On my bedside table

If you wandered into my bedroom this morning, this is what you'd find on my bedside table:

• My Bose Wave radio playing Mozart's Serenade Number 3;
• A Japanese lacquered tray in black and red holding a carafe of water and a water glass;
• A vase containing a single long stemmed red rose "Mr Lincoln" courtesy of my wonderful husband who presented me with it when we were out at our favourite restaurant for dinner on Saturday night;
• The ubiquitous pile of books.

Now I'll assume that, being CM aficionados, you're more interested in the titles of my books than the provenance of my lacquerware or the proprietary waveguide speaker technology of my stereo, and tell you a little of each one...

Alice by Roberta Kells Dorr

This unputdownable book is a non fiction account of a Palestinian woman Dorrs met in Gaza around the time of the Six Day war in 1967. Subtitled God Still Speaks, the book tells how Alice's faith and prayers impacted the lives of those she touched in almost unbelievable ways.

A Child's Book of True Crime by Chloe Hooper

My Bookclub book. A Clever, creepy first novel about a young teacher at a Tasmanian Primary School. A book of adultery and murder, fantasy and reality. I haven't started this one yet but I'd better - bookclub starts again next week.

100 Australian Poems You Need To Know edited by Jamie Grant

This new book of Australian poems was published late last year. It is a great anthology of the best of Australian poetry arranged in order of the author's date of birth. I'm much more fond of the early ballad metres than of the free verse of the post war period, but there are some great examples of recent works as well.

I particularly like this recent poem by Kathleen Stewart (1958-)

The boys get together and do what makes them feel good.
The girls drift along the street writing.
The boys get successful.
The boys leave the girls for other girls.
The girls drift along the street writing.
They have more to write about now.

This is a great bedside table book to dip into most nights!!

The Widow Clicquot by Tilar J Mazzeo

A biography of the woman behind the iconic champagne label, Barbe-Nicole Cliquot Ponsardin.

This is a fascinating book about a fascinating French legend of a woman who entertained Napoléon and Joséphine amongst her other exploits as one of the world's first great businesswomen. She was truly La Grande Dame and I am enjoying reading her story.

The Story of John G Paton told for Young Folks by the Rev. James Paton

Written by Paton's brother in 1892, this is the wonderful story of the Reformed Presbyterian missionary to the New Hebrides (Vanuatu). I'm reviewing this for AO3, and am really inspired by this amazing man and his wonderful story. A beautifully written book.

It's fun to read references of men in my home church too!

You'd have to be really cheeky to open the drawers, but inside the top one you'd find my Bible and J. C Ryle's Daily Readings from All Four Gospels. You'd also find hand cream, lip salve, tissues...enough already! I think you get the idea!!