Geoff Dyer

Known for his original, idiosyncratic, and highly ironic take on any subject he chooses--often, by his own acknowledgement, one in which he has limited expertise. An essay in The Threepenny Review, extols the advantages of writing from the amateur's point of view. Novels include Jeff in Venice, Death in Varanasi (2009), Paris Trance (1998), The Search (1993), and The Colour of Memory (1989). But Beautiful (1991) is a book about jazz; The Missing of the Somme (1994)  is about the First World War; Out of Sheer Rage (1997)  is a hilarious account of his attempt to write a book about D.H. Lawrence; The Ongoing Moment (2005) is about photography; Zona (2012) is about the Andrei Tarkovsky film Stalker. Essay collections include Anglo-English Attitudes (1999), Working the Room (2010), Otherwise Known as the Human Condition (2011) and Yoga For People Who Can't Be Bothered to Do It (2003). His most recent book is  Another Great Day at Sea (2013).