Book club
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Why I love “How the Grinch Stole Christmas”
Book recommendation for December 2025: “How the Grinch Stole Christmas!” by Dr. Seuss A Christmas classic first published in 1957 that has a truly timeless message at its heart. Not just for kids, it is at its brilliant best when read aloud (to children or adults). What it’s about: The Grinch hates Christmas, the whole…
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Why I love “A Search in Secret India”
Book recommendation for November 2025: “A Search in Secret India” This is one of the classic works on the search for a spiritual guru that left a profound impact on me. And the story of how I came into possession of this book taught me about the wonderful potential to learn and grow when we…
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I formed a book club!
Blokes + Beer + Books = Good Times! I’ve been an avid reader for longer than I can remember, but I’ve never been a member of a book club. That changed this month! From a mental health and wellbeing perspective, it’s important for men (and women) to socialise with friends and find a safe space…
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Why I love “The Colour of Magic”
Book recommendation for October 2025: “The Colour of Magic” by Terry Pratchett The start of the iconic, and hilarious, Discworld series. It’s not everyone’s recommended starting point for the series but I fell in love with Terry Pratchett’s stories from the moment he redefined the Big Bang Hypothesis in the opening prologue. Who doesn’t need…
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Why I love “The Broker”
Book recommendation for September 2025: “The Broker” by John Grisham John Grisham is the King of legal thrillers and I’ve read easily a dozen of his books, if not more, and this is my favourite. He is a master story teller and he has never let me down, not to mention the list of excellent…
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Why I love “A Game of Thrones”
Book recommendation for August 2025: “A Game of Thrones” by George R. R. Martin The first instalment in George R.R. Martin’s epic fantasy series, A Song of Ice and Fire, inspired by the Wars of the Roses, it’s gritty and violent and driven by human greed and vanity, with tumultuous politics, backstabbing betrayals, and unexpected…
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Why I love “The Hobbit”
Book recommendation for July 2025: “The Hobbit” by J.R.R. Tolkien This is a true classic of childrens literature—though I would say literature full stop—which holds a special place in my heart because it is the book that made me fall in love with fantasy. I have reread it many times and once bought two copies…
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Why I love “Writers of the Future Volume 41”
Book recommendation for June 2025: Writers of the Future Volume 41 For over forty years, the Writers of the Future contest has found the newest and most exciting voices and visionaries in science fiction and fantasy. It has an incredible track record of finding the next generation of speculative fiction writers and I am so…
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Why I love “Dune”
Book recommendation for May 2025: “Dune” by Frank Herbert This is the most epic of epic science fiction novels and was a winner of both the Hugo Award and the Nebula Award (as the inaugural winner). For me, Dune is to science fiction what Lord of the Rings is to fantasy; the pinnacle of the…
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Why I love “Elantris”
Book recommendation for April 2025: “Elantris” by Brandon Sanderson I think this is the perfect place to start if you like fantasy books but have not yet read anything by Brandon Sanderson, who is perhaps the biggest fantasy writer at present. It’s a standalone novel, which is quite rare in fantasy these days. What’s it…