Festivals and Welsh Fiction
Everything is Illuminated and Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close by Jonathan Safran Foer. The Althorp Literary Festival. Welsh fiction Richard Gwyn's The Colour of a Dog Running Away and finally A Short History of Nearly Everything by Bill Bryson
It isn't often we get a serious movie in the months without an 'r', but here comes a heavyweight to prove some adults go to the movies during summer. Everyone's favourite debut book from 1993, Everything is Illuminated by Jonathan Safran Foer, makes it to the multiplex in August. Foer has been getting mixed reviews for his latest book, Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close, suggesting that the world is as yet unsure how to interpret the incorporation of the World Trade Centre attacks into fiction. In comparison Everything is Illuminated garnered praise and admiration from all quarters and won the Guardian's Best Debut Fiction award. The story is an alternately sad and funny tale of a man's journey to the Ukraine to find the woman who saved his grandfather during the Holocaust. Armed with only the lady's photograph, he is joined on his search by his Ukrainian translator Alex, Alex's blind grandfather and his guidedog. The hero, sharing a name with the author, will be played by Elijah Wood. His fame, fresh from Sin City and Lord of the Rings will hopefully give the film and its source novel the further attention it deserves.
One doesn't do festivals
Sometimes it can be awfully inconvenient attending festivals: sharing bathrooms; poor food; queuing for tickets; the drudge-like movement from venue to venue. This unease was solved by Earl Spencer, who threw open his home, Althorp, for the second Althorp Literary Festival. Althorp will be best remembered from the funeral of Spencer's sister, Princess Diana, and now the Spencer family seem determined to follow Edinburgh and Hay into the annual calendar of book festivals. It helps, obviously, if one, can have some literary pedigree and a handful of famous friends attend. The Spencers seem to have both – judging by their guest list, as well as Earl Spencer's reading from his own bestseller Blenheim: Battle for Europe, a historical work which belies the common perception of British Royalty and their retinue. Andrea Levy was there, discussing plans to film her award-winning Small Island, while Helen Fielding was milking more attention from her most popular work, Bridget Jones' Diary. Jung Chang appeared, suggesting a determined approach to promoting her book Mao which debuted at number one on the non-fiction lists last week. A relentless publicity campaign has not decreased her zeal. Other luminous authors graced the rather grand venue including Sebastian Faulks, revered author of Birdsong. He was discussing and reading extracts from his latest novel, Human Traces, which will be released in August.
Wales awakens
Welsh fiction has received little attention in recent years; while James Kelman, Irvine Welsh and AL Kennedy have been at the vanguard of Scottish success, little has been achieved by their southern counterparts. Excepting Niall Griffiths, whose Sheepshagger brought minor attention, there has been little to celebrate in the valleys. While not being heralded as a revolution, support from Waterstones has given a huge boost to Richard Gwyn's The Colour of a Dog Running Away. In possession of a great title and set (like Shadow of the Wind) in fashionable Barcelona, it is both thriller and love story. Musician Lucas moves to Spain and receives a cryptic anonymous postcard which leads him to Barcelona's Gothic Quarter, where he finds love and a cast of well drawn libertines. The surreal story then moves from Barcelona to a mysterious sect in the Pyrenees. Gwyn's book is now in its fourth reprint but has a long way to go before emulating Wales' biggest fiction writer, Roald Dahl. In advance of the attention which will be guaranteed by Johnny Depp's Charlie and the Chocolate Factory when it opens next month, a museum to commemorate Dahl's life and works has just opened in Great Missenden, Bucks, where he lived.
Bryson takes up teaching
Not sure whether it qualifies as philanthropy or mere vanity but Bill Bryson has offered a free copy of his take on popular science, A Short History of Nearly Everything to every secondary school in Britain. The book ,which investigates how the world works, won last year's Royal Society Award for Science and is being donated in conjunction with the British Government's part investment. Hopes have been raised that it will arrest the decline in the numbers enrolling in the Sciences. One could view the use of the book as a text – similar to learning about American foreign policy from Farenheit 9/11 or researching African economics by listening to Band Aid. Bryson started his writing career with travel books like Notes from A Small Island but this project should guarantee him a permanent place at the heavyweight's table. While Bryson and Blair have been trying to place books in libraries, in the US President Bush has been trying to restrict and track access to them. The House of Representatives, fearful of restricting freedom rights, has passed an amendment to the Patriot Act which will restrict state access to records from libraries and bookshops. President Bush wants these records, which detail what people are reading or renting, and is rumoured to be considering using his veto to get them. We wouldn't want to be researching a terrorism thriller or writing a school essay on Iraq in that climate.