Feck son#1
and the ManBooker 2014 shortlist. I was shattered, up since 6.30am and running
around after kids all day long. I picked son#1 up from work at 7pm and he
presented me with a big packet of peanut M&Ms. He never gives me little
pressies so I was chuffed; but I’m cursing him now in the wee small hours of
the morning. I’m a glutton y'see and I scoffed all those M&Ms – even the
blue ones, despite remembering that people used to say that blue Smarties made
kids hyper, but sure that was Smarties and my blue colouring was in M&Ms.
Let me tell yiz now, blue colouring on ANY sweets can make you hyper!
So there I
was, in the leaba since 10pm but me mind whizzing around with all those jumbled
up thoughts that lie in wait until my body stops moving; then demand my
undivided attention. Feck this, I thought, and switched on the light again. I
discarded the dectectivey yoke I had been reading for the ManBoooker
shortlisted Ali Smith 's- ‘How to be both’. I’ve tried to read the shortlist
every year for the last few and don’t always succeed but I’m determined this
year.
Anyway
whatever chance I had of sleeping before I started to read I’d none after
reading the first few pages. Jesus, I thought, this poor fella’s mind is like mine
right now – and I bet there weren’t any blue M&Ms back in the late 15th
century. I’ve read that the book changes further in and can be read in two
different ways so looking forward to more of it. I heard
somewhere ‘some books you read for the story, others for the quality of the
prose and sometimes, just sometimes, you can get both’. I think Ms Smith’s book
may well be one of those books. Review to follow.
But then my
eyes got tired and I can’t read when my eyes are tired so up I got – routed the
Jemser from his snoring in front of the telly up to the bed and I changed the
channel to ‘Alibi’. That and a couple of rows of knitting will lull my brain
into a false sense of security and my body will take advantage and shut the
grey cells down. Ye can’t beat late
night TV and the knitting for knocking you out. ‘Course I had to tell the world
all about it first so I’ll maybe give my insomnia cure a half hour extra to
work to counteracter this typing on a screen. If all else fails I’ll clean the house
– now THAT is guaranteed to give me at least four hours kip!
