Written in a relentless present tense, the perspective is that of a clever girl growing up surrounded by the savagery of apartheid whilst herself being outside its rigid conventions. Some of our finest actresses woo the listening ear this summer Eleanor Bron’s voice is warm and subtle as a viola. She could bring plangent loveliness to any banality, from the boredom of a station announcer to the weariness of a put-upon mother (how wistful would sound her reproach: “Not angry, darling, just disappointed”). He recently moved away, claiming this book made him unpopular in the Oregon town.Non-Fiction 2004This collection of journalism includes interviews with Marilyn Manson and Juliette Lewis, reports from such curious events as a combine harvester demolition derby, and accounts of Palahniuk’s own bizarre adventures.. But the themepark attendant who spends his evenings choking in restaurants doesn’t bank on his own powers.Lullaby 2002An estate agent who sells haunted houses, an incidental serial killer and a blackmailing eco-terrorist scour the libraries of America to find and destroy every last copy of a deadly children’s story in this exploration of global epidemics.Diary 2003Her builder husband may be lying in a coma but for Misty there is no escape. Angry home-owners are after her for the vile messages Peter has left hidden away on the walls of rooms he’s concealed when remodelling their houses.Fugitives and Refugees 2003Palahniuk’s version of a travel guide takes readers on a tour of underworld Portland, where he lived for 25 years. He says those days are over.”That’s just my problem,” I told him “I’ve met you five years too late.

Five years ago, you might have come out to steal socks.”"The thing is,” he replies, “that in the past, there was this big, looming thing of – please don’t ask me about my private life. So five years ago I think I’d have said: I don’t want to talk about my private life. But I will go and steal socks with you – any day of the week. When I e-mail him to ask what he’s decided, he replies: “I made it clear to my publishers that I’d do no more personal profiles Any meetings would be about my work.. to that extent I can’t put you in touch with these people. If this means the profile is scrubbed,” he continues, “that’s fine by me.”"You don’t enjoy doing this much,” I’d said to Palahniuk as he was leaving, “do you?”"I understand that this is part of promoting a book,” he says. “But at this point I really wish I could bring down the curtain and go back in time, and do no more.”In the past, he tells me, he has made the mistake of being too eager to please his interviewers.

And I’m not interested in…”Palahniuk looks at his watch.”Actually I have to go And work on 14 brass trophies for tomorrow’s books thing. And I’m more interested in getting ready my trophies, and 100 stuffed animals, than I am in doing this.”"You’re sure you don’t need a hand?”"I’m doing it at a friend’s It’s wrong to take strangers there I have to go I have to pack. I have,” Palahniuk adds, “a lot of errands.”Chuck says he’ll think about giving me numbers for a few people, including Spanbauer. “That fear has gone.”It’s possible that coming out might have damaged his standing with traditionalists in his Playboy constituency. Or had he felt that his publishers might be uneasy about him coming out? (The explanation he gave to a friend of mine after a reading.)”No,” says Palahniuk.Now that, as he puts it, “the big bomb has exploded,” he tells me, he feels no need, when being interviewed, “to be entertaining any more What you get now is a me that has an hour and a half And money in the bank And I don’t owe anybody any more.

All of which makes North Bend, situated a few miles south-west of Williamsburg, the ideal place to stay. The towns are within easy driving distance of each other and give a unique insight into pre- and post-revolutionary America. 1 North Bend Plantation, Charles City, Virginia

1 North Bend Plantation, Charles City, Virginia
For anyone with even a passing interest in military history, a visit to Virginia is a must – particularly the triangle formed by Richmond (the former capital of the Confederate states), Williamsburg (a perfectly reconstructed 18th-century town, seat of Thomas Jefferson’s governorship), and Yorktown (site of the last major battles of the Revolutionary War). There are no special children’s facilities but cots and high chairs are available, and you can have an extra bed for a child in your room for €35 (£23).The damageA single room is €125, a double €165, and a “semi suite deluxe” is €250. Bilbao does not have a reputation for wild night life, which has so far kept the British hen and stag parties away.The accessOne of the 50 rooms is fully adapted for the disabled and the hotel is wheelchair accessible. Breakfast is €13.50The addressMir?tel, Alameda Mazarredo, 77, 48009 Bilbao, Spain; tel (34) 94 6611880; Mir?tel can be booked through Design Hotels UK, reservation number 0800 169 8817, or on international toll-free number 00 800 37 46 83 57, or via their website .