What was your favourite childhood book?
I was a great fan of Jennings and Darbyshire. I expect I read all of them.
Which book has made you laugh?
You graduate from J&D to Spike Milligan. His novel, Puckoon, is just one gigantic tear-inducing belly-laugh from start to finish.
Which book has made you cry?
Lots of books bring the odd tear to one’s eyes. I can’t say I’ve read one which induces weeping as a permanent condition. On the whole, I think I put such books down long before I get to that stage. Lately I read, enjoyed, and found quite moving, Julian Barnes’s Arthur and George.
Which book would you never have on your bookshelf?
I’m sorry, but it has to be pretty much anything by Dan Brown. I tried The Da Vinci Code, but couldn’t get to the bottom of page one – for me, his English clunks like a knackered gearbox – not a pleasant ride.
Which book are you reading at the moment?
I’ve two on the go (not unusual): The Brooklyn Follies (I’m a great fan of Paul Auster’s – this one certainly doesn’t disappoint) and Murakami’s Great Sheep Chase, which is definitely not one of his better efforts.
Which book would you give to a friend as a present?
Apart from Baber’s Apple? Depends on the friend, of course. Ford Madox Ford’s The Good Soldier makes a great present because it is such a little gem, and there’s probably an edition to fit the necessary spend.
Which other writers do you admire?
It’s a long list. I’m currently reading for a PhD, and my chosen authors are Aldous Huxley and Evelyn Waugh – both a bit past their sell-by date now, but great to revisit as old friends. Many of my favourites are now dead – some only recently, like Malcolm Bradbury and Muriel Spark, for instance. Of those still living, apart from Paul Auster, it has to be David Lodge. I’m an Ian Rankin fan, too.
Which classic have you always meant to read and never got round to it?
A Picture of Dorian Gray.
What are your top five books of all time, in order or otherwise?
Last Christmas my daughter asked for books to improve her library – so I had to get her some of my most favourite. The Ford, Nabakov’s Pale Fire, Byatt’s Possession, and Suskind’s Perfume. I would add Tristram Shandy to that list.
What is the worst book you have ever read?
The Apes of God, by Percy Wyndham Lewis.
Is there a particular book or author that inspired you to be a writer?
Aldous Huxley. I read Antic Hay in my early teens and it has stayed with me ever since.
What is your favourite time of day to write?
I’m strictly a nine-to-five merchant. When it’s going badly, that can mean stopping at noon. On a really good day I might still be at it at nine in the evening.
And favourite place?
There is a gallery area above our lounge which is my office. It’s a great space. Unfortunately it does mean my wife is banished to other parts of the house when I’m working.
Longhand or word processor?
WP.
Which fictional character would you most like to have met?
Bulgakov’s Margarita.
Who, in your opinion, is the greatest writer of all time?
Playwright? William Shakespeare. Novelist? Dostoevsky. Poet? Dylan Thomas.
Which book have you found yourself unable to finish?
I was disappointed not to get to the end of Madame Bovary. I will try again.
What is your favourite word?
I love them all – when they’re used properly.
Other than writing, what other jobs or professions have you undertaken or considered?
I started life as a systems analyst, grew into project management, then corporate planning, before becoming a marketing consultant to the insurance industry. I’m glad all that lot’s behind me. I must say I do enjoy the little bit of undergraduate teaching I now do.
What was the first piece you ever had in print?
Back in my teens, I had poetry published. Pretty dire, most of it – not all, but most of it.
What are you working on at the moment?
My third novel, Bread. Despite the heat, it is rising very slowly.
Michael Marr, February 2007. |
