"Leap in: A Woman, Some Waves, and the Will to Swim" by Alexandra Heminsley

"Leap in: A Woman, Some Waves, and the Will to Swim" by Alexandra Heminsley

I listened to this as an audiobook with the audible add-on when I purchased this as a Kindle ebook. The audio is read by the author.

I really enjoyed Alexandra Heminsley's first book, "Running Like a Girl", but didn't really connect in the same way with this book. Not sure if that is mostly to do with the fact that I am a runner, and not a swimmer, and so maybe if I had been someone into swimming or newly discovering the joys and challenges of swimming, it might have appealed more. I do admire swimmers, especially ocean swimmers, but have yet to admire it enough that I have tried it myself...I must admit the in-built fear of sharks plays in my mind when swimming, even though I campaign to protect sharks and protest their culling. I also found "Running Like a Girl" was quite humorous, and didn't find the same with "Leap in". 

Started listening: 4th August 2020

Finished: 27th September 2020

My score: 5/10

"Dare to do" by Sarah Outen

Bought this kindle book (plus audible add on read by the author which is excellent!) after watching the film doco of Sarah’s journey last night (The film is called "Home" you can see a trailer HERE). The film was inspiring yet honest and raw so I think the book will make an impression too.
Started reading: 2nd October 2020
Finished: 16th October 2020

My thoughts: 10/10

Listened to the audio version, and it was awesome. Inspiring, honest, raw, fun in parts, challenging in others. I also appreciated reading/listening to an adventure like this by a woman, especially a queer woman, and found it very refreshing and powerful and I could really connect with the story in ways that I often struggle to with most adventure stories that more often than not seem to be from straight white men.

 Book stats: Genre: non-fiction, adventure, memoir. Female author. LGBTIQ+. 10/10

 

"Rivers of London" by Ben Aaronovitch

Started reading: 14th July 2020
Finished: 30th July 2020

My score: 7.5/10 

Quirky, fun read - as it says on the tin “perfect blend of CSI and Harry Potter”. It is the first book in a series, I think it will be the perfect palate cleanser in between other more intense styles of books that I generally like to read.

 

 

“The Missing Lynx” by Ross Barnett

 
I was very excited to start reading this book about the cool Pleistocene (“Ice Age”) mammals of the UK written by fellow ancient DNA time travel friend Ross. We shared a PhD supervisor, although Ross was based in Oxford and I was based in the Australian Centre for Ancient DNA (ACAD) at Adelaide, and while my PhD focused on the ancient DNA of extinct and ancient bears, Ross’s PhD  focused on ancient Felids/large cats like Smilodon and Cave Lions.

I bought my copy of the book from Ross directly, and he kindly posted it to me along with a bookmark inserted at arguably the most important part - a whole chapter on ancient bears!

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. After a pretty intense few months reliving some of of the not so great aspects of my PhD experience this year, this book helped to remind me why I wanted to do a PhD in ancient DNA in the first place! It's incredible to think of all the wonderful almost mythical creatures that roamed the earth not that long ago...so recently in fact that our ancestors would have seen and hunted them. It is so sad that so many have been driven to extinction and we will never see Mammoths, Mastodons, Giant Short-Faced Bears, Cave Lions, Sabre-Tooth cats again. But with ancient DNA, it is kind of the closest you can get to time travel, using genetic and isotope technology and paleontological analysis to learn about what they ate, how they responded to climate change, their interactions with early modern humans, what they were related to...etc It also makes you value the diversity of species we still have left, but scares you with how much humans have destroyed and are continuing to destroy in this 6th Mass Extinction that we are living through (and causing) currently.

Ross not only tells you interesting facts about all these cool creatures of the Ice Age, but shares fascinating stories of history and science and human culture, plus lots of random and often hilarious side stories and footnotes. It is not a dry non-fiction book, it is page-turning and full of interesting stories, personal insights/opinions and humour. There are plenty of side references to pop culture throughout, including Lord of the Rings, Star Trek and Star Wars. The book obviously was pretty close to home for me, with many of the animals and ancient DNA techniques, characters and concepts being familiar from my PhD days...but I still learnt heaps of things from the book and thoroughly enjoyed it. I also dont think you would need to be an ancient DNA nerd like me to enjoy it immensely.    

Started reading: 14th September 2019
Finished: 4th October 2019
My score/review: 9/10
Genre/Topics: Non-Fiction, Ancient DNA, Paleontology, Ice Age, Extinctions.

"Everyone Brave is Forgiven" by Chris Cleave

 
This book was recommended to me by my Mum's good friend Jennie :-) I have read a few other books by this author, one that I thought was excellent but tragic ("Little Bee"), one that was good ("Gold") and another that I didn't enjoy ("Incendiary"). "Everyone Brave is Forgiven" is an excellent book - the story is interesting, and the writing is on point. 

"Everyone Brave is Forgiven" is an historical novel set during WW2, mostly divided between London and Malta.

Started reading on my kindle: 23 Feb 2018
Finished: 2 March 2018
My Score: 10/10

"The Power" by Naomi Alderman.

Recommended by the PopUp Bookshop owners for people who enjoyed the Handmaid's Tale book.
 

Started reading: 10/12/2017
Finished: 17/01/2018
My score:6.5-7/10

I will write my review and upload it soon.