A quiet month for reading, mostly of the first two books in The New York Trilogy by Paul Auster, who died recently.

These are post-modern detective stories and really quite curious beasts, although well-written.

Both are about the concept of identity and individuality and regardless of the problems set before the detective the investigations are into his perception of reality, time and meaning.

The first, City of Glass, felt rather like a sixth-former's take on the philosophy of individualism and subjectivity and is slightly tiresome for that, but the second, City of Glass and Ghosts, seemed much better although definitely building on the tone established in the first.

Generally I liked them, but very much not what I had expected!