Rating: 0 out of 5 stars
0 ratings
Ebook338 pages5 hours
A Book at Bedtime
By Barrie Shore
Rating: 0 out of 5 stars
()
About this ebook
On a cold December Sunday, book-seller Jack Carter struggles through the ritual of making breakfast for his wife Eva, whose dementia confines her body to her bed and her mind to a world of its own. Jack is an old man failing to cope with the modern world. He wages a constant battle with Margaret, Eva’s carer, and tries to fend off Dodie, Eva’s bossy best friend, who has decided that Jack too is losing his marbles and the time has come for the two of them to go into a home.
Jack’s wandering mind makes frequent journeys to the past. Among the ghosts he conjures are his sexually repressed, religiously obsessed mother, and his friend and mentor, Bob Pride, whose own past is closely linked with Oscar Wilde. The gaps in Jack’s memories and day-dreams are filled by Eva, and gradually their story unfolds. It’s the love story of a couple married for nearly sixty years whose complete failure to communicate is hidden behind an apparently shared love of books.
But there is also The Great Man, a famous local writer who chooses this day to come and call. Comical and acerbic, he pushes Jack to confront the past, until the truth finally emerges.
Jack’s wandering mind makes frequent journeys to the past. Among the ghosts he conjures are his sexually repressed, religiously obsessed mother, and his friend and mentor, Bob Pride, whose own past is closely linked with Oscar Wilde. The gaps in Jack’s memories and day-dreams are filled by Eva, and gradually their story unfolds. It’s the love story of a couple married for nearly sixty years whose complete failure to communicate is hidden behind an apparently shared love of books.
But there is also The Great Man, a famous local writer who chooses this day to come and call. Comical and acerbic, he pushes Jack to confront the past, until the truth finally emerges.
Author
Barrie Shore
Barrie Shore spent her early career as an actor in theatre, television and radio, and as a presenter and scriptwriter for the BBC World Service. She began writing for television in 1986, joining the script teams of Emmerdale and then EastEnders.
Related to A Book at Bedtime
Related ebooks
To London Town Through the Magic Door Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsBrisbane Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Look Homeward, Angel: A Story of the Buried Life Rating: 1 out of 5 stars1/5Old Kensington Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Golden Rock Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsVashti; Or, Until Death Us Do Part Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Tree of Knowledge: A Novel Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsGhost Light: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Strange Devices of the Sun and Moon Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5A Golden Argosy Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsIn Search of Scandal: The London Explorers, #1 Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Let the Empire Down Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsChildhood and Other Neighborhoods: Stories Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Huntingtower Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsMonday or Tuesday Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Interview Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Second Mrs. Astor: A Heartbreaking Historical Novel of the Titanic Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Rogue Herries: A Novel Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Europeans Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsFelix Holt the Radical Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsAt the Sign of the Golden Compass - A Tale of the Printing House of Christopher Plantin in Antwerp, 1576 Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Stone Giant Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Landlord Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsPaul Kelver: A Novel Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Alexandria You Are Losing Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsPtomaine Street Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsAshland Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratings
General Fiction For You
The Fellowship Of The Ring: Being the First Part of The Lord of the Rings Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5It Ends with Us: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Alchemist: A Graphic Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Priory of the Orange Tree Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Unhoneymooners Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Life of Pi: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Nettle & Bone Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Babel: Or the Necessity of Violence: An Arcane History of the Oxford Translators' Revolution Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The City of Dreaming Books Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Terminal List: A Thriller Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Covenant of Water (Oprah's Book Club) Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Dark Tower I: The Gunslinger Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Heroes: The Greek Myths Reimagined Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Cabin at the End of the World: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Beyond Good and Evil Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Second Life of Mirielle West: A Haunting Historical Novel Perfect for Book Clubs Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Rebecca Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Ocean at the End of the Lane: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5My Sister's Keeper: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Beartown: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Canterbury Tales Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Meditations: Complete and Unabridged Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Dry: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Other Black Girl: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Iliad of Homer Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Shantaram: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Silmarillion Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Lost Flowers of Alice Hart Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Everything's Fine Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Dante's Divine Comedy: Inferno Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
Related podcast episodes
All My Weird Friends 0% found this document usefulE35: Emma Stonex Author Interview 0% found this document usefulS0202 The Twisted Wood by Tony Walker 0% found this document useful
Related articles
Stop Hating on Adjectives! The MillionsArticle
Stop Hating on Adjectives!
Jun 12, 2019
A common admonition in creative writing pedagogy is, “Cut as many adjectives as possible.” I propose that this rule springs from mere prejudice. The post Stop Hating on Adjectives! appeared first on The Millions.
7 min read‘Bowlaway’: Featured Fiction from Elizabeth McCracken The MillionsArticle
‘Bowlaway’: Featured Fiction from Elizabeth McCracken
Feb 4, 2019
What she wanted was a kind of greatness that women were not allowed. The post ‘Bowlaway’: Featured Fiction from Elizabeth McCracken appeared first on The Millions.
12 min readWorlds Of Ink And Paper VictoriaArticle
Worlds Of Ink And Paper
Nov 22, 2022
As a young girl, I still remember my dear mother, smile on her face, curled up with Family Circle magazine in her lap. She was engrossed in an article titled “Butternut Wisdom,” written by Gladys Taber. At my age, it didn’t mean a thing to me. But as
6 min readSpellcheck The American Poetry ReviewArticle
Spellcheck
Jan 1, 2019
Whose history I do not know. I do know I’ve been e-upbraided for my fast and loose spelling of Woden, the god whose last worshipper must have slipped under the sod during the medieval period, somewhere in the 10th century—imagine those bog-soaked des
5 min readApparition Guernica MagazineArticle
Apparition
Mar 26, 2020
8 min readLow Expectations Ceramics: Art and PerceptionArticle
Low Expectations
Feb 1, 2019
7 min readTwo Poems by Joseph Brodsky Literary HubArticle
Two Poems by Joseph Brodsky
May 12, 2020
7 min readIt’s Come to This The American ScholarArticle
It’s Come to This
Sep 1, 2021
16 min readChasing the Brontë Sisters From South India to the Yorkshire Moors Literary HubArticle
Chasing the Brontë Sisters From South India to the Yorkshire Moors
Nov 2, 2017
6 min readThe Story Behind… Scotland MagazineArticle
The Story Behind…
Dec 16, 2022
2 min readOn Celtic Storytelling, From the Bardic to the Mythic Literary HubArticle
On Celtic Storytelling, From the Bardic to the Mythic
Jul 17, 2020
4 min readPoetry The American ScholarArticle
Poetry
Jun 1, 2021
3 min readSecond Language Guernica MagazineArticle
Second Language
Aug 14, 2017
9 min readA Rocking Stone, a Water Horse and a Gyrfalcon Writing MagazineArticle
A Rocking Stone, a Water Horse and a Gyrfalcon
Aug 3, 2023
6 min readThe Time I Drank with Borges in a Scottish Pub Literary HubArticle
The Time I Drank with Borges in a Scottish Pub
Mar 20, 2018
5 min readMy Interiors Life: Weaned On The Small Screen The Critic MagazineArticle
My Interiors Life: Weaned On The Small Screen
Nov 25, 2021
FOR ME, IT WAS ALL DOWN TO what I saw on the box (which was a lot) — and this extended too to the arenas of action: a fantastic littering of such beautiful and extraordinary interiors, not one of which had I ever set foot in, nor even so much as glim
9 min readFollowing a Thread Adirondack LifeArticle
Following a Thread
Sep 19, 2019
6 min readTWO ESSAYS from FINGER EXERCISES FOR POETS The American Poetry ReviewArticle
TWO ESSAYS from FINGER EXERCISES FOR POETS
Nov 1, 2022
Russian Formalists have a word, “ostranenie,” which means constantly attempting to discover new ways of looking at everyday things. There are almost always two realities rubbing up against one another in every poem, whether they are specified or not,
10 min readJan Morris The Paris ReviewArticle
Jan Morris
Jun 15, 2018
I have always rather envied the poet Ovid, who was banished from Rome by the emperor Augustus, you may remember, to a remote place called Tomis on the shores of the Black Sea. There he died, ten years later, and his exile has gone into legend and int
17 min readCul-de-Sac The American ScholarArticle
Cul-de-Sac
Dec 1, 2021
That old rage for order: how my father drove a square mouthed mower over-and-back, over-and-back, each row of neatly trimmed grass cut just like he told his barber: boy’s short, regular. O pioneer, taming this joke bit of prairie, no bindweed or dog
5 min readTessa Castro The OldieArticle
Tessa Castro
May 3, 2023
IN COMPETITION No 292 you were invited to write a poem called The Walk. How good and numerous were your entries. Congratulations to those printed below, each of whom wins £25, with the bonus prize of The Chambers Dictionary going to Anthony Young. I'
2 min readAt Home in England VictoriaArticle
At Home in England
Aug 1, 2023
5 min readDULCE DOMUM From The Wind In The Willows Cricket Magazine Fiction and Non-Fiction Stories for Children and Young TeensArticle
DULCE DOMUM From The Wind In The Willows
Nov 1, 2022
11 min readOf Love, Madness, and Death: Notes Toward a Literary Autobiography Literary HubArticle
Of Love, Madness, and Death: Notes Toward a Literary Autobiography
Mar 4, 2019
9 min readBard In The Woods Great WalksArticle
Bard In The Woods
Nov 30, 2020
4 min readAutumn Has Always Been Poets’ Season Literary HubArticle
Autumn Has Always Been Poets’ Season
Oct 23, 2017
6 min readOn The Irresistible Lure Of The North Country Literary HubArticle
On The Irresistible Lure Of The North Country
Dec 13, 2019
9 min readToo Much, Magic Bus SA Country LifeArticle
Too Much, Magic Bus
Dec 9, 2019
8 min readNew Poetry by Queer Indigenous Women Literary HubArticle
New Poetry by Queer Indigenous Women
Apr 12, 2018
12 min readSelected Sentences from Mark Twain’s Life on the Mississippi The Paris ReviewArticle
Selected Sentences from Mark Twain’s Life on the Mississippi
May 9, 2018
6 min read
Reviews for A Book at Bedtime
Rating: 0 out of 5 stars
0 ratings
0 ratings0 reviews
Book preview
A Book at Bedtime - Barrie Shore
` book_preview_excerpt.html }ےƵ`^ؖ4["Mb#eb0/ py9 q>E_2k M{L%s羬䷱sw/믾cwwg;8oW_|e}wuM]]صa_ ʍ*.[W'b߇pػ/J={ɇtc߅# ];[7"cy]_
ծ
?
Yto-ƶi^⹏աAY!OvC7_0nj*EEh3t}(ǝ/7RChoUkS =cqɦ8U&W#߂N1ģ& EoHnvЗ%bb o 1B@+^9'\y*^ [?^4CJ別K0%!biMZ\)o)st(|XfPA ?US1ŧލkW JOAAJ*+ Ƣsڛ!rQV[n5PV>O!chn=~{[s=֡kMN- WJ+0랅֬վk߽ͫ7?~F|O^']Ow~]x˧ 0mL4 Y٬ٻjdU5lxbc8:B8ɠL}%*o/}QK\w=8ן 6mv|)u&BZp 8Vx /[=YiX) ~e@+4 h
L?&8*S T&GW{ZOK?oÀ^Gw)[|b
i 7] ~mx<^ [䰞 0m !f»PlZm+$k ckJ ]&2,M :T}U9]-s .ZjE-s Cùi]fC}Sկxn4sV6KI6ut P1!jCuX,4I6NW.%eB0J^Q[_
wPK CKC¯oZ7š&2l|u-YZ^De2?@1k E# vEOp*^rH[ *>I>ᅶ vK봫<=JBt+}
1 Sw jDWbczC0as: 9_= βj\<\\G3jp J,k]䚇yu `e20|;[^!Wt@UKp$H褓z`N ͂f 6!-DR`Ԃ' I'~.t>Ѓ$cM;.epK-c -Q=\6ʩ 2 }
irg)y3>$/~ !$\Z9NχûZR1W
p.
`ыMoԄ!pҚ0g)>Ik;<#pn dCXb+} ~q6 cxi8gzq/%371D"9(DX ]д3ID !QAz _| 2=Eqs}W}*[H0)fR?-ʬ7td+ßoGKBm \gdlOyqO a'"EvZ0ceLȕFM18 \*q34 e8 ]unTI8EF;nޝӏqO. ]/
ʙ'pX&hW0sORoG(
~ytd [Ho*vuKr+6(@&ݕ Aj, 7rN/c xޣrC5RB(Ӓ1J!T%( ]xAcԖ@A3$IU]ڳF[3Pv>q>ʉд:㋢ ov^w%A(>D0S'|CC17^.QB)b mLdkbl~J[xO$7E؆4%"-Oiɇ?s*"
G~%')4IO=uezZ ~
Q~[Ye0 Ii Hn|<̟q4T-\% 1jZfP_cδoiTUm/`T 0u<%@ZOI&
k~PO*Is9Lw"iC-JtP V4VR/ 7JP WQNCѴP?L%VI ɖL+~[,;qP5c3 e稡?D *OY/+@3 (K[`M} au{`d`&3) Tk$q-{`mpMK!60"H +K/b#1U"?J>w̆-RSEN ²),xB PuRMǦc ,X) [mJnfjO써 ~1ӑ#&>1EKs,ZC=`9-m^~Tf\p*#Eڱ
>ْmj3sW4M{ H{C֧UA3#K' L7EL .r}J`/ M-G^ ڌ
2!(ue LC! InR̅I2[2`\k#DƬ5MNiu(zj05`BqUƄ,\"Kˈ g
2$N@9˲ c?
^ifiixaaDeJ&IUm@X(@>1)PǑL#('zޔ9+TavSbhٮ@` M}iٟb |BY˝C%9UH:Ҙ1O+H:پ}Jn[${/4 G6.<1QBgHq 4Q| b |D|/ 3Y+@6 th:d\}|}}ф|t"} ?#μ"qL
+=6q^ * A©b50IYm1fMho90@uK'zў)BY1l*(zl0qH4viMXIZfg>
ّ^ڹ[/Ϫia*@oמ]ىBwDTU 3v,jnȩQӱFEoa.L3#!6Og@&^ g4霔z%#䜬fan^o TFIAx3ȂdJ bz;_(zM0%C
DHg2pL}LF귬
xTњ؉ dY%dm.[skvK]P ]ؓ免6(7D6a/Rt<?jF"a|3ed}z&QRrOEU_J? }hlBsUa>vJKǎ) nå+>SfQѲJr<5]Ʋ]4X3%})H+Wha1wkf
B^iYԾhf}ԭL
\2m td@w'ꔴFH_&DʺҼԍCxǭ;4Dro|GRu,; !'#K|ƒ c^l> "5VB.~d> )HTkC b1M0GQlR!ϖ5o# q,QVHXR6*_~ F~&Rƾ
MI^cxL]?hU lh,L ޛ{ORRVo)<5+Iy_"Nx)j% ݐl)G*^\UHy
/MZNXm*A8|^{9ω
jJ?h2*7A_^@Ϋ५K5l%5aKi}}6Đfr nn3MTk &7XfL?ҡ0=ReY/3˸6*!Ll~.[fu;tm?cJ 9mvm㺙9P anMVs=e>ىe cMUcsosYI5:H cHyeu]r=,k 'auU^~u{Zy`at7̀S7Yɢ3*Xv0 Uhejq*Sɠu/X IlƔ9ryNű*9/zRa}\+iWO8( /kg9D4ar* S H"]ƉV %Fpڋ8åzy.js%Q9zH~$[#]tqgfхcA ^ {|wi[[I`KE Y9Fj H@lG-AxtZ(-S֚
}[4ɽk rzӏiWRf>UIWw>1,aO5s{ Gs)MєfWM(SJٌɏNYSPJ- U8xzĶzӷ"&{ 0mm-=NJc;%,)|2V,tpz.0HBȜrˊ1+ |Vɖ!>aI9ږ4cßwKmɃT6]pNώxxb-'̕BqJkږQ]$kF3)4E11+`21Cf p(> eVsga썺$Ϊ$l(.C;CݗTdxSܼfSf
S QzWg Eh|ݧ 6gӏX= 24SV5Q X(HT_;F$LHG( BƲnˁOaxaƈ %szķ&J*Ӛ3۽hW-VC|Zgĉ W}\hGx )Ac[8I2>9ݨ)b.夛T4x k۞O>" Hq CwW4.c ha']PSibv
]]Ķ|^Yp"
OzCBo$b-Th僮Um)Ӑ{Ȕ X*VK1"iuuc;.'L,Ҹf㿎8$Zq;izn?5`Owc`o/b"$sTkߕR%sDDWrR [ :6=$:)_I>!#;(T>6H[hX@tzY'H
E8i,*
X 3ӽ.ݜN_@MyyVSe;M3MH5PMw#䲙mRJt9 σ\~6),߽N@_I&{!&lQb)$`m7[TO:Xn(
ܡB%s3oNI.joC2yj|T\ros) LY7. '[Y3+r J^?Q0茔OŷSN,E+}T؞8& XȜ!ۭU/ õu
Rjz.n7T!ouhbIwJ ˔k?,
]ȆFT_>sl-cv^QgLȟV|- ֚<1x! ޣljl{~gsX2udctnGprViowjT2 sy'U0M ޙsSy}
xˆ{+e6#DNn<{d&U< $!ݪRLH7Ue{͕BCE}2-3HV GRI:њѴ4+C#e 1pǢj}v14[=wM{U3'x8Ef/ #,{!bzIKrj"X1d:&2xnAu\d̂2a Js_]z*5,>1- !?x[UIM&rH>8XET
h%Jg\тSTP܆i eW[ʹ 2g8_G1b>1Y9#"Z[ >564xY x[7w$ n;?FX%7lQ<"VMjdZS3 _Txɕj\J K{c]y"H܉M%fF{x*ңuU b֔U{7I q,ћ?_:v2X/n9!մxWx6ι9M9KUv~D_RXuVaa|o;[
MȔTص40{E~o60>x̤TZ6މ8Ԧ{72m2;,BcoMM4ôf?i&w/~l&RɷiiVmdl+ V 1\\b;v>+J3j v' #ŵ)rfڼ&EY+h-
0^X-᧾xnMiGkN4ajjL/ōrS;Klf1#:h(3zVڗN4P9j4JÒ@f%y5dr/0SI nkY}wg*>kPKd470;>yel&ӐΩ;/eڷ-)]cx0YW#z97Qr,h6Ij{>L͟z>{Ζj]/ddHv`
mxV='s}]QY^9ؼj]\5&2^v;t ruf}ol 7QYf!X|*Nne_Lb`O/v
ˑ[. ٕvN^pe=VaS{2g!;-
pic^ƣqo͘:<"y{:0f2
ft V8 S.6ؽX0{]D?Bd و8=W?!rkF4\NU孂bՏ
k"ݴ9eSWgW\x@7;(XM<4R0xסز~4mI;*m~|ֺഫO9BX`=pљ2drgmަsIhE*gtN k!i*!^UӲϺCEm`EfK$ wᨢ𬋜Nfq?,Κܟ.9#SwϷ S3;W*n S 엁{:?5=Lgoq>?*6'BM4^ fp]vJgn2ӳϚ?2O06dXcu , -nJl im
8+ n͚$x4) !| l\*9$YubLP`:1 eUǕ댨c& dZ^5"t
_gok'eK̑~" wOA#sc;rܹf-]go&5y(Ԟl}Cퟸ̌$"]GnA3:Sb)-Ne14u &OEo]6hvl `KGro'ڼNћUGςA=[zP:*TDs Fu
ijc Ө*fgpM[5$mKd^TvcnL
A\|T}u~_rv3ZS} ̛r6cEiya]k ++"耖 X{}G.}J%%<^pɝF; 0X vfVQu {~;Ut5Ԣl]2[ ⻙kD g (ÿ<]mueE'*j~e^ 5ȎdAͯ7/E.0dM R
0MyoCF&,.LjI.:Q\)D
~}O@IJ%@va2[6 FYs[H|)rMFhyk47zɧ퓃[DRf&(wa誯vaԿ'رԫ̺VӮ:h(,6į+9ac F pi tPMwy%I\X-SMYtX縳eAR {&v N)\ϯicp~zQ"WnqbX'WVr*Otv< D6uLvA#;C*AYqK)L3o8mo!
C4EγɩU4g^jB|cD~#e#]w9[iё L J/vh
VAL.$ʉiTgAA58$j:Vi# psymVqJWsIYꪹFΚf bwy?1tpHECRcnD' 3S%"1 [TTXauUXӦbqmq$kLki%Żc:djs1Qf|\':;? м-l
Enjoying the preview?
Page 1 of 1