22 DECEMBER 1984, Page 43

Roy Kerridge

Without a doubt, the worst book of the year has been Wigan Pier Revisited by Beatrix Campbell, a spiteful semi-literate attack on George Orwell. The authoress rejoices in the destruction of the decent working-class life that Orwell admired.

If Orwell were alive today, he might form an exclusive Columnists' Club whose other two members would be Michael Wharton and Keith Waterhouse. The Mis- sing Will, Michael Wharton's autobiogra- phy, with its haunting blend of melancholy and humour, and its vivid portrait of wartime India, is my choice of best book of the year.