Life: March 2024 Books, Oxford, My Neighbour Totoro and the Cerne Abbas Giant

Reading

The Last Equation of Isaac Severy by Nova Jacobs

This was a surprise hit with me. I was totally drawn in by this one. It seems like a bit of a murder mystery, but there is so much more. Really recommend.

The Great Godden by Meg Rosoff

If you want a read that is so evocative of summer youth, then read this. Rosoff is more well known for her YA books, but I'm not sure whether this actually fits the bill. This charts the devastating effects of one human being on an unsuspecting group in one summer.

Rivers of London by Ben Aaronovitch

This was a purchase from Hay on Wye last year and I was excited at the prospect of beginning to read the first of a series. However, much as I was intrigued enough by the plot to finish it, the genre of urban fantasy is not really for me.

Oxford - Magdalen College

In a convoluted story, of which I am not going to bore you, we were planning to see the stage production of My Neighbour Totoro, but first had an overnight stop in Oxford with a Sunday afternoon to kill (Mothering Sunday no less). We bought a couple of tickets to walk around Magdalen College . There are other colleges that you can visit, but the main attraction for this one is that there is actually a deer park in it!

Can you imagine eating in this dining hall as a student? It's a far cry from my flat at Lancashire Polytechnic!

Do you recognise this from the wonderful film Saltburn? Over this bridge is a lovely circular walk around the meadows and from which we could just see the deer, who were in their winter home. They do traverse into the larger deer park in the summer. It was a lovely visit even in the drizzle and very quiet.

My Neighbour Totoro

The highlight of our trip away was the stage production of My Neighbour Totoro. I am a huge Studio Ghibli fan and this one is one of my particular favourites. I think it is because the first time I watched it was not long after coming out of intensive care ten years ago, and the mother in this is away from her children in hospital.

Obviously, I couldn't take any photos of the production itself, but it was simply magical. It captured the essence of the film but also was something entirely its own. The appearance of Totoro was spellbinding, and the use of puppets is so clever. It was absolutely wonderful and I actually think it is the best thing I have seen on stage.

Cerne Abbas Giant

We drive past the turning to the Cerne Abbas Giant (an ancient naked chalk man) every time we do the uni run down to Bournemouth with our youngest. No-one ever wants to stop for a walk, but in March I did the run one way by myself so seized the opportunity.

I had been previously, but I think it must be about 30 years since I visited. As you can see from the photo, the chalk outline was not very clear on that dull day (even with a penis of that size)! I did venture a bit nearer and walked the outside of the fence, but still not so clear. To my delight, I came most of the way down the hill sliding on my bum!

Love Mrs Jones x