Martin, I've never read any of them, or to be honest, heard anything about them either. I l look forward to hearing your comments about them as you work your way through the list.

Rosefolly

As Rosefolly says I have never read any them let alone heard of them! The 'Today' prog. Radio 4 has just had a short piece on Sabrina as it is the first graphic novel to be included.

Martin, I always look forward to your reviews of the Bookers. Like Vee & Rosefolly, I haven't read any of them or even seen any references to these titles (or most of the authors, for that matter) before this. I'll have to check them out on Amazon, particularly Sabrina.

I've not heard of these titles. However, I do know the work of Michael Ondaatje: "The English Patient." I think he is a superb writer.

Relying on my tried and trued method of selecting a book by it's title, I just did a quick search on The Water Cure......egads. Not likely to pick that one up any time soon !

OK, so I have now officially read one of the longlist. I found a UK first edition of Sabrina by Nick Drnaso. As the first graphic novel ever listed on the Booker, I thought it was worth a punt - I strongly suspect it'll be worth a bit more than I paid for it in the future.

But it's really quite disappointing. I didn't find the story convincing; I couldn't get immersed in it at all. I thought the drawing was quite poor - in fact, I had difficulty telling some of the characters apart. The very first couple of pages totally confused me, as I thought the main character on them was male - until the character said to a woman something like "Shall we have a girls night in?", and I did a double take.

No, Sabrina did absolutely nothing for me. It made a few points about modern life quite tellingly, but still...

This, I think, is a classic example of the Booker trying to be cool and edgy. It won't be shortlisted.

(Maybe I just don't get graphic novels - I read Alan Moore's Watchmen because everyone raved about it, and I couldn't see what all the fuss was about.)

Next - Milkman by Anna Burns. I have read the first fifteen pages of this, and in my opinion it's already got far more depth and interest that the whole of Sabrina.

I just finished Warlight by Michael Ondaatje. Great characters and writing, plot and story could have been stronger. The basic premise in a nutshell is how a mother's career as a secret agent has repercussions for her children. This is the first book I've read by this author and many of the characters felt very Dickensian with names like The Pimlico Darter and The Moth. It's very readable and held my interest.

In Our Mad and Furious City by Guy Gunaratne

This is set in a council estate in London; it is the story of seven or eight people on the estate, mainly from different backgrounds and ethnicity. Each section is written in the first person, more or less as an internal monologue.

Frankly, it's a very slight story, and not a huge amount happens. But the views, attitudes and opinions of the various different people are beautifully caught. It took me a while to get into it, but by the end I was really impressed.

Will it be shortlisted? I'd like to think so, but I suspect not. Will it win? I don't think it's a winner. But I'd recommend it.

For some reason, I put Milkman down. So I've restarted it and I am enjoying it very much. Back soon!

I have to pick a selection for my book club in November- I am going to try Warlight.