Book review: The Sparsholt Affair by Alan Hollinghurst

Alan Hollinghurst was born in 1954, so he is now in his mid-60s. It is well to remember this when you read The Sparsholt Affair. Like The Line of Beauty, the book that won Hollinghurst the Man Booker prize back in 2004, The Sparsholt Affair is a long and densely detailed novel. Also like the earlier novel, this one is intimately concerned with gay life and society. But Hollinghurst is older, and there's now a stronger sense of mortality and the decaying effects of time. Where this novel goes is almost elegiac. The structure is like a generational saga, with each long section set in the different time period. In 1940, young David Sparsholt appears briefly at Oxford University before going off to fight in the Air Force. Adored by all the (closeted) homosexuals on campus, this muscular athlete is engaged to be married and appears to be strictly heterosexual. But is he? The first 90 pages of the novel – a full novella in themselves – keep us in a sort of suspense. Continue reading at 'Stuff'

[ Stuff | 2017-11-04 00:00:00 UTC ]
News tagged with: #oxford university #air force

Other Publishing stories related to: 'Book review: The Sparsholt Affair by Alan Hollinghurst'


Two-book deal with Barden for Ebury

Ebury Press has signed a two-book deal with Jenny Barden, who is this year's organiser of the... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2012-02-22 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #ebury press


Indian book market in "rapid growth"

The Indian book market grew by 45% in volume and 40% in value over the first half of 2011, with... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2012-02-22 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #rapid growth


Children's book sales soar in spring half-term break

Sales of children's books rocketed 30% week-on-week as the spring half-term break resulted in... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2012-02-21 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this |


'Ban' for Mayle book in Malaysia

Malaysian officials order book shops to stop selling a sex education book by British author Peter Mayle. Continue reading at BBC News

[ BBC News | 2012-02-21 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #stop selling


E-book pricing is a 'Catch-22' situation

Publishers are continuing to experiment with ebook pricing, as sales and marketing teams balance... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2012-02-20 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #e-book pricing #ebook pricing


Media Decoder Blog: Release Date Moved Up for Shadid Book

The Pulitzer Prize-winning New York Times reporter, who died Thursday while reporting in Syria, was to have embarked soon on a 20-city tour to promote his new book. Continue reading at The New York Times

[ The New York Times | 2012-02-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #pulitzer prize-winning #died thursday


Kitson Stacks Up the Books

When Fraser Ross opened his first trendy Kitson clothing and accessories store in West Hollywood in 2001, it was a magnet for celebrities and the paparazzi that stalked them, a most unlikely retail candidate to capture the attention of New York publishers. But one decade and an additional 12... Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2012-02-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #west hollywood #specialty store


Collins buys Tutu book

Collins has bought a book about forgiveness co-authored by South African churchman Desmond Tutu... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2012-02-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this |


Are Teens Embracing E-books?

A recent PubTrak survey from R.R. Bowker indicated that teens remain reluctant when it comes to ebooks. Accustomed to social media, they find that electronic stories have “too many restrictions,” according to the report. But many industry players—agents, booksellers, publishers, and authors—are... Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2012-02-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #digital sales #ya fiction


Harvill signs two-book deal with Neville

Harvill Secker has signed a two-book deal with Belfast crime writer Stuart Neville. Publishing... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2012-02-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #harvill secker


Bloomsbury acquires "the" book on Lucian Freud

Bloomsbury has acquired world rights in a biography of the late artist Lucian Freud, penned by... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2012-02-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #bloomsbury acquires


Over a third of students ‘not interested’ in physical books

Students are split on the necessity of physical textbooks in a digital world, but a majority of... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2012-02-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #physical books #physical textbooks #digital world


Bedford Square Books strikes exclusive Tesco deal

Bedford Square Books, the ebook and print-on-demand venture set up by the Ed Victor Literary... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2012-02-15 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this |


Path Isn't Only App to Upload, Store Address Book Data

Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Foursquare and Yelp upload names, e-mail addresses and phone numbers, sometimes without explicit permission. Continue reading at PC World

[ PC World | 2012-02-15 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #phone numbers


Cold snap book sales plunge 16% year on year

Printed book sales slipped 3% week on week last week, and were down 16% year on year as the... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2012-02-14 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this |


Paravion Press: Hand-making Books from a Cave in Greece

In a time when digital and print-on-demand technology are streamlining how books are created and delivered, Paravion Press believes there still is a market for well-crafted, hand-made books. “Paravion hopes to keep hold of a patch of turf for the old guard of the printed book—the realm of the... Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2012-02-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #print-on-demand technology


Books Invade the Cable Networks

The tagline “It’s not TV. It’s HBO” is something many will remember from the late 1990s, back when the cable network was in the vanguard for airing critically acclaimed series like The Sopranos and Sex and the City. Today there’s hardly a cable network in the game that isn’t trying to capture... Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2012-02-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #cable networks #late 1990s #cable network


The Value Of a Book

How much money is a book really worth? Is it the $25 to $30 publishers typically ask for the hardcover edition? Is it the discounted price plus shipping that an online retailer charges? What if there’s only a Kindle edition you can buy, for 99 cents? Is that same book worth nothing on days when... Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2012-02-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #hardcover edition #discounted price #kindle edition #readers decide


Waterstones Childrens Book Prize shortlist revealed

This year's shortlist for the Waterstones Children’s Book Prize includes new talent... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2012-02-08 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #waterstones children


Cult of the Leader wins CMI Management Book award

The Cult of the Leader (Wiley), written by Christopher Bones, has been named as the CMI... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2012-02-08 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this |