As I feared, this was a tough go, not because of the uniformly high quality of the workù which I expectedùbut because the five books were so utterly different from each other. All five had wonderful qualities. What is Remembered leapt from a strong, almost relentless premise, and was a stately piece of writing. Skinny was a painfully accurate portrait of family, sisterhood, and the dangerous fragility of self-image. Sunday Afternoon grew from a truly wonderful concept, bringing together clashing beliefs, traditions, and sexes. Bishops Road jumped off the page at me, playfully and lovingly rendering the stories of as colourful bunch of women as we're ever likely to meet. I would have picked this novel as the winner, had Some Great Thing not been in the bunch. Colin McAdam's Some Great Thing is one of the best novels I've come across in a while. It's a courageous book, taking many risks, not all of which succeed perhapsùbut its energy is such that we are eager to forgive. Flashes of brilliance elevate it to international calibre. Its language spikes with innovative flair, dialogue is a particular treat, and it's frequently funny as hell. What I liked best was its vital combining of humour and heart.
It's richly poignant but rarely sentimental. I found myself laughing along with some pretty bleak lives here. This novel might contain the bestùfunniest and saddestùportrait of unrequited love that I've encountered. Part of McAdam's magic is that he can get us interested in and rooting for characters who are pummeled by life yet refuse to learn a thing, burdened as they are with house-sized blind-spots. We relate to them because, yikes, maybe they are us. Some Great Thing got me wondering what this author might be capable of, and makes me anticipate his next as a treat.