Book 10 2025 Births, Deaths and Marriages by Laura Barnett

'Outside, beyond the balcony, night had come on, carrying the sound of car horns and barking dogs and the guttural trailing music of Levantine Arabic, a language that Yas does not speak: the language of her father, which, along with his presence, his time, his love, he had not shared with her.'

For our tenth book of the year I recommend Births, Deaths and Marriages by Laura Barnett. The book is about a group of six friends over the year they each turn forty, two decades after they met at university. It celebrates the durability of friendships that have weathered the storm of growing up and explores the complex relationships the friends navigate as they deal with love, loss and the general grind of the day-to-day. Here is the worksheet.

Meetup: Friday, 31st October 5pm

Book 9 2025 Prickly Company by Kitty Johnson

'Some people might find the freedom of being able to do what you wanted when you wanted somewhat challenging, but Frances generally enjoyed making her life up as she went along. Reacting rather than planning. Doing absolutely nothing all day if she felt like it. Spending two solid hours lounging on the patio, gazing up into the trees, absorbing the colours of the rustling leaves. Frances had invented mindfulness before it was a thing. She lived and breathed it. True, from time to time she did feel a little isolated, but no company was definitely better than bad company.'

For our ninth book of the year I recommend Prickly Company by Kitty Johnson. This is a book about a small community and hedgehogs, and there are no unexpected or suspicious deaths. Well, that might not be quite true. However, I'll leave that little mystery for you to check out. Here is the worksheet.

Meetup: Friday, 26th September 5pm      

Book 8 2025 The Sideways Life of Denny Voss by Holly Kennedy

'DOT hired him three years ago, thinking, I'm sure, they were doing him a favour, but in reality it was Denny who did them a favour. Me too, for that matter, because if it weren't for him, I'm not sure I'd have gotten out of bed each morning to do my job.'     

For our eighth book of the year I recommend The Sideways Life of Denny Voss by Holly Kennedy. It is the tender story of a young man who is developmentally disabled but surrounded by people who care for and about him. Angus, with his telltale t-shirts, is, by far, my favourite. The reader is given an insight into Denny's unique perception of the world as the mystery of Henry Tesky's death unfolds. Here is the worksheet .

Meetup: Friday, 29th August 5pm 

Book 7 2025 The Train from Platform 2 by Stephanie Steel

'Sometimes you needed that brash American energy to put people in their place. She'd interviewed a witness once, a tourist from Kansas who'd seen a mugging, and taken it upon themselves to intervene and hold the culprit down until the police had arrived. Idiotic, yes, but something about this Kansas mum's confidence in having done the right thing had charmed Jess a little. She'd still read her the riot act though and told her not to play hero anymore on London streets; muggers often have knives. The woman had laughed at that and then said sadly, 'Oh honey, even our teachers have guns.'   

For our seventh book of the year I recommend The Train from Platform 2 by Stephanie Steel. I thought it was time for another murder mystery to keep us on our toes and glued to the page. I hope this does not put you off underground travel just as you are all probably setting your summer travel plans in motion! Here is the worksheet.

Meetup: Friday, 25th July 5pm

8 NA C2 Topic 12 Free Time and the Summer

Never, ever underestimate the importance of having fun. (Randy Pausch)

Grammar	Family shots
Language Function	Holiday complaint
Listening	Australian visas + audio
Reading	Gamification
Speaking	The travel bug
Vocabulary	Great expectations
Writing	Close to nature

7 NA C1 2 Topic 12 Free Time and the Summer

Deep summer is when laziness finds respectability. (Sam Keen)

Grammar	Television
Language Function	Evaluating
Listening	Reality shows + audio
Reading	Reality TV
Speaking	Planning a trip
Vocabulary	Travelling
Writing	TV shows

   

6 NA C1 1 Topic 12 Free Time and the Summer

Aaah, summer - that long anticipated stretch of lazy, lingering days, free of responsibility and rife with possibility. It's a time to hunt for insects, master handstands, practise swimming strokes, conquer trees, explore nooks and crannies, and make new friends. (Darell Hammond)

Grammar	Reporting verbs
Language Function	Explaining
Listening	Holidays + audio
Reading	A letter of protest
Speaking	Silent retreat
Vocabulary	Television
Writing	Leisure time

 

5 NI B2 2 Topic 12 Free Time & the Summer

The summer night is like a perfection of thought . (Wallace Stevens). 

Grammar	The Longest Day
Language Function	Relating Past Events
Listening	Singapore + audio
Reading	Summer 2021
Speaking	On the move
Vocabulary	Driving
Writing	A complaint

 

4 NI B2 1 Topic 12 Free Time & the Summer

Summer break: the time when parents realise teachers are grossly underpaid. (Unknown)

Grammar	Sentence transfer
Language Function	Making arrangements
Listening	Flying + audio
Reading	Fun in Spain
Speaking	Travelling
Vocabulary	Holidays
Writing	A letter

3 NI B1 Topic 12 Free Time & the Summer

Do what we can, summer will have its flies. (Ralph Waldo Emerson)

Grammar	Say & tell
Language Function	Reporting
Listening	Bad service + audio
Reading	Travelling by train
Speaking	Travelling
Vocabulary	Travelling by plane
Writing	An interesting trip

 

2 NB 2 Topic 12 Home or Away

I love holidays. It's such a wonderful time for the whole family to be together and not have to worry about schedules and that kind of thing.  (Toni Collette)

Grammar	For & since
Language Function	Describing actions
Listening	Travel complaint + audio
Reading	A trip to England
Speaking	Summer holiday
Vocabulary	In the kitchen
Writing	Staycation