Summer Heat, UK style
July 3rd, 2009 by adminIt isn’t often the thermometer hits the heady heights of the high twenties here in Derbyshire, but it’s managed it this week, and after a trip to the local supermarket earlier this week, my in-car reading (on a tarmac carpark, admittedly) was an impressive 33c. Everyone around me is complaining about the heat, and even our cat (a true gourmand, under normal circumstances) has stopped eating.
You’ll hear no complaints from me: this is summer weather as it should be - hot, sultry, calming (with apologies to everyone commuting - I appreciate heat is not calming in standing traffic on the M25, or on the tube). But it’s this kind of heat which moulds the Mediterranean temperament, because to rush about in it is madness; far better to take your time, have another cold drink in the shade, and get around to what you had to do manana, or avrio, as they say in Greece. My son and I are booked on a flight to the islands in a couple of weeks, and I’m really looking forward to a month there. Except the temperature’s been up as high as 40c. I’ll let you know if I find that kind of heat calming when I return.
Meantime, I’m pleased to let you know I’ve joined the Curzon Group - a group of crime writers whose aim - in a tongue in cheek way - is to wrest the crown of crime writing from American hands and bring it home to Britain. I’m a huge fan of American crime, and US writers have led the field for many years - think Michael Connelly, John Grisham, Patricia Cornwell. But there’s an untapped seam of home-grown talent emerging now that could really give those writers a run for their money. Britain produced some of the best-ever thriller authors - Agatha Christie, Dorothy Sayers, Conan Doyle. Can those days return? The Curzon Group believes they can. As a start, we’re doing an airport tour to promote British books as beach reads, starting at WH Smith’s East Midlands airport on 15th August. It’s a 5am start for me, so if you’re flying that day, a cup of heavy-duty caffeine from Costa Coffee would be much appreciated…