A day in Sheffield

Amanda and I had planned to have a day out this weekend, but with  Snow and heavy rain forecast for Thursday and Friday, I decided to take a trip to Sheffield today; a few weeks ago, we headed to the edge of Sheffield and a few miles up the road I saw there was park and ride we passed near one of the Tram stations, as I hate driving in the centre of Sheffield we decided we head today. We did and headed into the heart of Sheffield. Even though we live nearby, this last year or two, we haven’t gone a lot to Sheffield. we arrived and headed to our first place. We passed this statue to the woman that worked in the steel mills in the war, iI hadn’t seen this before.we saw the ducks seemed to have made a home near the city hall which was sad see John lewis that was opposite it was empty , we used like a wander around there always something out of the ordinary to buy in there.

 

So i looked for a fantastic coffee shop, I am a fan of quirky coffee shops and found steam yard on Division Street, I should know that is where all the vintage stores are and also several good shops for clothes I had bought a long while ago any way we had a snack and coffee. in this coffee shop with coffee roasted by local roastery Caravan roasters. I got some beans to try at home from them.

I had the lemon meringue Cronut, I liked this although it wasn’t great for my diet. Amanda had a pan au chocolate. The coffee was nice. Also the atmosphere was great in the cafe.  So we headed to the moor area as Amanda wanted some items from there. As we headed towards there I found this excellent spray art on a gate to a Chinese restaurant. that caught my eye.

I just liked it. Amanda had got all her p=bits, so I headed to Waterstones with the idea of three books but eventually brought four, as the Sheffield store has a much larger selection than the shop in Chesterfield, so it gave me a chance to think of the Booker International is drawing nearer. So i got two contenders, two books had been on my radar and then one by a writer I had read a number of years ago that had a new translation out. Then a book from a writer that has been on my radar for the last decade at least and I decided it was time I brought a book from them.

First of is from a local publisher in Sheffield And other stories , a publisher I have been sent books from and have met them over the years. The book is Praiseworthy by Alexis Wright she has been on my radar for a number of years and this is her latest about a small aboriginal community is meant to be her best book.I like the new covers from other stories. They are direct and unusual. I will get her other books I think if I like this one.

This is a book I hadn’t seen about or mentioned, but I had read another book by Rolf Rathmann that Seagull books i  had brought and reviewed a number of years ago Fire Doesn’t burn. So this book sent near the ned of world war two told through a young girl eyes appealed as I liked the other book from him I read.

Now, this was the first of two I got because the booker is A Little Luck by Claudia Pinero, I had seen this a few times since it came out, and I had to see a second-hand copy, but I loved Elena knows by the same writer we read it when it was longlist for the booker. This book follows a woman returning to the scene of a shocking accident in Buenos Aires twenty years earlier that has brought a woman involved she and no one will know who she is as she is different than twenty years ago. Even her eyes are a different colour. I am intruged by this one and also how Charco have reposition Pinero as a writer.

This is the second book by Booker winner Lucas Rijneveld, set in a rural part of the Netherlands, and it follows the events around a farmer’s daughter and the local vet events that tear the local community apart. Lucas had written the booker international prize-winning The Discomfort of Evening. Although I wasn’t a huge fan of that book I enjoyed it enough to read this also I do like the cover art for this book. I could have got more books but held back.So we then had some lunch at the German Kebab shop and then headed home on the Tram a nice little trip and know we know how easy it is to get to Sheffield this way we may be going again sometime soon. I will find another coffee shop ? tips welcome . Have you read any of the writers or the books themselves ?