Heron Books

Steeped in books as I am every day, reading poetry collections, novels, art books, histories, essays and the deliciously uncategorisable, meeting the authors, comedians, composers and painters who wander in, not to mention the many heron photographers who inevitably come in to land, the creativity is almost overwhelming. From one box alone this week we unpacked a book-length poem about a twelve-hour shift in a plastic factory (superb), a picture book showing how a moment of frustration can result in a kick being passed around the world, affecting everyone from postmen to presidents to nuns (outrageous, new favourite) and a novel about a composer and saxophonist working together on a…

Some months ago I wrote to you of Gliff, Ali Smith’s novel about two siblings and a horse, about home and safety – who is entitled to it and who not. The novel is about much more besides, everything really, from family relationships to children enslaved in dangerous factories, to prejudice and poverty, from the games one can play with language to the hatred that can be created from its misuse. Within its leaves, already bursting with tales, and ponytails, Smith said, lay another story. Having driven myself to quiet distraction in the attempt to discover and solve the clues in Gliff (futile: I can barely complete a crossword), its…

The middle section of Sean O’Brien’s poetry collection, The Bonfire Party, is dedicated to Jules Maigret. Yes, that Maigret. Fictional creation of Georges Simenon, ageless inspector, pipe-smoker, bearer of a greatcoat and great humanity upon his broad shoulders. The poems are full of the canals, doorways, trains and atmosphere of the novels. They explore the resolution that each book offers, ostensibly, though there is more to the picture of the Inspector and Madame sitting together peacefully at the end of the day, a crime solved, a drink poured. O’Brien writes: The iron certainty that while the truth will out – sing up, my friends, we are the policemen’s choir –…

Writers, shy, aspiring, self-proclaimed or oft-published, should, I think, all read The Writing Life by Annie Dillard. Her account and analysis of writing, much of which includes recognising what must be discarded (usually the parts one considered best), is highly intelligent. It is a pleasure to learn from her: she brooks no nonsense – if you want to write you need to love sentences and you need to get on with writing them – while acknowledging the absurdity of choosing to lock yourself in a room, block the window and try to solve a problem of your own creation. In Dillard’s case, aided by cigarettes, coffee and chocolate, a diet…

When the writer and publisher Anuradha Roy and her partner were visiting Ranikhet, a town in northern India, they had heard stories of an astonishing view of the high Himalaya. The sort that stops you in your tracks, stays with you forever and takes on magical qualities. After days of drizzle spent in a town that hardly emerged from mist, they were sceptical. The sublime prospect was a myth. Not that there weren’t many other delights on this trip, held by the bountiful forests and the light washing the hills. Then, ‘early one morning we awoke to long ribbons of sunlight streaming in through the trees in the east… In…

My uncle took a big risk on Christmas Day – as perilous as pouring a glass of wine for a sommelier or offering advice to a scaffolder – and presented a bookseller with a book. As it is, he nailed it. He gave me a book I wanted to read, had put on various lists and had not yet bought for myself: Look Closer by Robert Douglas-Fairhurst. This is a book about the joy of reading – really reading, with that kind of committed focus that you see particularly in children who tune out every noise and distraction, even the burning of Brussels sprouts or the calls that it really…

There is no newsletter this week. Or is this it? One recommendation. All bases covered. The Count of Monte Cristo. I’m reading it now. Why did you let me live this long without doing so? I blame the parents. If you enjoy a crime novel, I recommend The Count of Monte Cristo. If you enjoy historical fiction, I recommend The Count of Monte Cristo. If you enjoy romance, I recommend The Count of Monte Cristo. If you long for adventure, how about The Count of Monte Cristo? If you love Breaking Bad, The Sopranos, The Shawshank Redemption, The Iliad, The Leopard (book or film – a rare concession to both),…

At this time of year I have noticed that, rather than legs, people place chocolate, oranges and chocolate shaped like oranges in their stockings. Assuming that your legs are sufficiently warm, may I recommend some little books with which to fill your stockings. Or other people’s, assuming that they are OK with that. For those who start Christmas as boldly as they mean to go on, with pancakes, smoked salmon and platters of fried things, Last Night at the Lobster by Stewart O’Nan is a beautiful novel about the last day of a restaurant set to close on 20th December (so, yes, now is the perfect time to read it,…

We resisted for as long as possible. There remain plenty of days and nights of 2025 on which books will be read. Nevertheless, here they are: The Book of the Year (up to 11 December) Lists. Yes, there are many books we have read this year which aren’t on there and should be. Yes, we might give a different answer on a different day. Yes, I considered making my whole list Barbara Pym novels. No, I do not know why we limited ourselves to fifteen books each. There is nothing scientific about this process. We all have to pretend that it makes sense to put a picture book about a…

Recently I have been asked for recommendations for a book to read whilst on the treadmill (who is doing this?), a book for someone who doesn’t like to think (should my suggestion perpetuate or change this?) and something for someone who is ‘really into poison’ (there is a wealth of literature out there but perhaps we should address ‘really into’ first, Agatha Christie notwithstanding). To the person wanting a suggestion for their partner, when I asked what they were like, I meant ‘what are they interested in?’ but it was lovely to hear about their striking cheekbones. I hope that we rise to each occasion and give apt recommendations. But,…