tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10817112562321970742012-02-20T16:45:37.988Zbibliography and book recommendationsTrapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.comBlogger2521100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-15996640443905301022012-02-13T23:43:00.004Z2012-02-19T21:00:44.447Z

Waiting for Sunrise is William Boyd’s 11th novel. He is an author who has won many accolades, without perhaps achieving the popular recognition of some of his contemporaries. Although Boyd is often considered a Scottish writer, he was actually born in Accra in Ghana. However, he was educated at Gordonstoun School and subsequently attended the University of Glasgow. Boyd has won many literary

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-60869440194457108452012-02-05T16:08:00.002Z2012-02-05T16:14:50.413Z

The White Lie by Andrea Gillies is a first novel about the unreliability of personal history, a theme which seemed to crop up a lot last year and on which I have commented previously. The White Lie is set against the background of a decaying highland estate. We quickly learn that the narrator is dead and much of the book is about how and why this happened, and how a secret can become distorted

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-86204163182882648762012-01-29T18:00:00.000Z2012-01-29T18:00:01.906Z

Short stories are one of the most undervalued literary formats, but many very fine writers have achieved their initial success in this format before going on to full length novels, while others continue to produce very high quality short stories throughout their literary career (Haruki Murakami, for instance). A good short story can achieve considerable impact in a few pages, along with

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-69490811365860178342012-01-23T18:45:00.001Z2012-01-25T22:03:55.655Z

The Art of Fielding by Chad Harbach is a first novel about baseball, and this is likely to limit its appeal within the UK. As someone who crosses the Atlantic quite regularly, I like basesball, although the finer points of its rules and appealare about as well understood here as the finer points and appeal of cricket are in the US. Do you need to like baseball to appreciate this book? I don’t

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-82418254346598048992012-01-21T19:45:00.001Z2012-01-21T19:46:38.258Z

All is Song is the second novel by Samantha Harvey, born in Kent in 1975. Her first novel, The Wilderness did extremely well and was shortlisted for the Orange Prize for Fiction 2009, longlisted for the 2009 Man Booker Prize, shortlisted for the Guardian First Book Award and won the 2009 AMI Literature Award and the Betty Trask Prize. She was recently named by The Culture Show as one of the 12

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-57732027487080102042012-01-08T17:41:00.000Z2012-01-08T17:41:13.422Z

The category winners in the Costa Book Prize were announced earlier this week. I was pleased to see a win for one of the books I recommended last year in the novel category (Pure by Andrew Miller). However, the one which really caught my eye was Blood Red Road by Moira Young in the Children’s category. It is a young adult book which should also appeal to older readers and a couple of

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-57116247546953474962012-01-03T00:04:00.001Z2012-01-03T20:33:11.082Z

The Telegraph previews the literary year ahead this week, and after a busy December and Christmas I am returning to blogging action.  I'm looking forward to The Chemistry of Tears by Peter Carey but no doubt there will be much other good reading in the year ahead.  The Independent offers a different take on things to come, although Carey features in both. Finally, a trailer for one of the best

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-83150057594181743662011-12-11T17:49:00.000Z2011-12-11T17:49:38.902Z

Michel Houellebecq is a controversial writer, but one who is unlikely to be forgotten and who is capable of greatness. He was born on the French island of Reunion, but lived in Ireland for many years and is currently based in Spain. The Map and the Territory is his fifth novel, although he has published a number of volumes of poetry and non-fiction in addition. It was published in France in

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-46645066640238190322011-12-04T23:27:00.000Z2011-12-04T23:27:30.553Z

New book releases slow down at this time of year, so I want to highlight a first novel which I picked up a few months ago and which remains available signed for around cost. Kevin Barry is an Irish writer from Limerick. In 2007 he won the Rooney Prize for Irish Literature for his short story collection There are Little Kingdoms. City of Bohane was his first novel, released in paperback only, a

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-61325309136138793292011-11-26T17:47:00.001Z2011-11-26T17:47:50.947Z

I am always interested in the lists of books of the year which begin to appear around now, although it seems that "around now" becomes a little earlier each year.  Almost inevitably the lists are in categories, and of course it is the fiction section where I look first.  One of the first to appear in my inbox this year has been the Amazon UK list, which seems to be based on the editors'

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-61357830222537121922011-11-22T22:49:00.000Z2011-11-22T22:49:53.868Z

Emma Donoghue is a well established Irish writer currently living in Canada, and best known here for her Booker prize shortlisted novel Room. The Sealed Letter was originally published in Canada in 2008 where it was joint winner of the Lambda Literary Award for Lesbian Fiction, longlisted for the Giller Prize and was a NOW Magazine Top Ten Book of the Year. However, I don't think it was

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-19418817583806338952011-11-15T22:35:00.000Z2011-11-15T22:35:10.115Z

The shortlists for the various Costa Book Awards have just been announced, and several of my previous recommendations feature.  Four books have been shortlisted in each of the categories.  In the Novel category, both The Sense of an Ending (Julian Barnes) and Pure (Andrew Miller)  have been shortlisted, along with A Summer of Drowning (John Burnisde) and My Dear I Wanted to Tell You (Louisa Young

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-57827737784742116832011-11-14T00:14:00.006Z2011-11-16T12:51:03.252Z

Among my other reading, I try each year to cover some new poetry. Memorial is a sixth volume from Alice Oswald, born in 1966 and a previous winner of the TS Eliot prize in 2002. Oswald read Classics at Oxford and has worked as a gardener at Chelsea Physic Garden. She now lives with her husband and three children in Devon. Her first collection of poetry, The Thing in the Gap-Stone Stile (1996),

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-25856413556851502622011-11-11T20:59:00.000Z2011-11-11T20:59:22.119Z

A cat met up with a big male rat in the attic and chased him into a corner. The rat, trembling, said, "Please don't eat me, Mr.Cat. I have to go back to my family. I have hungry children waiting for me. Please let me go." The Cat said, "Don't worry, I won't eat you. To tell you the truth, I can't say this too loudly, but I’m a vegetarian. I don't eat any meat. You were lucky to run into me."

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-35432828255328940612011-11-06T22:25:00.000Z2011-11-06T22:25:10.776Z

Salvage the Bones is a second novel from Jesmyn Ward. It has just been shortlisted for a National Book Award in the United States and received a very strong review in the Times on Saturday. Ward's first novel (Where the Line Bleeds) received a number of awards in the United States and it seems that she may be a significant new voice in American fiction. Ward grew up in relative poverty in a

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-75411358856229214052011-11-06T10:55:00.012Z2011-12-11T14:45:26.676Z

The limited edition of 1Q84 by Haruki Murakami has now been sent out and has made its way to the lucky owners (or sellers).  It was greatly oversubscribed, and while not the rarest of Murakami's limited editions, it may turn out the be the most desirable. The final edition size was exactly 111 copies. The book was shipped in a cardboard box with the edition number on the top, sealed with a gold

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-49399924188018901612011-10-31T00:05:00.000Z2011-10-31T00:05:10.897Z

I like to support Irish authors were possible, and this week's choice is The Bloody Meadow, the second novel by William Ryan to feature Aleksei Korolev, a detective Working for the Moscow Criminal Investigation Division in 1930s Russia. It follows on from The Holy Thief which was very well reviewed and shortlisted for a number of crime fiction awards. The Bloody Meadow could be read as a

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-61253209356434495772011-10-16T10:27:00.001+01:002011-10-23T12:27:30.032+01:00

The winner of the Man Booker Prize will be announced this week on 18th October.  There is some controversy around the prize most years.  Inevitably, when a panel of judges attempt to select the literary novel of the year many readers are likely to disagree with their choice.  This year’s panel (chaired by Stella Rimington, former MI5 chief) have mainly been criticized for being too populist.  The

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-80184275660323170662011-10-02T20:55:00.001+01:002011-10-15T19:23:34.824+01:00

“There is no happiness in love, except at the end of an English novel.” Three novels in 18 years is not a prolific literary output but if quality matters more than quantity (as it surely does) then Jeffrey Eugenides is an important author. He was born in Detroit in 1960, and is of Greek and Irish descent. The Marriage Plot is his first novel since Middlesex won the Pulitzer Prize in 2002, but

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-37376762087261875132011-10-02T10:19:00.003+01:002011-10-02T21:22:10.467+01:00

The release of Murakami's 1Q84 will be the highlight of  the autumn in the world of literary fiction.   A number of bookshops are planning late night openings so that the cognoscenti can get their hands on a copy at the magic hour of midnight, or at least a copy of the first two volumes (combined in one for the UK and US release). A bit like the Harry Potter days, but with a much more refined (

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-13298789174840119162011-09-26T00:18:00.001+01:002011-09-29T11:51:42.215+01:00

I'm rather looking forward to my retirement, although I still have quite a while to go. Until then, I have to continue to fit my interest in books around the day job and unfortunately this will occasionally result in gaps in my blog, which is my rather long-winded way of apologising for the hiatus since my last book of the week. The Cat's Table is the sixth novel from Sri Lankan born Canadian

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-19368481451823502752011-09-11T12:01:00.000+01:002011-09-11T12:01:23.813+01:00

Book trailers are a relatively recent phenomenon which seem to be becoming more popular.  They generally make use of youtube or similar technology, not unlike the path taken by cinema trailers.  I remain uncertain about what sort of impact they will have.  Cinema presents the trailer in the same medium as the final product.  Publishers have done this in the past with sampler chapters, a concept

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-57723502186797286332011-09-06T21:20:00.003+01:002011-09-09T20:07:57.422+01:00

Time for the 2011 Man Booker prize shortlist. The one previous winner (Alan Holinghurst, who was the bookies favourite), has not made it, and only one of this list has been shortlisted before. Julian Barnes, therefore, is likely to be the favourite for The Sense of an Ending (which I have reviewed recently).  He is the only "heavyweight" on the list and success would reward his career, although

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-35278215901137746822011-08-28T20:12:00.002+01:002011-11-27T20:01:06.455Z

Solace is a first novel from Irish author Belinda McKeon. She was born in 1979 and grew up on a farm in Co. Longford. She studied English and Philosophy in Dublin, and now lives in Brooklyn, New York and in Ireland. Her writing has been published in a number of literary journals including The Paris Review, The Dublin Review and Irish Pages, and has been included in a couple of anthologies (

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-87805888894703417022011-08-21T17:16:00.000+01:002011-08-21T17:16:26.056+01:00

Waterline is Ross Raisin’s second novel, after the very well received God’s Own Country. Like its predecessor, it follows the downward spiral of an isolated male figure who becomes dislocated from his usual world. In this case Mick is an ex-shipyard worker from Glasgow whose wife dies from an asbestos related cancer, almost certainly a consequence of Mick’s work. Following her death, he moves

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-40710077143246869662011-08-14T20:23:00.000+01:002011-08-14T20:23:33.702+01:00

I thought I would take one of my occasional forays into the world of fantasy fiction this week, an area with a very enthusiastic core of collectors. The Straight Razor Cure is the first book is a projected series by Daniel Polansky set in the fictional world of Low Town, and is a blend of noir crime and science fiction/fantasy. It has received very positive reviews and I a sure will be a good

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-880416808557070032011-08-07T23:47:00.000+01:002011-08-07T23:47:32.240+01:00

Julian Barnes is a well established and successful writer, shortlisted on three previous occasions for the Booker Prize. The Sense of an Ending, which has just been released, has already been longlisted for this year’s Prize. It is a short novel (only around 150 pages) which is about the impact of memory (or forgetting) on the chain of events that give us our sense of self. Unlikely to be an

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-36784691913681444762011-07-31T17:27:00.001+01:002011-07-31T19:08:00.913+01:00

I have written about Sebastian Barry previously, as one of a number of Irish authors whose fiction I like a great deal. On Canaan’s Side is his eighth novel, and follows the very successful Secret Scripture, which won the James Tait Black Memorial Prize for fiction and Costa Book of the Year, and was shortlisted for the 2008 Man Booker Prize, narrowly losing out to Aravind Adiga's The White

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-35833402781406220852011-07-27T04:44:00.001+01:002011-07-27T07:00:15.028+01:00

The long list for the 2011 Man Booker prize has been announced. The list contains more than a few surprises, along with the usual omissions. This year, seven of the books were issued as paperbacks only which I think must be a record. The 13 books on the list include one former Man Booker Prize winner (Alan Holinghurst, the bookies favourite), two previously shortlisted writers, one longlisted

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-16416448847845320832011-07-16T18:18:00.000+01:002011-07-16T18:18:46.868+01:00

I am travelling at the moment, and taking the opportunity to catch up on some holiday reading. This is a relatively slow time of the year for new book releases, but one that has caught my eye is Prince of Thorns by Mark Lawrence. I mainly prefer to read literary fiction, with a smattering of crime and an occasional foray into fantasy. Prince of Thorns falls into the latter category, and is a

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-86916239493163757102011-07-09T00:13:00.001+01:002011-07-31T17:00:57.347+01:00

Further to my previous post, The Stranger’s Child has received very positive reviews, so I thought it would be of interest to provide some further information on the limited editions. There seem to be two of these in the UK. The first is a signed, numbered slipcased edition of 500 copies available exclusively from Goldsboro books. I have not seen this as yet, so I am not sure if it is the

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-84612109736559405232011-07-02T22:22:00.006+01:002011-11-06T17:33:42.398Z

It is now a couple of years since IQ84 by Haruki Murakami was released in Japan, to great acclaim.  It has since been published in a couple of other countries, and the UK edition is due in October this year.  The book was originally published in three volumes - the UK edition will come in two parts, with volume 1 and 2 combined in a single book, and volume 3 separately. There will be both

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-37642259895150633862011-06-27T00:21:00.000+01:002011-06-27T00:21:27.286+01:00

Pure is the sixth novel from Andrew Miller, and is set in 18th century Paris around a cemetery. Miller is a good example of a novelist who has attracted considerable critical acclaim and success, including winning the IMPAC prize, but probably without reaching a huge readership. I have enjoyed several of his previous books, all of which can still be picked up very cheaply as first editions.

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-41548212670120919012011-06-19T21:04:00.003+01:002011-07-31T17:02:56.473+01:00

Alan Hollinghurst is not a prolific author, and The Stranger’s Child is his first novel since A Line of Beauty won the Booker Prize in 2004. He was born in Stroud in Gloucestershire, England in 1954 and his early publications were mainly poetry. His first novel, The Swimming-Pool Library (1988), gives an account of London gay life in the early 1980s through the story of a young aristocrat,

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-75267418778334892462011-06-05T20:48:00.001+01:002011-06-06T16:13:50.674+01:00

Some of the finest writing in English comes from Indian authors, who seem to me to value and champion an elegance of style which has become uncommon in native English writers. There are many fine young Indian authors, some of whom I have highlighted previously – Amitav Ghosh should now probably be considered a senior statesman among Indian authors writing in English, and has increasingly been

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-68076246804706181682011-05-29T20:42:00.006+01:002011-06-05T08:57:25.434+01:00

Ali Smith is one of my favourite writers – intelligent, funny and usually with a slightly quirky or experimental approach in her books. “There but for the” is her most recent novel – it is divided into four sections (There, But, For, The), but is a unified whole. Smith has a good track record in the Literary Prizes and I have always enjoyed her work, so I am looking forward to this one very

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-1782439427830034682011-05-22T21:22:00.000+01:002011-05-22T21:22:17.717+01:00

Anyone who follows this blog will know that while my preference is for literary fiction, I occasionally dip into other genres for a little variety. An Agent of Deceit is probably best described as a thriller, and is a first novel by Chris Morgan Jones. Jones was born in Aberystwyth, and for eleven years worked for the world's largest business intelligence agency (Kroll). During his time there

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-8280328454484404922011-05-13T23:09:00.000+01:002011-05-13T23:09:03.771+01:00

The book of the moment in the world of literary fiction seems to be At Last, by Edward St. Aubyn, the fifth in a series which began in 1992 and features the character Patrick Melrose. The previous volume in the series, Mother's Milk, was shortlisted for the Booker prize in 2006 and At Last may well be in the running again this year. Reviews have been universally positive; signed copies are just

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-30136063740531698972011-05-01T18:35:00.001+01:002011-05-01T20:17:25.733+01:00

The Forgotten Waltz is a novel chronicling an affair in Dublin, set against the background of the peak of the Irish economy and its subsequent crash. It is Enright’s first novel since The Gathering won the Booker Prize in 2007. The urban affluent setting is somewhat of a departure for Enright, but the themes of the novel will be familiar to those who know her work – many of her books and

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-57932781880503375552011-04-24T15:57:00.001+01:002011-05-01T20:17:46.083+01:00

Philip Hensher is very much part of the literary establishment – a regular contributor to two national broadsheets, an ex-judge of the Booker Prize and also shortlisted for his last novel. Nonetheless, I suspect that he remains largely unknown to most of the reading public, who themselves constitute a small minority of the whole population. Almost all of his back catalogue can be picked up very

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-64025876321781328362011-04-17T18:02:00.001+01:002011-04-17T18:04:25.734+01:00

This is a book which will strongly divide opinion, much like James Frey himself. Frey is a controversial figure, who came to prominence as a result of a critically acclaimed autobiography (A Million Little Pieces) which was eventually revealed as having significant fictitious elements. Oprah Winfrey was among those who felt they had been defrauded by Frey, who was dropped by his agent, and

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-81587109065251183222011-04-16T18:22:00.000+01:002011-04-16T18:22:17.769+01:00

The shortlist for this year's Orange Prize for Fiction was announced earlier this week, highlighting some of the best literary fiction in English by female writers over the last year. The gender specificity of the prize has always been a little controversial, but I have followed it with interest from the beginning and have picked up copies of the UK firsts of each of the books on the shortlist,

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-47960980947879579062011-04-04T00:30:00.000+01:002011-04-04T00:30:44.250+01:00

Téa Obreht’s first novel, The Tiger’s Wife, has made a significant impact, with reviewers using words like brilliant and spectacular to describe it. Obreht was born in 1985 in the former Yugoslavia, and spent her childhood in Cyprus and Egypt before eventually immigrating to the United States in 1997. She has been named by The New Yorker as one of the twenty best American fiction writers under

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-56564893034513679122011-03-26T19:11:00.002Z2011-03-26T22:43:55.653Z

I have updated a couple of bibliographies with new releases which may be of interest.  Little Girl Lost is a stand alone novel (or perhaps the first in a new series) from Brian McGilloway, with a predominantly paperback release.  However, there is a signed limited hardcover edition of 300 copies available from Goldsboro Books.  McGilloway writes atmospheric crime fiction set around the border of

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-31102782339831453022011-03-22T00:45:00.000Z2011-03-22T00:45:08.624Z

Pigeon English is a first novel which comes with a good deal of hype – it was the subject of a significant bidding war on the part of several publishers, and the full weight of a considerable publicity machine is behind it. Nonetheless, reviewers have been very positive. It employs the increasingly popular device of a first person child narrator, and addresses the rather trendy societal

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-81355891377199513402011-03-13T14:20:00.000Z2011-03-13T14:20:20.798Z

This week I have chosen a first novel which has attracted quite a lot of attention, and which has already been reprinted in hardcover. When God was a Rabbit is a book about a brother and sister, told in the first person by the sister over a period of about 30 years from 1968 to the events of 9/11. The author, Sarah Winman, was born in 1964 and grew up in Essex. She attended the Webber Douglas

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-83946393100169529722011-03-08T03:26:00.000Z2011-03-08T03:26:26.473Z

It is appropriate this week to select a book by a Libyan author, in which the central event is the disappearance of a father kidnapped by the secret police. Anatomy of a Disappearance is a second novel from Hisham Matar, who’s first book (In the Country of Men) was shortlisted for the Booker Prize in 2006. In real life, Matar’s father has disappeared in Libya, and is perhaps still alive in

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-54002801317044037382011-03-01T11:51:00.000Z2011-03-01T11:51:42.890Z

Chapman's Odyssey is Paul Bailey's first novel for 9 years. Bailey was shortlisted twice for the BookerPrize early in his career (Peter Smart's Confessions (1977) and Gabriel's Lament(1986)), so it is a good opportunity to pick up a signed copy of a novel from a writer near the end of a distinguished career. In Bailey's work the physical frailty of humanity and the bizarre nature of human

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-91983104981799452542011-02-18T23:11:00.000Z2011-02-18T23:11:15.084Z

A couple of brief updates this week on authors I have featured previously.  Joe Abercrombie has published The Heroes, his fifth novel.  He did an extensive UK tour, and he is a generous signer, so there have been plenty of signed, lined and dated copies available via ebay (where I got mine). Waterstones in the UK had an exclusive first edition with an additional short story, and I think this

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-28302157977784064502011-02-13T17:10:00.003Z2011-02-16T21:32:51.680Z

Half of the Human Race is the second novel of Liverpool born author Anthony Quinn. Quinn moved to London in 1986 and has written about film and books for a number of newspapers and magazines, including The Independent, Daily Telegraph, New York Times and Mail on Sunday. For three years he was the arts editor at Harpers & Queens. Since 1998 he has been film critic of The Independent. In 2006 he

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-64740128417511472372011-02-06T18:52:00.001Z2011-02-06T18:57:15.059Z

Great House is the third novel by Nicole Krauss; the UK edition has just appeared, although it was published in the US in October 2010. I greatly enjoyed her previous novel (The History of Love), which was shortlisted for the Orange Prize – it also won the William Saroyan International Prize for Writing, France’s Prix du Meilleur Livre Ėtranger, was named #1 book of the year by Amazon.com, and

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-21378236371880380082011-01-30T17:59:00.001Z2011-04-25T13:28:23.135+01:00

Adam Mars-Jones is somewhat of an enigma as a writer.  He was selected by Granta as one of its 20 'Best of British Young Novelists' in both 1983 and 1993, but Cedilla is only his third novel (The Waters of Thirst appeared in 1993, and Pilcrow in 2008).  Cedilla is the second volume of a trilogy, and follows closely on from the end of Pilcrow.  The story is that of John Pilcrow, physically

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-966442041353742802011-01-24T14:34:00.002Z2011-01-27T10:46:54.907Z

"We Had it so Good" is Linda Grant's first novel since "The Clothes on Their Backs" was shortlisted for the Booker Prize in 2008. She has a very successful record in literary prizes. There have been some very positive reviews for her new novel, and a simultaneous hardcover and paperback release, presumably with a small print run for the former. In view of this, I think that "We had it so Good"

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-75621780161255554892011-01-16T16:04:00.000Z2011-01-16T16:04:58.982Z

About this time last year I recommended Blacklands by Belinda Bauer, a first novel (crime fiction) which had some positive reviews. As the year went on, Blacklands went on to accumulate considerable critical acclaim and was awarded the Golden Dagger for the best crime novel of the year. Blacklands’ success was based on strong characterization and an unusual plot angle. I didn’t find it as

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-33263623750442726402011-01-09T20:05:00.000Z2011-01-09T20:05:43.499Z

The London Train is Tessa Hadley’s fourth novel. Her novels are studies of relationships, well written and reflective, and The London Train falls into this pattern. There two main protagonists, Paul (a writer) and Cora (wife of a senior civil servant), both living in Wales and dealing with the aftermath of parental death and a broken marriage. It has been well reviewed and is the sort of book

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-56355861848808394632011-01-03T16:36:00.001Z2011-01-03T16:38:37.852Z

A new year and a new reading list to be constructed. My first choice this year is a first novel, Snowdrops by A.D.Miller, set in post-communist Russia. Its title comes from a slang word used to describe bodies which appear when the snow thaws in spring. Miller was born in London in 1974 and studied literature at Cambridge and Princeton, where he began his journalistic career writing travel

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-453800554063061862010-12-29T23:44:00.004Z2010-12-29T23:47:20.063Z

In many societies the symbolism of tattoos defines a person’s role or status; however, in the developed West most tattoos have personal significance for the recipient as their main function (outside certain subcultures). While a tattoo is personal, paradoxically it also provides a way of making a statement to others. http://www.contrariwise.org/ is a website dedicated to the subgenre of

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-5485097908916199752010-12-27T23:57:00.001Z2010-12-28T00:00:09.508Z

“Never Judge a Book by the Cover” was a show a Stolenspace Gallery in London before Christmas. The show was held in association with Penguin Books (as part of its 75th anniversary), to celebrate the art of book covers. A wide range of contemporary artists were invited to design (or in some cases reproduce) a cover of a favourite book. The covers were available as originals (mostly reasonably

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-83876975098612871732010-12-12T17:57:00.001Z2010-12-12T18:00:50.092Z

Most book collectors have a list of books which they would like to own, and I am like everyone else in this respect. In years gone by, searching usually meant trawling through second hand shops, writing to dealers or placing a wanted advertisement in a magazine. This process has been transformed by the internet, something on which many bloggers have written. This has undoubtedly reduced the

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-34867052731801836842010-12-06T22:54:00.001Z2011-01-01T13:52:16.886Z

Kate Atkinson made a considerable splash with her first novel, Behind the Scenes in the Museum, which won the 1995 Whitbread Book of the Year Award, and probably remains her best known (and most valuable) book. However, after publishing several more novels best characterised as literary fiction, she has turned to distinctly superior crime novels in recent years, to considerable critical acclaim.

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-27330328038321524472010-11-29T23:54:00.003Z2010-12-18T19:57:44.557Z

Rather than highlighting any single book this week, I want to mention new releases from two of my favourites. The Legion is the latest book in the Cato and Macro series by Simon Scarrow. These are all well-written page turners, and the early books in the series and very collectible (as I have discussed previously). A limited edition of 100 copies is available directly from the author, and

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-12223467701219559412010-11-21T23:48:00.001Z2010-11-22T19:28:11.918Z

I have been travelling extensively over the last few weeks, which has provided a good opportunity to read but less opportunity to think about new books. However, I hope to be around more over the next few months, so more regular posting can resume. A novel which has caught my eye due to a number of very positive reviews is Hand Me Down World by New Zealand author Lloyd Jones, who had

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-17317220257499851562010-11-08T00:04:00.001Z2010-11-08T08:42:42.275Z

None of this week’s releases particularly appeals to me, so for my book of the week I am going back three years to the first novel of Swedish author John Ajvide Lindqvist. “Let me in” is one of the films of the moment, and is based on the novel “Let the Right One In”, which was published in the UK as a hardcover by Quercus in 2007. This novel was previously filmed in Swedish and released under

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-54999440066447472272010-10-27T17:17:00.000+01:002010-10-27T17:17:38.550+01:00

"And The Land Lay Still" is the fourth novel of James Robertson. Robertson is a Scots writer, and all of his books are grounded strongly in Scottish life and culture. He is the author of three previous novels, The Fanatic, Joseph Knight and The Testament of Gideon Mack. Joseph Knight was awarded the two major Scottish literary awards in 2003/4 – the Saltire Book of the Year and the Scottish

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-51527156895783059992010-10-18T22:38:00.000+01:002010-10-18T22:38:33.757+01:00

My choice for a book of the week is an interesting first novel with elements of magical realism, dealing with the nature of depression. The author, Rebecca Hunt, was given a substantial two book deal by Penguin Fig Tree, and her first novel has been launched on the back of a considerable publicity campaign. It has been widely reviewed, generally favourably, and has already been long listed for

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-62065421886496275342010-10-11T23:34:00.000+01:002010-10-11T23:34:58.429+01:00

Foster is a first novella from Claire Keegan, an accomplished writer of short stories.  If she can successfully make the transition to writing full length novels in the future, this may prove to be a very collectable book. Keegan was born in 1968 and grew up on a farm in Wicklow, the youngest of a large Catholic family. She travelled to New Orleans, Louisiana when she was seventeen and studied

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-60281832370694106352010-10-04T15:25:00.000+01:002010-10-04T15:25:06.821+01:00

Anyone who has been following my blog for a while will know that I am interested in modern Indian fiction. There are a significant number of very fine young Indian authors, particularly writing literary fiction. Saraswati Park is the first published novel of Anjali Joseph, who was born in Bombay in 1978. She read English at Trinity College, Cambridge, and has taught English at the Sorbonne.

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-33342421493054395332010-09-26T23:04:00.002+01:002010-10-27T18:15:56.851+01:00

I have been unusually busy with work recently (unfortunately!), so my blog has had to take a back seat.  This unfortunate state of affairs is likely to continue for another couple of weeks, although a couple of long haul flights may allow me some time for reading.  At times when I am very busy, I often turn to short stories rather than a novel, although in my experience volumes of short stories

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-91655533373916133822010-09-14T00:10:00.000+01:002010-09-14T00:10:17.088+01:00

James Forrester is the pen name of the well-respected historian Dr Ian Mortimer, who is an expert on the mediaeval period and has published a number of scholarly and popular books about the period.  Sacred Treason is his first novel, set against the background of Catholic plots against the young Queen Elizabeth. The book is rich in historical detail, as would be expected, but is also by all

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-29999420582473635552010-09-07T22:35:00.001+01:002010-09-19T15:44:59.800+01:00

The Booker prize shortlist was announced today and brought a few surprises. Chief amongst these was the failure of The Slap or The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet to advance. In the case of the latter, it is certainly not David Mitchell’s finest book. However, given the high sales of The Slap and the significant controversy it has stirred up, I think it is disappointing that the judges did

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-79008384299099202682010-08-30T13:14:00.006+01:002010-08-31T10:03:43.614+01:00

I have a professional interest in trimethylaminuria, so a novel which in which the lead character is a sufferer is liable to attract my initial attention. In fact Boxer, Beetle has been noticed and reviewed by almost all of the main UK broadsheets, and has generally received positive comments. The consensus appears to be that it is a novel packed with energy, humour and ideas, most of which

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-40121538122655461692010-08-22T19:25:00.000+01:002010-08-22T19:25:37.129+01:00

This is a relatively slow time of the year for book releases, with holidays in full swing. Collusion is the second thriller by Stuart Neville, and follows on from The Twelve, which was one of the successes in this genre from 2009. There is no doubt that Neville has the knack of writing page turners – Collusion moves at a fast pace, and will keep the reader engrossed by the swimming pool or on

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-12092211386680251352010-08-15T22:35:00.002+01:002010-08-15T22:37:18.423+01:00

The Finkler Questionis the 11th novel by Howard Jacobson since Coming from Behind was published in 1983. It is the last of the Booker longlisted novels to be published this year.  Jacobson was born in Manchester, and taught as a University lecturer before becoming a full time author.  He is a comic novelist, with common themes running through all of his work which include Jewishness, literature

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-85470247190945747042010-08-10T20:43:00.008+01:002010-08-11T23:08:04.392+01:00

"C" was longlisted ahead of publication for the Booker Prize, and has just been released. It is likely to draw Tom McCarthy to wide public attention, particularly if it makes the shortlist. Copies are plentiful at present, and many seem signed, so there is no difficulty picking up a first edition. Reprinting is apparently taking place - the acetate jacket of the first edition is being

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-38067850791901358832010-08-02T22:12:00.004+01:002010-08-02T22:21:24.625+01:00

This is the time of year when I usually pick up longlisted Booker prize novels which have yet to be published.  The first of these is by Emma Donoghue, a well established Irish-born author, now living in Canada, who has published six previous novels. Roommay be a breakthrough book for her, as it has received extremely strong reviews, although the subject matter is controversial.  The novel is

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-74806048739373467182010-07-28T06:49:00.009+01:002010-08-06T12:18:50.660+01:00

So, the longlist has been published and there is the usual mixture of the expected and the surprise. The full list is given below, along with a few comments about current availability and an indication of any special editions of which I am aware. Of the thirteen books, three have yet to be published, and five of the remaining ten have featured on my Book of the Week slot during the last year (

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-60135936361706340932010-07-26T16:52:00.007+01:002010-08-04T17:29:26.221+01:00

The longlist for the 2010 Man Booker Prize will be announced this week.  There is usually a modest boost to prices for longlisted novels, with a more substantial boost when the shortlisted books are announced. The increasing trend towards simultaneous hardcover and paperback releases (with small print runs of the former), along with a range of special/limited editions of leading novels makes

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-67126360306191088952010-07-19T17:34:00.000+01:002010-07-19T17:34:52.198+01:00

I am travelling in the US at present, so a little detached from UK book releases. However, I see that Paul Harding’s first novel, Tinkers, has just been published in hardcover by Heinemann. In the last couple of years, Tinkers was the surprise success of US literary fiction, winning the 2010 Pulitzer Prize for fiction and being hailed as a masterpiece by many critics. It also had an unusual

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-46891420973552687032010-07-11T22:36:00.000+01:002010-07-11T22:36:57.785+01:00

I Curse the River of Time is the the fourth book in English by Norwegian author Per Petterson. Petterson was born in Oslo in 1952 and worked for several years as an unskilled labourer, a bookseller, a writer and a translator until he made his literary debut in 1987 with the short-story collection Ashes in my Mouth, Sand in my Shoes, which was widely acclaimed by critics. Since then he has

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-89698718465596403172010-07-04T17:51:00.002+01:002010-07-04T21:50:07.814+01:00

Barbara Trapido could not be described as a prolific author. Sex and Stravinskyis her seventh novel since Brother of the More Famous Jack was published in 1982. Nonetheless, all have been well received and Sex and Stravinsky is no exception. Trapido was born in 1941 in Capetown, South Africa, and she studied at the University of Natal, gaining a BA in 1963, before moving to London. She taught

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-77240076825693310832010-06-27T16:03:00.005+01:002010-07-05T00:03:28.030+01:00

The Passage by Justin Cronin comes heavily promoted, and is a post-apocalyptic vampire novel very much in line with the current zeitgeist. Cronin (born 1962) is American, with two previous novels (literary fiction) and a novella under his belt, winning the PEN/Hemingway Award, the Stephen Crane Prize, and the Whiting Writer's Award. However, with The Passage, he appears to have set out to write

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-55459060253917143482010-06-21T01:05:00.004+01:002010-06-21T21:00:18.604+01:00

I'm sticking with another overseas writer this week, although in this case a book written in English. Miguel Syjuco (November 17, 1976) is a Filipino writer from Manila and the Man Asian Literary Prize grand prize winner for 2008. He is the son of Augusto Syjuco Jr., a politician allied with the party of Philippine President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, and received a degree in English literature

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-10831168379241829832010-06-13T23:48:00.002+01:002010-06-13T23:51:57.921+01:00

I have a soft spot for foreign fiction in translation. Considering the enormous number of novels published in foreign languages, the mere act of acquiring an English translation is usually a mark of distinction. However, there is no doubt that this is a specialised area with restricted appeal, particularly when considering literary fiction. The Secret History of Costaguana is the second novel

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-16248189212179086082010-06-06T14:54:00.003+01:002010-06-06T14:57:27.652+01:00

The Slap, by Christos Tsiolkas, is not a new book. However, it has just been published in the UK by Tuskar Rock Press. It originally appeared in Australia as a paperback in 2008 and has picked up a slew of prizes (including the Commonwealth Writers’ Prize for 2009) and uniformly positive reviews. As a book to read, it is definitely my book of the week – but what, if any, is the appear to a

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-66420669296353974722010-05-30T23:26:00.001+01:002010-05-31T00:25:25.252+01:00

The Imperfectionists is a first novel from journalist Tom Rachman, set against the background of a struggling newspaper in Rome. The true first edition was the Australian paperback, but the UK edition (from Quercus) is the first hardcover and was published around the beginning of March. There have been plenty of very positive reviews in Australia, the UK and the USA. Signed copies of the UK

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-25635513143601227152010-05-25T00:16:00.005+01:002010-05-31T12:05:05.310+01:00

The Life and Opinions of Maf the Dog, and of His Friend Marilyn Monroe is the fourth novel from Andrew O’Hagan, and is the 'memoir' of the Maltese terrier given for Christmas 1960 by Frank Sinatra to Marilyn Monroe. In terms of theme and comedic intent, there are some similarities to Me Cheetah, the surprise of last year’s Booker Longlist. However, Maf the Dog is a more intellectual creature

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-3489922420985678562010-05-17T22:58:00.005+01:002011-01-01T16:52:05.469Z

Jonathan Coe is a well respected and critically acclaimed writer, born in Birmingham in 1961. He has a solid reputation and his early books have become very collectible, but he has not yet quite reached the top ranks of literary fiction in terms of the major prizes. “The Terrible Privacy of Maxwell Sim” is his ninth novel. The book is issued simultaneously as a hardcover and paperback, with

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-89802953868623576942010-05-09T17:18:00.005+01:002011-01-01T13:56:37.870Z

Over the course of the year, I buy one book per week. I have looked at several new books from established writers this week, none of which have seemed entirely convincing, but in the end have opted for Burley Cross Postbox Theft by Nicola Barker. Barker is an important and original writer who pushes the boundaries of conventional structure and plot. Therefore she is not for everyone, and her

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-59610239082942079292010-05-04T23:41:00.003+01:002011-05-01T20:28:32.260+01:00

Excerpts from my blog posts will now be appearing on www.hyraxia.com, which was recently established as a portal for book collectors. The main emphasis on Hyraxia is modern first editions, which also of course represents my main area of interest. There is a considerable amount of relevant material for new and established collectors, and a friendly community of both collectors and dealers who are

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-29705764609712352442010-05-02T18:02:00.003+01:002010-05-02T20:11:58.638+01:00

“We, the drowned” is a novel by Danish author and political columnist Carsten Jensen, who was born on July 24, 1952 in Marstal. He first earned recognition as a literary critic for the Copenhagen daily, Politiken. According to Henning Mankell, “Carsten Jensen is without doubt the most fascinating Nordic writer today. I look forward to his books with great impatience. Jensen is the best

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-76627311615696234722010-04-25T16:58:00.006+01:002011-03-13T22:50:11.604Z

A couple of weeks since I posted, due to volcanic ash! However, normal service can now be resumed..... David Mitchell is often cited as the best young writer in the UK, although now that he has entered his 40’s and is about to publish his fifth novel (The Thousand Zutumns of Jacob de Zoet) , he should probably be viewed simply as one of our greatest authors. Mitchell was born on 12 Jan 1969,

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-59142791281253886432010-04-11T23:50:00.001+01:002010-04-11T23:52:11.684+01:00

Although fantasy is not my favourite genre, every now and again I will try a book which gets good reviews. Farlander is a first novel from Col Buchanan, who was born in Lisburn, Northern Ireland, in 1973. Fantasy/Sci Fi collectors are a passionate bunch, and if a book does well it can become very collectible. Farlander is published by Tor Books, but there is also a limited edition of 150

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-18588349144288690082010-04-06T22:24:00.002+01:002010-04-06T22:37:14.473+01:00

I have updated two bibliographies with titles which I suspect may have been saved up for an Easter release. Firstly, Brian McGilloway has published Rising, the fourth volume in his excellent crime series set in the borderlands between the North and South of Ireland. McGilloway writes well-plotted and invariably interesting crime novels, with good character development over a series of books.

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-68720886229513180512010-04-04T22:44:00.002+01:002010-04-04T22:47:10.171+01:00

The Blasphemer, by Nigel Farndale, was published a few weeks ago, but was recently recommended to me by a colleague. It has received mixed reviews, which I suspect may have more to do with the sympathies and occupation of the author than the qualities of the book. Farndale (born September 30, 1964) is a British author and journalist, known for his award-winning interviews in the Sunday Telegraph,

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-16467603025708352932010-03-29T00:41:00.003+01:002010-03-29T00:46:03.835+01:00

A first novel this week, which has attracted quite a bit of press interest and a very positive review in The Guardian. My copy is ordered.....Emily Mackie was born in Winchester in 1983 and grew up in the Highlands of Scotland where "And this is true" is set. She graduated with an MA in Creative Writing from Bath Spa Universi ty in 2007 and now lives in Bristol, where she is working on her second

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-25047522983408170442010-03-27T09:01:00.003Z2010-03-27T09:28:00.691Z

I previously explained the background to the Man Booker Prize missing year. The judges have now announced the shortlisted books, so it is over to the public to decide the winner, and you can cast your vote here. At this point, I have to confess that I have not read any of these books (I'm too young!) and know very little about them. The deadline for the votes to be cast is 23rd April, which

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-42243295954611355532010-03-21T14:01:00.003Z2010-03-21T14:32:46.998Z

The Memory of Love is a second novel by Aminatta Forna, who was born in Glasgow, raised in Sierra Leone and the United Kingdom and now divides her time between London and Sierra Leone. She worked as a journalist for BBC Television (1989-99) and is now a full-time writer. She came to prominence following the publication of The Devil that Danced on Water in 2002, a memoir of her dissident father

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-15675100346162893102010-03-20T08:44:00.004Z2010-03-20T09:22:53.142Z

Oxfam have just released a limited edition of their Ox-Tales books which originally appeared in 2009. Thirty eight authors each contributed a short story themed on one of the four alchemical elements: Earth, Air, Fire and Water. These roughly correspond with the four main areas of Oxfam’s work: from land rights to farming (earth), combating climate change (air); campaigning for arms control (

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-80044481672145094742010-03-17T23:02:00.005Z2010-03-17T23:20:19.056Z

This is the 15th anniversary of the Orange Prize, and the longlist was announced today. It includes quite a few books I have chosen over the last year as my book of the week (ten out of the twenty on the list (!), highlighted below), so it will be interesting to see how well they do. The shortlist will be announced on 20 April. I have collected the shortlist from the first year, and have

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1081711256232197074.post-28578851950206353562010-03-15T00:35:00.004Z2010-03-15T00:37:46.684Z

Skippy Dies was released several weeks ago, but is worth highlighting as an outsider for this year's literary awards. It is a second novel by Paul Murray, and presented in the unusual format of three paperbacks in a slipcase. Paul Murray was born in 1975. He studied English literature at Trinity College in Dublin. He has a Masters degree in creative writing at the University of East Anglia. Paul

Trapnelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06528630111268345089noreply@blogger.com0