Tag Archives: Margaret Graham

Teresa Mills’ Mosaics Review by Margaret Graham

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At Frost we love to see something just that bit different, and Teresa Mills’s products certainly fit the bill.

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Teresa is the author of four best selling books on mosaic art which I found interesting  even before I laid eyes on the Pixelated Mosaic Kits, because I have had  a fascination with mosaics ever since I saw my first Ancient Roman floor. But wouldn’t Teresa’s kits be a fiddle? Wouldn’t any child end up having a tantrum as they struggled to cut and grout the tiles?

No, actually, that’s the beauty of the kits. The tiles fit the pixelated design exactly without cutting and grouting so absolutely no need to run screaming from the room with grout in your hair, pursued by your child, or grandchild who has been driven to fury by the fiddle of it all.

These tiles are a manageable size, and the quality is excellent. My favourite (because I like them)  is the butterfly. Everything comes in a cotton bag, the base board is wooden, and the tiles are glass, glitter and silver.

Megan Cannell, who edits our Young Voices thread, had a go. She is 15 but you’re never to old to be creative and she found, as did I, that the tiles are not too small, and are easy to fix. The colours are vibrant, and we felt they’d be just right for Mabel, who is eight, or for a young lad we know.
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I do like quality products and I hope that Teresa is on to a winner here, especially with winter and Christmas not too far away. Grannies, who seem to do a fair bit of child care these days, will welcome these kits with open arms. I just feel that anyone, young or old, who produced the finished article would find a sense of satisfaction – a piece of creative craft well done. Let’s face it, it must encourage the creativity that lies within everyone, and that is always a good thing.
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These Pixelated Mosaic Kits are handmade in the UK, and the team at Frost highly recommend them. They are reasonably priced too. The three above are £11 each.

Available in a variety of designs, from insects and animals to shapes and letters, they are an ideal way to delve into the wonderful world of mosaics.  Each kits contains all you need to make your very own mosaic masterpiece.  Handmade in the UK from high quality materials, each kit comes in its own beautiful cotton bag with the design printed on the front.  They are suitable for all ages and are perfect for keeping the kids busy or as a boredom buster.

For more details: www.teresamillsmosaics.com

 

99 objects about Europe & us by Margaret Graham

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In this year when our political relationship with the continent has been so hotly debated, the National Trust have put together a selection of objects from their vast collections that help examine our nation’s rich and ancient cultural connections to our neighbours. This is a fascinating digital diary, and we’ve included a couple of excerpts here. It is a great idea to check in each weekday to find out what stories our objects have to tell.  But here are a couple to be getting on with.

Day 35. Campi phlegræi. Observations on the volcanoes of the Two Sicilies as they have been communicated to the Royal Society by Sir William Hamilton … Date 1776 Place of origin Italy. On show at Wimpole, Cambridgeshire, East of England, National Trust.

Not sure that I’d hang about as a live volcano does what it likes to do, but Lady Emma Hamiliton’s husband, Sir William Hamilton was made of sterner stuff. Campi Phlegraei or ‘Flaming Fields’ is a first-hand report of the spectacular eruptions of Mount Vesuvius written by Sir William Hamilton, the British envoy to the Neapolitan royal court and expert volcanologist. Perhaps he saw it as a metaphor for his wife’s raging affair with Lord Nelson which was burning strongly at the time? As a diplomat, Hamilton entertained many visitors and frequently accompanied them on the perilous ascent of the live volcano without a hard hat or flame-proof jacket in sight.  The area’s history of volcanic activity, including the recently excavated nearby classical sites of Pompeii and Herculaneum, made it a popular tourist destination for wealthy travellers making the Grand Tour.   Hamilton’s text is a wonderful example of a beautifully illustrated treatise from the Age of Enlightenment – when science clearly came before health and safety.

Day 8  Harp. Sebastion Erard 1732 – 1851 On show at Lyme Park, Cheshire.

The maker of this particular harp was the Frenchman, Sébastien Erard. Prior to establishing his firm in London, Erard was closely associated with the Bourbon court including the harp-playing Marie Antoinette, whose arrival to Versailles in 1770 fuelled the rage for the instrument amongst the French elite.   But by the early 1790s, with many of his clients facing certain death by guillotine, Erard fled France for London where he established a shop on Great Marlborough Street. There he honed his craft to such a degree that by 1794 he took out the first British patent for the harp to protect his innovations. In 1800, the Princess of Wales bought one of his harps and the success of his firm was ensured; by 1810 he had sold nearly 1400 of his stringed instruments from his London outlet alone.

http://www.nationaltrustcollections.org.uk/.

 

 

A Day in the Life of Camilla Grebe – author of The Ice Beneath Her

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Frost is delighted Camilla has found the time to write A Day in the Life for our readers. Her books is excellent, and her advice to aspiring writers, is too. Read on.

a-day-in-the-life-of-camilla-grebe-author-of-the-ice-beneath-herI’m equally fascinated and amused by the misconceptions about life as a writer. You know, all the talk about creative anxiety, the booze and the glamorous lifestyle. To be honest, my life is nothing like that, although I consider myself extremely privileged to be able to work with what I love. And yes, I get to travel a lot and meet really cool people.

As a mother-of-two (and a dog owner), I wake up quite early to prepare breakfast and walk my nine-year-old Dalmatian, Ella. We live by the sea in downtown Stockholm – a beautiful location. As we walk pass the old ships we often stop for a coffee on one of the piers and watch people (me) and bark at dogs (Ella).

I mostly work from home, although I sometimes visit the Royal Library to write, surrounded by thousands of books – the library’s collection includes all works published in Sweden since 1661.

Before lunch I’ll go for a quick run or hit the gym – sitting in front of a computer all day can be really tough on your neck and back, so I need to work out. Also, I’ve discovered that the best way to solve a creative problem is to go for a run, as it really clears your thoughts.

I usually have lunch with a friend. Writing is solitary work, so I need to socialize during lunch or dinner, or else I fear I might turn into a hermit.

After lunch I spend another four to five hours working. Apart from the actual writing, I work on plots and do research into all kinds of strange subjects. For The Ice Beneath Her

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I talked to a medical examiner about beheading (!), read articles on Inuit mythology and had a long e-mail correspondence with a man in Greenland to find out exactly how one would dig a grave when the ground is frozen solid. If someone should overhear me on the phone when I did research, chances are they’d think I’m a serial killer.

I have dinner with my family and always end up watching TV on the sofa afterwards. I’m a big fan of British and Scandinavian crime series and movies. If someone disturbs me in the middle of a movie, I’ll calmly explain that, hey, I’m working, not just relaxing in the sofa (since I need to watch TV in order to be a good writer!).

It is, at least partly, true.

Before I go to sleep I always read for an hour or two in bed. When it comes to books, I don’t exclusively focus on crime. I try to read different genres – everything from historical novels to horror and biographies. In fact, that would be my best advice to anyone who wants to become a writer: Read a lot. Read all kinds of books, good ones and bad. And learn to tell the difference.
The Ice Beneath Her is available now. Published  by Zaffre at £12.99  E-book available.

 

 

The Stylist by Rosie Nixon Book Review

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Absolutely the novel for all those who love a really good romp with a bit of an edge.

Absolutely the novel for all those who love a really good romp with a bit of an edge. Pic 1 Written by Rosie Nixon, the Editor-in-Chief of HELLO! The Stylist is the Cinderella story for our time. Amber Green is an ordinary sales assistant in an exclusive London boutique – so admittedly she doesn’t slog away in a kitchen, but the girl needs a few princes in her life. Then lo! Amber is mistakenly offered a job with Mona Armstrong who seems to exist on coffee, water and champagne, with not a morsel of food passing her lips. Mona is a ‘stylist to the stars’. Written in the first person, Rosie Nixon whooshes Amber into the exotic world of the glamorous and famous where she has to style some of Hollywood’s hottest celebrity stars at the LA Award Season. (Though she travels in economy while Mona doesn’t, of course) The pace of The Stylist must replicate the frenetic life of just such a stylist, and Rosie Nixon with her experience of women’s glossy magazines, will know all about that. I thought the juxtaposition of Amanda, unspoilt by her life with the stars, longing to be home, the Eastenders theme tune playing through her mind as she struggles to sleep on her return to Britain, was touching amongst the glitz. This normality does actually keep us empathising with her. Clever, I thought. The Stylist is a serving of sun, fun and a real look behind the scenes. But it is a novel that doesn’t ignore the core of the protagonist. Does Amber find her prince? Ah well, read it, enjoy the ride, and find out for yourselves. A really fun read. A success. Keep your eye on Frost Magazine next week, because Rosie Nixon’s A Day in the Life will be published. See if the glitz extends into this extraordinary young woman’s every day life. Crikey, she’s busy, and quite lovely. Life ain’t fair, says Granny Graham. The Stylist available now, published by HQ in paperback £7.99.Written by Rosie Nixon, the Editor-in-Chief of HELLO! The Stylist is the Cinderella story for our time. Amber Green is an ordinary sales assistant in an exclusive London boutique – so admittedly she doesn’t slog away in a kitchen, but the girl needs a few princes in her life.

 

Then lo! Amber is mistakenly offered a job with Mona Armstrong who seems to exist on coffee, water and champagne, with not a morsel of food passing her lips. Mona is a ‘stylist to the stars’.

 

Written in the first person, Rosie Nixon whooshes Amber into the exotic world of the glamorous and famous where she has to style some of Hollywood’s hottest celebrity stars at the LA Award Season. (Though she travels in economy while Mona doesn’t, of course)

 

The pace of The Stylist must replicate the frenetic life of just such a stylist, and Rosie Nixon with her experience of women’s glossy magazines, will know all about that. I thought the juxtaposition of Amber, unspoilt by her life with the stars, longing to be home, the Eastenders theme tune playing through her mind as she struggles to sleep on her return to Britain, was touching amongst the glitz. This normality does actually keep us empathising with her. Clever, I thought.

 

The Stylist is a serving of sun, fun and a real look behind the scenes. But it is a novel that doesn’t ignore the core of the protagonist.

 

Does Amber find her prince? Ah well, read it, enjoy the ride, and find out for yourselves.

 

A really fun read. A success.

 

Keep your eye on Frost Magazine next week, because Rosie Nixon’s A Day in the Life will be published. See if the glitz extends into this extraordinary young woman’s every day life. Crikey, she’s busy, and quite lovely. Life ain’t fair, says Granny Graham.

 

The Stylist available now, published by HQ in paperback    £7.99.

 

 

The Grantchester Mysteries by James Runcie Review By Margaret Graham

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I feel a bit of a fraud saying that this is a review. It is really a ‘I could kiss your feet, James Runcie, I enjoy these so much.’ And I’m not really a devotee of feet.

Honestly, for a lilting evocation of a gentler time, the early 1960s,this is the series for you. Though there are murders, but somehow they’re rather charming too.

I stumbled across Sidney Chambers and the Shadow of Death by accident, but from the first page, I loved it. It’s not just because I can picture James Norton in his television role of Sidney, or Robson Green as Inspector Keating, but it is the life it evokes, the mysteries, the profound insights into Sidney’s world as a man of God, at times a slightly doubting one (?). They are uproarously funny, or so I have found The Problem of Evil, but also moving. His love for his wife is touching, his confusion as a male living with a female, hilarious.

I find myself pondering them, wondering  if the books are actually about friendship: he and Keating, he and his wife. Then there’s his feelings of compassion, at times sorely tried, his confusion at the behaviour of people,his beloved dog who dies… Arghh.

Do try them, enjoy them. They will remind you of good things, good people, and you will continue to picture Sidney and Keating  playing their weekly backgammon, and sorting out the problems of the Cambridge area. I am reading them out of order, I’m sure, but it doesn’t matter. I still guess at who dun it, and each stands on its own. I think I prefer the series to coffee creams, and that’s saying something.

I now have The Perils of the Night, and The Forgiveness of Sins to read. I do hope there is another on the way, or I might sulk. It has been known.

James Runcie is the son of former Archbishop Runcie.  He is novelist, documentary film-maker, television producer and playwright. He is Commissioning Editor for Arts on BBC Radio 4, a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature and visiting professor at Bath Spa University. (where my daughter went to university and loved every minute)

The Grantchester Mysteries published by Bloomsbury. Read them, I insist.

 

 

 

National Trust ‘opens’ the Danish, Portuguese and French London embassies to celebrate Heritage Open Days

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Friday 9th– Saturday 10th September 2016

 

Yesterday Frost Magazine’s Margaret Graham and Dr Kathleen Thompson had a treat– a look behind the scenes of the Portuguese Embassy in London, as part of the National Trust’s Europe & Us programme. I must declare a particular interest: my uncle and aunt, and their numerous children lived in Lisbon for much of their lives, (something to do with the trams) and some are still there. They love it, even those over here.

The Portuguese Ambassador’s home is situated in Belgrave Square, an area that was bomb damaged in the war. No 12 was no exception, but walking around, as you can all do tomorrow and Saturday, you would never guess. Entering through imposing double doors we were faced with an airy hall into which led  graceful marble staircase and a ceiling imported from a church – just like that, as Tommy Cooper would have said. It was impressive, but not too large or ostentatious. What was particularly marked was the silence. Behind these doors the bustle of London was just a memory.

Margaret Graham in the Catherine Room
We were able to look around the Catherine of Braganza room. Catherine was married to Charles II; it is often said that their marriage would lead to Britain becoming the largest empire in history because, as part of Catherine’s dowry, Charles was given the seven islands in Bombay, which he would later rent to the East India Company.Even more importantly, dare I say, Catherine liked her cup of tea, and soon, so did the British. So when any of us next sit down to tea and buns, let’s give a heartfelt vote of thanks to Catherine .

There was to be no toddling up the wooden hill as they say in children’s books, but instead we swanned up the marble staircase, the walls of which were hung tapestries. How on earth were these physically worked? I mean, how did they get to the middle? Something to ask on your own tour.

 

In all the rooms interesting art hung, and my own love, ancient globes, were in evidence: I love to see how the world has changed.
The tour opened my eyes to the inner sanctums of diplomacy, just as the blurb said it would. The strictly limited openings, as part of Heritage Open days, will indeed allow you insights into how these important government buildings are used to allow envoys to entertain while promoting their countries’ interests to the ‘Court of St James’.  Visitors will get to explore these fascinating buildings on guided tours and view the furniture and decorative art that reflects each nation.

 

National Trust Creative Director Ivo Dawnay comments, In this year when our relationship with Europe has been front and centre of our thoughts, the National Trust is running a programme, dubbed ‘Europe & Us’, that seeks to gain insights into our long relationship with the continent.

Hurry. Make sure you visit one of these Embassies. It really is fascinating. To be honest, I could live in the Portuguese Embassy: it managed to be a home, as well as a showpiece. Sadly, this is unlikely but so glad I managed to get behind the double doors.
For security reasons applicants will be asked to apply with their full names, addresses and contact details and will be admitted only with photo ID.

Tickets are available by application at www.nationaltrust.org.uk/embassy-openings.

 

 

The Ice Beneath Her by Camilla Grebe Review by Margaret Graham

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Does anyone out there enjoy the plethora of Scandinavian noir on the television? Or is enjoy the wrong word?  After all, noir is not an idle threat. If you do, or even if you don’t, you should try this novel.

Grebe has been compared with Jo Nesbo – you know the thing ‘if you like Jo Nesbo you’ll love this’. Well, I think that Swedish Camilla Grebe stands alone.

With The Ice Beneath Her,  we have a craftswoman at work. Camilla Grebe’s clarity of language  reminds me of my friend Nikki Gemmell’s writing, who reworks, and reworks  to present a vivid empathy that is almost too inclusive, because all that happens to her characters, happens to the reader. I use her regularly as an example of an author for those aspiring to write. I think I will now add Grebe.

Now, I’m not comparing Grebe with Nikki but I am saying that I felt her writing to be   as finely tuned as Nikki’s. Perhaps while waxing lyrical I should include Elizabeth Clark Wessel, who translated the novel from Swedish to English, and in so doing, faithfully stayed as close as anyone could, to the  author’s vision.

So, what is this vision? What is this novel about, the one that is already making waves with film rights sold to Warner Brothers’ New Line Cinema, and international rights that have already sold in 20 territories?

A thriller, or perhaps crime novel, that introduces us to Emma, a mousey sales assistant who is swept off her feet by a charismatic CEO and whose life is opened up to love. But life ceases to be peachy after her lover runs off (perhaps). It is then that  the mouse transforms into a welter of furies. A murder is then lobbed into the mix, the detectives use a brilliant criminal profiler who is in the early stages of dementia. Soon Emma, the transformed mouse and the detectives are on the heels of the mystery man and it is clear their paths will cross.

I know, I know, I’m not making this easy to follow, but it isn’t. It’s complex, and as you read it, it is hard to even guess at what’s going on under the surface. This isn’t a weakness, it’s just a puzzle, and the power of the writing. plotting and general structure is such that you more than stick with it, sure the writer is leading you somewhere. It was disturbing, and exercises the grey matter, but was unputdownable. I didn’t read it before I needed to go to sleep. BEcause I would be tossing, turning, and fretting.

A must read book about obsession, betrayal and of course, love.  Highly recommended.

Published on 8th September  by Zaffre at £12.99  E-book available.

Next week, Camilla Grebe will be telling us of A Day in her Life. Make a date to be with us.

 

 

WforW Short Story Workshop

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short story workshop, short story, writing Words for the Wounded is a charity founded by Margaret Graham, author and contributing editor for Frost Magazine. WforW raises funds through writing events   to help wounded ex-service personnel, with 100% of everything raised going to the wounded. To this end, WforW is holding an inaugural writing workshop on 24th September. There are just a few places left on the:

Short Story Workshop.

Short stories can earn you cash as well as being your calling card. Learn how to turn those rejections into sales.

We will ground you in the basics of short story structure, and provide you with the ability to target your work towards a market of your choice. It will be fun; Margaret and Tracy’s workshops always are.

Tracy Baines has been selling her short stories for almost twenty years. Her stories have appeared in Woman’s Weekly, Take a break, My Weekly and The People’s friend and many others in the UK as well as overseas markets.     www.tracybaines.co.uk

Margaret Graham is a best selling author with Arrow. She also writes short stories and features. She is a creative writing tutor,mentor, editor, and also contributing editor for Frost Magazine. She is founder and administrator of WforW.  www.margaret-graham.com

Saturday 24th September:  10:00 – 16:30   ( Registration 09:30 )

Venue: Downley Community Centre, Old School Close, Downley, High Wycombe, HP13 5TR.  (trains run regularly from London to High Wycombe, Downley is about 2 miles and there’s a taxi rank  at the station )  There is parking at the venue.
Cost: £45

Book online www.wordsforthewounded.co.uk