Pulp at the O2 in London - You Deserve More

I am a huge Pulp fan, and I've been following them since 1995 when Common People was released. I vividly remember hearing the song for the first time on the radio one evening and I was hooked, but I didn't catch the song or artist's name. The next day I had a school trip and I spent the whole coach journey listening to Radio 1 on my personal stereo hoping that they would play it again. I finally heard it again on the way home, and I went straight out and bought the single! Oh back in the old days, before you could just search up a song that you liked in Spotify and listen to it on repeat. 

Each of their albums brings back memories of the time in my life when I listened to it over and over. "Different Class" was my mid-teenage years, "This is Hardcore" when I was a bit more grown up. The album "We Love Life" released in October 2001 was the soundtrack to my final year at university. Then Pulp disappeared for years, and I was busy having babies when they released the single "After You" in 2013, so I completely missed it until a few years ago when it popped up on a Spotify playlist.

Their new album "More" was released a couple of weeks ago, and I bought a copy even though I don't own a CD player. I have a small collection of their albums and singles so I wasn't going to miss owning a physical copy! I love it, it's a perfect selection of tracks, a mixture upbeat dancy ones and more reflective songs. There are loads of call backs to their previous songs in the lyrics which I love to spot. I don't know what it is about Pulp songs that I love so much but I think it's that each one tells a story.

We were lucky enough to get tickets to see them at the O2 on Saturday, and it was just amazing. We arrived and parked early at the O2, and although it was busy there were only a few fans milling about. We took the tube to Stratford for a few hours for a wander around the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, a place that has many happy memories. Then there was a brilliant change in atmosphere when we returned and the fans were out in full force. I wore my tour T-shirt from when we saw them in Sheffield two years ago and saw so many other people in the same one which made me happy! The atmosphere really was electric.

You can find the full setlist here - Pulp at the O2, June 14th 2025. The set was split into two halves with an unusual and yet convenient 15 minute interval. They began with "Spike Island" which was the first single from the new album, then a couple of other new songs before moving on to some of the old  favourites like "Disco 2000", "Sorted for E's and Wizz". We had amazing seats close to the front on the side. I swear Jarvis pointed right at me when he arranged to meet me at 2 o'clock by the fountain down the road!

The second half began with an acoustic version of one of my favourites "Something Changed" and then ramped up through the hits until the finale "Common People". I can't think of many better feelings than to be stood dancing and shouting along to a song with a whole stadium of people that know every word. I was totally immersed in the music, and I had tears in my eyes at the end! The encore was "A Sunset" which is the final song on the new album, and I really hope that I'm not reading too much into the lyrics about things coming to and end.

It was such a great show, I came home and wanted to watch it all over again. 

If you want to read a far better written review of the show, then I think this review from The Standard is perfect - Pulp at the O2 review: greatest gig of the summer so far? 

We have a few more gigs still to come this summer, but I can't see how they can beat this one!

Some books that I've enjoyed recently - June 2025

I decided it's time again for another post about some books that I've loved recently! I track all the books that I'm reading over on Goodreads, and these are books that I've awarded a five star rating. 

First up are a couple of re-reads:

All The Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr is one of my favourite books, and I've read it several times. It's set mainly in Saint Malo in occupied France and follows the story of Marie-Laure, a young blind woman and Werner, a young German man. Their stories are told through flashbacks as they grow up, and their stories collide when Marie-Laura begins to work for the resistance using her radio and Werner is enlisted to use his talent with the devices to track them down. It's really well written and I enjoy seeing the very different stories come together.

I also re-read Ladder of Years by Anne Tyler. Delia is a 40-something woman who, when out at the beach one day with her unappreciative family, goes for a walk and doesn't come back. She starts a whole new life, finding her own place to live, a job and new friends, which is something that I think many people have fantasised about! There's a lot to unpick about her relationship with her husband and how she has found herself at that point and although I don't find the ending particularly satisfying I do find it an enjoyable read

Next a couple that I picked up in charity shops:

The Skeleton Key by Erin Kelly was a book that I had never heard of, but I was interested to read it because it is inspired by the puzzle book Masquerade by Kit Williams which I remember reading about when I was younger. Masquerade was a picture puzzle book which contained clues leading to a buried golden hare. In this book, the narrator's father has created a similar book which contains hidden clues to various parts of a golden skeleton. Over the years people have become obsessive about finding all the pieces, in particular the final missing pelvis, and some even believe that they need to kill her in order to complete the skeleton. I did find the book a little long and rambling, but the excitement of the story was enough to keep me caught up in it!

Then I spotted The Girl with the Louding Voice by Abi Daré which I was keen to read. Set in Nigeria, it tells the story of a teenage girl called Adunni who longs for an education but instead is married at the age of 14 by her father, after her mother has died. She manages to run away and finds work as a maid, and although her situation there isn't much better she is determined to improve herself. It's a difficult read in terms of the content, but it's very well written and kept me hoping that Adunni would find her escape and have the happy ending that she deserved.

Finally a couple that I've inherited:

My copy of The Forsyte Saga by John Galsworthy belonged to my Grandma, and I retrieved it recently when visiting my Mum. It contains all three novels and two interludes and it's a long read - it took me several weeks! It was a little difficult to get into at first because there are many characters (often with the same names) and complicated relationships, but I'm glad that I stuck with it because once I got going I really enjoyed it. It follows the members of an upper middle class English family at the beginning of the 20th century. I enjoyed it for the well-written and fleshed out characters, the descriptive settings, and how it reflected a changing society.

Hurricane Force: The Story of the Storm of 1987 by George Hill was one of my Dad's books, a non-fiction account of the Great Storm which hit mainly southern England in October 1987. It was a few days before my 8th birthday and I do have some memories of that night - hearing the roaring wind, a tree falling down on the main road, my poor Dad's greenhouse being flattened - but it was really interested to read about the wider events in both my area and further afield, as well as across the Channel. The book was written soon after the storm and it is rather pessimistic when it talks about the long-term impact of the storm. I do remember the huge uprooted trees in the forest, but I feel like the recovery from the storm wasn't as bad as was predicted, for example Chanctonbury Ring near me was significantly damaged but it was replanted and is now pretty much regrown. Although of course it has been nearly 40 years, time flies!

Quite a varied selection of books this time I think!

Photo credit Josh Hild via Unsplash

Review preview - CuteBee Book Nook Kit with a Christmas theme

I received this kit in exchange for a review

Readers of this blog will know that I love crafting and I love reading, so what could be better than a craft which makes a lovely addition to a bookshelf! I have just made a start on this Book Nook craft kit from CuteBee, and so I'm sharing my first impressions before I begin to work on the kit and can share the finished product.

The Book Nook kit is a 3D wooden puzzle with lots of tiny pieces which are slotted together to form a Book Nook - a miniature world which can be displayed on your bookshelf. This kit is called the Christmas Wish Store and features all sorts of sweet little Christmas themed items, including a tree, a train and all sorts of toys and decorations.

The kit is very well packaged with everything fitted neatly inside. Most of the kit is wooden sheets with coloured shapes to press out, there are also some small plastic decorations along with the equipment to add lighting and music. It was very easy to check through the instructions and make sure that everything was included, and all the parts are clearly labelled.

You need a firm hand to push out the wooden pieces, but they are sturdy and I wasn't worried about breaking them. There are some spares for the very fiddly parts, for example the top of the train roof which needs to be curved slightly. It's important to only press out the pieces as you need them as you would very quickly get muddled!

Unused pieces can be stored in the original box, but I found it helpful to have a separate tray to keep the components that are assembled so that they don't get lost or damaged. So far I've built a storage box and a tiny train, and I found putting the pieces together to be really fun and absorbing. 

The kit is mainly assembled without glue, and the parts that need glue (not included) are clearly marked. You can also add a bit of glue if you are concerned that the pieces are too loose, but I found that wasn't usually necessary.

I'm really looking forward to working on this kit, I can see it being something that I work on from time to time when I have a few minutes to craft, as it can easily be picked up and put down and it doesn't need too much space to work on.

I will share the Book Nook when it's complete!

Some books that I've really enjoyed recently

Welcome to one of my regular posts, when I share some of the books that I've read recently and have particularly enjoyed. I track all of the books that I read over on Goodreads. 

Moby Duck by Donovan Hohn

This read was inspired by our visit to the Frost Science Museum in Miami last year. I had heard the story of the bath toys that were lost from a container ship back in 1992 but I was interested to learn more. I took a quick photo of this book in one of the display cases, meaning to look it up when we got home. I forgot of course, and only came across the photo a few weeks ago. It looks as though the paperback is out of print, but I managed to find a decent second hand copy. 

The book charts the story of the Friendly Floatees spill, when a storm in the North Pacific Ocean washed twelve shipping containers overboard, including one filled with 28,000 bath toys. Usually only the ducks get a mention, but there were also plastic turtles, beavers and frogs. Oceanographers have used them to track ocean currents, based on where they were washed up over the next few years. 

The author (despite leaving behind a very heavily pregnant wife and subsequently a tiny baby, which did annoy me a little bit!) follows their journey on a variety of interested oceanic voyages, even visiting the factory in China where the toys were made. It's a long book and the narrative meanders about a bit but I quite like that style of writing and it's an intriguing story. I loved reading about the different ships that the author travelled on and the people that he met. It's also an important read when it comes to spreading the word about the negative impact of plastic in the ocean.  

The Christmas Book Hunt by Jenny Colgan

This was a free short story from Amazon First Reads this month, although in fact it's more of a short novel. The story involves the search for a long lost book and two people who are desperately hunting it for different reasons. It's not that complicated a plot, but I loved the descriptions of indulgent locations at Christmas time, and all the festive details. A real Christmassy read.

The Day Shelley Woodhouse Woke Up by Laura Pearson

This was a Kindle book borrowed from the Amazon Prime Library. Shelley Woodhouse wakes up in a coma knowing that she's there because her husband assaulted her, and she can't understand why the police haven't come to see her. But she has forgotten things too, and as time passes her memories start to come back, although she isn't sure which of those memories she can trust. It's one of those books when a mystery is revealed a little bit at a time, and gradually you come to realise what is really going on. What I particularly enjoyed about this book was that I felt the pacing was perfect - sometimes a back story is played out too slowly which leaves me frustrated (like a book that I'm reading at the moment!) I really liked it.

Some books that I've enjoyed recently

My To Be Read pile at the moment is huge! I recently got back into using our local library, I have a friend that regularly passes me piles of books, and I have a huge stash borrowed from my Mum, along with a few others that I've picked up here and there. I'm not daunted though, I love having a selection of books to choose from and work my way through. 

Here are some excellent books that I've enjoyed recently. All are written by women, all have one or more female protagonists who are both intelligent and creative, and three have the word 'book' in the title which is always a big draw for me!

The Night She Disappeared by Lisa Jewell

I don't read many psychological thriller type books, but I have enjoyed several by Lisa Jewell and this one was gripping! It's about a teenage mum and her boyfriend who disappear on a night out, and a new resident who starts to uncover clues to the disappearance. I felt that there were lots of different ways that the story could play out, and it really kept me guessing.

Book Lovers by Emily Henry

This romantic comedy is a bit of a twist on the 'uptight city girl moves to the country and falls in love with a handsome local' trope which I liked, as I've read many books that follow plot! Maybe it's a little predictable, but it was a really enjoyable read with plenty of romance, a traditional bookshop that needs a helping hand, and a few twists and turns.

Yellowface by R. F. Kuang

I've been wanting to read this for ages, and I wasn't disappointed. The book tells the story of a failed writer who witnesses her rival die in a freak accident and takes the opportunity to update and publish her unfinished novel. The catch is that she's a white author rewriting a story about Chinese history, she makes her own biased revisions to the story, and she publishes it under a version of her name which makes her appear Chinese. It's beautifully written, really engaging, and I always love an unreliable narrator. Lots of insights too into the cut throat writing industry, and how some authors and up at the top while others fade into obscurity.

The Marriage Portrait by Maggie O'Farrell

Maggie O'Farrell is a favourite author, so I was pleased to spot this recent release at the library. It's a historical novel, inspired by the poem My Last Duchess. In sixteenth century Florence, sixteen year old Lucrezia is married off to a Duke, and the story charts Lucrezia's childhood, as well as jumping ahead to when she starts to suspect her husband is going to try and kill her. It's beautifully written, quite long and slow moving and although the outcome is made clear from the beginning, the ending isn't quite as expected. 

The Book Share by Phaedra Patrick

This was a fun read about a housekeeper and aspiring author who finds herself entrusted with finishing her employer's final novel. I don't have any aspirations to write a book of my own but I love reading about people who do, and imagining what it would be like to be a writer. It was a simple and quick read, humorous, with plenty of engaging characters.

The Lost Bookshop by Evie Woods

This was a magical story and beautifully written story about a mysterious bookshop and the three people that it brings together. It was a really enjoyable read and I loved all the characters as well as the literary references and the unusual story. Great for a bit of escapism.

Photo credit Lenin Estrada via Unsplash

A review of the four new jigsaws that I received for Christmas

For Christmas I was lucky enough to receive some lovely jigsaw puzzles, and so I thought I'd do a quick review of them all in case you are looking for some puzzling inspiration! They are 1000 piece puzzles with bright, colourful designs and all of them were quite quick and easy to put together - a nice change after my larger 3000 piece puzzle!

Parkside View by Galison (1000 piece)

This is a colourful view of a city park with skyscrapers in the background. At first I thought it was going to be a very tricky puzzle with all the different colours and shades, but it wasn't as bad as I thought. The pieces only come in two shapes and so you can work out the orientation. Once you've put together the sky and the buildings, as long as you have space to lay out the majority of the pieces then you can work on a tree at a time, picking out the distinctive pieces that you need for that section. It was a bit difficult to take apart, each piece needed to be removed separately which took a little while. There was a separate poster with the image which I always appreciate, especially as the square box doesn't show the complete design. I loved the beautiful, vibrant colours.

Art Cats by Happily (1000 piece)

This was a very easy sort, as you can identify the parts for most of the cats from individual pieces. In fact after I'd sorted out the edge pieces and the text I didn't really bother sorting the rest, I just hunted through the box for the pieces I needed. I didn't want to finish it too quickly! Each cat is drawn in the style of a different artist, with an appropriate cat themed name underneath which makes for a really fun illustration. The pieces are solid and chunky, and it didn't take too long at all. 

Book Nerd by Workman Puzzle (1000 piece)

I didn't realise until I read the box that this puzzle is based on the book of the same name, which looks like a fun, illustrated read about the love of books. The first thing that I noticed about this puzzle was arrows on the back to indicate which way up the pieces go, which I've not seen before. I didn't need them though! The pieces of this puzzle are all really interesting different shapes which made the puzzle fun to put together. I started with the figures and the plants and then enjoyed piecing together the different sections of books. I loved the variety of books in the image, it's not just classic and well known books but modern books too. I enjoyed the style of the illustration and all the different objects that go on the shelves along with the books.

Classics by Happily (1000 piece)

This puzzle was another easy sort. Each book joins to the edge, so once that is in place you can work on a book at a time. This means it's a great puzzle to work on in small bursts, even if you only have a few minutes to put together one of the spines. Although the books include some of my favourite authors - Margaret Atwood, Daphne du Maurier - along with a good selection of adult and children's books, I did think there could have been a bit more variety in the titles! The 37 books include 7 by Jane Austen, including 'Love and Freindship' which apparently isn't a spelling mistake, Anne of Green Gables features twice and books by Arthur Conan Doyle three times. That aside, I enjoyed the contrasts in the colours and patterns of the book spines, and it was a pretty easy and fun jigsaw to put together over a few evenings.

I feel like I've been a very busy puzzler this year so far! Now I just have one borrowed puzzle to get on with and then I might take a bit of a break, or go back and do some of the old favourites in my collection!

Cathy's Flower House miniature craft kit from Rolife review

A few months ago I wrote about the latest craft project that my husband and I had embarked on - Cathy's Flower House miniature kit from Rolife. We worked really hard on it, and completed it just before Christmas. I thought I'd write a little review of the kit, just in case you've seen them out and about and wondered what it was like to put one together!

We bought our kit on Amazon and it's worth keeping an eye on prices as they do go up and down. Expect to pay around £40 - £45. Our kit is called Cathy's Flower House (affiliate link) and there are plenty of other kits to choose from. If you want to see an assembled miniature house in person then it might be worth a trip to your local garden centre, ours is a Haskins and currently has several on display including this one.

Everything inside the box is sorted into numbered bags, although there wasn't always much logic as to what went where. Our kit included glue and paint but not batteries, I think that the inclusion of batteries (and in some cases the glue and paint) depends on where you buy the kit from. The kit contents are a mixture of small coloured wooden pieces, sheets of paper and tissue paper with both pre-cut and printed parts, the electrical components for making the light and lots of tiny little bits and pieces that fit together in various ways.

There are some large paper templates which you can use to match up the pieces and make sure that you have the correct part for each section. We did have quite a few bits left over at the end which confused us a bit, but I think they were just spares! The instruction booklet is large and detailed with lots of pictures.

We started the kit by painting the large wooden pieces which form the sides and base of the flower house. Then we worked through the instruction book in order to build everything that goes inside. Some of the items were straightforward to put together and others were more fiddly and complicated. Luckily we found that the supplied glue was very good and dried quickly.

My favourite part of the whole kit is the blue drawer and cupboard piece. The gold coloured wire has to be bent into shape to form the handles. When complete it is filled with flowers and has plants trailing out of it. It's a shame that after all that effort it's tucked away in the back corner!

Some of the plants, like the ones in the photograph below, are made using printed leaves which pop out from a backing sheet and are glued into place on lengths of green wire. It's a bit fiddly, but they look really good when put together. You can see a pound coin in the photo which gives an idea of the scale.

We didn't realise when choosing the set that the plants would be so difficult to make, and this kit has a lot of plants! There are lots of tiny pieces of paper, little bits that need to be rolled up, glued and stuck together, and sometimes the instructions were a bit vague with a few translation errors. But on the whole the instructions were very good and it wasn't too difficult to work out what we needed to do.

Once all the plants and other accessories have been built then you can position them on the shelves and glue them down, and there are clear diagrams showing where each part goes. Then the shelves are glued to the base piece.

This is the chance to have a good look at what you've built, because once it's inside the greenhouse part it isn't as easy to see! You need to make sure that everything is glued down firmly because once the roof is on you can't get back inside to make any adjustments.

I love the way that the flowers and plants have turned out. Some of them are so simple, just some green fluff glued inside a large bead, but they look so effective and realistic.

Next it was time to build the plastic outer greenhouse part. This was quite easy to put together. The black frames are already in place, although you glue more black strips on at the end to hide the joins in the plastic and the wiring.

The most difficult part of the build was fitting these plastic walls onto the base. I suspect we may have made a mistake somewhere along the line, because our tabs didn't line up correctly with the slots in the base. We had to use a small saw to make the holes larger so that we could fit the top part on properly. It worked out in the end but it was a bit awkward at times.

And here's the finished flower house!

We love it and we are so proud of it. It's so detailed and it looks really good from the outside.

The greenhouse is fitted with a small battery powered light which you need to wire up from scratch, although it's only a simple circuit. Wire cutters and strippers were really helpful here as the wire is very thin and fiddly to work with. You also need to use plastic tubes which are heat shrunk to the wires. This wasn't something that we had done before so we were a bit nervous, but we watched a few YouTube videos and managed to do it quite easily using a lighter. 

The light inside looks really good, I love how it shines out of the plastic panels. It certainly adds some interest to our bookshelves.

Before starting the kit I read in an online review that it would take about twenty hours to put together. It's difficult to estimate how long we spent but I'm guessing that it took us at least that long - and that's with two of us working on it at the same time! But once you've got the hang of it I think that subsequent kits would be quicker, and all those plants did take a long time. 

We had a lot of fun putting this kit together, when we got started it could quite easily absorb us both for several hours, even my husband who has a very short attention span. It was lovely to have a project that we could work on together. We are already eyeing up the next one, they do a lovely Book Nook range which would look great on my bookcase!

Review - Geomag Classic 142 piece set

 I received this set in exchange for a review

My son loves magnets and construction sets, and he already owns several sets in the Geomag range. He really enjoys how these simple pieces can be easily put together to form all sorts of different shapes and constructions, and he was delighted to have the opportunity to try out a new set which could be added to the ones that he already owns.

The Geomag Classic 142 piece set contains magnetic balls and rods which can be fitted together in many different ways. The set comes with an instruction sheet for inspiration, or you can just play with the pieces and fit them together as you like. The set also contains some base boards which can be used for supporting and displaying your creations.

The generous number of pieces in this large set means that he was able to build all sorts of interesting things! He was particularly proud of this bridge which uses two of the base plates for support. The pieces are made from 100% recycled plastic and they are sturdy enough that they will last for a long time, they are definitely a toy which can be passed down through the generations.

He was particularly pleased when he discovered that he was able to build his favourite shape - a dodecahedron - when he combined this set with some of the pieces from his other set! Although these sets are suitable from age 3+ there is definitely plenty of play appeal in them for older children and even adults too.

You can find my reviews of two other sets in the same series here:

Geomag Glow 60 piece set

Geomag Supercolour 42-Piece Magnetic Building Set

Trialling a DisneyBand+ (MagicBand+) on the Disney Wish cruise ship

At the beginning of April we read that Disney Cruise Line would be trialling the use of the DisneyBand+ on selected Disney Wish sailings. This was really interesting for us, as we bought the children a MagicBand+ each to use in the Disney World theme parks last summer and loved using the technology in the parks. We were hoping that our cruise at Easter on the Disney Wish might be one of the selected sailings!

We happened to arrive early at the terminal, and my husband soon spotted a small table where they were looking for families to trial the new bands. He quickly signed us up, and so the four of us were able to take part in a special trial of the DisneyBand+ on this Disney Wish cruise. We were told that about 350 people on our cruise would be chosen. As a reward for visiting their stand and giving feedback during the cruise we were given the bands to keep, and also a Disney gift voucher which was an added bonus.

The DisneyBand+ uses the same technology as the MagicBand+ which is already in use at the parks, but Disney Cruise Line are calling it the DisneyBand+. As far as I understand, when it's all up and running the existing MagicBand+ bands will work in the same way so you won't need to buy new bands specifically for cruising, but I can't be completely sure on that. 

For context, we have now been on five Disney cruises and have been to the parks many times over the last few years. Our last visit to the parks in Orlando was in August last year, when we bought and used MagicBand+. I think we paid $34.99 each for our MagicBand+ (we used a voucher so I'm not quite sure!) and so I'd expect these bands to have a similar price point.

The bands are waterproof and sturdy, but as we have found with the MagicBand+ they do have a tendency to fall off. We added a hair tie to the strap which helped to keep them in place, and I'm sure that you can buy clips which will do the same job. The bands are rechargeable and need charging every few days, you can double tap the band for a light up indicator to check the charge level.

Our main use for the bands on this cruise was as a room door key, and this worked perfectly meaning that we didn't need to carry our Key to the World card around with us all day. We also used the bands to check in with photographers, and they could be used to purchase food and drinks around the ship. Another participant that we spoke to said that they had worked very well in the laundry. 

The bands don't replace the Key to the World card and you still need to show this when getting on and off the ship at ports. There are currently no extras for the bands at Castaway Cay (Disney's private island in the Bahamas) so there is little point taking them with you if your cruise stops there as you'll have your Key to the World card with you anyway which you can use for purchases and photographers. 

The only cruise specific extra thing that we noticed with the bands was during the pirate night show and fireworks, when the DisneyBand+ lit up in time with the music and in appropriate colours. There were a couple of other times when we thought we saw our bands light up, for example during a welcome show soon after we boarded, but it wasn't consistent.

There is currently nothing extra around the ship to use the bands for which was a slight disappointment as the children had a lot of fun using the bands at the park. At the parks there are statues which you can interact with by waving your band, and there are games that you can play, like the Bounty Hunter game at Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge. Something like this would work brilliantly on a cruise ship and I'm sure that there are plans afoot, but at the moment they weren't able to tell us if or when such things might be added. 

We really enjoyed the opportunity to trial the bands and they were definitely an added convenience on the cruise. At the feedback session we were asked if we would buy bands specifically for the cruise, and the answer to that had to be no, as you don't get anything near the experience with them that you do in the parks. However the technology is exciting and there is a huge amount of potential, so I'm really interested to see where it goes in the future. Maybe by the time we can manage another Disney cruise there will be more exciting things to report back on!

Review - Geomag Glow 60 Piece Set

I received this set in exchange for a review 

My son loves magnets and construction sets, and so he was delighted to have the chance to try out a GeoMag Glow set. This 60 piece set is aimed at all ages from 3+.

There are four sets in the GeoMag Glow range with a choice of 25, 42, 60 pieces and a new 93 piece set. The magnetic rods, panels and spheres click and snap together to form three dimensional creations that glow in the dark. I recently reviewed the Geomag Supercolour 42-Piece Magnetic Building Set which contains compatible balls and sticks. These two sets can be combined to make larger structures, and the pieces work with other sets in the range to make even bigger models.

The set also comes with some small bespoke plastic storage containers, which are great for keeping the pieces together and organised. 

My son loves playing with these sets even though he is a teenager now. He finds it really relaxing and satisfying to slot the pieces together, and enjoys coming up with his own creations. It's a great toy for him to fiddle with while he's working on something at his desk! For younger children the GeoMag toys are perfect for developing fine motor skills and spatial thinking. The pieces fit together easily and the finished models are sturdy and can be easily carried around for approval and admiration.

The plastic pieces are made with 100% recycled plastic and are particularly fun to play with while glowing in the dark, or left to make a soft glow in the corner of a darkened room at bedtime. The set comes with a detailed instruction sheet, it's worth noting that it does include pictures of designs which require more than one set to build. However most children won't mind this as as they will be more interested in making up their own creations.

My son really enjoyed playing with this set and I've loved seeing all the different creations that he has come up with!

Review - Geomag Supercolour 42-Piece Magnetic Building Set

I received this set in exchange for a review.

My son has always been fascinated by magnets and construction sets, but he's never had a magnetic construction kit of his own to play with. So when I was offered the chance to review the Geomag Supercolour 42-Piece Magnetic Building Set I couldn't resist seeing what he would make of it! This 42 piece set is aimed at all ages from 3+.

The set comes with two bases, a hexagon and a square, and a selection of magnetic balls and sticks. The pieces can be fitted into the bases to build the shapes or they can be put together separately. The solid plastic pieces are made of 100% recycled plastic and I really like the fact that the set comes with a couple of small bespoke storage boxes to help keep things neat and tidy.

The magnets are very powerful and it's easy to understand how they can be fitted together to make different shapes. When a model is complete it's sturdy, and for an older child it makes a great desk toy for them to fidget and play around with.

The set comes with detailed instructions to help children learn about the different shapes that they can make, along with several different designs that can be copied. It is worth noting that the instruction leaflet features a few more detailed constructions that it isn't possible to build with the pieces from just one set. I don't think that this would be a problem for a younger children, but if you are looking for a construction set for an older child then that's something to bear in mind.

My son had a lot of fun with this set and I think that it's a great toy for any curious child that is interested in how things fit together and learning about how magnets work.

Some books that I've enjoyed recently

I read a lot, and every now and then I like to share some of the brilliant books that I've enjoyed recently, just in case anyone is looking for some reading inspiration! I track all the books that I've read on my Goodreads account, and these are some of the recent books that I have awarded five stars.

The Woman in White by Wilkie Collins

I read this book a long time ago and so I knew that I would enjoy it, but I had forgotten most of the plot! It's a long read full of mysteries and twists and turns, with the story told as a series of accounts by different narrators. Despite its size it kept me wanting to read more and I was interested to see how the story would unfold. The book is also a really interesting look at women's rights not that long ago, being married off to whoever their male relatives chose and then expected to hand over their fortune to pay their new husband's debts.

The Sea by John Banville

I chose this book as one of my second hand Christmas book haul gifts as I'm always drawn to Booker prize winners, and this one lived up to expectations. It wasn't a long read but I wasn't sure about it at first. It was a little slow to get going until I got into the author's style. The full mystery isn't revealed until the very end, although there are clues throughout, and it certainly kept me guessing until the end.

The Penelopiad by Margaret Atwood

Another short read from my second hand haul, this is a retelling of the of the Odyssey myth from the perspective of his wife Penelope. It also features a Greek chorus of her hanged maids who give their own opinion on events through songs, ballads and poems. It was an easy and enjoyable read even though I didn't know as much about the original myth as I probably should!

The Post-Birthday World by Lionel Shriver

This story introduces Irina, a woman who is in a happy and safe long-term relationship but one night is tempted to kiss another man who represents a more exciting alternative. At this point the story splits and alternate chapters follow Irina's life after she has made each choice. I love the film Sliding Doors and this book is very similar, especially as you try to work out which is the better choice, as it's not always obvious.

An Artist of the Floating World by Kazuo Ishiguro

I love Kazuo Ishiguro, and although his books cover a wide range of themes and geographical locations there's just something about his writing style that draws me in. This book is set in post World War II Japan, narrated by an aging painter who is reflecting on his career during the war as a political artist. Like in many of his books the protagonist is an unreliable narrator, and so you are never quite sure exactly what has happened. I found it very readable.

Some books I've enjoyed recently

I read a lot, and every now and then I like to share some books which I've read recently and particularly enjoyed, all books that get a five star rating on my Goodreads tracker. It's a really varied selection this time, and I hope that it gives you some reading inspiration!

The Shuttle - Frances Hodgson Burnett

This one had been in my Kindle to be read pile for ages. I enjoy hunting through the free Kindle books and downloading all the ones that take my fancy, especially if they are by an author that I like. Frances Hodgson Burnett is the author of The Secret Garden and A Little Princess, both of which I love, so I thought I couldn't go wrong with this one. But it isn't a children's book as I assumed, it's actually quite a long read!

The book looks at the relationship between the US and England at the beginning of the 20th century, and in particular American heiresses moving to England to marry impoverished aristocrats. They gained a title and prestige, and the aristocrats were able to use their money to restore their estates. The shuttle of the title is an analogy for the ships that cross back and forth between the two countries, creating more and more threads and pulling them tightly together.

The book follows the story of a very rich but naïve young American multi-millionairess who marries an English man who mistreats her, distancing her from her family while he spends her money on his own pursuits. When her much younger sister reaches adulthood she travels to England to see her and find out why she has cut ties with her family. 

The confident and beautiful young woman arrives when her sister's husband is fortuitously away, and uses her money to rebuild both her sister's confidence and her home and estate. She forms relationships with the other local landowners, they both enter fully into society, and she forms a romance of her own. 

I really loved this book. I particularly enjoyed reading about how the house and estate were brought back to their former splendour. The book also felt very modern in it's approach to domestic violence and psychological manipulation. It was a really good read.

The Children of the New Forest - Frederick Marryat

Another of my free Kindle classics, and one that I had been wanting to read for a long time! The book is set during the English civil war, starting in 1647 when when King Charles I has been defeated and has escaped to the New Forest. The home of one of his supporters is burned down and his four children believed killed, but they escape and hide in the forest in the cottage of a local man. They disguise themselves as foresters and manage to live successfully from the land. They have lots of adventures as well as romance, and are eventually able to reclaim their titles and place in society.

It's a children's book so it's easy to read, but it deals with quite complex issues. I wasn't particularly familiar with that era in history but the book made it all really easy to follow and inspired me to do a bit of my own reading about the period!

My Hygge Home - Meik Wiking

Another fantastic book from the author of the original Little Book of Hygge. It's a lovely hardback book with plenty of cosy photographs and illustrations, all about how to make your home that little bit more hygge. I loved the idea of needing a Viking chair - a place to sit with your back against a wall, preferably in a corner, where you feel safe from attackers. It made me realise why I feel so comfortable in my favourite spot on the sofa in my study! Lots of really good ideas, and a great book to flip through. 

The Lido - Libby Page

This was a quick read but well worth it. It tells the story of Rosemary who has spent her life swimming in her local lido in Brixton. When it is threatened with closure a local young reporter is sent to cover the story and the two of them become close friends. It's a story about friendship and community and I found it a really heart warming read. It left me with a tear in my eye!

The Secret History - Donna Tartt

I think this was the third time that I've read this book - it's one of my favourites! We recently visited Athens and all the classical history surrounding me made me want to read it again. It's a classic of the 'dark academia' trend - an aesthetic which I've seen is very popular on social media. It's an idealised version of higher education and study - libraries, candles, ink pens, dark furniture, piles of books and papers and so on.

The book is set at a university in New England and tells the story of a group of classics students, detailing the events which lead up to a murder and what happens afterwards. It's a really gripping read, really well written and I could read it over and over!

The Titanic Artefact Museum in Orlando, Florida

On the last day of our recent holiday in Orlando we were looking for something to fill a couple of hours on our way to the airport for our evening flight. We chose the Titanic Artefact Museum which is located on International Drive, about a twenty minute drive from Orlando International Airport. Harry has long had a fascination with the Titanic, and when he was about five he made a brilliant Lego model which he used to play with. It's also a subject that really interests me, I remember watching documentaries from when the shipwreck was discovered and being fascinated by the blurry underwater images.

I'm really glad that we made this choice! We spent just over an hour at the museum, and I have to say that it was excellent. I was so impressed that I felt I had to share our visit here, as I really would recommend it to anyone that is in the area and has a passing interest in the Titanic.

At the beginning of our visit we were each given a different boarding pass for a real passenger, along with some history about them and their reasons for making the trip. Both Mia and I were rich ladies travelling in first class. In fact she was one of the richest passengers on the ship, travelling in a suite with a private promenade deck and two staff. Ram was a first class gentleman and Harry was a Swedish immigrant travelling in third class. We were told that at the end we would find out what had happened to our passengers, and that gave us lots to think about as we went around the museum. Mia sometimes struggles to maintain her interest, but it really engaged her when we found a map of the ship showing her private deck, and a reconstruction of a stateroom similar to the one that her passenger would have occupied.

The reconstructions throughout were in my opinion the best part of the museum. As well as the stateroom there was the famous grand staircase, one of the dining areas and part of the boiler room. Then my favourite part was the Promenade Deck. It was a short section of decking with mirrors at the side to make it appear longer, in an area of the museum with the air conditioning turned down low so that you could feel the chilly air. It was set at night, with clever projections of the sea on the floor on the other side of the rail. I've travelled on cruise ships at night and it felt so realistic and also spooky.

The museum story began with the history and building of the Titanic, then a large part of the museum focused on life on board and the amenities available to passengers, with an interesting look at the differences between the different classes. Then followed information about the sinking and the salvage. There are plenty of genuine artefacts scattered throughout, including a piece of the hull and a small piece of the ship that you can touch. There's even an actual iceberg!

In the memorial room we discovered what had happened to our passengers. The first class ladies had survived but the first class gentleman had not. Sadly, we weren't surprised to find out that Harry's steerage passenger had also perished. The lists of names were organised by their ticket class on the ship, and it was sobering to see how few of the third class passengers had actually survived.

If you do decide to visit the Titanic Artefact Museum do remember to have a look online or in a voucher booklet for current discount coupons as we managed to save quite a bit on our entry.

Some of my favourite book themes

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I read widely - newly published books and older classics, female and male authors, historical and contemporary. I flit between easy reads and more complicated texts. However I find that I'm often drawn to the same themes, and here are some that I've been enjoying recently:

The inherited house renovation romance - A woman inherits a house from a distant or unknown relative, usually at a point in her life where she is going through a life change. The house has an idyllic  location in a small town, often by the sea. It's run down and old fashioned but still habitable. While sorting through the possessions left in the house she discovers hidden secrets and learns more about herself and her history. There's usually a romance involving a handsome local man who is helping with the building work or connected to the house in some way.

I've enjoyed lots of books with this theme, two very recent examples are The Candid Life of Meena Dave by Namrata Patel and The Vanishing Tide by Hilary Tailor (both Amazon First Reads and will be published on the 1st June 2022.) I also liked The Sea Gate by Jane Johnson.

Opening a bookshop (see also café, sweetshop) - A woman going through some sort of life change decides to move in a new direction and open up a bookshop or similar. She usually has some sort of help to get started, for example she inherits or is given a lot of books or other relevant supplies. She is greeted with distrust by the locals, including the inevitable eligible bachelor, but she wins everyone over and becomes part of the community. 

Some examples - The Bookshop on the Corner and The Bookshop on the Shore by Jenny Colgan.

The middle aged woman reinvention story - A mother to older teenagers realises that now her children have grown and no longer need her she has forgotten to live her own life and doesn't know where to start. Sometimes prompted by meeting an old flame. So she does something drastic - often upping and leaving her family, meeting new people and finding new interests.

From my recent reads - Worn Out Wife Seeks New Life by Carmen Reid, Ladder of Years and Back When We Were Grown Ups by Anne Tyler.

Time travel and repeated chances - There are many books with these themes, but I like stories where time travel is used as a device to see the same story from different viewpoints, or to see how something might have turned out differently.

Some older reads - The Time Traveller's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger and Life After Life by Kate Atkinson (both of which have recently been dramatised for television). Also Should We Stay or Should We Go by Lionel Shriver which explores various different results caused by one decision.

On a similar note, immortality or having a second chance to try something - for example How to Stop Time by Matt Haig, The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V. E. Schwab, Meet me In Another Life by Catriona Silvey.

Photo credit Gülfer ERGİN via Unsplash

These are just some of the books I've been enjoying. If you've read any books similar to those mentioned above then I would love to hear your recommendations!

Some of my recent five star reads

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Welcome to another blog post where I share some of the books that I've enjoyed recently. I hope that you find some reading inspiration!

Great Circle by Maggie Shipstead

Great Circle was shortlisted for the Booker Prize in 2021. I generally find that I get on well with Booker prize nominated books, and this one was no exception. It tells the story of Marian, born with the wish to fly and the drive to succeed. After flying during the war, in 1950 she sets off on a great circle flight circumnavigating the globe, an adventure from which she never returns. There is also a parallel story set in modern times following a young actress hit by scandal who is portraying her in a film. It seems like a straightforward story but there are lots of twists and turns as more information about Marian's life come to light, and it kept me gripped until the end. 

The Phone Box and the Edge of the World by Laura Imai Messina

This book is inspired by true events and by the windy hill in Japan where there is a disconnected phone box overlooking the sea. People travel there to pick up the receiver, release their words into the wind and pass on their messages to loved ones that are no longer with us. Set after the 2011 Japan tsunami, the book follows Yui who has lost her mother and daughter and Takeshi who has lost his wife. They meet at the phone box and slowly begin to build a life together. It's a really lovely story, sad and yet full of hope, and also written with a clever narrative structure with alternating chapters telling the story as well as filling in extra details. Hard to describe, but it works really well!

Dear Reader: The Comfort and Joy of Reading Books by Cathy Rentzenbrink

This is mainly a personal story of growing up with books and the impact that they have had on the author, but it's also a treasure trove of book recommendations. In fact after reading I immediately ordered two books and reserved six more from the library!

A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara

Another Booker prize shortlisted book, and this one is not an easy read because it deals with some very difficult topics, in particular childhood sexual abuse and self harm. But it is also very well written with some excellent characterisation and although it's long it kept me wanting to read more. Even though I'm fortunate not to be affected by any of the issues in the book I still found it a tough read, and I'd recommend having a quick look here before reading- A Little Life trigger warnings. 

Life After Life and A God in Ruins by Kate Atkinson

Life After Life was one of the books that I reserved from the library after reading Dear Reader above. I was pretty sure that I'd read it before and it was certainly very familiar, but I really enjoyed it! At the end of the book I discovered that there is a sequel, A God In Ruins, which I also enjoyed very much. Life After Life follows the story of Ursula, born in a snowstorm in 1910, growing up in turbulent times and finding that she is able to live her life over and over again with different consequences to her actions. A God In Ruins takes over the story of her younger brother Teddy and follows his story in the post-war years that he never expected to survive to see. Both books are beautifully written, very cleverly structured, and really bring to life the years in which they are set. 

Jamaica Inn by Daphne du Maurier

Finally, I've always loved Daphne du Maurier but only owned a few of her books and so have recently been building my collection. Jamaica Inn is one of her better known books and for good reason, it's an exciting and brilliantly written read with a gripping story. It follows Mary Yellan, who moves to Jamaica Inn on the Cornish moors after the death of her mother and discovers the terrifying goings on behind the front of the inn. 

The Stuva loft bed from Ikea - an updated review

Since I published my review of the Ikea Stuva loft bed it has been one of my most popular blog posts, and I get plenty of questions about the loft bed from people interested in purchasing one. So I thought I'd share a few thoughts in an update post about the bed, now that my daughter has been using it happily for over two years.

If you are looking for information about assembling the Stuva loft bed along with a few more photos, you might want to check out my original review first, as well as reading through the comments which contain lots more helpful information and answered questions.

So here is a picture of the Ikea Stuva loft bed as it looks now in my daughter's bedroom!

The Stuva loft bed has stood up to the last two years really well. It remains in excellent and sturdy condition, and we've had no problems with the bed at all. It just has a few light scratches on it, but that's pretty normal for furniture in a child's bedroom.

The bed unit once assembled is very heavy and there is no way that it could be easily moved. It also won't fit out of a bedroom door, so will need to be built in the room where it will live. So although the loft bed is designed for a small space, there does need to be enough room to assemble it. You can get some sense of how much space will be needed from my time lapse assembly video below:

Because of the size of the bed, it would be next to impossible to move it anywhere once assembled. So there is very little chance of cleaning or replacing the carpet underneath! Before assembling the bed, it's worth having a good look at the different range of assembly options available. Spend some time thinking about the configuration that would fit your space and needs best, as it is a lot easier to assemble it as you want it from the beginning!

The wardrobe under the bed is quite small, and definitely designed for child sized clothes. We have a much larger Ikea wardrobe elsewhere in the room for her clothes, and this wardrobe is used only for dress up clothes and shoes.

The drawers in the desk are a very good size. We use them for some clothing as well as stationery items. We have some Ikea drawer dividers which are really useful but I can't find the ones that we bought, so if you want to buy some I'd recommend checking with Ikea to make sure that you get the same ones that fit.

Mia has plenty of headroom up in the bed. We have high ceilings (250cm) and there is room for me as a small adult to sit upright in the bed. I think that the height of your ceiling would make a big difference to whether this bed would be suitable for older children or adults.

Changing the sheets is pretty easy. I can throw down the pillow and duvet to change them separately, but you do need to be able to get up into the bed to remove and replace the fitted sheet. It gets quite dusty up in the bed so I go up from time to time with the handheld hoover to go around the edges. There is plenty of space around the edge of the mattress to store teddies and books, and unless you are very fussy there is no need to actually make the bed daily as you can't see it from the floor!

The additional Ikea products that we bought to go along with the Stuva loft bed are:

The ÖRFJÄLL children's desk chair in white and Vissle pink. This is a smaller sized desk chair which fits really nicely under the desk and would also suit a small adult, leaving plenty of headroom under the bed while sitting at the desk.

The MORGEDAL medium firm memory foam mattress. I've slept on this mattress a few times and found it very comfortable. You need to be careful with the mattress that you choose for this loft bed as it must be the correct height for safety.

The STICKAT bed pocket which is very handy for keeping the things you need at night close by. You can also see some alternative caddies below, and I'd definitely recommend something like this or else a small shelf above the bed.