On 18 September, Jonathan Cooper OBE, member of the Granta Trust board, died of a sudden and unexpected heart attack. He was walking in the Highlands with his long-term partner and husband Kevin Childs, and two friends. They remarked on the beauty of the landscape, the privilege of sitting by a Scottish loch, watching the sun falling on the water and their beloved dog Molly swimming. We will miss him. RIP.
Doing the Work
Doing the Work
‘I think there should be a National Service of Hospitality. The best way to see the true face of humanity is to serve it a plate of chips.’
Camilla Grudova on bad-mannered customers.
Doing the Work
‘Anyone who has ever worked night shifts will understand the vertiginous feeling that comes with staring down the day from the wrong end.’
A.K. Blakemore on working nights.
Doing the Work
‘I was constantly reading job ads, trying to find my holy grail – a job I could stand to do, and someone foolish enough to hire me.’
Sandra Newman on learning how to play professional blackjack.
Doing the Work
‘I loved being a receptionist. What I loved about it was playing the part of being a receptionist.’
Emily Berry on being a temporary office worker.
Doing the Work
‘Every part of you would swell, including your eyeballs, and no matter how much water you drank, you were always dehydrated.’
Junot Díaz on working for a steel mill.
Sigrid Rausing
SIGRID RAUSING is the publisher of Granta magazine and Granta Books. She is the author of History, Memory and Identity in Post-Soviet Estonia (2004), Mayhem (2017), Everything Is Wonderful (2014) and the co-author and translator of And The Walls Became the World All Around Me (2024).
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