Several elements of the book make it appealing to me. There are so many memorable characters, such as Miss Havisham, Estella, Mr Jaggers, Wemmick and his Aged P, Mr Pumblechook, Magwitch, Herbert Pocket, and of course Joe Gargery. The writing is marvellous, changing effortlessly between tones, ensuring the book is a lively mixture of comical, tragic, gothic and crime thriller. Pip is a flawed character and is perhaps not very likeable when he is grown up, but at least he recognises his shortcomings. The novel is set a few decades before it was published, so there is also commentary on what has changed, giving it a nostalgic air. What I find interesting is that the ending is ambiguous, when Pip and Estella finally meet again after many years. It’s not a happy ending as such, but there is a hint of hope. The appendix of the book gives the original (unhappy) ending, which is apparently the one he would have chosen, if not persuaded to change it.

First published in 1861. This edition in 2008, edited by Margaret Cardwell, introduction and notes by Robert Douglas-Fairhurst.

The title of the book is a little misleading, I think, because it implies their careers are over, when the majority of them, despite setbacks with addiction, break-ups or other troubles, have continued to release music, perform, go into other arts or media, or even appear on reality shows! So they are still famous, just not in the prime of their pop era. The book is well-written and makes a lot of good points about fame, the music industry and creativity, using connections between the pop stars to emphasise these. The chapters are grouped into sections with themes, such as one-hit wonders, difficult albums, legends, and scandals. I didn’t expect the book to be great, based on the blurb and uninspiring front cover, so I was surprised how good it was. I found it amusing, thought-provoking and even uplifting.

Published by Headline, 2022.

I now judge a book by its cover, not only to work out if it’s the kind of genre I would read, but as an indication of the author or publisher’s quality and ethics. If the cover is quite obviously made with AI, I’m going to assume that the writing is AI. Even if it’s 100% human written and it may be a great story, you’ve gone for the easier, cheaper, visually disturbing option of artificially generated art, instead of paying a human to use their own creativity and talent, or create a cover yourself if you’re into art and graphic design… so I’m not going to read your book.

I have never, as far as I’m aware, read or promoted any book which has used AI for creative purposes. Depending how the industry develops, I worry that at some point, it will be unavoidable and I’ll either be unaware, or be unable to tell the difference. If only we could turn back time and stop the technology being released to everyone.

First published in Japan, 1993. English edition translated by Emily Balistrieri, illustrated by Joe Todd-Stanton and published by Puffin, 2026.

With an irreverent, opinionated and friendly writing tone, the author explores films from a variety of genres, illustrating her points with quotes from authors, critics, producers and film dialogue. The book did seem a little on the short side, with many films given passing mentions and throwaway comments, so I would have liked it to be more detailed. It was an interesting read which discussed topics such as why Austen is adapted so often, whether certain books are really ‘unfilmable’ and the social values of the past which affected the adaptations. I did not always agree with the opinions; for example, I don’t care that the Scouring of the Shire wasn’t in the LOTR films and I think the book of The Exorcist was better than the film. Mostly I did agree; the Netflix version of Persuasion is dreadful, most adaptations of children’s books aren’t satisfactory, Daphne du Maurier’s stories make great films, and Bram Stoker’s Dracula is indeed terrible.

I was unfamiliar with some of the books and films, but it was sometimes interesting to learn about them even if I’ll never read or watch them. I even learned of some films which few people realise were based on books. There was a last chapter on Christmas films, which I skimmed over because it wasn’t exactly seasonal when I read it in July! In a book such as this one, the books and films examined are personal preference, so I appreciated that the author chose the material she had the strongest feelings about. This means that many famous great film adaptations, and many bad ones, do not get a mention. In summary, if you’re a ‘film of the book’ obsessive, you’ll enjoy this!

Thank you to the publisher Oneworld for the review copy via NetGalley. The book is out on 1st October.

The filming style is edgier and more creative, culminating in the ending where Harry is captured mid-broomstick flight, almost as if his face is squashed against the screen, which is a contrast to the sentimental panning out from the first and second films. On the subject of broomsticks, there is only one Quidditch match. Moving the mysterious gift of a new broom to the end of the story makes more sense in this context. Rewinding to the beginning, it’s silly that Harry is using his wand to light up his homework (and why does the light keep failing?) instead of a torch, because as we are soon reminded, magic is not allowed outside of school.

More than the previous films, this one is a simplified adaptation which leaves out a lot of background detail. It seemed to be more of an impression of the story, rather than a complete telling. Some things it does very well, such as the Knight Bus scene, where an added shrunken head brings extra craziness. The Aunt Marge scene is good, taking it further by having her float off into the sky. The Dementor scenes are very scary and having everything freeze was a great idea. The werewolf transformation was frightening although we don’t get much background on it. Buckbeak is also very well done (if you go on the WB Studio Tour, you can see the animatronic Buckbeak). The time travel effects were good too. I liked the casting of David Thewlis, Gary Oldman and Emma Thompson. The returning cast were as good as ever.

Sadly the role of Crookshanks, the fluffy ginger cat adopted by Hermione, is very much reduced. In the book, he is very intelligent and plays a significant part in the plot. I suppose it would have been difficult to train the cats enough.

In summary, given that the film was still 2 hours long despite changing the plot, it’s mostly a great adaptation, but the condensed story might possibly confuse anyone who hasn’t read the book.

Image credit https://x.com/rowlinglibrary/status/1798065540923265178/photo/1, Fair use, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?curid=79642140

I enjoyed this book when I read it in 2002. I saw it on Kindle Unlimited and decided to re-read it, before my subscription ended. Quite often, when you revisit books from your early teenage years, they are not as good as you remembered and seem a little dated. Moreover, from an adult perspective, the content is darker and more violent than seems suitable for the age group. In my recollection, I abandoned the series partway through, but a search of my reading record reveals that I read all 12 books. I used to like vampire stories, for some reason. I quite liked my re-read of the first book in the series, but I’m not sure if I’ll read the rest. I vaguely remember that they become ever more gruesome.

The premise of the story, which is simply written and thrilling, is that schoolboy Darren (yes, the author and the protagonist are the same!) goes to a freak show with his friend Steve. The performers are astounding, but Darren is entranced by the spider Madam Octa, who is controlled by her owner Mr Crepsley. He steals the spider, even though he knows Mr Crepsley is a vampire, as recognised by Steve, an authority on all things supernatural. The story is very much set up for the following books, as it ends with Darren joining the freak show, having faked his death and been threatened by Steve, who swears to become a vampire hunter.

I don’t think the story is dated at all, except that the kids don’t have mobile phones. I think it would be an ideal book for a reluctant reader who likes horror.

First published in 2000. The cover pictured here is the edition I had.

Darren Shan has been very prolific since then, publishing various books for teens and adults. I remember visiting his website in the old internet days and even once emailed him with a question, some technicality about vampires, which he kindly replied to.

A film of the first three books in the Saga was released in 2009 but was a critical and commercial failure.

The story gets rather complicated and the links or coincidences between everything seemed contrived. There could have been a lot more dialogue and I would have preferred flashbacks rather than a lot of explanation. It’s a good story though and it would make a compelling TV drama or film, if the plot was simplified. I wasn’t sure about the ethics of Phoebe wearing Meta smart glasses to record everything for her documentary. I assumed though that this is an alternative universe where things are not too different, just a little.

Ellery Lloyd are a husband and wife team, Collette Lyons and Paul Vlitos.

Published by Macmillan, 2026.

Published by Omnibus Press, 2024.

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