Having had a little bit of time on my hands recently due to foot surgery I have been able to indulge in some reading. I have found that it’s quite easy to get out of the habit of reading and I was finding that in my spare time I would just be going down various internet rabbit holes. This tends to lead to feelings of being somewhat overstimulated, but not in a good way, in fact more like bingeing on fast foods – delicious at the time but then leaving you feeling quite nauseous.

I have therefore been delighted to have rediscovered the healing value of a really good book. To become totally immersed in the characters and story of a beautifully written novel is such a joy and is really quite calming for the soul.

I have just finished reading Demon Copperhead, the wonderful new book written by Barbara Kingsolver. This was a gift from my brother for my birthday and I hadn’t read any of Kingsolver’s books before, so I wasn’t quite sure what to expect.

Well, readers, it was a banger of a book, a beautifully written saga narrated by Demon himself about his life as a ‘trailer trash’ child, then into his teenage years. He experiences endless abuse, cruelty, drug addiction yet also has the good fortune to encounter wonderful, generous souls along his way. If you read the book, you may find some of the characters sound familiar and this is because Kingsolver very cleverly bases the novel on Dickens’ David Copperfield, the issues of Dickensian Britain being still very much in evidence in parts of middle America. I can truly say it is one of the most absorbing books I have ever read and I am thrilled to now discover that there are many more Kingsolver novels to devour.

If you used to love reading, but haven’t done it for a while, I urge you to give it a try. It really does have the power to calm and heal the mind and soul.

Best wishes to everyone,

Wendy x