Don’t Let Lockdown Stop You Getting Quality Meals

Posted on April 3, 2020 by Catherine Balavage

I have had to use my initiative to get food during the COVID-19 pandemic. March saw shelf stripping and even now online food delivery is (for me at least) impossible.

So the people at Love Yourself sent us some food to try. They make gourmet food which is delivered to you daily. They have different diets so you will find the right one for you. We tried the Keto diet.

The food arrives in trays and has the calorie count and nutritional value on it. You can heat things up in the microwave or some things can be eaten cold. So far so easy, but how does it taste?

Amazing. My husband is notoriously hard to please and even he said he had never eaten so well. I have reviewed hundreds of restaurants and this food is restaurant-quality. It is expensive with a starting price of £21 but I would recommend it if you have the money.

The sight of bare shelves in your local supermarkets is something we are all becoming familiar with, we want to avoid these busy shops and overcrowded public transport at all costs. So while your continuing to find your feet with home-work life and new ways to get some exercise into your day it can be a challenge to think of nutritional balanced meals daily. Take the weight off your shoulder and allow your meals to come right to your door with Love Yourself. Dedicated to the health, happiness and well-being of their customers all the hard work is done for you. No cooking is required simply place in the microwave to heat up following the instructions provided then your free to reap the rewards of these delicious yet nutritious meals. To help strengthen those motivation levels and achieve those daily goals rather than giving in to the temptation to sit on the sofa and binge watch a box set.

As restrictions mean we are spending much more time at home, with such uncertainty it is so important to maintain the attitude ‘healthy body, healthy mind’ that way you can face the day well-nourished with a sense of positivity and motivation whatever comes our way. LoveYourself provide the most immune boosting meals safely, straight to your door. Calorie-controlled premium diets freshly prepared, using an exciting array of seasonal ingredients containing no processed meats, additives or preservatives. If you’re wondering what is beef jerky and whether it fits into a healthy lifestyle, LoveYourself focuses on meals that offer nourishing, whole food options instead of processed snacks.

While day to day live may become monotonous for the creators at Love Yourself it continues to be of paramount importance to keep things exciting in the kitchen, changing diet menus on a weekly basis so you’ll never get bored, which encourages weight loss and an improvement to your overall health.

No time to go to the shops? Shops run out of stock? Love Yourself has you covered catering to your dietary requirements whether that be vegetarian, gluten free, keto or pescatarian. All food is prepared in a clean, sanitized facility with strict hygiene procedures in place. All food is packaged in sterile, food-grade containers, with an airtight seal to ensure its freshness and uncompromised hygiene until it is opened and enjoyed in your own home.

Looking for recommendations to help boost your immune system, read in full at; https://www.loveyourself.co.uk/blogs/news/immune-boosting-foods-that-ll-help-fight-off-the-coronavirus-and-more

The Love Yourself Meal Box, is available to buy online from £21.00 (daily) at LoveYourself.

HighTide reveals further details on industry leading response to crisis by Annie Clarke

Posted on April 2, 2020 by Margaret Graham

HighTide reveals further details on the industry leading response to the crisis and announces stellar cast for Love In The Time of Corona

The cast for the five monologues written for Love In The Time of Corona, as part of HighTide’s Lighthouse Programme, have now been released. Aisha Zia’s (No Guts No Heart No Glory, UK tour, BBC 4, Fringe First Award winner) piece will be performed by Jade Anouka (Last Christmas) while Katie Lyons (Manhunt, ITV) takes on Olivier Award nominee Morgan Lloyd Malcolm’s work in the first of the monologues to be released on Thursday 9 th April.

Sophie Melville (Bang, S4C) will share Ben Weatherill’s (Jellyfish, Bush Theatre and National Theatre, now in development with BBC) piece, BAFTA nominee Dawn King’s will be presented by Shobna Gulati (Coronation Street, ITV) and spoken word artist Debris Stevenson (Poet In Da Corner, Royal Court and UK tour, Evening Standard Best Newcomer nominee) will perform her own monologue.

All five of the writers of Love In The Time of Corona are currently developing full-length plays for Suba Das’s inaugural HighTide Festival in 2021.

Filmed and edited through support from HighTide’s sponsor Lansons, one of the world’s leading reputation management companies, the first of these digital productions created by HighTide will be available for free from next week on their channels.

The scripts will also be available royalty free for actors and directors to make their own digital versions and will be showcased on HighTide’s social media channels. HighTide’s Lighthouse Programme consists of free, brand new projects and programmes for artists, audiences and communities, specifically created to bring light in the weeks ahead.

HighTide are the first NPO to launch such a comprehensive programme of support for the sector, offering a range of programmes to help artists. These strands reflect the values that sit at the heart of HighTide: to introduce audiences to new work that speaks to the times we live in by the most exciting and diverse writers in the UK; to support emerging writers on their journey; and to engage communities in their home region in Suffolk.

Artistic Director of HighTide, Suba Das comments, Over 200 individual artists and companies have engaged with our Lighthouse Programme since we raced to create this new support programme the week that the theatre’s began to close; and our supporters have already donated £16,000 to these efforts, totally smashing all of our expectations. That tells us plainly that what we’re doing matters. It’s a strange and distressing time, but we’re so heartened that we’re helping provide a sense of focus and community. It’s an honour to have world class writing talents like Morgan Lloyd Malcolm and Ben Weatherill; and actors such as Jade Anouka and Katie Lyons supporting our efforts. It’s equally important that we’re reaching and supporting an emerging generation who risk losing the opportunity to fully develop their talent with the shutdown in place.

So whether that’s with Dawn King’s livestreamed playwriting classes; or our Cancellation Catalogue through which we hope to rescue some shows that will no longer go to Edinburgh; or the online participatory work we’ll be doing with the Suffolk Young People’s Health Project; we hope that isolation doesn’t also mean silence. The Lighthouse Programme also includes: For writers from the East of England and/or from a socio-economically deprived background, Write That Play is a new programme to help new and emerging writers learn about playwriting craft and work towards completing a first draft of a new play. HighTide writer and BAFTAnominated Dawn King will lead a live-streamed weekly workshop over ten weeks taking the group through playwriting exercises and tasks. At the end of the course, their completed draft can be submitted for notes.

Applications for this exciting opportunity close on Tuesday. Playwright Crisis Support Programme will see HighTide’s incredible alumni, including Luke Barnes, Kenny Emson, Anders Lustgarten, Morgan Lloyd Malcolm, Vinay Patel and Nick Payne, adopt an emerging writer. Over twelve weeks, the small group of writers will be looked after by the HighTide team and an alumni. The focus is artist wellbeing during this period of crisis and individuals goals will be set with each playwright; these could range from completing a new draft, facilitating for a writer to hear their work out loud, navigating the financial support available to freelance artists. Preference will be given to applicants from the East of England and/or from a socio-economically deprived background and applications close on Wednesday.

To further support playwrights moving forward with their practice, HighTide’s newly appointed Associate Artists, Aisha Zia, Chinonyerem Odimba, Chris Sonnex and The Queer House, have committed to regularly reading and feeding back on scripts. The Script Reading Service is open to all UK playwrights during submission windows, however priority will be given to writers who are based in the East of England and/or are from socio-economically deprived backgrounds. A hundred scripts were received in the first submission window last week, further windows will be announced in late April and June. HighTide’s Cancellation Catalogue is for premiere runs of British new writing that were cancelled due to Corvid-19. Giving shows new life where opportunity was ripped away by circumstance, the pieces will be placed on a priority list for programming in the next HighTide Festival in Spring/Summer 2021.

In partnership with the Suffolk Young People’s Health Project (4YP) and Company Three’s groundbreaking Coronavirus Time Capsule programme, HighTide will create an online youth theatre space for some of the most vulnerable and isolated young people in the East of England. With sessions and content delivered by some of the UK’s most exciting theatremakers, and linking up similar youth projects all over the world, Let’s Create seeks to widen participants’ horizons, even during a time of lockdown. Throughout the crisis and in partnership with Nick Hern Books, HighTide will share a regular programme of simple playwriting tasks and exercises created by great playwrights past and present to help keep boredom at bay. The traditional period of a quarantine was 40 days so HighTide will be sharing 40 simple standalone playwriting tasks across their social channels with 40 Plays / 40 Nights. They invite all writers with a wi-fi connection to share their responses for feedback, discussion and celebration.

Twitter @_HighTide_ Instagram @HighTideTheatre Website www.hightide.org.uk

Donations www.hightide.org.uk/support-us/ Write That Play Apply: https://hightide.org.uk/lighthouse-programme/write-that-playplaywriting-programme/.

Deadline: Tuesday 7th April, 10am Playwright Crisis Support Programme Apply: https://hightide.org.uk/lighthouse-programme/playwright-crisissupport-programme/ Deadline: Wednesday 8th April, 10am Cancellation Catalogue Submission: https://hightide.org.uk/lighthouse-programme/cancellation-catalogue/HighTide

HighTide is a theatre company and charity based in East Anglia that has an unparalleled twelveyear history of successfully launching the careers of emerging British playwrights. Their alumni include: Luke Barnes, Adam Brace, E V Crowe, Elinor Cook, Rob Drummond, Thomas Eccleshare, Theresa Ikoko, Branden Jacobs-Jenkins, Anders Lustgarten, Joel Horwood, Ella Hickson, Harry Melling, Nessah Muthy, Vinay Patel, Nick Payne, Phil Porter, Beth Steel, Al Smith, Sam Steiner, Molly Taylor, Jack Thorne and Frances Ya-Chu Cowhig. They have staged productions with the highest quality theatres across the UK, from the Traverse in Edinburgh, to the Royal Exchange in Manchester, Theatre Royal Bath and the National Theatre in London. They discover new talent, provide creative development opportunities for playwrights and other creatives, and stage high quality theatre productions both in their region and nationally through their festivals and touring. They enable new and underrepresented playwrights to express their visions of contemporary politics and society, demonstrate their creative potential and therein showcase the future of theatre.

Ways to recover after partying all night

Posted on April 1, 2020 by Aidan

The morning after the night before can sometimes be a bit of a painful one depending on how hard you push it. Like so many other party animals, you can get a bit carried away, then you’ll be pleased to know there are certain things you can do to speed up the recovery process.

While the obvious advice is to take it easy in the first place, that might not be right for you mainly if there’s a big celebration afoot. Take a look at some cheats for life when you hit 20 and few suggestions below, and hopefully, you’ll be able to conduct damage limitation and feel human again sooner rather than later!

H2Oh-yes

Yes, it is that simple. One of the main issues with a hangover is dehydration so this time when you are drinking, make sure it’s water-based rather than vodka-based! Some sugar can give you an energy boost too so you could choose one non-carbonated sugary drink too and get that down you. You might also want to try some rehydration sachets. They are a rapid way to replenish lost salts that will make you feel lousy.

Eat up

Alcohol depletes our inner resources, so your instinct is to crave high fat, high salt, high badness foods. These can make us feel better in the very short-term, but the likelihood is you will feel worse afterwards. Try to choose foods that will help including

Complex carbs – such as wholemeal bread to give you some energy
Eggs – these contain cysteine, which is an amino acid that helps breakdown acetaldehyde, the root cause of hangovers
Bananas. These are full of potassium and magnesium, which you lose when you are boozing. Potassium will combat nausea plaguing you as well as that awful feeling of fatigue

Pop the pills

While a headache may well be caused by dehydration, it can also be compounded by tiredness, tension and maybe a bit too much load music. And that’s why painkillers were invented! If the feelings of sickness are chaining you to your bathroom floor too then consider trying some anti-sickness tablets. Moreover, if you become somewhat more frivolous with your attitude towards contraception, then you might also want to treat yourself to a morning after pill to be on the safe side. The symptoms of unprotected sex last much longer than those of a hangover if you aren’t careful!

Love yourself

You may have been loving someone special last night or even everyone on the dancefloor but do not forget to save a bit for yourself for the next day. A hangover is always exacerbated by the beer fear and feelings of guilt and shame that frankly, torture yourself with isn’t needed. Most of us have been there, so try not to be too tough on yourself.

In the moment, the next day can feel torturous but remember – it only lasts a day. The memories you recreate from having a great time with friends and family will last forever, long after the hangover has passed. Follow our tips to feel better and enjoy yourself. Just ensure that you are safe while you are doing it!

Fabulous news: Bevan the Teddy Bear and his Companions to Help NHS Heroes

Posted on April 1, 2020 by Margaret Graham

Britain’s oldest remaining teddy bear manufacturer is supporting the NHS and the coronavirus fighting fund thanks to a special souvenir bear and his cuddly companions.

Bevan the Bear, originally created to celebrate the 70th anniversary of the NHS, is making a comeback and will be joined by a selection of Merrythought’s traditional, British-made teddy bears to raise funds for the NHS Charities Covid-19 Appeal and SATH, the company’s local Hospital Trust in Shropshire

The ‘Blue Ribbon’ campaign collection also includes Merrythought’s best-selling London Curly Gold bear, together with Oxford, Traditional Cheeky and of course Bevan – named after founder of the NHS,Aneurin Bevan. Paying tribute to the NHS frontline heroes, Merrythought has chosen only teddy bears that wear a blue ribbon, with a minimum of 20% of all online sales to be donated to the charities.

“While a Merrythought teddy bear is the ideal companion to get you through challenging times such as these, choosing a special bear for either yourself or a loved one will now also help the NHS and those affected by Covid-19,” said fourth-generation managing director of Merrythought Sarah Holmes.

“Bevan is a particularly special bear for us and we were very proud of our collaboration with Shrewsbuy and Telford Hospital Trust, our local NHS Trust. We now want to build on this to help the wider NHS as it faces such an unprecedented crisis.

Merrythought, which marks its 90th anniversary this year, is famous for crafting the finest, British-madeteddy bears, which are adored by children and adults across the world.

“We appreciate the difficulties that families and the NHS are facing at the moment, and are keen to see the Merrythought teddy bear giving some financial and emotional support to those affected by Covid-19. Merrythought is very much a business which has been at the heart of the community for the last nine decades, and we hope to continue to be so for generations to come.”

While the Merrythought Shop in Ironbridge has had to close in line with current Government restrictions, orders can still be placed online.

“We are proud that our teddy bears are British made, and we appreciate all the efforts across the community to support British businesses as we all try our best to get through this crisis together.”

Bevan is on sale for £89, and is available alongside the rest of the Blue Ribbon Collection at www.merrythought.co.uk.

Easy cocktails to mix at home

Posted on March 31, 2020 by Catherine Balavage

Cotswolds Garden

Ingredients: 50ml Cotswolds Dry Gin, 25ml elderflower liqueur, 12.5ml fresh lime juice, 75ml pressed apple juice

Method: Place all ingredients into an ice-filled shaker, shake and strain into an ice-filled Copa glass. Garnish with fresh cucumber and mint

From £34.95 for 70cl (46% ABV). Available from Cotswoldsdistillery.com, Waitrose, Majestic, Oddbins, Laithwaites, Harvey Nichols, Selfridges and Fortnum and Mason.

Cotswolds Whisky Sour

Ingredients: 60ml Cotswolds Single Malt Whisky, 25ml fresh lemon juice, 20ml sugar syrup, 2 dashes of Angostura Bitters, ½ egg white

Method: Dry shake all ingredients, add ice to shaker, shake, fine-strain & serve into a chilled Old Fashioned glass. Garnish with a fresh lemon wheel & cherry

From £44.95 for 70cl (46% ABV). Available from cotswoldsdistillery.com, Waitrose, Majestic, The Whisky Exchange, Harrods and Laithwaites.

Kokoro Dragon Ball

Ingredients: 50ml Kokoro Gin, 20ml Lemon Juice, 5ml Kokoro Cherry Blossom Liqueur, 10ml Honey Syrup (3:1), 10ml Aperol, 2 Dashes of Orange Flower Water, Champagne (optional), Orange Peel

Method: Shake all ingredients apart from the Champagne with ice. Double strain and top with Champagne. Garnish with a twist of orange peel

From £29 for 70cl (42% ABV). Available from kokorogin.com, Master of Malt, John Lewis, 31Dover, Amazon and other good retailers. Also in the Kokoro Gin range are their delicious Japanese-inspired liqueurs, including Blueberry & Lemongrass, Yuzu and Ginger and Cherry Blossom.

From £12.50 for 20cl (20% ABV). Available from kokorogin.com and John Lewis

Barentsz Mandarin and Jasmine Martini

cocktails, cocktail recipes, cocktail , alcohol, ideas,

Ingredients: 55ml Barentsz Mandarin and Jasmine Gin, 15ml triple sec (Grand Marnier) , 15ml dry vermouth, dash of orange bitters

Method: Pour ingredients into a shaker half filled with cracked ice. Shake well and strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Garnish with an orange twist.

From £38.00 for 70cl (40% ABV). Available from B arentszgin.com and from 31Dover.com in a luxury gift carton.

Lowlander Sobeer Citrus Mocktail

Ingredients: 150ml Lowlander 0.00% Wit Beer, 30ml Seedlip Grove, 10ml Ginger syrup, 10ml Lime juice, Garnish with a juiced orange peel

Method: Fill a highball glass with ice. Stir all ingredients and strain into the glass over ice. Garnish with a swirl of juiced orange peel.

Lowlander 0.00% Wit Beer is available to purchase online: As a single bottle from LightDrinks.co.uk for £1.99. As a single bottle from 31Dover.com for £2.02. As a case of 12 from Amazon for £36.95

Pinkster Gin & Jam

@tonephotog 07908236655 shep@tone-photographer

Ingredients: 50ml Pinkster Gin, 15ml lemon juice, 15ml sugar syrup, 1tsp raspberry jam, a handful of blackberries

Method: Shake all the ingredients in a cocktail shaker filled with ice. Shake and strain into a Rocks glass filled with crushed ice. Garnish with fresh blackberries

From £36 for 70cl (37.5% ABV). Available from Marks & Spencer, Fenwick, Harvey Nichols, Selfridges, and Majestic Wine, Ocado, 31Dover.com, Master of Malt and Pinkster Gin.com.

Union Spirited Maverick

Ingredients: 50ml Spirited Union Lemon & Leaf, 20ml Passion Fruit Puree, 30ml Fresh Lemon Juice, 15ml Vanilla Syrup, fresh passionfruit

Method: Pour ingredients in a shaker. Shake with ice and strain into pre-chilled cocktail glass. Garnish with a passion fruit wheel float.

From £29.95 for 70cl (38% ABV). Available from Master of Malt and The Whisky Exchange and Spirited Union.com.

Jaisalmer Golden Fort

Ingredients: 50ml Jaisalmer Gin, 15ml fresh lime juice, 10ml Cinnamon Syrup, 50ml Cloudy Apple Juice

Method: Pour ingredients in a shaker. Shake with ice and strain into a rocks glass. Garnish with an apple fan of 3 slices and add grated nutmeg (optional)

From £34.95 for 70cl (43% ABV). Available from The Whisky Exchange, Master of Malt and DrinksSupermarket.com.

The Queen Mary Edition G&T

Ingredients: 50ml Gin 1689 – The Queen Mary Edition, fresh raspberries and strawberries

Method:Fill a Copa glass with plenty of ice. Add Gin 1689 – The Queen Mary Edition.

Top with tonic and garnish with raspberries and sliced strawberries.

From £37.95 for 70cl (ABV: 38.5%). Available from Master of Malt and Amathus Drinks

J&B Rare Whisky Gimlet

Ingredients: 50ml J&B Rare, 25ml home-made lime cordial* (or bought Lime cordial),fresh lime peel

Method: Fill a cocktail shaker with ice, add the ingredients and shake until the surface of the shaker feels chilled. Strain into a Coupe glass. Garnish with a twist of lime peel

From £22.50 for 70cl (40% ABV). Available from Waitrose, masterofmalt.com, thewhiskyexchange.com, drinksupermarket.com, 31dover.com and Justerini & Brooks.

Living with Alzheimers – A Parallel Universe by Chris Suich

Posted on March 30, 2020 by Tracy Baines

I sometimes think I’m in a parallel universe!

Is there a link between autism and Alzheimer’s? I sometimes think so? As a special educational needs co-ordinator I often come across parents who talk about obsessions in their children’s behaviours. This has been a similar thread throughout this journey. It began with jam and cornflakes!

I remember going to see our consultant when Bob was in denial about his diagnosis.

‘Tell the Dr about the cornflakes,’ I cajoled.

‘What about the cornflakes?’ Bob snapped.

‘You know the fact we’ve got 18 packets of Special K with red fruit on the larder shelf!’

‘Yes well that’s because they are on offer at Co-op and I’m saving money.’

‘But what about the jams?’ I continued as Bob kicked me under the table to shut up.

‘Well, they are all different flavours’, he explained to the doctor (All 20 jars of them). This was the thing with Bob he was so clever he always had an answer which sounded quite reasonable.

Then there was the obsession with buying the same type of things. The shirts, the mugs, records, and strangely hoodie.! Most bizarre for someone that had never wore a hoodie in his life!

Then there was the collecting of things like leaves, – full carrier bags brimmed to the top with leaves picked during Autumn walks. A neighbour told me about the litter picking too and the going through the neighbours bins checking they had put the correct things in the correct bins!

Then re- distributing anything he found into the correct bin!

Our neighbours were always tolerant and kind. Even the shop keepers were lovely letting me take back items he bought for a full refund.

But how strange. Just another stage of the dementia which I managed as best I could.

Pale Green Dot Start Fresh Fruit and Veg Box Home Delivery Initiative

Posted on March 30, 2020 by Catherine Balavage

Pale Green Dot supply the finest quality fresh, seasonal and local produce to some of London and the South East’s finest restaurants year round. In light of the Coronavirus pandemic, with so many restaurants sadly having to close for the foreseeable, their premium quality fruit and veg is now available for the public to order for themselves to be delivered straight to their door.

The quality of produce is sensational, and allows members of the public to avoid supermarket shopping, perusing empty shelves and bringing home simply whatever might be left available. The Essential Fresh Produce Box (£12.50) includes traditional root veg (onions, swede, beetroot, carrots, potatoes), leaves and green veg (salad bag, Savoy/Tundra cabbage, leeks), coloured veg (peppers, vine tomatoes, aubergines) and local fruit (apples, pears). The Veg and Staples Box (£20) includes all of the above as well as milk, bread and eggs as well. Boxes can be delivered as a one off or even weekly.

“We are getting amazing quality fresh farm produce to people in their homes at an affordable price. We’re so proud to be doing our bit to keep British farmers and our Pale Green Dot family in work whilst supplying the public with fantastic quality produce at this time.” says Jo Farish from Pale Green Dot

With supermarkets running low on fresh produce as it is, this new initiative gives people a fantastic opportunity to stay healthy and nourished with restaurant quality fruit and veg at a fair price. As well as this, the initiative also gives security to their farmers who at this time may feel incredibly anxious about supply and demand in the hospitality industry.

Thanks to this initiative, the farmers and growers who work for and with Pale Green Dot have new clientele through these times to keep business going until things return to normal and supply can begin again for the hospitality industry. As well as growing and farming, Pale Green Dot employees are also helping to deliver these fresh produce boxes around London and the South East to those who aren’t just running low on fresh supplies but also those who cannot leave their homes at this time.

Orders can be made via the website. Pale Green Dot aims to deliver boxes by the next working day but of course delivery times will be determined by demand and capacity during these unprecedented times.

To keep minds at ease, Pale green Dot are implementing the highest safety and hygiene standards across the board when it comes to both packaging and delivering in order to prevent the spread of the virus.

Orders can be made via this link – www.palegreendot.co.uk/veg-box

www.palegreendot.co.uk

SISTER SCRIBES’ READING ROUND UP: MARCH

Posted on March 30, 2020 by Jane Cable

Susanna:

A Cornish Inheritance is an excellent first book in a new saga series. Deceit, tragedy and emotion are the themes in Terri Nixon’s latest novel, set on the beautiful Cornish coast. The characters are drawn in depth and develop throughout the story as each one is tested to the limit. It’s a very twisty-turny plot and you definitely need to pay attention as you get towards the end, but, crikey, is it worth it. This is the first Terri Nixon book I’ve read and now I’m looking forward to reading her Oaklands Manor trilogy.

Kitty:

I have had a busy reading month, the perks of handing in one manuscript and having the luxury of a longer delivery date for the next so I’ve taken over almost all the reading round up this month.

I’ve been reading Christmas books to get me feeling Christmassy as I begin to write my next seasonal book. This has included re-reading the fabulous Jilly Cooper’s How to Survive Christmas. She can be relied upon to make me howl with laughter and certainly did so with this. This book was originally published in the seventies and updated in the eighties and made me realise how much society at large has changed – particularly as I was reading the tips on not getting too upset over your husband’s mistress – and how glad I am for it.

With the same aim, I raced through Sue Moorcrofts’s Let it Snow. This was a truly enjoyable Christmas read, and I loved reading about the choir as they headed to Switzerland, the country was beautifully described and created a detailed picture in my mind. I also really enjoyed the family dynamics within the story (a big plus for me to see ME mentioned empathetically) alongside the romance and this book gave me all the seasonal feels.

Finally, I have been so excited about talking about this book, I’ve been recommending it to anyone unfortunate enough to spend five minutes or more in my company.

You know how every now and again a book comes along and you fall utterly, utterly in love with it? That has happened to me this year with The Authenticity Project by Claire Pooley and I think it will remain on the top of my feelgood reads list for many years to come.

From the very first page the writing captivated me, and I knew this would be a book to steal my heart. It starts with Julian, an elderly gentlemen who is struggling with loneliness and the façade he uses to cover it. He writes his story in a notebook, leaving it for someone else to pick up and carry on.

The book gets passed from one person to the next and the truth is revealed about people’s real lives, their doubts and fears and how much they are at odds with the way others perceive them. It examines how people struggle regardless of age, class, lifestyle and that we all have burdens to carry. However, it also shows the power of positive human interaction and how small actions can mean so much. It is uplifting and rammed full of optimism, becoming a book about community and support, friendship and love and I defy anyone not to pick it up and be both transported and delighted. If you get the chance to read it, then do. Feel free to shout at me if you don’t fall in love as much as I did.

Happy reading, Kitty x

Frost Magazine

Books and Lifestyle