Holiday Reading

Well, the Easter break is here and you should be able to make some time for recreational reading. I was intrigued by the Lost Man Booker Prize. Apparently because the rules about publication dates changed after the first two years no prize was awarded for books published in 1970 (the 1970 prize was awarded for books published in 1969 and the 1971 prize for books published mainly in 1971). So now there is a retrospective competition for those books published in 1970 that fell between the two stools. Literary prizes are inherently a bit silly, but they are amusing and who could begrudge a bit of puff for serious fiction. Of the six short-listed books I've only read one, J. G. Farell's Troubles, which I can heartily recommend. The fun thing is that the winner will be selected not by a panel of judges but by popular vote. Happy reading.