Well, what
with this welcome warm spell that most of us are enjoying, I suppose it won’t
be long before all the newspapers start publishing their lists of their best
holiday reading suggestions. According to journalist Robert McCrum, you might well be better off choosing one of the
classics instead of something new. He has spent two years two years selecting
his top 100 books, and the result are covered in his new book The 100 Best Novels in English (pb, 978 1903385470, £9.99) which is published by Galileo
in June. You can read an interesting article here
with McCrum explaining why he made the
choices he did – and why he believes that “reading really does liberate
you.” Everybody loves a list but this is a list of major ambition which has
been built up week by week in the Observer since September 2013. The
chosen books are published from the late 17th century to the present day and
there is a short critique accompanying each novel. The novelist, critic and
literary editor of the Observer, Robert
McCrum is uniquely well-placed to
make this selection and the result is a complete delight. This collection takes
the full text of each individual piece (the published versions in the Observer
had been cut by about half) and also adds a graphic of the original jacket or
title page. McCrum has written a
brilliant and hugely readable introduction to the book, which contextualises
and examines the evolution of the novels that he has selected. This is a good
gift book for a tricky-to-buy-for friend I feel – and also would make a fun
choice for a book group to discuss and debate – if you have a “Reading Groups”
table put this on it! You can
find out more here.
A couple of Carcanet
authors have been in the media recently. Listen out for an interview with
the wonderful Ian McMillan on BBC Radio 4’s Front Row on Friday 13th May
from 7.15pm. This is great publicity for his New and
Selected Poems – To Fold The Evening Star (£10.99,
pb 978 1784101909). Alison Brackenbury’s Skies (pb, £9.99 978 1784101800) got a glowing review in
the Guardian last weekend: which
you can read here. Some great quotable endorsements in it, including this: “Peelings
is the most sympathetic poem about parsnips you are ever likely to read.” –
love it!
Since its
publication in February, the graphic novel In Search
of Lost Time: Swann’s Way published by Gallic has received
much coverage in national newspapers and magazines – so don’t forget to keep it
on display! The New Statesman ran a review saying: “If you have felt
intimidated by Proust, seize him now in this accessible form. If you love
Proust and have read every word a hundred times, get hold of this book and you
will experience the memory of reading him for the first time.” You can
read
that whole piece here. The Financial Times also reviewed the
title saying “Heuet has certainly succeeded in conveying the ‘flavour’ of
Proust's novel” and the Guardian published a very positive review
describing it as: “Sumptuous, elegant and beautifully paced, it is
completely absorbing” - read
that here. The Economist said that the book: “Captures the
essence of Proust beautifully.” And the Independent felt that “Heuet’s
love of Proust shines through in his inventive drawings.” In Search of Lost Time: Swann’s Way (hb, 978
1908313904 £19.99) is available now.
The
Infinite Air
by Fiona Kidman (pb,
£9.99, 978 1910709085) has had some good publicity – you will remember this is
the enthralling story of the rise and fall of one of the world's greatest
aviators, the glamorous, daring and mysterious Jean Batten – often referred to
as ‘the Garbo of the skies’. After breaking records and becoming an
international icon in the 1930s, Batten suddenly slipped out of view,
disappearing to the Caribbean with her mother and eventually dying in obscurity
in Majorca, buried in a pauper's grave. This compelling behind-the-scenes
story is a fascinating insight into the early days of flying, of mothers and
daughters, fame and secrecy – and would be a great summer read, so do keep it
on display! The Big Issue ran a feature article by Fiona Kidman talking
about Jean Batten which
you can read here ; the Lady Magazine said “Kidman has
triumphantly brought this inspirational heroine to life”; Red Magazine
featured The Infinite Air as one of their monthly must reads for April,
describing it as “A fascinating read”. The
Infinite Air by Fiona Kidman (pb,
£9.99, 978 1910709085) is published by Aardvark Bureau and you can find out more
here
Many
congratulations to Raba'i al-Madhoun, who
has just won the International Prize for Arabic
Fiction 2016 (sometimes referred to as the Arabic Booker.) You can
read the full announcement here,
and there has been coverage for it in the Guardian,
and the Bookseller.
Raba'i al-Madhoun’s earlier novel
(published in 2013) The Lady from Tel Aviv
also won many awards and is available from Telegram. This compelling
human story, regarded as one of the great achievements of modern Arabic
literature begins in the economy class of a plane where the lives of two
passengers intersect. Walid Dahman, a Palestinian writer, is returning to his
family in Gaza and Dana Ahova, an Israeli actress, is on her way back to Tel
Aviv. As the night sky hurtles past, what each confides and conceals exposes
the chasm between them in the land they both call home. The Lady from Tel Aviv is
an incisive exploration of the effects of occupation and what it is to be a
Palestinian. Al-Madhoun’s precise, poetic
use of language and sardonic humour bring home political realities and how
people live them. The Lady from Tel Aviv by Raba'i al-Madhoun (978 1846590917, £8.99, pb) is available now.
Talking of
people all trying to co-exist on our somewhat crowded planet – I think this short film makes
interesting watching – and maybe challenges some of our preconceived ideas
about race and culture.
We’ve still
got a couple of early reading copies available of I’ll
Sell You a Dog by Juan Pablo Villalobos; if you email pat@compass-ips.london with Please
Send Me A Dog in the subject line, we will pop one in the post to you! The
Compass MD has just started reading this one and has already pronounced it
absolutely brilliant! I’ll Sell you a Dog (pb, £10.00, 978 1908276742) is published by And
Other Stories in August and you can find out
more here.
A great review
for Patricia and Malise by Susanna Johnston (which has just been published by Gibson Square)
in The Oldie this week. “Witty, wonderful… a story so compelling and
strange … there should be a warning on the cover: Open with Caution. Eccentric,
funny and deeply disturbing… an acute understanding of human nature and a
remarkable visual sense.’” said Selina Hastings, and Anne Robinson has also
praised it as “Wicked, great comic characters.” This is a Roman à clef
about an affair the author had as a married woman in Italy which revolves
around the interactions of five main characters. There is Patricia, a young
English woman who lives in Lucca and is married with a cerebral Italian
academic Andrea. She has a young child and a deep longing for home. Then there
are polar opposites Malise, smart, aloof and cruel and Christian his younger
brother who has never been able to let go of his adoration for Malise. They are
bound together by a grossly immoral secret and meeting Patricia in Italy
changes both of them forever, unleashing emotions neither knew existed.
Sensuous, darkly funny bordering on demonic; the Spectator called her
writing “utterly charming, totally bonkers”. The Daily Mail
picked her last novel as one of their top summer reads calling it “a
passport to paradise” and I predict this one (a very striking cover) should
do well. Patricia and Malise by Susanna Johnston (hb, 978 1783340880, £12.99) is available now and you
can find
out more here.
And finally
something funny to set us up for the weekend! Tom and Jerry have today
been blamed for ISIS. The Head of Egypt's Information Service has blamed the
cartoon characters for teaching children that you can blow people up and
encouraging extremism. You can read that story in the Daily Mail (where
else) here!
So let's watch a bit of
vintage (1951) Tom and Jerry – I do hope it doesn’t turn all of you
peace-loving booksellers into terrorists…
Compass is on Twitter! Follow us @CompassIPS. Today we’re loving
#BoatyMcBoatface...
10TV@10TV
#BoatyMcBoatface not chosen
for name of British boat; internet weeps
Kalon
Rae @kalon_rae #BoatyMcBoatface
is my new spirit animal.
Salomé
Jones @call_me_salome To
be fair, the ship looks a lot more like #boatymcboatface than the RSS Sir David
Attenborough.
isabelle
tracy @hullfair I propose
that we now, with the utmost affection, start addressing Sir David Attenborough
as Boaty.
The
Poke @ThePoke A Daily Mail
reader comments on the #BoatyMcBoatface saga: I hope Isis sink this and then
kidnap Daniel Attingborough
HuffPost
@HuffPostUK A petition is
calling on Sir David Attenborough to stand up for democracy by renaming himself
#BoatyMcBoatface
Rebecca
Mascull @rebeccamascull Before
anyone else nabs it, I've decided to call my next book Novel McNovelface...
Nathalie
Gordon @awlilnatty Democracy:
Vote for whatever you want. Establishment: No, not that.
MixtLupus
@mixtlupus So they decided
#BoatyMcBoatface will now be called RSS Sir David Attenborough, but RSS sounds
like ARSE and is against the #democratic vote
General
Boles @GeneralBoles Crowds
are gathering in Trafalgar Square to protest the #BoatyMcBoatface decision
Old
Holborn @Holbornlolz Thatcher
brought down by Poll Tax; Brown brought down by bankers crash; Cameron brought
down by #BoatyMcBoatface. LET'S DO IT!
That’s all for now folks! More next week!
This
blog is taken from a newsletter which is sent weekly to over 700 booksellers as well as publishers and
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