| Dear All:
My favourite good news story of 2005 was England's triumph over Australia in the Ashes. Admittedly, we were only playing one man - Shane Warne, Oz's answer to Superman – and it took all five tests to defeat him. But who cares? We won!
I am, of course, talking about cricket, but for those of you who don't know the game, here's an easy-to-understand guide: A single match takes five days and it's quite normal for neither team to win. There are four innings during which eleven men occupy the field, and two stand at their creases. The bowler's job is to bowl a maiden over or capture a wicket, while the batsman's job is to guard his stumps and hit the bowler for six to prevent the maiden. If the bowler oversteps the crease, the batsman is given an extra, but if the batsman is caught by silly mid-off or square leg, he's out. Hope that helps!
Avian 'flu seems to be this year's greatest mystery – with the notable exception of The Devil's Feather. (I seem to have caught the world's angst rather well by putting 'feather' in my title.) We've all been given the possible symptoms of avian influenza in people, but does anyone know what symptoms chicken show? In view of my 60+ flock, it seemed an important detail so, in an effort to find out, Alec visited the government's website. Thoroughly confused by the gobbledygook, he forwarded the address to my computer, but when I tried to open it a message appeared on the screen saying the 'Avian Influenza' site was unsafe due to a possible virus. Clearly the disease has already mutated and is a lot more advanced than anyone realises.
 Our sheep and pigs are doing well. They have interesting natures. Sheep are like cats - distant and rather suspicious; pigs are like dogs - friendly, trusting and only interested in food. When my agent heard that I’d given them the uniform title of 'Biggles', she emailed me to say: "So pigs can fly!"
I have two predictions for 2006. The first is that Chickenfeed, my 20,000 word novella for World Book Day and the Quick Reads initiative, will be published in March. It's the fictional telling of the 'chicken farm' murder that happened in Sussex in 1924, and it is designed to engage both skilled and unskilled readers. The initiative, supported by a number of authors, is such a great idea that I hope the general public will support it, too. If you all buy the books then no one need be embarrassed to read them in public.
My second prediction is that England will meet Australia in the final of the FIFA World Cup on 9 July, 2006, in Berlin… and WIN! Excuse me? Who are you to say this is fantasy football that will never happen? Surely everyone knows that truth is stranger than fiction!?
Happy Christmas to you all and my very best wishes for 2006,
Minette
Daily Mail Literary Lunch
Thank you again to everyone who entered our competition to win a signed copy of The Devil's Feather! The lucky winner attended lunch at the Savoy in London and was kind enough to send us a brief review.
Read Yvonne's review > >
Read review from The Daily Mail > >
It's been another amazing year here at MW.co.uk - we've been thrilled with the number of visitors to the site, and we appreciate all the kind comments! We hope you continue to find the newsletter informative, and we would love to hear any suggestions you have for improving the site!
Best wishes to you all for a joyful holiday season!
--The Editor
MinetteWalters.co.uk |
