And the no limits of perfect imperfection. — For some inexplicable reason, not known even to me, I was thinking of the ephemeral nature of time as I was walking the dogs this morning. Hardly an original thought, I admit. Indeed the notion that ‘time flies’ is a weary cliche. Unless it is sang by Sandy Denny…

A short story on the dark side of 19th century London — This is an early version of a tale that I later adapted as a chapter in my novel. The later version doesn’t have the crime sorted so neatly and quickly — and is probably better for it. Neither did it require the same amount of exposition that I load onto…

The perils of virtual PowerPoint — By dint of my birth date, I came late to the digital revolution. I was in my early forties when I caught the swell of consumer frenzy and bought my first computer. By which time the writing was on the wall. Every home should have one. A Mac, of course…

The UK’s Illegal Migration Bill is Illegal — With new UK legislation on asylum seekers now going through Parliament, another light is about to go out in our country. The old place will become a little darker. An infection is spreading in our septic isle. One that feeds on right wing nationalism. One without heart or compassion. …

The last and the best of the Dubliners collection — The Dead is the last, and the longest, in James Joyce’s classic collection of short stories, Dubliners. It is not only the most accomplished story in the collection, many view it as the best story ever. Joyce’s contemporary, the celebrated poet, T.S. Eliot, described it as ‘one of the…

A tale of booze and misguided religion Grace, the penultimate story in James Joyce’s Dubliners, is often viewed as a parody of Dante’s Divine Comedy while others argue it is an allegory for religious salvation. …

Madness is exported for a healthy profit — When I was working in mental health, one of my side projects was to review books for a mental health publication. It didn’t pay but I got to keep the book. One of the books that made a big impression was Crazy Like Us: The Globalisation of the Western Mind…

Is this the Emperor’s New Clothes? — Certain people of a certain age, listened to certain types of music, and would certainly know of this album and then become most uncertain. Just the name with the album cover is enough warning. This is not for faint hearted. This is extreme weird shit. For the few that…

Another story from Dubliners — The Mother is the next story (see my reviews of the others in this collection) in James Joyce’s iconic collection of short stories, Dubliners. The story begins with a short exposition of the character, Mr Holohan, who is arranging a series of concerts through the Irish Cultural Society. In the…