Mother For Dinner

Shalom Auslander

The top things a woman would do for her best friend have been identified in a survey, including lending an ear if she was upset (49%), sending a bouquet to cheer her up (31%) and offering a place to stay (30%). But most women would draw the line at forgiving a BFF’S cheating partner, according to the poll from Serenata Flowers, with only 3% agreeing to call a truce.

Picador, £16.99

In this satirical novel, “Seventh” Seltzer is a New Yorker grappling with his family legacy. The Seltzers are the last in a long line of cannibals so, if one of them dies, the surviving family members must eat their corpse.

Following the death of their mother Mudd, her reluctant children are expected to tuck into her barbecued remains.

Though her children lack any attachment to the Cannibal American tradition – and one of them is vegan – they find it’s not easy to abandon the ancestral traditions they were raised to observe.

Anyway, the siblings have a more earthly incentive for fulfilling their mother’s last request. The process will be overseen by their uncle, Mudd’s executor, and if they refuse, they will lose their share of the proceeds from Mudd’s Brooklyn townhouse.

Auslander captures the corrosive influence of identity politics on modern society and, though this satire lacks the requisite bite, there are comic moments amid the exuberant grimness.

The Prodigy made the poignant announcement on their social feeds this week that they are set to produce a band documentary dedicated to their iconic frontman Keith Flint who died in 2019.

“After the devastating passing of our brother Keef in 2019, the time feels right for us to tell the story of our band, all of it, the whole nine”, wrote the two remaining members, Liam Howlett and Maxim.

“It’s a story of the chaotic and troubled journey of our gang, our band, the people’s band – The Prodigy.

“Or simply – a story of brothers on a mission to make noise. To ignite the people’s souls and blow up sound systems worldwide, this film will be made with the same integrity that our music is – uncompromising, raw and honest, this one for Keef.”

Pulse Films, the multi awardwinning studio behind Gangs of London and Spike Jonze’s Beastie Boys Story are producing the project, which will mark the first feature-length music documentary about the band.

Directed by multi-grammy nominated Paul Dugdale and written alongside Sam Bridger, the feature will tell “the raw, uncompromising and emotional story of a gang of young outlaws from Essex who came together in the vortex of the late 80s U.K. rave scene.”