Philip Spires commonplace book

I have kept a commonplace book for many years. It's a place where scraps of impressions are filed for future reflection. It's not a diary, it's just a mental scrapbook, concentrating on book reviews, concert reviews, visual arts and some occasional pieces on travel. It is also a place where I occasionally reflect on what I write. Details of my books can be found at http://www.philipspires.co.uk

Showing posts with label society. Show all posts

Wednesday, May 26, 2021

Tribes by David Lammy

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Tribes by David Lammy promises much, delivers something, but ultimately fails to convince. Its problem lies in the very nature of its visi...

Monday, January 16, 2012

An evaluation framework - Economic Policy and Human Rights by Radhika Balakrishnan and Diane Elson

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Economic Policy and Human Rights by Radhika Balakrishnan and Diane Elson apparently declares an intention to compare and contrast fiscal and...

Tuesday, October 25, 2011

The Chant of Jimmy Blacksmith by Thomas Keneally

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The Chant of Jimmy Blacksmith by Thomas Keneally is based on the life of an Australian bushranger called Jimmy Governor. Fictionalised as Ji...

Friday, March 4, 2011

The Battle For Spain by Anthony Beevor

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Occasionally, very rarely in fact, one comes across a thoroughly outstanding book. From beginning to end it’s authoritative, clearly written...

Tuesday, August 31, 2010

The Child In Time by Ian McEwan

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Stephen Lawes appears to be pretty well-heeled. His successes seem remarkable. He is a successful writer of children’s books. He is acquaint...

Friday, August 27, 2010

The Steps Of The Sun by Caroline Harvey, aka Joanna Trollope

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I approached The Steps Of The Sun not knowing what to expect. Its author was listed as Joanna Trollope writing as Caroline Harvey. I had pre...

Wednesday, June 23, 2010

Another Part Of The Wood by Beryl Bainbridge

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Another Part Of The Wood by Beryl Bainbridge first appeared in 1968. It was a significant year. The book’s vintage shows through via passing...

Saturday, November 7, 2009

New York Days, New York Nights by Stephen Brook

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I have just done another tour of New York. It’s a city whose streets I have walked, whose life I have encountered, whose people I have known...

Tuesday, August 19, 2008

A Walk Up Fifth Avenue by Bernard Levin

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Bernard Levin begins A Walk Up Fifth Avenue with three quotations from descriptions of New York City. These date from 1916, 1929 and 1949 an...

Thursday, June 19, 2008

Where We Once Belonged by Sia Figiel

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Where We Once Belonged by Sia Figiel is a novel set in Samoa, a novel that won the Commonwealth Writers Prize. At one level it is a simple s...

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About Me

philipspires: I was born in Wakefield and was brought up in Sharslton, a mining Village. I went to London University and then became a maths teacher, working initially as a volunteer teacher in Kenya. I spent sixteen years in London, in Balham and Islington. In 1992, I left Britain for Brunei and then Zayed University in Abu Dhabi. I currently live in La Nucia, near Benidorm in Spain. I am interested in the relationship between nature and nurture, birthright and experience. Themes of culture and identity and their relation to economic and social roles underpin my writing. What we are born into relates to what we become, but we are rarely in control. What others do, our interests and intellects and the way we choose to earn a living, all of these shape us into what we become. It may be that culture is the sum of all assumptions that others make on our behalf, whereas identity represents our reactions to them. I did a PhD on the effects of education in economic development in the Philippines. I was President of Alfas del Pi Music Society for twelve years.

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