my earliest reading memory
When I was five years old and starting school, I used to catch a coach from the Oxfordshire village where I lived. Twice a day I read the small metal plaque on the upholstery that warned “Watch your mind when leaving your seat”.
my favorite book growing up
My dad had a copy of John Mitchell’s Phenomena in the late 1970s. Each page contains some strange thing that may or may not be true: rain of fish, stigma, spontaneous human combustion. I would lay on the carpet and turn the pages and love the cool feeling it gave me, making me think that (perhaps) such strangeness could exist in the world.
The book that changed me as a teenager
When I was 14, I was Mrs. Ogmore-Pritchard in a school production of Under Milk Wood by Dylan Thomas. As we read those sweet words aloud, I understood for the first time that writing can make me feel Everything.
the book that changed my mind
Learning to Love You More by Miranda July and Harrell Fletcher. The book is a list of assignments: some very simple (take a picture of what’s under your bed), and others more challenging (perform a one-man show). Public responsibilities used to scare me, but I discovered I loved working Done He and I have been searching for that feeling ever since.
The book that inspired me to become a writer
We’ve Always Lived in the Castle by Shirley Jackson. This was the first book I read from an author’s point of view, trying to understand how Jackson created the extraordinary Merricat and how he made me feel so much for her.
I came back to the author
I read Dennis Johnson’s book Angels about 15 years ago and thought, “What’s all the fuss about?” And then I read Train Dreams and then Jesus Son, and now her books are some of my favorite books ever.
the book i read again
I only keep one book on my desk when I write: Wildlife by Richard Ford. I often pick it up and read a page or two to remind myself what I need to do.
The book I could never read again
Last year I read Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry and loved it, but I never read it again because it’s 843 pages and there are so many other books I want to read.
The book I discovered later in life
I missed reading almost all the classics when I was younger so last year I decided to read one classic a year, starting with Pride and Prejudice. And yes, I enjoyed it a lot.
the book i’m reading now
I run a book club at the Cabinet Rooms in Winchester. As well as our regular monthly choices, I’ve chosen The Stand by Stephen King to read over the course of a year. I can’t wait to pick it up again.
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read my rest
I have a comfort writer: Elizabeth Strout. I love his writing, his stories, his characters. I just finished her latest book, The Things We Never Say, and it was such a delight.
