    TV Stuff
    TV Stuff
    Wales
    Wilhelm & Laszlo
    Writing

    Archives

    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    August 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    June 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    October 2016
    September 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013
    March 2013
    February 2013
    January 2013
    December 2012
    November 2012
    October 2012
    September 2012
    August 2012
    July 2012
    June 2012
    May 2012
    April 2012
    March 2012
    February 2012
    January 2012
    December 2011
    November 2011
    October 2011

© 2018 M J Johnson. All rights reserved.
             Contact               Blog                 N & H                 Roadrage