29 JULY 2000, page 32

Covering The Waterfront, Without Jokes

Mary Wakefield THE BOTTOM OF THE HARBOR by Joseph Mitchell Jonathan Cape, £12, pp. 295 C ritics fell on Joseph Mitchell's last book, Joe Gould's Secret, two pieces origi- nally......

Asking For More Oliver

Jane Gardam LOVE, ETC by Julian Barnes Cape, £15.99, pp. 249 S o here they are again, the three loqua- cious loonies, the three endearing floun- derers, the three knowledgeable......