• We could take a train, be miles away by morning…

    There was a song that Genie and I used to listen to in our early days together, as we drove around America getting to know both the country and each other. The lyrics went: At the time, we never could ...

Giveaway: Granta Best of Young British Novelists 2003

18 April 2013 · Reading · Comments { 6 }

The announcement this week of Granta’s Best of Young British Novelists 2013 reminded me that I have a spare copy of the collection from 2003, featuring young talents like Zadie Smith, Monica Ali, Adam Thirlwell, Hari Kunzru and David Mitchell. If you’d like me to send a free copy to you, just leave a comment [...]

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How to Improve your Foreign Language Immediately

15 April 2013 · Reading · Comments { 12 }

This is a very slim book – just 95 pages – and yet it comes with a big promise in the title and big endorsements from Shekhtman’s former students in places like The New York Times and The Pentagon. Surprisingly, the book does deliver on its promise. Shekhtman’s technique is not to improve your language [...]

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Ian McEwan’s early writing influences

9 April 2013 · The writing process · Comments { 6 }

Ian McEwan was interviewed in his university magazine this month, talking about his early influences and how he became a writer. Since it’s an interesting story, and some of you may possibly not have seen the latest copy of Falmer: The University of Sussex Magazine, I thought I’d summarise it here. Failure and disappointment The [...]

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A few updates

4 April 2013 · A Virtual Love · Comments { 8 }

Well, it’s been a busy few days. First there was the launch party for A Virtual Love, which you can see pictures of here if you missed them before. Then the following things happened, in no particular order: Got a wonderful review over on Tales from the Reading Room - “As a portrait of modern love [...]

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The book launch

29 March 2013 · A Virtual Love, Literary events · Comments { 19 }

Thanks to everyone who came to my book launch on Wednesday night! It was a wonderful evening, by which I mean that lots of people turned up and I didn’t botch my speech or reading For those of you who couldn’t make it, due to minor inconveniences like living on different continents, here are the [...]

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The Quiddity of Will Self by Sam Mills

25 March 2013 · Reading · Comments { 4 }

This book is unlike any other I’ve read. That, in itself, is a reason I’m glad I read it. In a world in which too many books are reminiscent of other books, this one is truly unique. It may sound a little odd to praise the book’s uniqueness, when it has another writer’s name and [...]

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