Jennifer Paterson
My best read this year has been going straight through Evelyn Waugh's Sword of Honour trilogy, as I had only read Men at Arms before. These books must contain some of the greatest fictional or otherwise characters of the century. I roared out loud with delight. A Palate in Revolution: Gri- mod de la Reyniere and the Almanach des Gourmands by Giles McDonagh (Robin Clark, £11.95) is my non-fiction choice. Fascinating man this Grimod, born into vast weatlh but with claw digits instead of hands, he became a great lover and gour- mand, writing his Almanach before Brillat- Savarin's Philosopher in the Kitchen, which owed a great deal to Grimod's work.
My most overrated book was The Orton Diaries edited by John Lahr (Methuen, £12.50). Deeply tedious. Not a patch on his plays. Jonathan Routh's Good Loo Guide (Banyan, £2.95) is far more entertaining, and useful to boot.
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