You know, nothing delights and surprises me more than being mentioned in the same sentence as people I admire, *by* people I admire. From today's Independent, Boyd Tonkin's A Week in Books column:

"Publishing, which retains the allure of a sort of highbrow showbiz, attracts dedicated wannabes. It also allows talented veterans ousted from, or unhappy in, conglomerate companies to set up as smaller, fiercer rivals to ex-employers. This year, the former Orion chief Anthony Cheetham has planted the acorn of Quercus Books, and Philip Gwyn Jones's Portobello has made a stylish bow. Alma Books has launched with a bold list, Friday Books has begun to transform blogs into paper, Snow Books settles steadily, and Old Street Publishing promises interesting new directions."

There are few better starts to a weekend than reading that manner of thing - and it was excellent timing as my mum's just called from her local bookstore to say she can't find a single one of our books. Thank you, Mr. Tonkin, for raising my spirits.

The full, very fine and really quite emotive article.