Review of the year: Books
The big stories weren't in print
Digg
del.icio.us
Facebook
Reddit
Google
Stumble Upon
Fark
Newsvine
YahooBuzz
Bebo
Mixx
Independent Minds
enlarge
In 2005, what happened off the page in the book world supplied almost as many dramatic stories as what happened on it. Events cast doubt on many of the core conventions that sustain our writers and publishers.
To begin with, what is a book and where do you find one? Since last December, the Google Print project has galloped ahead with its programme to store vast tracts of literature in digitised and fully searchable files. This breakneck rush to build the ultimate virtual library has triggered widespread protests from authors and publishers, lawsuits in the US, and copycat ventures from rivals such as Yahoo! and Amazon.
For the moment, most "books" remain printed artefacts, often sold in specialist shops. But which books, and by whom? Britain's leading retailer, Waterstone's, launched a takeover bid for the smaller chain Ottakar's that left champions of diversity angry. Their agitation has now paid off, with a referral of the bid to the Competition Commission. Meanwhile, supermarkets - a growing force in the bookish economy - quietly went on piling a few bestsellers high and selling them very cheap.
Even the old assumptions about the sacredness of free expression failed to keep pace with the times. Strongly opposed by writers, the Government's loosely drafted bill to outlaw incitement to "religious hatred" made its fitful way through Parliament. After the 7 July bombings, a fresh wave of legislation proposed to ban the "glorification" of terrorism - although this measure didn't stop the UK publication of Osama bin Laden's collected rants.
Britain's literati also rallied to support one of the world's greatest living authors against a menace to his liberty. In mid-December, Turkey's Orhan Pamuk went on trial for defaming "national identity" after he spoke out abroad against the Armenian massacres of 1915. Here, for once, the fate of an author did impinge on high politics, as Turkey opened EU membership talks.
As for the actual books that made a stir, a sense of déjà vu seemed to prevail. Yes, the cohort of leading British novelists who emerged in the early 1980s published work that ranks with their best: Julian Barnes's Arthur & George, Salman Rushdie's Shalimar the Clown, Kazuo Ishiguro's Never Let Me Go, Ian McEwan's Saturday.
The Man Booker Prize went to none of them but - controversially - to John Banville's chilly chamber-piece, The Sea. Elsewhere in the prize game, the Orange made a spunkier choice with Lionel Shriver's novel of mangled motherhood, We Need to Talk About Kevin. Andrea Levy's Small Island - about the making of multicultural Britain - won the Whitbread and Commonwealth prizes, and the enduring affection of many readers. Then, against all odds, Harold Pinter became the first English Nobel laureate for literature since William Golding.
Among younger fictional contenders, the two Smiths, Ali and Zadie, both made good on their promise and reached the Booker shortlist. Two novels offered daringly original visions of a troubled Britain: Rupert Thomson's Divided Kingdom, and Hilary Mantel's Beyond Black. Newcomers such as Diana Evans (26A) and Tash Aw (The Harmony Silk Factory) pointed the way to fresh destinations for the British novel.
In non-fiction, trusted and loved voices mostly commanded the stage, from Simon Schama telling the stirring story of "black loyalists" in the American Revolution with Rough Crossings, to Alan Bennett relating the deadpan tale of his life (and near-death) in Untold Stories. Neither trusted nor loved any longer, ex-ambassador Christopher Meyer published DC Confidential, proving that the memoir can still make waves.
As high-street book sales faltered, favourite genre writers provided reliable standbys in a cold retail climate: Patricia Cornwell, PD James, Terry Pratchett... Harry Potter Mk 6 duly arrived in July, and duly shifted 3 million units within a week or two. Yet everyone (JK Rowling included?) seemed rather tired of the whole hype-ridden show and keen to see the series end.
In spite of all the threats to bookish business-as-usual, the screen (both big and small) confirmed that it depends as much as ever on the "classic" text. From CS Lewis to John le Carré, Charles Dickens to Jane Austen, EngLit still prompts the prestige scripts that fill TV studios and LA lots. So perhaps the cultural industries will learn to cut out those superannuated middlemen. Our future classics might bypass the messy, risky business of being published by houses that can't compete with online depositories, sold by shops that can't compete with bargain-basement supermarkets, and bought by punters whose reading time can't compete with the computer screen. Instead, agents could deliver the texts direct to the BBC and Hollywood with the parts for Ralph Fiennes or Judi Dench clearly marked. It might save everyone a deal of trouble.
The Five Best
Julian Barnes: Arthur & George
Rupert Thomson: Divided Kingdom
Hilary Mantel: Beyond Black
Simon Schama: Rough Crossings
Orhan Pamuk: Istanbul
Offensive or abusive comments will be removed and your IP logged and may be used to prevent further submission. In submitting a comment to the site, you agree to be bound by the Independent Minds Terms of Service.
- Print Article
- Email Article
-
Click here for copyright permissions
Copyright 2009 Independent News and Media Limited
