A few days ago I mentioned a visit I made to a school in Soweto. Here is a picture of Boepakitso Primary School.

A fairly typical and functional piece of architecture and scene by any standards. What it doesn't show is the commitment, verve and vision of the teaching staff and the enthusiasm of the children. The school is partly supported by the Read Educational Trust which is our partner in South African publishing sector's first black empowerment transaction.

For those interested in statistics, our promotional video for Quirkology which I wrote about last week has now been viewed 769,427 times. Now, if each view sells a book...

After my technology-jinxed weekend in Suffolk I'm glad to be independent of guest bloggers but concerned that the guests succeeded kicking traffic numbers up and I suspect fooled readers into expecting higher standards of writing and insight than I can manage.

While on the standard of writing, here is an Observer review of my pick of the moment. Do get hold of a copy of When we were bad and find a few hours to read it. See if you agree with the reviewer and me.