Christmas Book Reviews

VLADIMIR NABOKOV, The Original of Laura (Penguin, 2009)

Sensing that he would not be able to complete The Original of Laura, Nabokov drew up instructions that the manuscript should be burned. For thirty years his wife and son debated whether to follow the writer’s wishes. The unfinished masterpiece is now available for the first time with 138 reproductions of the index cards on which the novel was originally written.

PAUL AUSTER, Invisible (Faber and Faber, 2009)

Three different narrators tell the story of Invisible, a novel that travels in time from 1967 to 2007 while moving from Morningside Heights to the left bank of Paris and finally to a remote island in the Caribbean. A book about youthful rage, unbridled sexual hunger, and a relentless quest for justice – a work of unforgettable power.

MARGARET ATWOOD, The Year of the Flood (Bloomsbury, 2009)

This new novel is a testament to Atwood’s remarkable literary mastery and imaginative power. Though set in the undefined near future, the novel reflects a world we very much recognize, and poignantly reminds us of our own enduring humanity.

RICHARD POWERS, Generosity (Farrer, Straus and Girox, New York, 2010)

Once again Richard Powers has reinvigorated the whole concept of the "novel of ideas,' writing yet another intellectual work, based on neuroscience but defying facile categorization into genres. In some respects, Generosity is a social satire, and in others, it verges on science fiction, but it also incorporates elements of metafiction. Its intellectual focus keeps the reader on his toes as Powers develops and expands themes and plot lines about the human genome that are both fascinating and original.

THOMAS PYNCHON, Inherent Vice (Penguin, 2009)

This title is described as part noir, part psychedelic romp, all Thomas Pynchon. Private eye Doc Sportello comes out of a marijuana haze to watch the end of an era as free love slips away and paranoia creeps in with the L.A. fog. It's been awhile since Doc Sportello has seen his ex-girlfriend…then she appears suddenly with a story about a plot to kidnap a billionaire land developer whom she just happens to be in love with. It is the tail end of the psychedelic sixties in L.A., and Doc knows that 'love' is just another word going around, like 'trip' or 'groovy', except that it usually leads to trouble. In this lively yarn, Thomas Pynchon provides a classic illustration of the principle that if you can remember the sixties, you weren't there...

Shakespeare & Company, Booksellers
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PHILIP'S ATLAS OF THE WORLD (Philips, 2008)

The detailed physical and political maps in Philip's Atlas of the World have been fully revised and updated. Praised by the Daily Mail as “clearer than The Times”, the unique combination of relief colouring and hill-shading gives an exceptional portrayal of landforms.

The latest updates include newly redrawn maps of the U.S.A. and Canada as well as new maps of the Torres Strait and the Panama Canal. Updated transportation information incorporates the new international airports in Congo, Cape Verde Islands, Philippines, South Korea and India; new high-speed rail lines in China; the new rail link joining North Korea and South Korea, and the new Lotschberg rail tunnel in Switzerland. In addition, the new national parks in Norway, Turkey, South Africa, Uganda and Costa Rica are represented.

This new edition features the informative 'World Geography' section, packed with maps, diagrams and text explaining key world themes such as climate change, geology, trade, agriculture, industry and population. Also included are urban-area and city-centre maps for 69 of the world's largest and most economically important cities, including all major capitals. This edition includes enlarged city-centre maps of Beijing, Amsterdam, Bangkok and Moscow, with new locator maps to indicate each city's position in its global context. In addition, the 'Images of Earth' section shows spectacular satellite views of 17 major cities and regions across the globe.

The 84,000-name index, including geographical features and historical place names as well as towns and cities, gives full latitude/longitude coordinates and letter-figure grid references. A 1,000-entry 'Geographical Glossary' explains the derivations of many unfamiliar place names.

RICHARD DAWKINS, The Greatest Show on Earth (Bantam Press, 2009)

Charles Darwin's masterpiece, On the Origin of Species, shook society to its core on publication in 1859. Darwin was only too aware of the storm his theory of evolution would provoke but he would surely have raised an incredulous eyebrow at the controversy still raging a century and a half later. All reputable scientists and indeed theologians accept evolution as scientific fact, yet millions of people continue to question its veracity.

In The Greatest Show on Earth, Richard Dawkins takes on creationists, including followers of 'Intelligent Design' and all those who question the fact of evolution through natural selection. Like a detective, he sifts through fascinating layers of scientific facts and strives to build a cast-iron case. From the living examples of natural selection in birds and insects; the 'time clocks' of trees and radioactive dating that calibrate a timescale for evolution; the fossil record and the traces of our earliest ancestors; to confirmation from molecular biology and genetics. All of this, and much more, bears witness to the truth of evolution.

The Greatest Show on Earth comes at a critical time: systematic opposition to the fact of evolution is now flourishing as never before, especially in America. In Britain and elsewhere in the world, teachers witness insidious attempts to undermine the status of science in their classrooms. Richard Dawkins provides unequivocal evidence that boldly and comprehensively rebuts such nonsense.

At the same time he shares with us his palpable love of the natural world and the essential role that science plays in its interpretation. Written with elegance, wit and passion, it is hard-hitting, absorbing and totally convincing.

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