Cause for concern or not? — Joe Biden recently said we should be concerned about Monkeypox, a virus that is spreading throughout western countries after mainly being confined to Western Africa. There are fears we could have another pandemic on our hands. Having just about come out of the Coronavirus pandemic, the virus is still here…

A reading list to keep coming back to — I love reading books! Often that means going out and buying new books, something I have an unhealthy addiction to. However, there’s a lot to be said for picking up books you’ve read previously and reading them again. I’ve done this with books I read when I was younger and…

Books to make sense of a confusing continent — European history has often been tumultuous, barbaric and cruel, as well as inspirational, uplifting and revolutionary. It seems there’s no in-between in the over two thousand year history of Europe. Given recent developments with Russia’s war in Ukraine, I thought it would be helpful to put together a list of…

This is the beginning of the end for Putinism — On February 24, Vladimir Putin took the decision to invade Ukraine and has been reaping the consequences ever since. His war, or ‘special military operation’ as he’d prefer it to be called, has not gone how he imagined or planned. …

There’s more to Orwell than just Animal Farm and 1984 — Trying to create a list of George Orwell books without extending the list to 20 or more books is no easy task. He was responsible for some of the most famous and influential books ever written. Trying to narrow this list down to eleven presents a difficult challenge. However, after…

A reading list for the good of the planet — Wherever you are in the world, this collection of the best books on climate change will relate to you in some way. It doesn’t matter if you live in the Arctic Circle in Norway, or the South Island of New Zealand, climate change affects us all. I first became interested…

The past two years could lead to a fundamental change — As more and more countries locked down over February and March 2020, almost everyone across the globe had to adapt to a new reality — working from home. All the familiarities of work, such as the daily commute, the chatter in the office canteen and the trips to the local…

Confront your fears instead of cowering from them — Two hours before the plane landed in Sydney, I was petrified. Flying through the air at 30,000 feet, my mind wandered to what was going to happen when I stepped off the plane into Australia. …

A thought-provoking reading list for a new year — A new year means a new start for reading. After coming across this list of books to read in 2022, I thought I’d compile my own list. My list is very different to the one offered above. While there’s a heavy focus on self-improvement, I want to move away from…