Books of the year - one for Private Eye

Prospect Magazine published its books of the year in the most recent edition.  People were asked for the most over-rated and most under-rated books.  The entry of Angela Lambert (author of A Rather English Marriage and Love AMong the Single Classes) in the most under-rated books of the year warrants repeating in full

“My biography The Lost Life of Eva Braun (Century) was published after a seizure left me paralysed in a hospital bed, so it limped into the world without the crutch of publicity and was barely noticed. Pity, because it’s full of interesting stuff.”

Ms Lambert’s contributions to Prospect include an article on Jeanette Winterson.  WInterson famously selected herself as her favourite living writer in 1995 saying, “No one working in the English language now comes close to my exuberance, my passion and fidelity to words.”  

Of Winterson’s comment Lambert wrote, “These may be the most famous-certainly they are the most notorious-words she has ever uttered and they did her enormous damage. The English prefer their writers modest. “  Indeed. 

Edited for clarity following comment from

andrewducker

About these ads