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Famous Londoners are celebrating the capital in print by choosing books that have said something important about the city.
Figures who have had an impact on the capital from Alastair Campbell, the former Labour spin doctor, to infertility expert Robert Winston, have picked volumes that mean something to them.
The project was initiated by Waterstone's store in Piccadilly which is celebrating its 10th birthday.
Campbell chose Ian McEwan's novel, Saturday, set against the backdrop of the anti-Iraq war protest which could be considered a strange choice for someone so associated with the dossier that took Britain to war. “Set on one of the most political days of recent times, it manages to weave so many different aspects of modern life,” he said.
By contrast, Lord Winston chose London in the 19th Century by Jerry White which he describes as “an amazing, scintillting description of London from every aspect - its buildings and institutions, its inhabitants, its beggars, musicians and entrepreneurs, their drunkenness...”
There are some obvious selections. Cherie Blair plumped for London the Biography, Peter Ackroyd's weighty tome on the history of the city, while Deyan Sudjic, director of the Design Museum, chose Edward Jones and Christopher Woodward's Guide to London Architecture.
But Helen Fraser, managing director of Penguin Books, selected a more apolacyptic vision of the city in Will Self's novel, The Book of Dave in which all of London except for Hampstead is under water. “It is an unforgettable image of London's future, which has made me seriously consider relocating to higher ground,” she said.
London's diversity is celebrated in Andrea Levy's Small Island, the story of post-war immigration, which was the choice of Diane Abbott MP and in The Line of Beauty, Alan Hollinghurst's novel of gay life with the arrival of Aids. That was Martha Lane Fox's suggestion.
Other more offbeat choices on the subject of London include The Second Plane, a series of essays on theocracy and terror by Martin Amis selected by Charles Saatchi, and The Road, Cormac McCarthy's bleak vision of the future, chosen by environmentalist George Monbiot.
A Waterstone's spokeswoman said: “It's an interesting and timely list and a lovely way to take a unique look at London through the eyes of those who have made it what it is today.”
Reader views (1)
Do we really care what Campbell now says or does. He was elevated to 10 Downing Street from the gutter press and gave us 12 years of gutter politics. He should go back to the gutter where he (and Tony Blair) belong.
- John, Highgate, 14/10/2009 18:32
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