Nicholas Whyte 白怀珂
@nwhyte.bsky.social
He/him. International affairs strategist & expert, science fiction fan, psephologist; posts personal. Will block rude people and bigots.
http://fromtheheartofeurope.eu
http://fromtheheartofeurope.eu
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Nicholas Whyte 白怀珂
@nwhyte.bsky.social
· Nov 17
From the Heart of Europe
Books, politics, languages and life
fromtheheartofeurope.eu
Hi. I’m a science fiction fan, a Brussels public affairs consultant, & political commentator in Norn Iron. You are welcome to follow me but I usually won’t add you back unless I know you personally. Feel free to DM if you suspect I have forgotten who you are!
Blogging at fromtheheartofeurope.eu
Blogging at fromtheheartofeurope.eu
Thief of Time, by Terry Pratchett
fromtheheartofeurope.eu/thief-of-tim...
The most successful bit for me was the portrayal of the Auditors of Time.
fromtheheartofeurope.eu/thief-of-tim...
The most successful bit for me was the portrayal of the Auditors of Time.
Thief of Time, by Terry Pratchett
The most successful bit for me was the portrayal of the Auditors of Time.
fromtheheartofeurope.eu
November 25, 2025 at 6:11 PM
Thief of Time, by Terry Pratchett
fromtheheartofeurope.eu/thief-of-tim...
The most successful bit for me was the portrayal of the Auditors of Time.
fromtheheartofeurope.eu/thief-of-tim...
The most successful bit for me was the portrayal of the Auditors of Time.
2025 book 280: Ness: A Story from the Ulster Cycle, by Patrick Brown
November 25, 2025 at 5:23 PM
2025 book 280: Ness: A Story from the Ulster Cycle, by Patrick Brown
There is only one country with lower defence spending per GDP or as % of government budget than Ireland: Mauritius, which has formal defence agreements with England, France and UK. Ireland has no defence agreements with anyone.
Don’t miss today’s fascinating Big Read by @judewebber.bsky.social and @helenwarrell.bsky.social on #FTEdit 👉 on.ft.com/4ikI6EN
How Ireland became the weak spot in Europe’s defences
With few ships and limited intelligence-sharing, some say the country cannot hope to protect itself or its infrastructure
on.ft.com
November 25, 2025 at 4:32 PM
There is only one country with lower defence spending per GDP or as % of government budget than Ireland: Mauritius, which has formal defence agreements with England, France and UK. Ireland has no defence agreements with anyone.
My top book of 1917:
fromtheheartofeurope.eu/july-books-2...
The Man with Two Left Feet, by P.G. Wodehouse
(shout out also to His Last Bow, by Arthur Conan Doyle; but it is a thin year)
fromtheheartofeurope.eu/july-books-2...
The Man with Two Left Feet, by P.G. Wodehouse
(shout out also to His Last Bow, by Arthur Conan Doyle; but it is a thin year)
November 25, 2025 at 10:44 AM
My top book of 1917:
fromtheheartofeurope.eu/july-books-2...
The Man with Two Left Feet, by P.G. Wodehouse
(shout out also to His Last Bow, by Arthur Conan Doyle; but it is a thin year)
fromtheheartofeurope.eu/july-books-2...
The Man with Two Left Feet, by P.G. Wodehouse
(shout out also to His Last Bow, by Arthur Conan Doyle; but it is a thin year)
My top book of 1916:
fromtheheartofeurope.eu/a-portrait-o...
A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man, by James Joyce
(shout out to Mr Britling Sees It Through, by H.G. Wells; and The Home and the World, by Rabindranath Tagore; polite nod to Seventeen, by Booth Tarkington)
fromtheheartofeurope.eu/a-portrait-o...
A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man, by James Joyce
(shout out to Mr Britling Sees It Through, by H.G. Wells; and The Home and the World, by Rabindranath Tagore; polite nod to Seventeen, by Booth Tarkington)
November 25, 2025 at 10:42 AM
My top book of 1916:
fromtheheartofeurope.eu/a-portrait-o...
A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man, by James Joyce
(shout out to Mr Britling Sees It Through, by H.G. Wells; and The Home and the World, by Rabindranath Tagore; polite nod to Seventeen, by Booth Tarkington)
fromtheheartofeurope.eu/a-portrait-o...
A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man, by James Joyce
(shout out to Mr Britling Sees It Through, by H.G. Wells; and The Home and the World, by Rabindranath Tagore; polite nod to Seventeen, by Booth Tarkington)
Reposted by Nicholas Whyte 白怀珂
A special one for Doctor Who Day: a great long post on the novelisation of one of the best stories ever, Genesis of the Daleks: 0tralala.blogspot.com/2025/11/doct... #books #booksky #doctorwho
Doctor Who and the Genesis of the Daleks, by Terrance Dicks
0tralala.blogspot.com
November 23, 2025 at 5:43 PM
A special one for Doctor Who Day: a great long post on the novelisation of one of the best stories ever, Genesis of the Daleks: 0tralala.blogspot.com/2025/11/doct... #books #booksky #doctorwho
The Deep Betrayal of Nathan Gill
A Personal Reckoning
gawaintowler.substack.com
November 24, 2025 at 4:41 PM
I have been checking the "Year X in literature" pages on Wikipedia and other sources to get the info. (Also trying to be firm about what counts as 'published' in a given year.) It gets much more difficult from 1920ish as there are so many more books that are around from that period.
November 24, 2025 at 10:26 AM
I have been checking the "Year X in literature" pages on Wikipedia and other sources to get the info. (Also trying to be firm about what counts as 'published' in a given year.) It gets much more difficult from 1920ish as there are so many more books that are around from that period.
Fair question! I realised on 2 November that it was 60 days to the end of the year, and if I did three years per day, I could do the top books - in my own personal view, of those that I have actually read - for every year from 1846 to 2025 in the remaining days of the year.
November 24, 2025 at 10:26 AM
Fair question! I realised on 2 November that it was 60 days to the end of the year, and if I did three years per day, I could do the top books - in my own personal view, of those that I have actually read - for every year from 1846 to 2025 in the remaining days of the year.
My top book of 1914:
fromtheheartofeurope.eu/august-books...
Dubliners, by James Joyce
(shout out to Beasts and Super-Beasts, by Saki; and The Emperor of Portugallia, by Selma Lagerlöf)
fromtheheartofeurope.eu/august-books...
Dubliners, by James Joyce
(shout out to Beasts and Super-Beasts, by Saki; and The Emperor of Portugallia, by Selma Lagerlöf)
November 24, 2025 at 10:16 AM
My top book of 1914:
fromtheheartofeurope.eu/august-books...
Dubliners, by James Joyce
(shout out to Beasts and Super-Beasts, by Saki; and The Emperor of Portugallia, by Selma Lagerlöf)
fromtheheartofeurope.eu/august-books...
Dubliners, by James Joyce
(shout out to Beasts and Super-Beasts, by Saki; and The Emperor of Portugallia, by Selma Lagerlöf)
My top book of 1913:
fromtheheartofeurope.eu/the-way-by-s...
Swann's Way, by Marcel Proust
(I'm afraid that Sons and Lovers, by D.H. Lawrence, was ruined for me by Monty Python)
fromtheheartofeurope.eu/the-way-by-s...
Swann's Way, by Marcel Proust
(I'm afraid that Sons and Lovers, by D.H. Lawrence, was ruined for me by Monty Python)
November 24, 2025 at 10:14 AM
My top book of 1913:
fromtheheartofeurope.eu/the-way-by-s...
Swann's Way, by Marcel Proust
(I'm afraid that Sons and Lovers, by D.H. Lawrence, was ruined for me by Monty Python)
fromtheheartofeurope.eu/the-way-by-s...
Swann's Way, by Marcel Proust
(I'm afraid that Sons and Lovers, by D.H. Lawrence, was ruined for me by Monty Python)
My top book of 1912:
The Crock of Gold, by James Stephens
(shout outs to The Autobiography of an Ex-Colored Man, by James Weldon Johnson; and Pygmalion, by George Bernard Shaw)
The Crock of Gold, by James Stephens
(shout outs to The Autobiography of an Ex-Colored Man, by James Weldon Johnson; and Pygmalion, by George Bernard Shaw)
November 24, 2025 at 10:14 AM
My top book of 1912:
The Crock of Gold, by James Stephens
(shout outs to The Autobiography of an Ex-Colored Man, by James Weldon Johnson; and Pygmalion, by George Bernard Shaw)
The Crock of Gold, by James Stephens
(shout outs to The Autobiography of an Ex-Colored Man, by James Weldon Johnson; and Pygmalion, by George Bernard Shaw)
2025 book 279: Camp Damascus, by Chuck Tingle
November 23, 2025 at 9:55 PM
2025 book 279: Camp Damascus, by Chuck Tingle
Lighting a candle against the darkness.
November 23, 2025 at 5:54 PM
Lighting a candle against the darkness.
The best known books set in each country: Burundi
fromtheheartofeurope.eu/the-best-kno...
Small Country, by Gaël Faye
fromtheheartofeurope.eu/the-best-kno...
Small Country, by Gaël Faye
The best known books set in each country: Burundi
Small Country, by Gaël Faye
fromtheheartofeurope.eu
November 23, 2025 at 5:53 PM
The best known books set in each country: Burundi
fromtheheartofeurope.eu/the-best-kno...
Small Country, by Gaël Faye
fromtheheartofeurope.eu/the-best-kno...
Small Country, by Gaël Faye
My top book of 1911:
fromtheheartofeurope.eu/december-boo...
The Secret Garden, by Frances Hodgson Burnett
(shout outs to The Chronicles of Clovis, by Saki; The Lair of the White Worm, by Bram Stoker; and The Innocence of Father Brown, by G.K. Chesterton)
fromtheheartofeurope.eu/december-boo...
The Secret Garden, by Frances Hodgson Burnett
(shout outs to The Chronicles of Clovis, by Saki; The Lair of the White Worm, by Bram Stoker; and The Innocence of Father Brown, by G.K. Chesterton)
November 23, 2025 at 3:23 PM
My top book of 1911:
fromtheheartofeurope.eu/december-boo...
The Secret Garden, by Frances Hodgson Burnett
(shout outs to The Chronicles of Clovis, by Saki; The Lair of the White Worm, by Bram Stoker; and The Innocence of Father Brown, by G.K. Chesterton)
fromtheheartofeurope.eu/december-boo...
The Secret Garden, by Frances Hodgson Burnett
(shout outs to The Chronicles of Clovis, by Saki; The Lair of the White Worm, by Bram Stoker; and The Innocence of Father Brown, by G.K. Chesterton)
My top book of 1910:
fromtheheartofeurope.eu/the-history-...
The History of Mr Polly, by H.G. Wells
(shout out to The Broad Highway, by Jeffery Farnol)
(to my surprise and annoyance, I find that I have not actually read Howard's End - yet)
fromtheheartofeurope.eu/the-history-...
The History of Mr Polly, by H.G. Wells
(shout out to The Broad Highway, by Jeffery Farnol)
(to my surprise and annoyance, I find that I have not actually read Howard's End - yet)
November 23, 2025 at 3:20 PM
My top book of 1910:
fromtheheartofeurope.eu/the-history-...
The History of Mr Polly, by H.G. Wells
(shout out to The Broad Highway, by Jeffery Farnol)
(to my surprise and annoyance, I find that I have not actually read Howard's End - yet)
fromtheheartofeurope.eu/the-history-...
The History of Mr Polly, by H.G. Wells
(shout out to The Broad Highway, by Jeffery Farnol)
(to my surprise and annoyance, I find that I have not actually read Howard's End - yet)
My top book of 1909:
fromtheheartofeurope.eu/ann-veronica...
Ann Veronica, by H.G. Wells
(shout outs to The Machine Stops, by E.M. Forster; and The Rosary, by Florence M. Barclay)
fromtheheartofeurope.eu/ann-veronica...
Ann Veronica, by H.G. Wells
(shout outs to The Machine Stops, by E.M. Forster; and The Rosary, by Florence M. Barclay)
November 23, 2025 at 3:17 PM
My top book of 1909:
fromtheheartofeurope.eu/ann-veronica...
Ann Veronica, by H.G. Wells
(shout outs to The Machine Stops, by E.M. Forster; and The Rosary, by Florence M. Barclay)
fromtheheartofeurope.eu/ann-veronica...
Ann Veronica, by H.G. Wells
(shout outs to The Machine Stops, by E.M. Forster; and The Rosary, by Florence M. Barclay)
A theoretical discussion, I fear.
November 23, 2025 at 12:33 PM
A theoretical discussion, I fear.
Sure, but there is a deterrent effect from having the means to deal with it.
November 23, 2025 at 12:07 PM
Sure, but there is a deterrent effect from having the means to deal with it.
2025 book 278: Scotland, Épisode 1, by Rodolphe, Leo and Marchal
November 23, 2025 at 12:04 PM
2025 book 278: Scotland, Épisode 1, by Rodolphe, Leo and Marchal
Reposted by Nicholas Whyte 白怀珂
You could be the artist who designs next year's Hugo award trophy base
LAcon V is soliciting submissions for a base design for the Hugo Awards that celebrates science fiction’s sense of adventure and what makes LAcon V and Southern California special
Base contest rules here: www.lacon.org/hugobase
LAcon V is soliciting submissions for a base design for the Hugo Awards that celebrates science fiction’s sense of adventure and what makes LAcon V and Southern California special
Base contest rules here: www.lacon.org/hugobase
November 22, 2025 at 4:23 PM
You could be the artist who designs next year's Hugo award trophy base
LAcon V is soliciting submissions for a base design for the Hugo Awards that celebrates science fiction’s sense of adventure and what makes LAcon V and Southern California special
Base contest rules here: www.lacon.org/hugobase
LAcon V is soliciting submissions for a base design for the Hugo Awards that celebrates science fiction’s sense of adventure and what makes LAcon V and Southern California special
Base contest rules here: www.lacon.org/hugobase