Book Festival

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  • In the UK, The Hay Festival commences this week. This is a literary Woodstock (well not quite...) where authors and publishers trade words of wisdom, the occasional insult and clever hints about how to stop the pouring rain leaking into temporary marquees.

    I have recently been reading some Transgender Fiction. There, I admit it. I am confident that this writing is not in the same league as that on offer at Hay and probably is best not to be read out load to a middle-class gathering in a Welsh Field. But neverthless it's got me thinking. Primarily, what a lot of tosh is it.

    So, I'd welcome any recommendations of good (very broad definition I know) Transgender Fiction. But more importantly, I'd welcome even more, your recommendations of the best of women's writing. No Mills & Boon or Barbara Cartland romantic novels please, unless they are essential for your bookcase.

    Rachel
    a girl at heart and a proper person too
      May 19, 2008 4:15 PM BST
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    Hi Rachel,

    Never quite made it to Hay, but always wanted to!

    I have a real love for the cheap 'n' easy thriller. A quick scan of my bookcase for women writers with good protaganists yields the following couple:

    Running Scared by Ann Granger
    The Shakespeare Secret by Jennifer Lee Carroll

    Also some Val McDermid, depending on your taste - her Kate Brannigan novels are good for me. Also - not female, but a damned good author - anything by Jeffrey Deaver, his novels are always great and I've not found an author who can write short stories like he does. As he says himself, in a novel you have a sort of contract with the reader to supply certain things, with a short story all bets are off!

    I enjoyed them but I do admit I view my reading as the literary version of daytime telly - I want to relax, switch off and get lost in the pages without necessarily engaging my brain too much...!

    Much love

    Rae xx

    ps I was going to comment that I thought more people would have given their suggestions, that led me to think about a Bill Hicks commentary where he touches on books - well worth looking up on YouTube, I think under the heading 'waffle house' or very similar - and absolutely nothing to do with this thread, just a random thought connection! R x
    www.raekelcou.com
      May 20, 2008 12:03 AM BST
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  • Try any of Agatha Christie's books. They are all very good. Enjoy!

      October 5, 2018 2:06 PM BST
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