Today's featured book, A Ragbag of Riches is perfect for keeping by your chair at Christmas. It's just right for dipping in and out of and it is with great pleasure that I feature it on Books, Life and Everything as it is a real celebration of the written and spoken word. Here's what the publishers have to say about it:
A Ragbag of Riches: An assortment of wordy delights
This collection of quips and quotes creates a book for the
bower, the bedside, the bath and for browsing; a book at arm’s length from the
deck chair, for the tedium of travel but above all for pleasure.
It is a haphazard collection: the Ragbag covering the
rougher, even vulgar (but nevertheless witty) entries of graffiti, newspaper
headlines and bumper stickers, the Riches being the poetry, prayers and prose
of fine minds that inspire by their beauty, sincerity and sublime use of words.
At the lower end, I love the astringency and ability of the authors to poke fun
with the sharpness of a red-hot needle. At the top end, silver words and
profound wisdom sometimes lead me to tears.
So I invite you to wallow or skip lightly. I hope there is
something in this salmagundi to make you smile or catch the affections of your
heart; to mingle quiet music with amiable irreverence.
My Thoughts
There's something in this collection for whatever mood you happen to be in when you pick up the book. There are lyrics, poems, verses, prayers, parodies, graffiti, prose- the list goes on and on. Loosely arranged by theme or in some cases, form, it is a real collection of the human condition. It is a wonderful mixture of comedy and pathos and as you read parts of it, it feels like a random selection but of course it is far from that. Snippets of writing are artfully juxtaposed as Mark Twain rubs shoulders with Noel Coward, or Voltaire with Frank Muir. It is a real celebration of wit and wisdom: the mundane and the sublime.
One of the pleasures of this blog tour for me has been looking up what the other hosts have highlighted and which parts were their favourites. There is such a variety of tastes. I loved the chapter entitled Creativity: the arts, letters, literature, music, theatre and film which had some lovely quotes on the subject of reading and writing. I leave you with the words of George Bernard Shaw:
"All normal people require both classics and trash". p64
So true- I leave it to you as to which is which!
In short: the strapline says it all "an assortment of wordy delights."
About the Author
A grandfather of nine and a father of four, James Chilton
lives with his wife and two labradors in Chipping Norton, Oxfordshire. He holds
diplomas in Architectural History from Oxford University, in Design and in
Plantsmanship from The English Gardening School and a certificate in the
Decorative Arts from the Victoria & Albert Museum. Perennially busy, James
draws, sculpts, designs gardens and jewelry and is a member of Bart’s Choir. He
also a member of the International Dendrology Society and has lectured at the
Royal Geographical Society and in Oxford. His first book, The Last Blue
Mountain, was published in 2015.
Thanks to James Chilton, Clink Street Publishing and Rachel Gilbey for a copy of the book and a place on the tour.
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