Back in France! Visiting Vannes in Brittany

I'm linking up with The Sunday Post at Caffeinated Reviewer and The Sunday Salon at Readerbuzz.

Thank you so much for all your kind wishes last week. We've just about recovered now and have had a nice week pottering around discovering a few new places in France. It was frustrating not to be able to explore with our usual energy, but I think we both appreciated getting out of the motorhome for a few hours each day which is more than we'd managed the week before!

Vannes in Brittany is our great new-to-us discovery and most of the photos on this post were taken there. It has a kind of a La Rochelle vibe, but less touristy and with more open spaces. We loved the half-timbered houses, the historic (and huge) old town walls and the beautiful municipal flowers in the parks. There is a town-wide outdoor photography festival on at the moment with free-to-view galleries in seven locations. The theme is Music of all types so there are images of rock stars, classical musicians, rappers and breakdancers. I was a little disappointed that women musicians are almost completely absent other than in the classical gallery. The classical had the most inventive and entertaining images too. If you're anywhere nearby, the Vannes Photos Festival is on until the 12th May.

We parked up in a paid-for motorhome aire at Conleau on the coast which was perfectly situated for the bus into Vannes town. It wasn't the prettiest aire, but is in a lovely spot for coastal walking - and we could have walked into Vannes and back had we been healthier! The aire is one of 160 in the same group, Camping-Car Park, which we didn't know until we got there, and we now have a membership card so we can easily stay at any of the other locations too.

In bookish news, congratulations to Rebecca W who won the signed PBs of The Melt Trilogy to celebrate the publication of Listen To The Birds by K E Lanning!
If that's not you, there's more Literary Flits giveaways to enter ...

Giveaways closing soon
26th Apr: Win a $15 Amazon gift card to celebrate the Writer Get Noticed! by Colleen M Story blog tour
28th Apr: Win an ebook copy of An Empty Nest by Sandy Day
(All current giveaways here)

On my blogs this week were:

Stephanie Jane
Book Blogger Hop - Do you check how many views your posts have received?

Literary Flits
When the Pipirite Sings: Selected Poems by Jean Métellus review
A Change Of Time by Ida Jessen review
Fatboy Fall Down by Rabindranath Maharaj review
One Hundred Years Of Solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez review
Wolf Winter by Cecilia Ekback review
We, The Survivors by Tash Aw review
The Stars in the Night by Clare Rhoden review + #Giveaway

Have a great week!

We're in Spain!

I'm linking up with The Sunday Post at Caffeinated Reviewer.

So having said in last Sunday's post that we would soon be on our travels again, I can now let you know that we are! We're already in Spain! The street art photo above was taken in the little old town of Falces where we spent one night (for free) in their lovely aire (a dedicated motorhome parking area) and walked up through the new town into the steep narrow streets of the historic old town. The two photos below show a view across Falces from the highest point within the town and, below it, the remains of what we think were troglodyte homes in sandstone cliffs above the town. I turned 180° on the spot to take each picture - a mind blowing contrast!

Prior to Falces we had parked up for two other nights on free aires in France, one at Castet en Dorthe where we were with yards of the picturesque Garonne canal, and one at Sauveterre in the foothills of the Pyrenees mountains. We had to drive over the Pyrenees of course in order to get from France to Spain and I was glad that Dave did most of the winding-road driving. We have travelled along scarier roads in the past, but not in such a big vehicle! 

I've started keeping notes of our motorhome stopping points at a new Airing Out blog so I can remember where we have been and what we thought of each place. We want to take advantage of the free stopovers that we were excluded from as caravanners and I'm pleased with how we're doing so far - free stopovers for all of the past five nights. Click the place names in this post to visit their Airing Out pages for more photos and details of each one.

In bookish news and linking up with What Are You Reading at The Book Date, I am currently reading Hearts Among Ourselves by A Happy Umwagarwa, a Rwandan novel. I'm expecting it to be a pretty emotional read, but have only just started so I'll let you know in its Literary Flits review in a couple of days.


Giveaways closing soon
14/11: Signed copy of Thalidomide Kid by Kate Rigby
(See all giveaways in my Giveaway Linkup)

On my blogs this week were:

Stephanie Jane
#WorldReads - Five Books From Jamaica
Challenge Wrapup October - Bookish Bingo
#ReadingWomen - November 2018

Literary Flits
Xingu by Edith Wharton review
Monarchy by David Starkey review
Cordial Killing by Vikki Walton + #Giveaway + #Recipe
Fishing for Māui by Isa Pearl Ritchie review
Children Of The Ghetto: My Name Is Adam by Elias Khoury review
The Unknown Terrorist by Richard Flanagan review
Thalidomide Kid by Kate Rigby review + giveaway

Artisan Rainbow
Crackers Christmas Card by Emoticubes
On Fleek Frida Kahlo Button Badge by The Artful Badger UK
Harris Tweed Pencil Case by Just Sew Yorkshire
Ivy Leaf Light Garland by Lumiihome
Sleeping Unicorn Card Kit by Della By Design
Skull Boots by Rock Your Sole
Panda Bear Print by Madame Memento

Airing Out
Tavistock Camping and Caravanning Club Campsite - Devon - England
Aire - Castet En Dorthe - Gironde - France
Aire - Sauveterre de Bearn - Pyrenees-Atlantique - France

Castet En Dorthe 

Sauveterre 

Skull Boots by Rock Your Sole 

Autumn colours in Chef Boutonne

I'm linking up with The Sunday Post at Caffeinated Reviewer.

I'm feeling pleased with myself right now because I submitted this year's tax return about an hour ago! It doesn't actually have to be completed until the end of January, but I don't know how good our wifi will be once we're moving around this winter so I thought getting it done before we go would be best. A note for other UK self assessment-ers, HMRC is migrating to a new system (all groan together) which requires new identity verifications. I could do mine ok online, but it took me twice as long to actually prove I was me than it did to fill out the tax form itself!

On that moving around theme, we're packing up our Hymer motorhome this weekend ready to depart to warmer climes on Tuesday morning. Of course not having travelled properly in it yet nothing has its set place so I am gaily stowing things in cupboards that seem logical right now, but I know as soon as we get on the road I'll be wanting to change everything around to more convenient locations - which will confuse Dave no end!

We had a lovely walk a couple of days ago, just locally. The trees here are looking beautifully autumnal with glorious colours. Sorry the orange maple tree isn't in sharper focus. The lizard was by a roadside and, sadly, already dead although it didn't look at all squashed. It's the biggest lizard either of us had seen which was pretty fab. The name is underwhelming though. On googling we discovered it is (or was) a French Green Lizard.

In bookish news and linking up with What Are You Reading at The Book Date I finished a great New Zealand novel yesterday: Fishing For Maui by Isa Pearl Ritchie. It's about a family trying to cope with individual issues and overcoming the social stigmas of their Maori ancestry. Complex but very readable. Full review to be published on Literary Flits on the 8th as part of a Rachel's Random Resources blog tour.

And on this blog tomorrow I'll be posting WorldReads from Jamaica so do pop back for that!

Giveaways closing soon
8/11: Cheeky Panda bundle from Ethical Superstore
8/11: $25 Amazon gift cards
(See all giveaways in my Giveaway Linkup)

On my blogs this week were:

Stephanie Jane
A Month in Books - October 2018
State Of The ARC - October 2018

Literary Flits
Painting Blue Water by Leigh Fossan spotlight
Macbeth by Jo Nesbo review
Witching Hour: Sinister Legends Anthology spotlight + Giveaway
Crimson by Niviaq Korneliussen review
Death Comes In Through The Kitchen by Teresa Dovalpage review
The Forgotten Pioneer by Anthea Ramsey review
Niedermayer And Hart by M J Johnson review

Artisan Rainbow
Rudolph Enamel Trinket Dish by Maisy Plum
Autumn Leaves Crochet Shawl by Parkview Creative
Dachshund Brooch by Ellies Treasures UK
Pottery Mug by Mudness Ceramics
Bird Cake Kit by A Short Walk
Witch Kitty Plush Toy by The Purple Saurus
Paint Rainbows Art Print by Dream Capture Artwork

Dave's neatly sawn and stacked log pile 

row of bee hives (not ours!) 

My Week In Review To The 23rd September

I am linking up with The Sunday Post hosted by Kimberly at The Caffeinated Reviewer.

I'm also linking up with What Are You Reading at The Book Date: Right now I am reading The Groundsmen by Lynn Buckle which I will be reviewing for Epoque Press on Literary Flits on the 27th September. It's a multi-POV Irish novel and quite a challenging read.

This has again been a pretty manic week - I'm not used to being so busy! Dave's daughter Gemma and her partner Simon came to visit us at Chef Boutonne for a few days so we got the chance to be tourists and go sightseeing again. The beautiful chateau and flowers are in Verteuil which is a gorgeous town - and I loved that clear blue sky. The chateau can be toured with a guide, but only at weekends at this time of year and we were there on a Wednesday. We made do with exploring a brocante shop instead! Then on Thursday we drove to the Marais Poitevin, an extensive marsh area crisscrossed with little waterways and canals. Dave put his canoeing experience to good use on an hour's boat trip while I spent quality reading time on a shady bench!

We waved goodbye to Gemma and Simon on Friday morning then hitched up our Bailey caravan for a final tow to the UK. Today's ferry sailing across La Manche was fortunately much calmer than recent disastrous weather had led me to fear. And now we're pitched up at a nice Camping And Caravanning Club campsite, Higher Longford just outside Tavistock. We're both excited to be reunited with our new-to-us Hymer motorhome tomorrow and our friend Marta is also looking forward to taking over ownership of Bailey. All change again!

Giveaways closing soon:
Congratulations to Adrian B who won the Curtain Call by C H Clepitt giveaway that closed on Literary Flits last week!
If you like winning stuff, these Giveaways end this coming week ...

24/9: Waiting For Monsieur Bellivier by Britta Rostlund PB
24/9: $25 Amazon gift card
29/9: $25 Amazon gift card and Chuck Waldron books
29/9: Sitting At The Kitchen Table With God by Sandi Smith ebook

Posts on my blogs this week were:
My Week in Review to the 16th September

The Roanoke Girls by Amy Engel review + #Giveaway
Princess Bari by Hwang Sok-Yong review
The Labyrinth Of The Spirits by Carlos Ruiz Zafon review
Sitting At The Kitchen Table With God by Sandi Smith + #Giveaway
Gentlemen Of The Road by Michael Chabon review
The Locked Room by Maj Sjowall and Per Wahloo review
The Barefoot Road by Vivienne Vermes review

Around the blogosphere:
Daniela at Bookiverse has Must Reads for Hispanic Heritage Month
Carole at Carole's Random Life In Books reviews all three Murderbot Diaries
Greg at Greg's Book Haven reviews Record Of A Spaceborn Few

Have a great week :-)

My Week in Review to the 16th September

I am linking up with The Sunday Post hosted by Kimberly at The Caffeinated Reviewer.

I'm also linking up (if I remember this time!) with What Are You Reading at The Book Date: Right now I am reading the new Carlos Ruiz Zafon novel, Labyrinth Of The Spirits which is the fourth in his Shadow Of The Wind series. Of course although I loved the first book, that was read so long ago that I can't really remember it now and I missed out the middle two, but so far that hasn't caused me any problems with Labyrinth - or not that I've noticed anyway!

It's been a somewhat manic week, again with far less internet time than I am accustomed to. We did get a couple of days relaxing after our guests departed, however Tuesday saw us loading up the car for a three day excursion from Chef Boutonne in France to Torroella de Montgri in Spain and back in order retrieve our caravan from its storage there. It was a lot of driving which is always surprisingly tiring. Simply sitting in a car for six hours shouldn't be exhausting, but the concentration needed for driving always makes it so. At least French roads are much easier to travel along than their southern English equivalents - they're in far better condition too!

We stayed one night in a lovely Airbnb at Castelnaudry before we got to the caravan. If you ever need somewhere to stay in between Toulouse and Carcassonne, I can recommend Philippe's house. It's a traditional old French house with delightful period features and furniture. There's also a somewhat neglected 'potager' kitchen garden from which I was allowed to glean tomatoes, aubergines, a tiny courgette, sweet grapes and lots of delicious figs. September is a great time to stay at this property!

On Wednesday we were reunited with our Bailey caravan and nearly ended up with an inquisitive kitten stowaway too - fortunately he was spotted and shooed away before we drove off! Then we drove to Toulouse for a night at one of our regular stopover campsites, Les Violettes. The site has changed somewhat since we last visited - perhaps a change of ownership? There's now a covered swimming pool and the sanitary block has been beautifully revamped. I loved the red and silver decor around the washing up sinks!

We had thought we'd stay a second night somewhere en route too, but as it turned out, a longer drive got us home to Chef for the early evening on Thursday. Now our caravan is temporarily next to our static, all cleaned and ready to set out for the UK on Friday. It's all go at the moment!

Giveaways closing soon:
16/9 : $20 Amazon gift card
17/9 : Curtain Call by C H Clepitt ebook
18/9 : Dark Paradise by Gene Desrochers books
20/9 : Signed original Emma Haines illustration
22/9 : $10 Amazon gift card and A Penny Lost by Aspen Bassett books

Posts on my blogs this week were:
My Week in Review to the 9th September
#ReadingWomen - September 2018
Stephanie Jane's #Giveaway and #FreeBooks Linkup

Hunter's Revenge by Val Penny + Excerpt
Waiting For Monsieur Bellivier by Britta Rostlund review + #Giveaway
Dark Paradise by Gene Desrochers review + #Giveaway
The Pretender by Katie Ward + #Giveaway + Excerpt
I Capture The Castle by Dodie Smith review
A Penny Lost by Aspen Bassett + #Giveaway
The Beast Of Kukuyo by Kevin Jared Hosein review

Around the blogosphere:
Ova at Excuse My Reading visited several bookshops in Saffron Walden
Sophia at Delighted Reader talks Escape for her Blog All About It Challenge
Daniela at Bookiverse plays temptress suggesting new additions for our TBR piles

Have a great week :-)

My Week in Review to the 9th September

Dave, Dave and Gilly at Melle 

I am linking up with The Sunday Post hosted by Kimberly at The Caffeinated Reviewer.

I'm also linking up again with What Are You Reading at The Book Date:
Yesterday I finished Gentlemen Of The Road by Michael Chabon, a fun adventure story set in the Viking era. I've just started The Locked Room by Sjowall and Wahloo which is my 9th read of this Swedish crime series (although only actually the 8th book in the series because I am totally incapable of reading books in order!)

We had guests on our Chef Boutonne riverbank for a few days this week - hello to Gilly and Dave! It was fun to show them around our little corner of France, but this did mean almost three days with Absolutely No Internet! Consequently I am hopelessly behind on commenting and don't have an Around The Blogosphere section today. I'll double up next week - promise!

Gloria Zein sculpture in Melle bandstand 

We had a lovely afternoon in Melle starting with lunch at The Secret Garden. I had their delicious Tofu and Quinoa salad and everyone else's meals were appreciated too. After lunch we walked along the riverbank from Sompt and I picked enough ripe blackberries for a crumble!

Sompt riverbank 

Friday saw us all exploring Ruffec including a visit to my favourite shop there, the amazing second-hand emporium, Emmaus. I picked up a couple of interesting looking books for 50c each - german novel April In Paris by Michael Wallner and a biography of Pink Floyd's Syd Barrett. I must make more of an effort with my reading in French though. Emmaus have hundreds of French language books and only one bookcase of English language ones. After keeping the rest of our party waiting while I browsed, we then visited the Plan d'Eau at Villefagnon. The French Plan d'Eau is a wonderful idea - artificial lakes to walk and cycle around with sandy beaches to swim from, and separate areas for fishing. The Daves and Gilly both swam while I lounged on the beach in the sun with a book! Bliss!

Illustrated bench in Ruffec depicting the Plan d'Eau 

Giveaways closing soon:
11th Sept: Gone To Ground by Rachael Amphlett audiobook and mug (Dab Of Darkness blog)
13th Sept: Signed copy of Barnabas Tew and the Case of the Nine Worlds by Columbkill Noonan

Posts on my blogs this week were:
My Week in Review to the 2nd September
Wrap-Up: August Authorfest and Bookish Bingo
#WorldReads - Five Books From Poland

Animal Farm by George Orwell
Curtain Call by C H Clepitt + #Giveaway
Jaclyn and the Beanstalk by Mary Ting + Excerpt + #Giveaway
Barnabas Tew and the Case of the Nine Worlds by Columbkill Noonan + #Giveaway
The Cleansweep Counterstrike by Chuck Waldron + #Giveaway
Sleeping Through War by Jackie Carreira
The Craft Room by Dave Holwill

Around the blogosphere:
Oops! Emptiness here.
Please Comment your own post links!

Have a great week :-)

My Week in Review to the 2nd September

I am linking up with The Sunday Post hosted by Kimberly at The Caffeinated Reviewer.

I'm also linking up again with What Are You Reading at The Book Date:
Yesterday I finished Dark Paradise by Gene Desrochers, billed as a Caribbean noir thriller. I liked the Caribbean setting, but thought it primarily an action thriller which wasn't very noir at all! I'm about to start Princess Bari by Hwang Sok-Yong which, hopefully, will be my fifth South Korean-authored book to complete that country's WorldReads post.

We are now back on our Chef Boutonne riverbank for a few weeks so I am very happy! We got a Brittany Ferries boat from Plymouth to Roscoff on Friday which meant a 5:30am start and a six hour drive across France. We were pretty exhausted by the time we arrived here at 10pm, but fortunately didn't have to do much before collapsing into bed! We spent yesterday unloading the car and finding homes for pretty much everything we brought over here. Today I've taken the strimmer over our riverbank 'lawn' so it's all looking as neat as it ever will ready for guests we have arriving on Wednesday.

The photos illustrating this post were taken at the old granary in Chef Boutonne which has now been converted into a little museum. Tableaux include a school room, domestic rooms and a blacksmiths. The cockerel right at the top of the post is brilliant - it's entirely made of upcycled bicycle parts and there's a bench in the granary also made from bike bits. The laundry tableau is just over the road in what used to be the Chateau de Javarzay lavanderie.

In giveaway news, my The Wrath And The Dawn hardback was won by Lauren O, and August's Spotlight blog post winner is Dead Men Do Come Back by Steven C Levi.
Congratulations to both of you :-)

Giveaways closing soon:
02/09: Bakerdays letterbox cake
04/09: $20 Book Depository book from Read All The Things
06/09: $20 Amazon gift voucher
4x Susi Osborne novels
A Clean Teen Publishing mystery book box

Posts on my blogs this week were:
My Week In Review to the 26th August
Starting a new year's #DecadeChallenge - sign up post
State Of The ARC - August 2018
A Month In Books - August 2018

Of Faith And Fidelity by Evan Ostryzniuk DNF review
The Danes by Clarke graphic novel review
The Gravediggers' Bread by Frederic Dard review
Eight Goodbyes by Christine Brae + #Giveaway + Excerpt
Conrad Monk and the Great Heathen Army by Edoardo Albert review
Angelica Stone by Susi Osborne review + #Giveaway
Hiro Loves Kite by Lauren Nicolle Taylor + #Giveaway + Excerpt

Around the blogosphere:
Murder, She Reported by Peg Cochran is reviewed by Yvonne at Socrates Book Reviews
Olivia at Olivia's Catastrophe turns herself into an octopus to show off her latest book haul
Laura at Blue Eye Book reviews The Darkest Part Of The Forest by Holly Black

Have a great week :-)

My Week in Review to the 1st July

Stop Press!! Harry Whitewolf is offering All his books for free on Amazon from the 27th June to the 1st July 2018. That means the last day is today so do all rush at once! Click the pics to read my reviews of these three:

I am linking up with The Sunday Post hosted by Kimberly at The Caffeinated Reviewer.
And in bookish news, I am linking up again with Book Photo Sundays over at Ronyell's Rabbit Ears Book Blog.

This photo of me reading in my cosy Bailey caravan was taken on a chilly November evening in Portugal back in 2013. We're wondering whether we might return to Portugal this winter instead of staying in Spain. This pic was first on A Month In Books - November 2013.


In reality when today's post publishes itself I shall be boarding a ferry back to the UK so my actual sharing around of links will happen much later in the day. Unless there's a problem with the boarding or, indeed, with the ferry of course in which case who knows?! I do have to get up unwelcomely early for me so fingers crossed that waking up actually happens!


Last weekend we treated ourselves to a day trip to La Rochelle, meeting up there with one of Dave's daughters who had flown out for the town's Documentary Festival. I remember cartoon scenes in my school French textbook being set in La Rochelle and - I don't know why - had always imagined it as some drab industrial port town. Like Newhaven I guess! It's not! We saw historic buildings and walked a little of the old walls, enjoyed artisan ice cream, wondered why the green lighthouse was in the midst of a row of houses quite some distance from the water, and admired a working carousel that dated back to 1900. I loved that the black lines on apparently half-timbered buildings are, on closer inspection, made of slate tiles! The pizzas in Via Roma are great too. I'd happily go back to La Rochelle for a longer visit, perhaps on a slightly cooler day.

On my blogs this week:
My Week in Review to the 24th June
Artisan Rainbow - Aprons
State Of The ARC - June 2018
50/50 Friday - Favourite/Least Favourite Genre
A Month In Books - June 2018

Swallowtail by Sheri Meshal
The Fear Of Being Eaten by Ronald J Wichers + #Giveaway
Manipulated Lives by H A Leuschel
The Occasional Virgin by Hanan Al-Shaykh
The Pumpkin Patch by Sandi Smith + #Giveaway
Galaxies And Oceans by N. R. Walker + #Giveaway + Excerpt
The Shape Of The Ruins by Juan Gabriel Vasquez


Around the blogosphere:
Avalinah's Books has a great review of The Calculating Stars by Mary Robinette Kowal
Chuckles features Night In The Lonesome October on her Books From The Backlog
Greg's Book Haven resurrects Comic Of The Week looking Excalibur Visionaries Volume 1

Have a great week!

Artisan Rainbow - Aprons 

My Week in Review to the 24th June

I am linking up with The Sunday Post hosted by Kimberly at The Caffeinated Reviewer.

First up this week is a preview of weeks to come because it's very nearly Plastic Free July again! Woo hoo! You might remember I took part in this challenge last year and it led to lasting changes in my lifestyle and particularly my shopping habits. This year the whole plastics issue is bang on trend so I am hoping to feel less of a weirdo when refusing single-use plastics in shops, cafes, etc! Click the badge or This Link Here to find out more about Plastic Free July and how you can join in if you would like to. I'm planning to post in the next couple of days about what has changed for me in the past year, but in the meantime you can read my previous Plastic Free July posts here.

On a completely different note, we went to a very different (for us) type of music event last night. The 21st of June sees the fantastic Fete De La Musique events all across France with practically every town and village hosting some kind of free music. In Chef Boutonne, our Fete De La Musique was yesterday and took place as part of the annual Javarzay Faire. A truck stage was put up alongside a fairground and we were treated to two free bands - Gerald and Manu Fisher. We didn't get to hear much of the second group as it was already (for us) quite late and technical problems delayed their start, but we did enjoy sitting out on the grass listening to a good hour of Gerald - a group of three accomplished young musicians. Surprisingly, their music is 1970s inspired experimental instrumental rock which isn't at all the sort of sound that I think would even be given a chance at a town event back in the UK. I've embedded a sample from their new album - see what you think!



Today we're going to visit La Rochelle so I hope to have some good pics from there for you next Sunday.

In bookish news, I am linking up for the first time with Book Photo Sundays over at Ronyell's Rabbit Ears Book Blog. I don't know how I missed spotting this feature before! I've dusted off an older pic of my caravan bookshelf which, other than my Kindle obviously, is all the books I have available for about five months each year. That's not strictly true of course because I make use of pretty much every book exchange I find - most campsites have a book swap and some even have books worth swapping for ;-) This pic was first on my Month In Books post from January 2014.

On my blogs this week:
My Week in Review to the 17th June
Artisan Rainbow - 7 gorgeous handmade Lampshades
Books From The Backlog - The Odyssey by Homer
50/50 Friday - Favourite/Least Favourite Book Title

A Taker of Morrows by Stephen Paul Sayers (Spotlight + Giveaway)
The Devil's Elixirs by E T A Hoffmann (book review)
Dead Is Better by Jo Perry (book review)
Sour Apple by Jerzy Szyłak and Joanna Karpowicz (graphic novel review)
The Enigma Dragon by Charles V Breakfield and Roxanne Burkey (Spotlight + Giveaway)
The Last Dance by Lonna Enox (Spotlight + Giveaway)
Ibn Fadlan And The Land Of Darkness (book review)

Around the blogosphere:
Great review of graphic novel Sour Apple at Women Write About Comics
The Book Girl of Mur-y-Castell asks how we feel about cliffhanger endings
Metaphors And Moonlight has a gorgeous monochrome+yellow Cover Characteristics post

Have a great week!

Artisan Rainbow - Lampshades 

My Week in Review to the 3rd June

I'm writing this post two days early because we're actually away visiting a friend this weekend. He's off-grid so we'll have 48 hours camping in a small field with No Internet and, in fact, no electricity supply! How will I cope?! I'm taking a couple of paperbacks from when my Kindle dies!

I'm also going to be prepared and have an already-read paperback in my bag just in case we spot another book exchange. They're popping up seemingly every time I turn around in Deux Sevres! I missed out on Wednesday when we paused in St Mandé sur Bredoire - I spotted this amazing pretend double bass adorning a stone wall in the middle of the village. There didn't seem to be any reason for it to be where it was other than it was partly under cover and we wondered if this was a gathering point, perhaps with occasional live music? Having admired the sculpture and persuaded Dave to pose for scale, I turned to my right and There's A Whole Library!

And I had nothing with me to swap - but I know it's there now. Admittedly most of the books were French with a few in Dutch, but my French reading is slowly improving and they had a great selection of classics. I think I could tackle Jack London or Ernest Hemingway soon!
To give you an idea of my over-excitement at St Mandé, this is the Chef Boutonne little library:

We couldn't stay long in St Mandé because we were parked slightly precariously and the real destination for our trip was the town of St Jean d'Angely. This lovely olde worlde town has half-timbered buildings and a clock tower of which they are very proud. They also have several nice artisan shops, especially ceramics and I spent a while with my nose pressed to the window of Terres d'Angely. Fortunately the shop was closed of my credit card might have taken a hammering! We treated ourselves to a delicious crepes lunch at L'Ancre Marine (Dave can recommend the Lemon Meringue pancake and I loved the Tagada one). St Jean d'Angely is interesting to walk around. It was originally a Roman villa and we saw tall columns commemorating that history. There was a fun wall of steampunk street art too.

Around the blogosphere:
Lauren at Northern Plunder reviews Void Trip by Ryan O'Sullivan

Avalinah's Books reviews No Fourth River by Christine Clayfield

Aj at Read All The Things features Places that would make amazing book settings

Here's the most Popular Posts Across My Blogs this week. Click the images to visit the pages ... and don't forget to enter all the Giveaways!

Artisan Rainbow	Literary Flits	Stephanie Jane