Inside Out
Quick guide to turning your free time into fun time
perfect evocation of the decadent time and place.
You need this on your sun lounger this summer. Prague Spring – Simon Mawer, Little Brown – out Thursday THE tumultuous events of 1968 make a fascinating backdrop to this elegant and intelligent drama about four young people caught up in the chaos of the Russian invasion.
Superbly written, poignant and polished, this story will haunt you. The Liar’s Room – Simon Lelic, Penguin – out Thursday NEARLY all the action takes place in one small room as the conversation between a counsellor and her new young client becomes very dark indeed. This whirlwind of a thriller becomes unbearably tense. The Liar’s Room is smart, slick and very, very spooky.
LEAVE the National Trust’s Downs Banks car park in Staffordshire for this two-mile walk and go right on to Washdale Lane. 1 At the nearby stream cross the footbridge and turn right into the woods. 2 Follow path by the stream to another footbridge and cross the water again. 3 Follow the path to steps down one bank and up the other side. Take the Ridge Path up a steep hill to the highest viewpoint. 4 Pass the Millennium Monument, a pillar at the highest point on the Downs, and stay on the same route. At a fence, turn right and follow the path through a gate. 6 Head straight on, back into woodland. Continue down steps along a wooded valley and back to your starting point. See Nationaltrust.org.uk.