Louise Wener

I reckon that Louise Wener is cool, and it’s my blog! In my world, anyway, Louise Wener is cool.

Reason one: she was the singer in a much under-rated nineties band, Sleeper. They are well worth checking out on YouTube. In particular, have a look for Inbetweener, What Do I Do Now?, and Statuesque – but be aware, miming is not one of her particular talents. Her autobiography, Different For Girls, is an excellent account of life within Britpop. We’ll be coming back to Britpop at a later date.

And then, when the hits dried up, she started writing novels. There’s no prizes for guessing where she found the inspiration for her first, Goodnight Steve McQueen, the story of a man and his band trying to make it in the music business.

Her following books – The Big Blind and The Half Life Of Stars – both feature well-drawn characters and strong relationships between characters. The Big Blind is about poker, and The Half Life Of Stars follows a woman’s search for her missing brother.

I would strongly recommend any of these books as a good read – sometimes funny, sometimes sad, always enjoyable - and if you’re lucky, you might be able to pick one up at your local library!