RANT Long-winded books Like many people, I have been reading more than usual recently and one thing has struck me: why are so many books, especially biographies, much too long? This applies mostly to non-fiction. You expect

Dickens and Trollope to take a leisurely route and, in the modern era, Hilary Mantel’s massive historical novels are so engrossing that you almost wish they were longer. But with non-fiction, when after an hour of reading you notice that you have made little impression on the 600 or so pages, it can be a little disheartening, to say the least – however interesting the subject.

Do we really need to know the family tree and background of every single person the distinguished writer/artist/ politician met at Cambridge or the minutiae of the weird rituals at his public school? These details may interest the professional historian, but for most people they just slow up the narrative and can encourage the reader to skip large chunks, thereby perhaps missing some vital and relevant information.

When, some time ago, my wife wrote a biography of one of her ancestors, the publishers suggested that she trim it by a quarter. This was not easy to accept, given the large amount of research that had gone into the book and the time it had taken to write. Nevertheless, she followed their advice and the result was a much better book with a more concise and readable narrative.

Editors and publishers need to take a firmer stand with prolix and self-indulgent authors, however distinguished they might be. Readers would be very grateful – as well as saving a fortune in library fines. GEOFFREY HEATH