It’s been a lovely couple of weeks of waking up to bright sunshine and, while the warmth isn’t quite dependable yet, we’ve had some lovely days. Of course, having said that, it’s raining now – but hopefully that’s just a blip!

I’m delighted that it’s been a quieter month with no domestic disasters to speak of, thank goodness. I can barely believe that one third of the year has gone already! April is the start of the new academic year in Japan and we were delighted to receive a lovely photo of our daughter, her husband and our two grandchildren outside the school where our daughter teaches, and her daughter is beginning senior school. Our grandson started elementary school too, so it’s a lovely momento to have, and a picture will we’ll be printing out and framing. We’re very proud of them all!

Onto this month’s books; I’ve been much more controlled this month and have stuck to sixteen novels read and reviewed. I have been privileged to read some wonderful stories, from authors both old and new to me. Choosing that one outstanding book wasn’t as difficult as it usually is; from the moment I read Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus I was blown away. It’s engaging, enthralling, entirely different and absolutely luscious! If you only read one from this month’s list, please make it this one. I’m absolutely delighted to make it my Book of the Month for April!

As we head into May, I’m looking forward to seeing some colour in the garden. Nothing’s planted yet – there’s always a chance of frost here up to now so I smile when I listen to my friend in Kidderminster planting out her garden – the joy of the Scottish climate. I want warm days where I can read, eat and even snooze outdoors. I hope the sun shines for us all,