goldtop London, United Kingdom

There's been a bit of criticism about this book, that the main character, and therefore the writer, is hard to empathise with.

No doubt she has a very certain way of looking at things, she was driven like no one I know to be the best at what she did, but, given that she was brought up in such a strange situation and from the age of 3, 'groomed' to play a very specific role, with it specific responsibilities and attitudes, I found it compelling.

I'd read The Tale of Murasaki before, and loved all the attention to detail, the ritual, the observance of season and custom so this was more in the same vein, albeit in the 20th as opposed to the 11th century! Fascinating.

A quick and v. satisfying spy thriller. Not that anything in particular was ever resolved, but seeing the progression of a spy's life and all it's implications v. interesting. Ultimately it's about the lies that are woven and how one lives with them. Any family revelation could apply here - it's how you deal with what you thought you knew, or who you thought you were, being completely turned over.

My dad gave me this book when I was 13, and I've only just got around to reading it! I'm so glad I did, not only as it was one of his favourite writers, but I enjoyed it so much - pure escapism! Written as children's historical fiction, but not shying away from the grisly details of living in life-or-death times, it makes for gripping reading. I had recollections of when I used to read on into the small hours, forgetting that I had to get up just a few hours later. I'm glad I got over my hard-back hate for this one!

We volunteered on an allotment last year for 6 months, but had to give it up. I was about to freecycle all my veg seeds, when I read this book - cover to cover in a night! I'm *so* glad I did, as it's filled with ideas for gardening on a v. small scale (ie. my balcony), written in a passionate, enthusiastic and funny style, in a month-by-month diary-ish format.

Initially I was put off by the lack of pics, but it means it's a compact novel size book, in fact much easier to refer to just stuck in a pocket or bag.

It's also documents Penelope's experience with composting, wormerys, ant farms, growing mushrooms, volunteering, bean sprouting *and* cooking her produce...

I love this book!