Reading the Golden Bowl (and it's taking me a long time. I bought a copy on the day of the Varsity match, to read over lunch and on the journey home...that's over a month ago). Last night on the train read the long conversation the Prince and Charlotte have while shopping and was struck not only by its poignancy and James's well-known subtlety , but also by James's extraordinary ear. The dialogue between the two is exactly right.

