A Day In The Life of An Indie Bookshop By The Chorleywood Bookshop

Posted on November 10, 2014 by Margaret Graham

Some people have the rather quaint idea that an independent bookshop is a rather dusty place, run by an elderly woman who spends all her time with her feet up, stroking a cat and reading. Others imagine it like the bookshop in Notting Hill, a rather more boutique-style place which sells coffee table books and travel guides.

If there were shops like this they would have closed by now. To be a successful independent bookshop in 2014 you need to be so much more than just a bookshop.

At Chorleywood Bookshop the owner, Sheryl Shurville, opens up at the crack of dawn, invoicing schools with their orders and organising the first of the deliveries. On the way she’ll be picking up a children’s author from the station to take to the school for an event.

Back at the shop a team of three will be unpacking boxes of books. Some will be for a literary lunch, others will be for customers who have ordered them the day before and others will be temporarily displayed in the window ready for the upcoming literary festival.

Along with our customers the staff meet so many authors and it’s like kids being let loose in a sweet shop. We love it. Here’s our owner, Sheryl Shurville with Ben Collins, The Stig.

The shop is busy with customers, many have come to buy greetings cards, others will be buying their tickets for the literary festival and some, of course, are just browsing the new titles.

Behind the scenes, one of the staff is now writing an article about an author event for the local magazine, someone else is pricing a box of children’s toys and gifts and the third member of staff is back and forth serving customers at the till, while working her way through a batch of books to be returned to the publishers and researching an out of print book for a customer who wants a second hand copy.

Sheryl returns and sorts out the banking and float for the author event later that day. Then she begins work on her introductory speech, sandwich in hand. No one stops to eat for more than 10 minutes, there simply isn’t time.

More customers orders placed, more cards sold, more personal book recommendations given-cups of tea are made and left to go cold.

Refreshments for customers are packed, shop signs and books loaded in the back of car, a bouquet for the author collected and on to the evening event… See Alexander Armstrong and Richard Osman signing copies of A Very Pointless Quiz Book.

This may sound like exaggeration but this is exactly what it’s like at an indie bookshop, well, unless it’s Halloween,Christmas, Easter, Mother’s Day….when it gets a whole lot busier.

Chorleywood Literary Festival November 10 – 16^th. http://chorleywoodbookshop.co.uk/chorleywood-literary-festival-2014

Milton Steriliser Reviews

Posted on November 10, 2014 by Frostie

We reviewed some great products from sterilising experts Milton, whose products have been used by parents in homes and hospitals for over 65 years to ensure baby feeding equipment is clean and germ-free.

The Milton Mini Portable Soother Steriliser – This help solves every parent’s dilemma – what to do with a dropped dummy? This nifty little gadget cleans and sterilises dummies in less than 15 minutes, plus provides a safe and sterile place to store a spare dummy when you are out and about. The Velcro strap has been designed so you can attach the Mini to the pushchair when out and about. Small and would fit into any handbag. Very handy. Wouldn’t be without it.

The Milton Solo Travel Steriliser – this is a 2-in–1 microwave or cold water single bottle steriliser. It is ideal for sterilising when travelling or away from home. It sterilises from 2 minutes in the microwave and in 15 minutes with cold water. It safely sterilises most makes and sizes of bottles and also small baby equipment such as tethers and plastic toys. This is small enough to fit into a changing bag. Is handy and works well.

The Milton Combi Microwave or Cold Water Steriliser is a 2-in-1 microwave or cold water steriliser. It effectively cleans and sterilises bottles from 2 minutes in the microwave and in 15 minutes for cold water. Its compact design is small enough to fit into most microwaves, yet spacious enough to sterilise up to 5 bottles of any brand.The Combi sterilises from 2 minutes in the microwave and in 15 minutes with cold water. All bacteria, viruses and fungi are killed. It is a decent size and comes with some free tablets inside. Highly recommended.

Milton Sterilising Tablets: a recent study shows that their sterilising tablets are now effective against the two germs responsible for Typhoid and Cholera. This means that parents travelling further abroad, to countries outside of Europe and the US, where sanitation is poor, can use Milton‘s products safe in the knowledge that they will sterilise all items. Thereby protecting little ones against the germs that cause serious illnesses, such as typhoid and cholera, which are contracted through contaminated food and water. They are just as great in the UK obviously.

Do you have any parenting recommendations?

Retro Swizzels Sweets Review

Posted on November 10, 2014 by Frostie

When I was growing up I spent a large amount of my pocket money on swizzels sweets. Their iconic sweets are all included in their Sweet Shop Favourites tin and gift box: love hearts, refreshers, fruity pops, drumsticks, parma violets. The tin also has fizzers, two double-dips and two of the latest additions: drumstick and refreshers squashies. If you haven’t tried them yet, you don’t know what you are missing. They also have a One Direction tube of love hearts. Perfect for any 1D obsessed family members.

Iconic family-owned British sweet makers Swizzels have an array of Christmas crackers available this festive season. They are great stocking fillers and they also have amazing tins for the whole family to share.

Available from tesco.com

Charlotte’s Bistro Restaurant Review

Posted on November 9, 2014 by James Yardley

Long time Frost readers may remember that we reviewed Charlotte’s Bistro at the beginning of 2013. It was one of our favourite reviews and we were very keen to go back.

Charlotte’s Bistro is just a couple of minutes walk from Turnham Green tube station. It has a vibrant and lively atmosphere. It always seem close to full even in the middle of the week. We started off with some delicious home-made bread which set the tone for the rest of the meal. For drinks we had two mocktails. The Bare Necessity made from fresh orange juice was particularly good.

Our first starter was a pumpkin soup. It was delicious, and the little croquets were a great contrast.

We also had the gin infused salmon which was incredible, it had a wonderful flavour and a beautiful texture which held together. This was a very accomplished dish. I loved the sharpness of the pickled vegetables and the little sweetness of orange on the salmon was divine.

For our main course we had confit of Lamb’s breast, braised lamb shoulder, broad beans and baby gem. This was a truly stunning dish of the very highest quality. The lamb was beautiful, the lamb shoulder had an incredible intense salty earthy flavour. It was the best lamb we’ve had for an extremely long time. The creamy broad beans, braised gem lettuce and delicious sauce were all superb accompaniments. This was a wonderful dish and is a customer favourite for good reason. We would urge everyone to go and try it, you won’t find anything better.

Our other main was a beautiful piece of 28 day aged rib eye steak. We asked for it to be well-done and the chef cooked it extremely well. Despite it being well-done it was juicy, tender and delicious. It was also accompanied by some excellent chips and a tasty Bearnaise sauce.

For dessert we had a raspberrybavoir. Wow, this was another knock out dish. It looked amazing and tasted even better. It had an intense raspberry flavour and a beautiful texture. The soft creamy ice cream and delicious sweet, crunchy biscuit base were a perfect complement to the sharp raspberry.

We also had a brioche doughnut, apple compote, salted caramel and Calvados cream. Doughnut, apple, caramel and cream. What a brilliant combination and it was beautifully executed. The brioche doughnut was light and not too heavy, the apple compote was excellent as was the Calvados cream. A magic combination and everything a dessert should be. Simply superb. Charlotte’s Bistro has taken its puddings to another level.

This is an outstanding restaurant producing some of the best food around. It’s not stuffy and has a fun and lively atmosphere. The service staff are warm and professional. It’s not surprising to see why house prices in the surrounding area are so expensive! We will be back, hopefully not before too long.

Charlotte’s Bistro food changes with the seasons – click here to find out what’s on the menu

Charlotte’s Bistro

6 Turnham Green Terrace, Chiswick, London. W4 1QP

020 8742 3590

Christmas Gift List For Book Lovers

Posted on November 9, 2014 by Frostie

Who doesn’t love a good book? Not many people and why the hell would you be friends with anyone who didn’t? Good question. Here are our picks.

The Happiness of Pursuit by Chris Guillebeau

This book is perfect not only because it is a great idea brilliantly executed, but also because after Christmas comes New Year and we all need a little bit of help and motivation then. Written by Chris Guillebeau, the New York Times bestselling author of $100 Startup. The book helps you to find purpose in work and life by committing to a life-changing quest.

Chris himself has undertaken a successful quest of his own, having visited nearly every country in the world by age 35. The Happiness of Pursuit offers inspirational and practical advice to help you bridge the gap between ‘impossible dream’ and ‘everyday reality’. But a quest doesn’t need to involve travel at all; what’s needed is commitment and progressive accomplishment, losing oneself in a task – whether it be a physical journey, an artistic enterprise or a philanthropic feat. Chris has surveyed thousands who’ve undertaken such pursuits, (from going on 50 dates in all 50 states, becoming fluent in five languages, to cooking a meal from every country in the world), and has recorded 50 case studies in his new book. Excellent stuff.

The Happiness of Pursuit: Find the Quest that will Bring Purpose to Your Life

Dark Witch By Nora Roberts

Book one of the cousins of O’Dwyer trilogy. Bestselling writer Nora Roberts sold 1.2 million copies in 2013 alone. Very impressive. The author of over 200 novels and the third bestselling author of the 21st century, you can’t go wrong with a Nora Roberts book.

Iona Sheehan has always felt a powerful connection to Ireland. So when her beloved grandmother confesses an extraordinary family secret, she can’t resist visiting County Mayo to discover the truth for herself. Arriving at the atmospheric Castle Ashford, Iona is excited to meet her enigmatic cousins, Connor and Branna O’Dwyer. And when she lands a job at the local riding school she is soon drawn to its owner – the charismatic, fiercely independent Boyle McGrath. Perhaps she has found her true home at last…

But Iona’s arrival is no accident. The three cousins have each inherited a dangerous gift from an ancestor known as the Dark Witch. And they are about to discover that some old legends can return to haunt the present.

Dark Witch (The Cousins O’Dwyer Trilogy Book 1)

Circle of Blood. A Witch Hunt Novel by Debbie Viguié

Grippin, intellectual and scary. Buffy The Vampire Slayer meets Charmed. Perfect for lovers of horror or thrillers.

Samantha Ryan—cop by choice, witch hunter by necessity—is about to confront the witch who has been secretly manipulating her life. But her search for the truth about her past may end in her death.…

All her life, Samantha Ryan has been haunted by a circle of blood, which she has tried to keep at bay—ever since she escaped a vicious Salem coven of witches as a child. But now her carefully constructed life has given way to the darkness she might have embraced, had she not run away.

Angry, focused, and more than willing to use her powers on anyone who gets in her way, Samantha travels to New Orleans to confront Lilit.

Circle of Blood: A Witch Hunt Novel (Witch Hunt Trilogy 3)

A Nightingale Christmas Wish By Donna Douglas

More from the bestselling Nightingale series. This time to put you in the festive spirit. Perfect for Call The Midwife fans.

As Christmas 1938 approaches, the staff at the Nightingale Hospital have their own wishes for the festive season.

Ward sister Frannie Wallace is hoping she won’t have to live through another war like the one that claimed her beloved fiance. But with bomb defences going up all around London, it seems as if her hopes are in vain.

Staff Nurse Helen Dawson wants to find happiness again after the death of her husband Charlie. A handsome stranger seems to offer the chance she wants. But is she looking for love in the wrong place?

Matron Kathleen Fox struggles to keep up morale amongst her nurses as the hospital faces the threat of evacuation. But while everyone else worries about the future of the Nightingale, it’s for her own future that Kathleen truly fears.

As the country prepares itself for war, one thing is for sure – by the time next Christmas comes, nothing at the Nightingale Hospital will be the same again…

A Nightingale Christmas Wish

Cat Out of Hell by Lynne Truss

Funny, entertaining and addictive. From the author of the brilliant Eats, Shoots & Leaves.

The mesmerising tale of a cat with nine lives, and a relationship as ancient as time itself and just as powerful.

The scene: a cottage on the coast on a windy evening. Inside, a room with curtains drawn. Tea has just been made. A kettle still steams.

Under a pool of yellow light, two figures face each other across a kitchen table. A man and a cat.

The story about to be related is so unusual yet so terrifyingly plausible that it demands to be told in a single sitting.

The man clears his throat, and leans forward, expectant.

‘Shall we begin?’ says the cat …

Cat out of Hell

The Wolves of Midwinter By Anne Rice

Anne Rice is the bestselling author of The Vampire Chronicles. She has written over 30 best-selling books. This is a splendid and creepy read. A great present that will give hours of pleasure.

It is the beginning of December and it is cold and grey outside. In the stately flickering hearths of the grand mansion of Nideck Point, oak fires are burning. The Morphenkinder are busy getting ready for the ancient pagan feast of midwinter. Everyone is invited, including some of their own who do not wish them well…

Reuben Golding, the newest of the Morphenkinder, is struggling with his new existence as a Man Wolf, struggling to learn to control his desires and bloodthirsty urges. His pure, luminous girlfriend Laura seems all set to join him in this new way of life, but Reuben is not at all certain he will love her if she becomes as he is. Beyond the mansion, the forest echoes with howling winds, which carry with them tales of a strange nether world, and of spirits – centuries old – who possess their own fantastical ancient histories and taunt with their dark, magical powers.

As preparations for the feast gather pace, destiny continues to hound Reuben, not least in the form of a strange, tormented ghost who appears at the window, unable to speak. But he is not alone: before the festivities are over, choices must be made – choices which will decide the fate of the Morphenkinder for ever.

The Wolves of Midwinter (The Wolf Gift Chronicles)

Easterleigh Hall by Margaret Graham

An excellent book from best-selling author Margaret Graham. Reviewed here. Two more are on their way. Even more fun than Downton Abbey.

A compelling new series set in County Durham just before the First World War. Perfect for fans of Longbourn and Downton Abbey.

When Evie Forbes starts as an assistant cook at Easterleigh Hall, she goes against her family’s wishes. For ruthless Lord Brampton also owns the mine where Evie’s father and brothers work and there is animosity between the two families.

But Evie is determined to better herself. And her training at the hall offers her a way out of a life below stairs.

Evie works hard and gains a valued place in the household. And her dream of running a small hotel grows ever closer.

Then War is declared and all their lives are thrown into turmoil.

Easterleigh Hall

Last but not least:

How To Be a Successful Actor: Becoming an Actorpreneur By Catherine Balavage

Our editors book is perfect for all of the actors or budding actors in your family. It has had good reviews and is selling well on both sides of the pond. We’re not being biased. Honest.

A book that cuts to the truth of the acting industry- written from an outsider’s point of view. Catherine Balavage grew up in a small Scottish town without either the proper training, or industry contacts prior to her career. The book includes advice from casting directors Amy Hubbard and Richard Evans, actor Andrew Tiernan and an exclusive interview with Spotlight amongst interviews with countless other industry professionals. It is an essential for anyone who wants to be an actor.

How To Be a Successful Actor: Becoming an Actorpreneur

What will you choose?

Panoramic Pod | Christmas Gift Ideas

Posted on November 8, 2014 by Frostie

This amazing gadget is perfect for taking landscape pictures or group shots of you and your nearest and dearest. It allows you to take 240 degree panoramic shots with your smartphone. Perfect for budding photographers or just to take great family photos.

The Panoramic Pod is a handy accessory that enables you to take 240 degree panoramic shots with your smartphone. It takes the shot over a 25 second timeframe, so it’s perfect for taking breathtaking landscape photos or fitting all your friends or family in huge group shots. The device comes with a tripod mount and is compatible with Apple and Android smartphones. – A.D.

£15.99 from iwantoneofthose.com

The Fault in Our Stars Shailene Woodley & Ansel Elgort Interview

Posted on November 7, 2014 by Catherine Balavage

The Fault in Our Stars has been a huge hit and rightly so. We have an interview with the two stars Shailene Woodley & Ansel Elgort. If you haven’t seen it yet, or read the book it is based on, do it now.

Q: Shailene, you emailed John Green about the role. Did he respond in a nicer way than Van Houton?

SW: He did. He was like I’m not the casting director so I actually can’t cast you but thank you for your kind words.

Q: Was it difficult to have that lightness in your performance of sick kids?

AE: Um, no. I think that the way that the book is written is that the characters do have that lightness. And then once also we spent time with kids who actually had the diseases or had been through them we realized that that lightness is present in those individuals. And that it was totally correct to have them present in our characters. Without the lightness it would be a shit movie. It’d be unrealistic and it’d be depressing and I don’t know what the point would be.

I think it’s all about the lightness and all about the fact that they’re real human beings who just happen to have something. The cancer in the story’s just the variable that makes the clock tick. And that makes the love even more important because it’s the last that you’ll have.

Q: Did it make it easier or harder that you’d worked together before?

SW: It made things definitely easier. I mean, we already knew each other; we’re already comfortable around each other. And we already loved each other. We already had a deep sense of admiration for one another. Which I think translated into this film.

Q: How was the atmosphere on set?

SW: Oh it was so much fun. I mean movie sets are really fun regardless of what you do when the camera rolls. But one of the things that’s so beautiful about this movie is it shows you that cancer doesn’t define you. And just like on the set we met a lot of people who did have cancer. A lot of young people and they don’t live their lives like this walking around you know, somber. They live their lives like this and be like yeah, I have this and it sucks. But it’s just what it is. And that’s sort of how our set was. We were dealing with heavy subject matters but you don’t sort of just wallow in the subject matter. You find ways to be light about it.

Q: Did you improvise on the relationship on set?

AE: A lot of those scenes set the stage for the relationship are like word for word from the book. A lot of them. Like the scene in the beginning where Gus talks about how he fears oblivion and Hazel speaks about if that’s what he’s scared of then she suggests he forget it. The metaphor scene down in the basement, those scenes are so important. You’re right. Because so many movies just have two pretty people and I mean they put them together. Yeah they’re supposed to kiss and fall in love right? But I love that this story really takes it’s time and has those scenes. It’s almost like a play. Because it’s so much about the relationship that there’s time for those things to happen. So important. Really lets the relationship develop.

The Fault in Our Stars is available here. Out on Blu-ray now.

Interstellar {Film Review}

Posted on November 7, 2014 by Owun Birkett

*WARNING! MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS*

Christopher Nolan films aren’t just films; they’re events. Although he completed his Batman trilogy with The Dark Knight Rises, Interstellar has been treated like it is the next great blockbuster (as much in the same league we’re anticipating the next DC/Marvel movie). Even continuing his trend to deliver trailers and TV spots that reveal little details about the plot.
The movie revolves around Cooper (Matthew McConaughey) who was once a pilot, now farmer in a Dust Bowl type future. The Earth is running out of food, even down to the last food resource; corn. He is also a widowed father of two children (as with the majority of Christopher Nolan’s films, main protagonist’s wife/love interest either has died or won’t last very long) but yet still has a craving for exploration (even learning that teachers at his children’s schools have new editions of books saying the moon landings were fake). He eventually comes across his old mentor, Prof. Brand (Michael Caine) and his daughter Amelia Brand (Anne Hathaway). They reveal the Earth is dying, so they have been building a space shuttle and needs Cooper to be the pilot. Their mission; to go through a wormhole that will lead to a different galaxy and find a habitable planet.

The movie is probably the most ambitious movie Christopher Nolan has made in his career. He continues to deliver a science fiction movie with challenging ideas and concepts about space travel (as he did with the concepts of dreams in Inception). Though this was originally intended to be directed by Steven Spielberg (based on a script by Chris Nolan’s brother, Jonathan Nolan) and this movie clearly shows Spielberg’s trademark about family (especially focusing on a father character like Jaws and Munich). Nolan has been known to focus more on the ideas than the characters interstellar_ver5_xlg themselves, and you can clearly see that struggle to try balance the two. Though it does work for the most part and it’s all down to McConaughey being cast as the lead. He has certainly been having a huge career change and this film is no exception. If Mud, Dallas Buyers Club and True Detective proved anything, it is that he can be just as involving as he is likeable in his rom-com days. His craving to venture to the unknown is pretty much anyone’s curiosity and makes his motivation to help his family (and the human race) somewhat relatable. Even McConaughey delivers an incredibly emotional performance in one particular scene as he’s watching video messages of his children growing older. If Gravity showed that working in space is no fun and games, Interstellar shows us that space travel is not all that fun as Star Trek likes to make us believe (or wants us to). Especially dealing with relativity; every hour they spend, 7 years have passed on Earth (similar to The Forever War). The stand-out performance has to be character of Murph, played brilliantly by Mackenzie Foy and Jessica Chastain. She is the emotional core of the movie and drives the narrative forward.

The visual effects in this movie is absolutely mind-blowing. The use of both miniatures and CGI both seamlessly mix together. Nolan has been known to do everything real as possible and uses that effect in great use here. Pushing the envelope to make the cinematic experience as immersive the medium can deliver. Even creating inventive and charismatic robots as TARS and CASE (more friendly version of HAL 9000, if you will). The beautiful and stark cinematography by Hoyte van Hoytema (Let the Right One In, Tinker Tailor Solider Spy and Her) brings the alien but familiar planets to life. Though using different contrast of colours, using grey and blue for space travel scenes and using browns with scenes set on Earth. Hans Zimmer’s score rings back to 2001: A Space Odyssey (a movie Nolan has said he used as the biggest influence, as well as Star Wars and Alien on the production design), extending the huge scope of the movie and also creating genuine tension.

If there were one or two nitpicks to have with this movie, it has to do with the pacing. At times, the 3 hour long duration wasn’t noticeable. Though dealing with two story-lines at once felt a bit jumbled at times, yet Nolan was able to accomplish this with three to four scenarios at once seamlessly in Inception. Also, some of the character motivations seem a bit unfocused or rather force fed to us. Nolan’s dialogue, while very well written, seems to be a bit too analytical about its themes and ideas. The scientific theories is all very interesting but could’ve been condensed down. Some of the characters were also hard to be involved with and mainly because they were underwritten (like character of Tom, who gets overshadowed by Murph). Also, the ending will most likely split opinions. Without giving too much away; it basically leaves you to interpretation and suggestion (just like Memento and Inception). How you will feel about that is entirely up to you.

Overall; Inception is still the best Christopher Nolan sci-fi movie but this still stands as an exceptional film of the genre. It does reach to great heights and delivers the spectacle. The cast deliver great performances, especially from Foy and Chastain. It just doesn’t quite reach its grasp.

4 out of 5

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