A little brown sea

The title is appropriate in more than one way. Many little brown seas formed on the moor over this weekend of vile weather. Lots of rain and very strong winds were forecast for both days. Forrest and I were supposed to be running the Rombalds Stride, a 22 mile route from Guisely taking in Baildon Moor, Ilkley Moor and the Chevin. For different reasons, we were both having doubts in the days leading up to the event, not totally confident in our fitness. I was also worried about not being able to keep warm enough in the hostile weather, and not being able to see where I was going, my eyes not coping well in cold, wet and windy weather. 

The thing is that we both had it in our heads that the event was tomorrow, on Sunday. While we were trying to contemplate the prospect of running on muddy paths and across saturated bog, into gale force winds and heavy showers, runners were already on the route. Forrest came across them when he went for a little loosener, a big smile on his face when he returned home. We both decided that we actually knew it was today. Forrest had messages from friends. I had the date right in my head. Our subconscious minds decided not to let our conscious minds in on the error. It knew what was best for us! 

As I didn't get out except for a trip down the hill to the supermarket, I'm posting the book I've just finished. I can now claim Charles Foster as a stablemate at Fair Acre Press. Author of Being a Beast and Being a Human, he's a beautiful writer and a daring, dazzlingly original thinker. When I found out that he'd written a novel, I got myself a pre-publication copy.

It's possibly the strangest novel I've ever read, and I do read a lot of novels on the stranger side. The aphoristic style encourages you to dip in and out of the book, and I will possibly return to it in that way, opening pages at random, revisiting, hoping to understand more. I love a novel that makes me think and in that respect I loved this very much. Strangely, though, it made me think far more about form than content. I'm really fascinated by storytelling and the different ways of telling a story. He explores the impossibility of knowing the truth of a story and that's something I explore in my own novel. Ultimately, the story is its own truth. And the truth of this one is a very strange beast indeed! Do I recommend it? If you're open to experimentation with form, prepared to read the book more like a poetry collection, a little at a time, then yes. It's not something to be rushed. It contains some truly wonderful passages. Any writer prepared to throw convention to the wind should be supported.