The French Intifada

by Andrew Hussey

This is a good overview of the problems France faces in living with the inhabitants, and descendants of inhabitants, from their ex colonies. It is very compelling reading and certainly set me off looking for further information. It is a shame that the text is littered with errors-words missing or in the wrong order etc. This made it very frustrating to read and so a low score 5/10

Silas Marner

by George Eliot
This is the story of Silas Marner, the weaver and his life in rural England. Having been framed for a crime he did not commit he leaves a large town and comes to a small village where he makes his living as a weaver. He keeps himself to himself and is besotted with his money which he counts every evening. Two key events in succession change his life forever.
This is a great book told by a master storyteller. I loved it 9/10

The Red and the Black

by Stendhal
This was a fascinating book. The style of the author and his dry sense of humour was great, and the book was full of memorable one-liners, such as "The idea which tyrants find most useful is the idea of God" or "After moral poisoning, one requires physical remedies and a bottle of champagne".
My problem was that I hated Julien, the hero of the novel. Everything about him was selfish, including the fact he hogged most of the book! Still apart from that it was a good read 8/10