Reviews by Just Another Robot

Sunday mornings would not be the same without this eclectic show. Hindus, Taoists, Pagans, Zoroastrians, Jainists, Mormons, Sikhs... Every faith, religion and spiritual path gets a look in, and the show's format is a colourful magazine of news, interviews, arts/culture and live music. Best bits for me are the live and often heated panel debates usually with three or four guests - experts and prominent religious figures who change from week to week. The subjects under discussion are as varied as the world’s religions, but the focus is generally on headlines or the big religious issues of the moment. The debates run in small nuggets throughout the show and Gloria Hunniford does a smart job of controlling the panelists – their views can be quite tough and sometimes alarming, and viewers can chip by supplying their own contributions via email which Gloria reads out. Am not religious but love this show because of its variety and passion.

1. Prison
2. Needles
3. Deer Dance
4. Jet Pilot
5. X
6. Chop Suey!
7. Bounce
8. Forest
9. ATWA
10. Science
11. Shimmy
12. Toxicity
13. Psycho
14. Aerials

Good common sense advice when you need a confidence boost.

Fantastic action thriller, full of historical detail and well-crafted characters. The Dutch pilot Anjin-san is the central focus but the most finely drawn is the warlord Yoshi Toranaga. In a world dominated by competing factions and feudal lords each vying to take martial control of all domains, Toranaga’s mind is full of cunning schemes. He uses Anjin-san to put some of these schemes into action, and a few of outcomes are very dark – betrayal, death, war. But Lord Toranaga takes everything in his stride because to his long-range thinking, the powerful end justifies the means.

Another heart-warming adventure for the sweet-natured Precious Ramotswe and her excellent assistant Mma Makutsi. In this outing the lady detectives have several cases to investigate including blackmail, and medical malpractice. But as ever in this wonderful series, it's the seemingly small and incidental that overtake the ladies, like Mma Ramotswe's musings about Aunty Emang - the popular agony aunt who doles out curt advice, and Mma Makutsi's fear that her 'feminism' has driven a wedge between her and her fiancée. Their inner worlds are so endearing, especially Mma Makutsi's love of new shoes, a passion that gets her into trouble this round. But best of all is the charming Mma Ramotswe - her sense of being in tune with the landscape of Botswana, her insights into human foibles, her salt of the earth common sense, and her brilliant way with tea. x

Wish Belgarath was my granddad. He's so likeable. Tricksy and cunning, and always up to some kind of wonderful mischief. And reading Belgarath the Sorcerer, the story of his back-life before his adventures in the Belgariad and beyond, you discover how he grew up to be the way he is - a reluctant student at the feet of gods who eventually becomes a wily old master. Top class fantasy.

Excellent rural farce with lashings of wicked wit and the kind of surreal characters you'd love to meet like Sir Giles, the slightly nuts MP, his formidable wife Lady Maud, and her gardener, the weird and wonderful Blott. Very, very funny. In my favourites but a later novel, Ancestral Vices, is definitely my best.

First and best in a fantasy series that's remarkable for it's huge sense of humour and unforgettable characters. Favourites are Old Wolf, Aunt Pol, Silk, and young Garion when he's first learning the Will and the Word.

One of my absolute favourites. Deep and meaningful sayings from a wise soul. Open this pocket size book on any page and you'll find something inspirational - an insight on love, a guide to self-knowledge, a verse on the richness of your personal brilliance... First published in 1957, the sayings cover a universe of everyday situations, and they give you the tools you need to access the best of your inner being. Similar in style to 'The Little Book of Calm' but a hundred times more powerful, the Quiet Mind is all about your personal journey to self-mastery.

Scientists travel to a distant planet to sift through the stunning remains of a lost civilization... The beautiful thing about this story is that it's so easy to read. It's a page-turning 'X-Files in space' with likeable characters, gripping scenes and a truly strange mystery. If you like science fiction that plays like a vivid movie in your head, try this one. Jack McDevitt is a master storyteller. And I love the classic cover artwork from Jim Burns.