The Complete Book of Oscar Fashion by Reeve Chace

The first point of note is that the cover of this book is VELVET. Yes, black velvet. The luxurious cover perfectly reflecting the decades of glamour inside.

Not only do we get to see the pick of the best Oscar gowns from the 1920's to 2003 (year of publish) but this book is packed full of Oscar facts, such as the main category winners for every year, the key designers and trends, as well as an overview of the history of the Oscars. It's a perfectly edited package with all the key facts you want to know and none of the waffle. It is a great 'coffee-table book', one that every time I pick up, I have endless fascination with. Movie stars and fashion - a winning combination.

Shakespeare by Bill Bryson

On a recent weekend in beautiful Bath with my boyfriend, we of course visited the Roman Bath Museum, where one of the optional commentaries was by Bill Bryson, giving his wonderful take on the traditions and architecture of ancient Rome.

Being a fan of fateful encounters, when I was later that day perusing in a charity shop and saw the above book, it was obvious that Bath was telling me I needed to read it. And Bath was correct, Bill's biography of Shakespeare's life brilliantly sums up all that is known of the great man's life and that, interestingly, is not very much.

Shakespeare has been the subject of so much theory and speculation, the most common being that he didn't actually write the works attributed to him, a notion which Bill dispels and considering the massive work of literature that Shakespeare left us, the known facts of his life only cover 195 pages. I loved this book for that very reason, it focused on facts only and still provided an informative account as it presented Shakespeare's life in historical context.