CHRISTMAS BOOKS I
Books of the Year
The best and most overrated books of the year, chosen by some of The Spectator's regular contributors
Julie Burchill
With terrifying predictability, my favourite book was also the most written about book of the year, Will Selfs My Idea of Fun (Bloomsbury, £15.99). It left me quite speechless, which is not a thing that hap- pens very often; the elegance and supple- ness of his writing is dazzling, but never his or vulgar as it is with so many of ills contemporaries. (Or Martin Amis.) My Idea of Fun is not a great book but I believe that Self is a great writer, and that if any- One is going to write a great book over the next five years (not counting me) then it's him. The only other book I liked this year was the Time Out Book of London Short Stories (Penguin, £5.99) which I'm in I didn't like anything else, as per usual.
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