It’s a busy week – a funeral, a hospital appointment, Scottish dancing, a carol service in Llandaff Cathedral, a meal out to celebrate three family birthdays… But to speed me on my way, I’ve just had another five-star ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ review for my short stories FRESH BEGINNINGS . It has made me think seriously about what I’m working on at the moment, which is a sequel taking the characters from my earlier novel A DISTANT VOICE IN THE DARKNESS twenty years into the future, ending

On the radio last week I heard a church minister who said that a young woman had asked him where in the services that he held she could find a space for silence. He was sorry to have to tell her that there wasn’t anywhere. I was astonished – one of those chucking the butter dish at the radio moments – that no one thought to say that Quakers go in for silent worship. They gather in a deep silence that begins as soon as the first people have entered the room; there is often sho

The sort of Monday when you just want to stay at home with your feet up after such a varied weekend. We heard about children who are taught to mediate in school between their classmates who get into disputes, which is surely an excellent idea – for them, and also for society. Next day we went to half a Quaker Meeting, then walked up the road to some hustings to choose among eight people who want to represent us on the Welsh Senedd; all well-meaning with admirable ideas, some

Where are we now, after FRESH BEGINNINGS was Book of the Day for the Online Book Club last month? There’ve been several new reviews, mostly rather pleasing, a few scathing, one even suggesting that the stories must not be recommended to anyone under seventeen because the bonobo who narrates the story ‘A Touch of Natural History’ witnesses two young humans appreciating each other rather a lot… Well, a good Quaker friend of mine did once call it raunchy, but I daresay he’s fo

Many people these days won’t fly at all because of the climate crisis, and of course they have a point. Also many of us find travel too expensive, but I can’t help missing the far-flung places I used to take for granted. You can read about them in my latest novel A DISTANT VOICE IN THE DARKNESS, and also in some of the stories in my collection FRESH BEGINNINGS, if you want to travel with your feet up on the sofa! One short story is set in Ireland, where a family goes by boa

Discover the Magic of Time Travel A couple of modern-day British cousins, who happen to have a Danish grandmother, are climbing into a wheelie bin. Why? They need to experiment with time travel because they’ve lost Daniel’s brother somewhere far back inside the famous fairytales of Hans Andersen. Thus begins one of the stories in FRESH BEGINNINGS , a varied collection of eleven short stories by Leela Dutt, illustrated by Kate Attfield. This collection has just been chosen as

We’ve just enjoyed a wonderful weekend celebrating a family wedding, a rare chance to gather with relations we love but don’t often see. Guests came from Nairobi, Edinburgh, Abuja, Bristol, and beyond – many on their way to destinations as varied as Dubrovnik, Thurso, and Budapest. A Weekend Full of Memories The celebrations were full of stories and laughter, and even a few memorable mishaps. On the first day, a nephew and I found ourselves stuck in a glass lift in Porthcawl.

The Richness of Local Stories We have a fantastic free magazine available in various parts of north Cardiff. The version where I live is...

I write far more blogs on this site than news items, because I don’t really know what sort of news is needed. Do you want to know for...

Over fifty years ago I set off with a great deal of hope to spend a year in Nigeria, where Robin was to lecture at what was then called...

Exploring the Themes of FRESH BEGINNINGS Reviews can be a mixed bag. They can be good or bad, but sometimes they leave you wondering. My...

Reading is not just about escaping reality; it's about expanding it. Books can open our minds to new ideas, challenge our beliefs, and...

The Challenge of Writing a Sequel Just now, I’m working on a novel. It’s a sequel to my earlier work, A Distant Voice in the Darkness ,...

If you enjoyed the novel A DISTANT VOICE IN THE DARKNESS , or if you haven’t got time in a busy life to read a novel, why not try my...

A Convenient Reading Option Some of our customers have mentioned they don't have time to read a paperback. This is where the convenience...

For the reader who enjoyed A DISTANT VOICE IN THE DARKNESS so much they wanted to read everything else I'd written, how about some short...

Leela's Latest Book is Out Today - 'A Distant Voice in the Darkness' A long-distance love story you won't be able to put down.....💛...

I'm working on another novel at the moment - an update on the characters in A Distant Voice in the Darkness which comes out on April...

I still know people who've read Rubik's Cube five times since it came out in 1984. Rubik's Cube by Leela Dutt It starts with a nuclear...

We are thrilled to receive advance copies of Leela's novel A Distant Voice in the Darkness which some of you may have seen under a...