Articles written by Philip Spires - Page 4

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About me - Philip Spires

I was born in 1952 in Wakefield, UK and spent my first ten years in Sharlston, then a mining village, followed by eight in Crofton, a mile nearer Wakefield. I went to London University, obtaining a BSc from Imperial College and a PGCE from King's. After two

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Politics, News & Issues > Politics in Africa Book reviews: Going Home by Doris Lessing: 1 of 1
It is fifty years since Doris Lessing published Going Home, an account of her return to Rhodesia, the country where she grew up. By then in her thirties, she had already achieved the status of restricted person because of her political allegiances and her declared opposition to illiberal white rule. These days Zimbabwe makes... More..
Arts & Humanities > British Literature Book reviews: A Gun for Sale, by Graham Greene: 1 of 1
On the face of it, A Gun For Sale by Graham Greene is a genre thriller, featuring a crime committed by a confessed and declared villain, followed by a police pursuit. In the hands of a great writer, however, even clichs such as this can be transformed into thoroughly satisfying novels. First published in 1936, A Gun For Sale... More..
Arts & Humanities > British Literature Book reviews: Flaubert's Parrot, by Julian Barnes: 1 of 1
Flaubert's Parrot by Julian Barnes is a book I have had queuing up to read for some time. I don't know why I have never got round to reading it. Perhaps it's because of the overtly "literary" tag that was attached to it when it won the Booker Prize. I am not against "literary" fiction. Far from it: indeed I aspire to write i... More..
Arts & Humanities > British Literature Book reviews: A Room at the Top, by John Braine: 1 of 1
A review of A Room At The Top by John Braine It's fifty years since A Room At The Top first appeared. Against a backdrop of post-war Britain, a period when people really did believe that a new future, a different kind of society was just around the corner, Joe Lampton, born January 1921, aspired to social and economic elevat... More..
Arts & Humanities > British Authors Book reviews: Fragrant Harbour, by John Lanchester: 1 of 1
Fragrant Harbour by John Lanchester is a novel that is hard to praise too highly. Set in Hong Kong, it presents the stories of four main characters, each of which is an immigrant to this city. Behind them at all times is a culture that rules their lives, sets the limits of what might be possible, but is always hard for outsi... More..
Arts & Humanities > British Authors Book reviews: Travels with My Aunt, by Graham Greene: 1 of 1
Henry Pulling is a recently retired bank manager. He was offered an arrangement after many years of devoted service when his bank was taken over by another. He is looking forward to spending more time with the dahlias that are his pride and joy, and also rubbing shoulders with his former customers in Southwood, an unremarkab... More..
Arts & Humanities > British Authors Book reviews: The Hired Hand, by Melvyn Bragg: 1 of 1
The Hired Hand by Melvyn Bragg is the story of John Tallentire, his wife, Emily, and their families. The novel is set in Cumbria in the north-west of England, starting in the 1890s and following the characters' fortunes until the 1920s. John Tallentire is the hired man. He is a farm labourer who does as he is asked but is re... More..
Arts & Humanities > British Literature Book reviews: A Bucket of Ashes, by Jill Lanchbery: 1 of 1
A Bucket of Ashes, a romantic novel set in Britain and Nigeria, by Jill Lanchbery is published by Libros International. At the heart of A Bucket of Ashes by Jill Lanchbery is an old fashioned love story. Joanna Townsend has it all. She has her own home in a beautiful Sussex village, a successful career as a freelance fashion... More..
Arts & Humanities > International Writers & Literature Book reviews: The Statement, by Brian Moore: 1 of 1
The Statement by Brian Moore is a little more than a pursuit thriller. I stress a little more because it genuinely transcends the "who's going to do it" genre, though overall it misses an opportunity to address some important and potentially fascinating ideas. Pierre Brossard is the original, but not the only name of a polit... More..
Arts & Humanities > International Writers & Literature Book reviews: My Life as a Fake, by Peter Carey: 1 of 1
My Life As A Fake by Peter Carey is a strange, multi-layered journey through a man's past, his artistic inspiration and his products, both illusory and real. Christopher Chubb is Australian and a budding poet. He resents the privilege of a certain litterateur and so he decides to nail him. An apparently genuine but actually ... More..