| Now We Have Your Attention by Jack Shenker review – the politics of the street |
[02 Dec 2019|07:00am] |
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https://www.theguardian.com/books/2019/dec/02/now-we-have-your-attention-new-politics-of-people-jack-shenker-review The reporter roams a country in crisis in his detailed, important study of radical grassroots activistsAn old anarchist slogan resurfaced on the streets of Spain during 2011’s “indignados” uprising: “Our dreams don’t fit in your ballot boxes.” It’s a message that feels relevant in Britain today as fractured loyalties and myriad local battles expose the deficiencies of our antiquated first-past-the-post electoral system. Actual anarchist communities were never half as messy as this. Those hoping to explain our national fiasco have resorted to warnings of Russian interference, fake news and troll armies, or at best made a show of listening to “very real concerns” courtesy of hasty vox pops brought to us from down-at-heel Leave-voting towns. Continue reading...
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| Time Lived, Without Its Flow by Denise Riley review – captive to the present tense |
[02 Dec 2019|09:00am] |
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https://www.theguardian.com/books/2019/dec/02/time-lived-without-its-flow-denise-riley-review A grieving mother’s account of life after her son’s death is exquisitely expressed This small, blue hardback, with lines of gold coursing down its front cover, might – from the outside – be mistaken for an exquisite book of prayer but it was written by the poet Denise Riley in response to the death of her adult son and is not about conventional consolation. The book will be appreciated by its readers precisely because it resists false notes. It was clear from Say Something Back (2016), Riley’s unforgettable poetry collection, which included a poem about the death of her son, that she has, emotionally, perfect pitch. It was apparent, too, that she is an out-of-the-ordinary narrator – approaching her son’s tragedy crab-wise. It is only halfway through this new book that we learn that Jake was found dead in a still-running bath, having possibly died of a heart attack. These facts are offered not to satisfy our anxious curiosity but noted almost incidentally as Riley pores over his autopsy, wondering whether she might have prevented his death. Continue reading...
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| Nobel prize for literature hit by fresh round of resignations |
[02 Dec 2019|02:07pm] |
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https://www.theguardian.com/books/2019/dec/02/nobel-prize-for-literature-hit-by-fresh-round-of-resignations Two members of the committee set up to oversee reforms to the scandal-rocked award announce they are leaving
Two members of the external committee set up to oversee reforms to the scandal-hit Nobel prize in literature quit on Monday, with one claiming the work to change the culture in the Swedish Academy was taking too long. The august and mysterious 18-strong panel of the Swedish Academy, which selects the Nobel laureate each year, was forced to introduce several new measures after a sex scandal involving the husband of a former member escalated into a bitter row that resulted in several resignations and the 2018 award being postponed. One of the measures was to establish a team outside the academy to assist in finding candidates to consider for the prize. Continue reading...
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| Evelyn Waugh letters shed light on his abandoned first novel |
[02 Dec 2019|04:13pm] |
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https://www.theguardian.com/books/2019/dec/02/evelyn-waugh-letters-shed-light-on-his-abandoned-first-novel In correspondence going to auction this week, the writer describes how he burned a manuscript titled The Temple at Thatch An unpublished letter in which a “despondent” Evelyn Waugh recounts how he burned his first attempt at a novel is to be auctioned this week. Part of a set of 10 unpublished letters, mostly written to his friend Richard Plunket Greene, the missives date from a difficult period in Waugh’s life. The would-be author spent six months teaching at Welsh prep school Arnold House in 1925 and, while there, wrote to Plunket Greene about the lack of enjoyment he found in teaching the boys. “The older they are the more stupid I find them,” he wrote. Continue reading...
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