A meditation on reality: Transcription, by Ben Lerner, reviewed
In a short, glittering novel, Lerner shows how the factual is always infused with the fictional as he explores the tension between the given and the constructed
In defense of rats
In the ranks of unloved animals, rats are surely king — so reviled that other pest species are often referred…
In defence of rats
I n the ranks of unloved animals, rats are surely king – so reviled that other pest species are often…
Revolt in paradise
Since announcing his retirement in 2013, Jim Crace has had more comebacks than Kanye West, something for which we should…
Carp
All anglers are obsessive, but carp fishers are the most single-minded of all. They think nothing of spending weeks on…
Pigeon racing
Pigeon racing isn’t much of a spectator sport. Race birds are driven to the ‘liberation point’, where they’re released to…
Man about the house
I have enjoyed many of Alan Warner’s previous novels, so it gives me no pleasure to report that his new…
A novel view of Brexit: Middle England, by Jonathan Coe, reviewed
Jonathan Coe writes compelling, humane and funny novels, but you sometimes suspect he wants to write more audacious ones. He…
Back to basics
Tim Parks is a writer of some very fine books indeed, which makes it even more of a shame that…
