Dave

On this post I wondered what I should call this blog. I’ve stuck with The Closed Circle – from the recent Jonathan Coe novel – which was the name of my previous Blogger effort. It is, at least, suitably vague.…

From Saturday’s Guardian: When he died in 2001, WG Sebald left behind a remarkable, unpublished account of his travels in Corsica. In a vivid extract from this final unfinished work, he explores the island’s ancient forests – and recalls a…

Great profile of Ian McEwan in The Observer today. His early work conjured up a neo-gothic world of pornography, infanticide and incest. Today he is a much-loved member of the establishment – and his new novel is certain to be…

From the BBC Football site: Brighton 0-0 Nottm Forest Paul Gerrard’s first-half penalty save earned Nottingham Forest a point in their relegation tussle with Brighton. Gerrard brought down Leon Knight after 10 minutes but pulled off a stunning one-handed stop…

I have 6 Gmail invites spare, if anyone is interested.

A tough one today. I understand that Megson is likely to play 3-5-2 again, with Wes Morgan and Andy Reid back from injury: Gerrard; Doig, Morgan, Dawson; Louis-Jean, Derry, Reid, Commons, Rogers; King, Taylor. Hopefully he won’t be playing David…

Melissa at Boris Johnson’s blog pointed out this article on the BBC News site: “A large part of the attraction of the internet is that it goes below the radar,” he said. “Generally it’s more difficult for the government to…

Burning Bush brandishes Dostoevsky Given the Biblical language in which George Bush and his speechwriters are steeped, it is not surprising that the US president should invoke the imagery of fire, writes James Meek One of the models of American…

‘Indiscreet’ Sutherland’s Booker role appals advisers Members of the hallowed Man Booker advisory committee, the body responsible for appointing the prize’s judges, are spitting blood at the appointment of John Sutherland to chair the award panel this year, claiming not…

John Self loved Andrea Levy’s novel Small Island. So I was interested in this profile of her, published on The Guardian Books Website: After years as a marginal voice, Andrea Levy is starting to get her share of the glittering…

John Irving, who wrote A Prayer for Owen Meany, which is looking like it is going to be my next read, gets a brilliant write-up from the incomparable John Self here. If I like APfOM, it looks like I’ll have…

From The Guardian‘s Online supplement: Top eCouncils Oldham Borough Council’s website is the best-performing local government site, according to automated testing by SiteMorse. The result is an average of tests based on the Web Accessibility Initiative, including responsiveness, error-free operation,…

You may or may not have noticed a new look for the site. The standard one that comes with WordPress is hardly inspiring, so a quick search of the WP Forums came up with Alex King‘s site. On this page…

A Prayer for Owen Meany 58% [ 7 ] The Great Gatsby 41% [ 5 ] Alma Cogan 0% [ 0 ] Status Anxiety 0% [ 0 ] The Unfortunates 0% [ 0 ] Total Votes : 12 It’s looking…

Behold the waves of nausea which wash over you when you visit the wonderful website that is Thank You Tony. Thanks to Iain Dale for the link.

Interesting article on the Guardian Books site about comments made by John Sutherland, the Chairman of the 2005 Man Booker Prize Panel: The newly announced chairman of the 2005 Man Booker prize has admitted that the judges are unlikely to…

The journalist and occasional Tory politician Boris Johnson yesterday posted the following on his blog: January 19, 2005 Calling /attention all bloggers It’s quarter to four and I’ve got to write a column. which shall I do? Any ideas 1.…

How’s this for a stupid idea: I’m going to run a poll among Palimpsesters to decide what to read next. I’ll give a shortlist of 5 books, and whichever garners the most votes I read after the Greene. Which books…

Sick Puppy was a good read. Funny and violent, it brought me much enjoyment. Trouble is, I can’t think of much else to say about it. On my Palimplist I gave it 4 out of 5 stars, but I think…

I bought the new Edith Grossman translation of Don Quixote. It’s a beautifully bound hardback, and will be a pleasure to read, when I get round to it…