weekend paper round-up

Last night on television there was a rather mixed reflection on the state of the British book industry with Richard and Judy hosting the British Book Awards. The majority of winners seemed to have brushed up against the R and J touch either having been part of the duo’s book club or guests on their afternoon chat show. I know there should be some sort of rejoicing that the pair are doing what J.K. Rowling did for children’s fiction with the adult market but it just feels so much like manipulation, a view that was hinted at in the angle taken in The Independent’s coverage of the awards.

In The Guardian a piece by Francis Beckett wonders why so many politicians are rushing to write books to try and make themselves more attractive to the voters. Barack Obama’s book The Audacity of Hope is apparently becoming quite a role model with its combination of well-written anecdote and an eye for detail.

Finally, in The Independent's magazine author Ewan Morrison writes about the research he out in for his book about swinging. Without wanting to sound puerile it seems like a great excuse to go off and spend some time in the sexual wilderness as long as you can justify it as researching a novel. I know if I tried coming up with anything like that sort of excuse/justification for doing anything like swinging my wife would (quite rightly) kill me.