Great diarists.

The Assassin’s Cloak: an anthology of the world’s greatest diarists. Ed by I & A Taylor. (William Soutar: ‘A diary is an assassin’s cloak which we wear when we stab a comrade in the back with a pen.’) (Speak for yourself, WS.)

My copy I was given years ago by Caro B and I love it. It's addictive – I’ve dipped in and riffled through it many times. But recently even more, as ref for Agnes Diary (working title). I’m not looking for great literary quality in the writing, particularly not, I just want to read alive diaries by real people.

What’s always stopped me writing one is my question to myself (which I start asking on the fifth day or so: who are you telling these things to? And why? Having said that, whenever I go away, I always keep a sketchbook-diary. That's so I can relive that particular special experience, keep the details: sights, sounds, smells, tastes for years later. At the back of the diary I always keep a section called Snapshots for brief events which can’t be drawn or photographed. ’Greece: Lose sunspecs after visiting chapel of St Anthony saint of lost things. Then over there iss St Lucy holding her eyes on a plate, to taunt me.’'Fiesole: a curtain of rain approaches, drawing across Florence.’ ‘Canada: D always sings Don’t Fence Me In as he does the washing up.’ That kind of thing. 'London Road Co-Op: old man greets old lady with surprise: ‘I thought you’d died years ago’ he says’ earned a place in an ongoing pocket sketchbook.

I’ve bought five copies of The A’s C, all of which I’m giving friends for Christmas.