The Big Issue – August 19, 2019

ǼȄɯǽȀg&g]cǽǻǼȄ .&.]]gJCʸ 31

ɔɕ

Freshwater

by Akwaeke Emezi

®ŊŏǽƸŏŲŃƠżŏŲƸżłǜŏĪǝƸŊƣżǀŃŊƸŊĪ

ƠƣżƸÿŃżŲŏƫƸᡉƫŰÿŲǣᡈƫĪŧǜĪƫᡉ᠁ÿŲģ

ģƣÿǝŏŲŃżŲSŃěżĜżƫŰżŧżŃǣ᠁ƸŊŏƫ

ŏƫÿŲĪǢƸƣÿżƣģŏŲÿƣǣěżżŤ᠁ěżƸŊ

ĪǢƠÿŲƫŏǜĪÿŲģŏŲƸŏŰÿƸĪ᠇

ɔɖ

Orlando: A

Biography

by Virginia Woolf

£ǀěŧŏƫŊĪģŏŲᙷᚅᙸᚄ᠁ƸŊŏƫěżżŤ

ƫƸŏŧŧłĪĪŧƫłǀŲÿŲģłƣĪƫŊ᠇ƣŧÿŲģż

ƸƣÿŲƫłżƣŰƫłƣżŰƸĪĪŲᠵěżǣƠÿŃĪ

ŏŲƸŊĪ/ŧŏǭÿěĪƸŊÿŲĜżǀƣƸƸż

ÿģǜĪŲƸǀƣŏŲŃÿģǀŧƸǝżŰÿŲ᠁ÿŲģǝŊż

ĜżŲƸŏŲǀĪƫƸżƫǝŏƸĜŊěĪƸǝĪĪŲŰĪŲᡉƫ

ÿŲģǝżŰĪŲᡉƫĜŧżƸŊŏŲŃ᠇łÿǜżǀƣŏƸĪ

ěżżŤżłŰǣǣżǀƸŊ᠁ŏƸǝŏŧŧÿŧǝÿǣƫ

ƣĪŰŏŲģŰĪƸżěĪÿģǜĪŲƸǀƣżǀƫÿŲģ

ěżŧģŏŲŰǣǝƣŏƸŏŲŃ᠇

ɔɗ

Highway Bodies

by Alison Evans

ŃƣżǀƠżłƢǀĪĪƣÿŲģŃĪŲģĪƣ

ģŏǜĪƣƫĪƸĪĪŲƫŧĪÿƣŲÿŲĪǝ

ƣĪƫŏŧŏĪŲĜĪǝŊĪŲƸŊĪǭżŰěŏĪ

ÿƠżĜÿŧǣƠƫĪŊŏƸƫǀƫƸƣÿŧŏÿ᠇GżƣǣÿŲģ

ǣĪƸěŏŃᠵŊĪÿƣƸĪģ᠁ǝŏƸŊŰĪŰżƣÿěŧĪ

ƸĪĪŲĜŊÿƣÿĜƸĪƣƫ᠁SᡉŰƸŊĪƠƣżǀģ

ƠǀěŧŏƫŊĪƣżłƸŊŏƫæǝżƣŤěǣÿ

ƸÿŧĪŲƸĪģ᠁ŲżŲᠵěŏŲÿƣǣÿǀƸŊżƣ᠇

ɔɘ

Written on the Body

by Jeanette

Winterson

¼ŊĪŃĪŲģĪƣżłƸŊĪŲÿƣƣÿƸżƣżłƸŊŏƫ

ƫĪģǀĜƸŏǜĪŲżǜĪŧŏƫŲĪǜĪƣŰÿģĪżǜĪƣƸ᠇

¼ŊĪŲÿƣƣÿƸżƣŊÿƫŊÿģŃŏƣŧłƣŏĪŲģƫÿŲģ

ěżǣłƣŏĪŲģƫ᠇SƸǝÿƫÿƣĪǜĪŧÿƸŏżŲƸżŰĪ

ǝŊĪŲSƣĪÿģŏƸŏŲŰǣĪÿƣŧǣƸǝĪŲƸŏĪƫ᠇

ěżżŤƸŊÿƸŃÿǭĪƫÿŲģƸżǀĜŊĪƫ᠇SƸᡉƫ

ÿěƫżƣěŏŲŃÿŲģƠżĪƸŏĜ᠇

ɔə

The Tensorate Series

by JY Yang

SᡉǜĪěĪĪŲŰÿŤŏŲŃŰǣǝÿǣƸŊƣżǀŃŊ

ƸŊĪƫĪƫƸǀŲŲŏŲŃłÿŲƸÿƫǣŲżǜĪŧŧÿƫ᠁

ŏŲǝŊŏĜŊƠĪżƠŧĪÿƣĪŲżƸěżƣŲǝŏƸŊ

ÿģĪǿŲĪģŃĪŲģĪƣ᠁ěǀƸĜŊżżƫĪŊżǝ

ƸŊĪǣǝŏŧŧƠƣĪƫĪŲƸÿƸÿĜĪƣƸÿŏŲƠżŏŲƸ᠁

ŰżǜŏŲŃŏŲƸżÿģǀŧƸŊżżģ᠇¼ŊĪ

ěżżŤƫÿƣĪĪŰżƸŏżŲÿŧŧǣƣŏĜŊÿƫ

ǝĪŧŧÿƫŊÿǜŏŲŃĜżŲƫŏģĪƣĪģÿŲģ

ǜŏǜŏģǝżƣŧģᠵěǀŏŧģŏŲŃ᠇

SŲĜŧǀģĪƫƣÿƠƸżƣƫ᠇

Angela Meyer’s

A Superior Spectre

is out now

(Saraband, £8.99)

T

he life of a concert pianist

is a strange one. Jetting

from city to city, from

hotel room to hotel room,

without the companionship of a band,

working temporarily with this or that

orchestra, this or that conductor – it

must take a certain type of personality,

and a certain type of inner fortitude.

Whatever it takes, Stephen Hough

has it in spades. Not only is he one of

the world’s leading pianists, he is

an author, a painter, and, his latest

book reveals, an essayist of

considerable distinction. He puts

that in-between time to good use.

Hough’s playing is sublime,

and over the years his insistence

on seeking out lesser-performed

composers has introduced me

to music I might otherwise have

overlooked: Mompou and Franck, to

űþůĩƷǜŻ᠐ȃþƷơƿĩƪƷŎűłěƿƢŎŻƪŎƷǢŎƪ

ƢĩǴŦĩěƷĩĢŎűʼnŎƪǜƢŎƷŎűłĩǛĩƢǢĚŎƷþƪ

much as his performance at

the keyboard.

Rough Ideas is a joy, comprising

mostly short pieces on music, people

he has known, and thoughts on life.

ȃĩƢĩŎƪƪŻůĩƷʼnŎűłŻŁƷʼnĩůŎűŎᠸ

Montaigne about it all, the sense

you are in the company of a sharp

and generous mind that has thought

harder about the purpose of existence

than most, and that has arrived at

some pretty useful and universal

ěŻűěŦƿƪŎŻűƪ᠐ȃĩěʼnþƟƷĩƢʼnĩþĢŎűłƪ

are a treat in themselves and give an

idea of the book’s scope, ranging as

they do from “Stephen, that was really

dreadful!’, to ‘Lonely on the Road’, to

‘Stanley Kubrick and recording’, to ‘I

ĢŻűᡒƷŦŻǛĩþěʼnᡒᠧơƿŎěţŦǢŁŻŦŦŻǜĩĢ

by ‘I don’t hate Bach’), to ‘If I ruled

the world’.

In one of my favourite passages,

ʼnĩƢĩǴŦĩěƷƪŻűƷʼnĩůƿƪŎěþŦěŻűǛĩűƷŎŻűƪ

that dictate the form of a sonata, or

how closely a musician must adhere

to, say, Liszt’s markings. “Without

structure, without rules, music’s

vibrations in the air would merely

buzz around as if through open

windows, impossible to grasp... or

enjoy. But ultimately law is about

freedom. We restrict one thing so that

another more important thing can

ǴŦŻƿƢŎƪʼn᠐hŎŁĩ᠅ŎƪþűŎůƟƢŻǛŎƪþƷŎŻű᠐

And despite the themes given to us by

nature we each have to make our own

ǛþƢŎþƷŎŻűƪ᠐ȃþƷƪĩþƢěʼnŁŻƢƷʼnĩƟĩƢŁĩěƷ

balance between law and freedom,

ƢŎłŎĢŎƷǢþűĢǴŦĩǡŎĚŎŦŎƷǢ᠄ŎƪƟĩƢʼnþƟƪ᠅

a search for the Lost Chord.” An insight not just into

music, but into living.

Laura Sims brings the tweezered precision of the

classical musician to literature, perhaps unsurprisingly

• she has previously published four collections of
  poetry. LookerŎƪʼnĩƢȀƢƪƷűŻǛĩŦ᠄þűĢƷƢþěĩƪƷʼnĩþĚƢƿƟƷ
  psychological descent of a female academic known only
  þƪȃĩ£ƢŻŁĩƪƪŻƢ᠄ǜʼnŻĚĩěŻůĩƪŻĚƪĩƪƪĩĢǜŎƷʼnþŁþůŻƿƪ
  þűĢĚĩþƿƷŎŁƿŦþěƷƢĩƪƪᠵȃĩěƷƢĩƪƪᠵŦŎǛŎűłŻűʼnĩƢĚŦŻěţ
  in New York.
  ȃĩěƷƢĩƪƪþƟƟĩþƢƪƷŻʼnþǛĩƷʼnĩƟĩƢŁĩěƷěþƢĩĩƢ᠄
  ŁþůŎŦǢ᠄þűĢĢŎƪƟŻƪŎƷŎŻű᠄þűĢþƪ᠄ŎűěŻűƷƢþƪƷ᠄ȃĩ
  £ƢŻŁĩƪƪŻƢᡒƪůþƢƢŎþłĩ᠄ŠŻĚþűĢůĩűƷþŦʼnĩþŦƷʼnŁþŦŦþƟþƢƷ᠄
  she takes to stalking her neighbour ever more intensely.
  ȃĩƟŦŻƷůŻǛĩƪĩŦĩłþűƷŦǢƷŻǜþƢĢƪŎƷƪƷƢþłŎěĩűĢ᠐
  Looker – what a great, multi-layered title that is –
  isn’t always an easy read, but it is taut, compelling and
  packed with memorable phrases. It sings like a perfectly
  tuned piano.

@chrisdeerin

Illustration:

£ÿƸƣŏĜŤ ǀŧŧǀŰ

¦ŻƿłʼnSĢĩþƪᡁ¦ĩdzŦĩěƷŎŻűƪŻű

rƿƪŎěþűĢrŻre

by Stephen Hough

(Faber & Faber, £18.99)

Looker

by Laura Sims

(Tinder Press, £8.99)

Angela

Meyer

Top 5 gender-

bending books

REVIEW

Hitting the right notes

Chris Deerin ¤æÞÚꬽ½ÞÞËÄެĽ¬£Þö½½

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