Food for thought: Caryl Phillips

He shares his week in culture...

Author Caryl Phillips

The Booker-shortlisted author’s new novel The Lost Child, a re-imagining of the origins of Heathcliff from Wuthering Heights, is out now, published by Oneworld.

Sunday

Decide to try Ford Maddox Ford ... again. Open Parade’s End but slightly dismayed that it’s 906 pages in length. But enjoying it more than The Good Soldier.

Monday

Watch Whiplash. A standard High School – somewhat clichéd – film with one outstanding performance by J K Simmons as an abusive teacher with heart of gold.

Tuesday

Speak to a journalist in a bar but distracted by the excellent music in the background. A Seventies lineup of Marvin Gaye, T Rex, and Bob Dylan. I decide to make up a similar playlist on my iPod.

Wednesday

Visit City Lights in San Francisco, the best bookstore in the United States. I read Pico Iyers’s essay about the place in the LA Times and follow his “walking directions” via Chinatown.

Thursday

Watch Pawel Pawlikowki’s film, Ida. Stylishly bleak and beautiful. A profound meditation on personal loss and national memory.

Friday

Begin to re-read Graham Swift’s wonderful, and often very moving, collection, England and Other Stories.

Saturday

Listen to Dad’s Army on Radio 4 Extra. British comedy never got much better than Arthur Lowe and John Le Mesurier bickering with each other.