Seems like it was Friday only last week

Read

The Testament of Mary by Colm Toibin

I have been reading Penelope’s Web by Christopher Rush, which is an imagined telling of the Trojan War from the point of view of Odysseus. It is original in its use of genuinely the foulest and most crude language I think I’ve ever come across. I think this is done impress upon the reader that the Greek Gods were such total cards and that soldiers through the ages have always been a bit wild.

Anyway it’s engrossing enough but it made me remember how much better, more atmospheric, spooky and genuinely classy was The Testament of Mary by Colm Toibin.

This is is the telling of the Virgin Mary’s last years in her own words. Staggeringly blasphemous, I’ve no doubt, and it’s certainly not a new book, but it may passed some of you by. Read it if you get a chance – prior knowledge of Mary’s story is useful but not essential. Completely mesmerising. And short.

Organise…

…your Christmas party with Paperless Post, which is an online store for beautiful and practical e-invites. Yes, okay, e-invites sound dismal, but they are nicer than a round-robin email or text and more useful than posted invitations, which are expensive and everyone will lose them instantly. On Paperless you can buy virtual coins and then spend them creating and posting invites, but it’s excellent value – and many designs are free. There’s even an app.

Buy…

…a pair of ear jackets, sometimes called “front-and-back” earrings. They’re not as scary as they sound: they have a front studdy part and then a bit that comes down behind your ear to be seen from the front. No longer weird and edgy, they’re now completely okay to wear down to the shops. I like these ones from Orelia. Dainty.