Russians, centipede and swallows.

1. Last day of the holidays, and I've woken very early. I summon up George Saunders' Pond in the Rain and bob around with his Russians and their short stories before sinking back into sleep.

2. Like a bonfire spark and its afterglow, a yellow centipede returns to the darkness at the bottom of the compost heap.

3. In the hour before bed we let David Attenborough's nesting swallows and path laying mice yank our heart strings around.