Nicholas Bowling interview

I interviewed Nicholas Bowling for Books for Keeps, about his new book, which is shortlisted for the Costa, In the Shadow of Heroes. Read it here.

Literary Review Children's Book Christmas Round Up

Here's my Christmas children's book round up for Literary Review.

It features Sally Gardner's Invisible in a Bright Light, Frances Hardinge's Deeplight, Hilary McKay's A Time of Green Magic, Catherine Fisher's The Velvet Fox, Alison Moore's Sunny and the Hotel Splendid, Chris Riddell's Guardians of Magic, and Ben Manley and Emma Chichester Clark's The Misadventures of Frederick.

Find Me by André Aciman: review

My review of Find Me by André Aciman is in this weekend's FT.

The Arrow of Apollo in Books for Keeps

I've written the Guest Editorial for Books for Keeps on crowdfunding and The Arrow of Apollo. Read it here.

The Arrow of Apollo: Cover

Good morning everyone,

I'm delighted to reveal the cover for THE ARROW OF APOLLO, which will be out in May 2020, published by Unbound.

I think it's wonderful: dynamic, exciting, and giving a real sense of the story and drama.

Not long till publication now...

How To Teach Classics To Your Dog by Philip Womack: Oneworld, 2020

From the immortal Molesworth

Exciting news: I've got my very first non-fiction book coming out next year. Published by Oneworld, it's called How To Teach Classics To Your Dog, and will be a light-hearted exploration of the world of classics. Watch this space for more info.

Philip Pullman's THE SECRET COMMONWEALTH: review in Literary Review

I've reviewed three books for the October issue of Literary Review: The Secret Commonwealth by Philip Pullman; Bearmouth by Liz Hyder; and Beyond Platform 13 by Sibeal Pounder and Eva Ibbotson. Here is a link.

The Institute by Stephen King: review

Morning all, I've reviewed the latest Stephen King for The Independent. It's called The Institute and it's full of good stuff.

ZED by Joanna Kavenna: review

I've reviewed Joanna Kavenna's ZED for The Financial Times - read the review here.

This Brutal House by Niven Govinden: review

I've reviewed Niven Govinden's latest book, This Brutal House, for The Spectator.

Mazes in The London Magazine

When I had just left Oxford, I spent, as many new graduates do, many weeks sending out things to magazines. I still have the list: it encompasses a whole page of A4 in my journal. Some of them I sent CVs, begging for work experience or internships; others I sent bad short stories and worse poetry. One of the ones I dreamed about publishing in was The London Magazine. From the first great age of magazines, and founded in 1783, this was the place where Thomas de Quincey wrote about opium-eating; Shelley, Hazlitt and Keats all contributed; later on it was a home for Eliot, Auden and Waugh, and later still William Boyd, Nadine Gordimer and Derek Walcott. Beautifully produced (I was told by Jeremy Lewis that it was done from a shed in the editor's garden), and full of interesting things that were not pegged to the general round of public relations and trends, it seemed one of the pinnacles of literary life. So I am absolutely delighted to have a piece in the June/July issue, on mazes, which is also a review of Charlotte Higgins and Henry Eliot's books on the subject. There's plenty of lovely things in the mag, too, including a poem by Frieda Hughes, short stories and essays. Their website is here.

June Children's Book Round up for Literary Review 2019

My latest children's book round up for the June issue of Literary Review.

Books reviewed:

Voyages in the Underworld of Orpheus Black

By Marcus and Julian Sedgwick

Walker Books 320pp £12.99

The Good Thieves

By Katherine Rundell

Bloomsbury 336pp £12.99 

The Time Travel Diaries

By Caroline Lawrence

Piccadilly Press 272pp £6.99

Diver’s Daughter

By Patrice Lawrence

Scholastic 176pp £6.99 

The Closest Thing to Flying

By Gill Lewis

Oxford University Press 240pp £6.99 

The Unexpected Find

By Toby Ibbotson

Scholastic 400pp £6.99

The Descenders

By Paul Stewart and Chris Riddell

Doubleday 528pp £14.99

 

The Porpoise by Mark Haddon: review

Mark Haddon's latest book reworks the story of Pericles, Prince of Tyre. I've reviewed The Porpoise here for The Independent.

A Thousand Ships by Natalie Haynes: Review

My review of Natalie Haynes' latest book, A Thousand Ships, which is a retelling of the Trojan War from female perspectives, is in this week's Spectator.

Tolkien & Christianity

I've written about the new biopic of J R R Tolkien, Tolkien, for The Independent. Read it here.

Machines Like Me by Ian McEwan: review

I've reviewed Ian McEwan's latest novel, Machines Like Me, for The Independent. Read it here.

Memories of the Future by Siri Hustvedt: review

My review of Siri Hustvedt's Memories of the Future is in The Independent. You can read it here. A while ago I reviewed her novel, The Summer Without Men, here.

The Parade by Dave Eggers: review

I've reviewed Dave Eggers' latest novel, The Parade, for The Independent, here.

Lanny by Max Porter: review

My review of Lanny by Max Porter, in The Independent. Read it here.

Children's Book Round up for Literary Review, March 2019

My latest children's book round up is in the March issue of Literary Review, available here. It features:

Sunny and the Ghosts by Alison Moore
Enchantée by Gita Trelease
The Steam Whistle Theatre Company by Vivian French.

THE DARKENING PATH in Romanian

One of the nicest things about writing is receiving copies in translation.

I'm very proud to announce the arrival of my entire DARKENING PATH trilogy in Romanian, published by Unicart (pictured here), with beautiful embossed covers that catch the light when you open the books.

THE ARROW OF APOLLO reaches 100 %

Apollo and Sarpedon

Some good news: THE ARROW OF APOLLO, my children's book based on Greek myth, has reached 100 % of its funding target with Unbound. I'm absolutely delighted, and can't wait to see the finished product, which will be a beautiful hardback.

Many thanks to everyone who contributed and shared.

Late in the Day by Tessa Hadley

I've reviewed Tessa Hadley's fine new novel, Late in the Day, for The Independent.

Previous reviews I've written of Hadley's novels: The Past for The Independent on Sunday

The London Train for The Financial Times

Married Love for The Spectator

The Arrow of Apollo hits 90 %

"Apollo pursuing Daphne" by Tiepolo

Some good news from the crowdfunding wars: "The Arrow of Apollo" is now 92 % funded. This has been a long, slow journey, and now it's almost there. To celebrate, I'll be regularly posting paintings of Apollo over on Twitter and Tumblr. 

You can read more about The Arrow of Apollo on the Unbound website, here. 

Dream Sequence by Adam Foulds: Review

I've reviewed Adam Foulds' latest novel, Dream Sequence for The Spectator. (Many years ago I reviewed his marvellous The Quickening Maze for Literary Review.)