Sunshine Break

I'm off to Lanzarote for a few days to catch up on my reading:

Peter Hall's Diaries 1972-80 edited by John Goodwin. A fascinating read, about the period when the ex-RSC supremo took over the newly-built National Theare. He dictated half an hour every morning and the results were edited down to one sixth of the total .

Bernard Schinke's The Reader. I couldn't resist starting this after enjoying the film so much, and the style is superb.

Fred Vargas's The Three Evangelists. This Paris-based crime thriller was recommended by my oldest friend, who's French herself. 'Fred' is really a woman author and the story's about a disappearing opera singer and Mathhew, Mark, and Luke who find her - I think .

Bamboo Hirst's Vado a Shangai per Comprarmi un Capello. Written by a classmate who's half Chinese and half Italian, it's a eulogy to her native city.

I think I'll have to carry them under my arm as my suitcase is titchy so it can be cabin-luggage.