- A Cornish library has voted Piers Morgan's memoir The Insider the most-hated book. Two things struck me about this story. What's the point of a library organising a poll of this kind -- they should be promoting books, not denigrating them. And secondly, I wonder if those who voted for Morgan's book actually read it. I loathe the man myself but I thought The Insider was a brilliant read, giving you a ringside seat at some of modern history's defining moments. In fact, I loved this book so much I gave it a five-star review. Hmm.
- Crime writer Laura Lippman chooses her 10 most memorable memoirs. She's got some interesting selections on her list, none of which I have read. If you like memoirs, I highly recommend Piers Morgan's (see above!), John McGahern's Memoir and Hilary Mantel's Giving Up the Ghost. Alternatively, visit my memoir category to see others I've reviewed over the past few years.
- The Orange Prize for Fiction 2009 longlist has been announced. As per usual, I haven't read any on the list, but I'd be interested in hearing your thoughts on any of the titles you may have read.
- You know the theory about the "difficult second novel", well Luke Leitch has compiled a top 10 spectacular second novels list -- and there's some truly great novels on it. I would also add MJ Hyland's Carry Me Down, Roddy Doyle's The Snapper and Richard Flanagan's The Sound of One Hand Clapping. I'm sure there are loads more!
