When we arrived home in England, our wisteria was out, almost in full bloom. The scent is quite strong, too. The plant is well over 30 years old, a it was in its spot when we moved in, and it was fairly well established then. It does have all its trailing bits cut off in spring and summer and a bit of winter pruning as well, otherwise it would take over our garden as well as next doors. It annoys my sister no end, as she has a wisteria about thirteen years old, which although it climbs exhuberantly up her wall, has never flowered.
Before coming back from France, I finished Hilary Mantel's Wolf Hall. I read this fairly slowly for me ( so my husband said) and took a few days over it. It is quite long and although I'm not usually keen on books written in the present tense, this read so well it was an exception. It was an amazing reading experience. Because of the present tense and the almost single-minded viewpoint - that of Thomas Cromwell himself, I almost felt that I was there at Henry VIII's court, perhaps as some sort of onlooker hiding at the back of the crowd of courtiers. The tale of Thomas Cromwell's life does not seem like history, but more like reportage of current events, making for an immediacy in the storyline. I loved it.
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