The Thing of the Year

For many Decembers now I have looked forward with great anticipation to John Wilson's list of his favorite books of the previous twelve months — I always find fascinating items I never would have come across on my own. Alas, John will no longer be issuing his list from his customary perch as editor of Books and Culture, since Books and Culture is no more, but I am hoping that he'll be providing me great reading material for many years to come from his new place — about which you'll be hearing more in due course.

This year's list offers the usual flair and fun, but also one extra surprise: he has chosen my friend Adam Roberts's fabulous novel The Thing Itself as his Book of the Year. I say a few things about the book here, but if you just click on the "Adam Roberts" tag at the bottom of this post you'll see what a stimulating interlocutor Adam has been for me on the past few years, and in how many ways. So it's just delightful to me to see my friend and favorite editor commending so warmly the work of my friend and favorite active-SF-novelist.

my new companion

My dear friend John Wilson, editor of Books & Culture — which you should be subscribing to, by the way — called yesterday evening and asked if he could drop off something at my house. It turned out to be a copy of the brand new Oxford Companion to the Book, which I will be reviewing for B&C. Oh my goodness. I have so much else to do, but . . . this is really, really beautiful.