Phone a Friend

Today I ran around doing stuff from breakfast time until mid afternoon. 

Then I ran out of gas (bit like the UK) and collapsed in a heap (bit like the UK).

In theory I was going to bully myself into cutting the grass before dinner, but in practice it rained a bit so I didn't. 

Anyway, I have started reading a new book which seems promising. I will let you guess which one. 

Ok, maybe a clue would help. It is not set in either Algeria or the Netherlands.