O Albion

I am in England because The Rest Is Noise has been nominated for the BBC Four Samuel Johnson Prize, to be announced on Tuesday. My chances of winning seem low, but I am thrilled to be here. Tonight I will appear at Topping Books in Bath. Update: Warmest congratulations to Kate Summerscale, whose book The Suspicions of Mr. Whicher, a reconstruction of a notorious 1860 murder case, won the prize.