Birthday blog

It's almost traditional. Today's my birthday and my present from my husband is a book I've already got. Own goals in previous years have included THE BRIDGE OF THE SAN LUIS REY and THE CURIOUS INCIDENT OF THE DOG IN THE NIGHT-TIME. This year it is THE VIRAGO BOOK OF GHOST STORIES. I know exactly how this happens - he is standing there in the book shop, the minutes ticking away, and his eye lights on a book he thinks I would like. And I do like it - I like it so much that I've already bought it and read it and it's on the shelf at home. Some years I forsee this and give him a list, but I'm so busy at this time of year that I usually forget. What I wanted this year was Jenny Uglow's biography of Thomas Bewick (or a bottle of Chanel No 19). Still it's not too late for Christmas.