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I read this 14(?) years ago for school and loved it. I recently bought and re-read it and it was still able to give me shivers.

*** WARNING *** Here be spoilers ***

Just a number and three little words were enough to make me shiver on the train this morning - "8. You may lie". The fact that Lowry managed to build up a world enough to make that have such a high hitting line without ever mentioning the idea of lying is testament to how well this book works.

I just got back from the Science Fiction and Fantasy Book Club at my local Borders. This month we've been reading Dark Space by Marianne de Pierres. Of the five of us there this month, we were unanimous. This exchange opened the discussion:

"Not got a lot to say about this"
"Is it four letters and start with 'c'?"
"No, starts with 's' and has 4 letters"

21st May, lying in bed, listening to the radio. I hear music and think "this sounds like Patrick Wolf, but not something I know", checking the radio display (thank you DAB) I saw it was indeed Patrick Wolf. Then Gideon Coe announced it was off Patrick's new album. "New album? Could there be a new tour? Google, help me!"

Went to see Coraline yesterday (not in 3D). It was alright, but not great. It looked good. The whole Doll thing was a nice idea. I felt tense in the right places. But somehow, all the way through I was thinking "Mirrormask did it better".

And that's the problem. The film may have looked good, but I prefer the look of Mirrormask; in fact, I preferred everything about Mirrormask.

It also felt a little... lost. So much felt British, from the downstairs actresses to the uniforms - which were being sold on President's Day.

Just got back from the Sci Fi Book Group at my local Borders. I decided to head along this month because the book intrigued me – The Sparrow by Mary Doria Russell. I told my housemate about it and she came up with the wonderfully precise but inaccurate description “Jesuits in spaaaaaace”. This would be a really bad summing up of the book. A group of people, lead, including and funded by the Jesuits is sent to investigate and communicate with a newly discovered alien culture. Only one member returns with the best reports suggesting a major disgrace on his part.

Dear Noel and Julien,

I love The Mighty Boosh. I got into it in series one. I have since brought the DVDs and the CDs of the radio show. Lacking a time machine I am however unable to experience early Boosh at the Edinburgh Festival. I did get to see you on your last tour when you came to Warrington and did a fantastic show (now Leeds and sheepshagger are permanently linked in my mind). I was worried when you left the Zooniverse for series two, but it was a triumph. Series three equally good.