Writing & Reviewing
I've written a few books. (This one here was the first, now I think out of print.)
I also occasionally write features or reviews for a range of publications.
Here are some recent reviews:
And a few interviews:
And a few children's books round-ups:
I also occasionally write features or reviews for a range of publications.
Here are some recent reviews:
- The Hungry and the Fat, Timur Vermes (tr. Jamie Bulloch) - The Spectator, 22/02/20
- Bird Cottage, Eva Meijer (tr. Antoinette Fawcett) - Reviews by Writers, 02/12/19
- Fierce Bad Rabbits, Claire Pollard - Books for Keeps, November 2019
- This Is Not Propaganda, Peter Pomerantsev; & The Twittering Machine, Richard Seymour – The Spectator, 01/08/19
- Four Words for Friend, Marek Kohn – The Spectator, 09/03/19
- Mouthful of Birds, Samanta Schweblin (tr. Megan McDowell) – The Guardian, 10/02/19
- Among the Lost, Emiliano Monge (tr. Frank Wynne) – The Spectator, 10/01/19
- Daemon Voices, Philip Pullman – The Author, Winter 2018
- A Winter's Promise, Christelle Dabos (tr. Hildegarde Serle) – Riveting Reviews, 24/11/18
- Three books on language and writing, Moran/Greene/Pulleyn – The Spectator, 3/11/18
- The Shape of the Ruins, Juan Gabriel Vásquez (tr. Anne McLean) – Prospect, 15/05/18
- The Line Becomes a River, Francisco Cantú – The Spectator, 05/05/18
- Dog Town, Luize Pastore (tr. Žanete Vēvere Pasqualini) – Riveting Reviews, 16/4/18
- Packing My Library, Alberto Manguel – The Spectator, 14/04/18
- The Book of Tbilisi, ed. Becca Parkinson & Gvantsa Jobava – Riveting Reviews, 16/3/18
- We Are the End, Gonzalo C. Garcia – The Guardian, 27/12/17
- The Impostor, Javier Cercas (tr. Frank Wynne) – The Spectator, 1/11/17
- The Murderer's Ape, Jakob Wegelius (tr. Peter Graves) – Scoop, Nov 2017
- You Should Have Left, Daniel Kehlmann (tr. Ross Benjamin) – The Spectator, 22/07/17
- The Novel of the Century, David Bellos – The Spectator, 18/02/17
- Aubrey and the Terrible Yoot, Horatio Clare – Scoop, Nov 2016
- The Good Immigrant, ed. Nikesh Shukla – The Spectator, 22/09/16
- The Man Who Invented Fiction, William Egginton – The Guardian, 23/07/16
- Children's Fantasy Literature: An Introduction, Michael Levy & Farah Mendlesohn – The Spectator, 04/06/16
- East West Street, Philippe Sands – The Spectator, 21/05/16
- Quentin Blake: In the Theatre of the Imagination, Ghislaine Kenyon – The Spectator, 07/04/16
- Shakespeare in Swahililand, Edward Wilson-Lee – The Independent on Sunday, 13/03/16
- Diary of a Body, Daniel Pennac (tr. Alyson Waters) – The Guardian, 06/02/16
- The Silver Eye, Susan Brind Morrow – The Spectator, 06/02/16
- June, Gerbrand Bakker (tr. David Colmer) – The Guardian, 10/07/15
- The Weather Experiment, Peter Moore – The Spectator, 04/07/15
- The Festival of Insignificance, Milan Kundera (tr. Linda Asher) – The Spectator, 20/06/15
- Reading the World, Ann Morgan – The Spectator, 28/02/15
- The Vegetarian, Han Kang (tr. Deborah Smith) – The Guardian, 24/01/15
- Best European Fiction 2015, ed. West Camel – The Guardian, 23/12/14
- Lingo, Gaston Dorren – The Spectator, 15/11/14
- Swansong 1945, Walter Kempowski (tr. Shaun Whiteside) – The Independent on Sunday, 15/11/14
- The Strangest Family, Janice Hadlow – The Independent on Sunday, 25/10/14
- The Extrordinary Journey of the Fakir Who Got Trapped in an IKEA Wardrobe, Romain Puértolas (tr. Sam Taylor) – The Independent on Sunday, 10/08/14
- The Truth about the Harry Quebert Affair, Joël Dicker (tr. Sam Taylor) – The Independent on Sunday, 11/05/14
- Gwynne's Latin, N.M. Gwynne – The Independent on Sunday, 20/04/14
- Dead Interviews, ed. Dan Crowe – The Independent on Sunday, 24/11/13
- Crow Blue, Adriana Lisboa (tr. Alison Entrekin) & Other Carnivals, ed. (& tr.) Ángel Gurria-Quintana – The Independent, 25/10/13
- The Parrots, Filippo Bologna (tr. Howard Curtis) – The Independent, 25/09/13
- All Dogs Are Blue, Rodrigo de Souza Leão (tr. Stefan Tobler & Zoë Perry) – The Independent on Sunday, 24/08/13
- Multiples, Adam Thirlwell et al. – The Guardian, 16/08/13
- The Taste of Apple Seeds, Katharina Hagena (tr. Jamie Bulloch) – The Independent, 27/02/13
- The Middlesteins, Jami Attenberg – The Independent on Sunday, 10/02/13
- The Last Quarter of the Moon, Chi Zijian (tr. Bruce Humes) – The Independent on Sunday, 03/02/13
And a few interviews:
- Philip Ardagh, 2009
- Patrick Ness, 2010
- Daniel Pennac, 2010 (with Sam Holmes)
- Norton Juster, 2012
- Michael Morpurgo and Maggie Fergusson, 2012
- Patrick Ness, 2013
- Bernardo Atxaga and Margaret Jull Costa, 2015
- Michael Morpurgo, 2016
And a few children's books round-ups:
- Christmas 2015 round-up for 6-11s – The Independent on Sunday, 13/12/15
- Ten children's books about elsewhere – Books for Keeps, 07/15
- Ten children's books you should know and probably don't – The Guardian online, 30/04/15
- Eight YA novels that adults should read – The Guardian, 20/03/15
- Christmas 2014 round-up for 6-12s – The Independent on Sunday, 13/12/14
- Christmas 2013 round-up for 5-12s – The Independent on Sunday, 15/12/13
- Ten of the best children's books in the last three decades – Books for Keeps, 05/13
- Christmas 2012 round-up for 8-12s – The Independent on Sunday, 9/12/12
- Christmas 2011 round-up for 7-12s – The Independent on Sunday, 11/12/11
- Christmas 2009 round-up for teens – The Independent on Sunday, 13/12/09
- Summer 2009 round-up for under-12s – The Independent on Sunday, 12/07/09