Pride and Prejudice. How have I not read this before? it's brilliant!
Yes! A lot of people, boys especially, dismiss Jane Austen as girly nonsense, all bonnets and balls, but she's one of the finest comic novelists this nation has ever produced. She's also unfortunately tarnished by some of her fans, especially the Americans, who seem to mainly like her for the bonnets and balls and not the incisive satire and biting wit. If you like P&P, give Emma a go.
I'm currently reading David Millar's Racing Through The Dark. It may lack the humour and the literary style of Jane Austen but it's a fascinating read, terrifying and sad in places. Strangely, it hasn't exactly improved my opinion of Millar as a person. There's a slightly whiny, weaselish note of self-justification... but I've only just reached the turning point in the story, the ban, so maybe it's a deliberate ploy to portray the pre-ban Millar as a horrible spoilt brat with a massive sense of entitlement in order to heighten the impact of his redemption...
Brailsford is coming out of it very well though.
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