Regener has captured absolutely the lifestyles and conversations of a group of pre-fall-of-the-Wall Berlin friends

Full of Kafkaesque absurdity, Berlin Blues is as wilfully detached, witty, endearing and deadpan comic as its loafer protagonist

Regener captures note-perfectly the disengagement of a German generation that came of age between the crushing of the Baader-Meinhof underground and the demolition of the Wall

Real and heartfelt... Hudson avoids the usual sentimental clichés and gives us, without a shred of hipster cynicism, the hope and tough warmth for which she has such a sharp eye

A gritty, tough, sweet , sad, funny story of urban survival. Recommended

A sympathetic coming-of-age tale and a valuable counterpoint to widespread social attitudes to women in poverty

Concurrently very funny and incredibly sad. The writing sizzles, and the words jump off the page as Hudson describes a world of fags, booze, bingo and worse. We watch our heroine Janie Ryan struggle through it all with humour and a will to survive. I was cheering her on all the way, and I'm sure you will, too

A laugh out loud read

Told with such an honest and engaging voice that you can’t help but turn the page

This is a remarkable debut novel of love and loyalty, of fierce passion and scabrous wit, full of characters whose broad vernacular is direct and expressive. This is about a culture with just as much right to be called British as that of middle-class suburbia

Refreshing originality… Hudson’s achievement is the creation of a strong, working-class, female voice in her protagonist – filling a hole in contemporary literature

Definitely one to watch

Hudson’s ear for language…raises this debut novel well above the average

Janie’s irrepressible, childish glee and the sly humour into which it evolves give the novel a wry self-awareness that is both refreshing and endearing

A gripping, often hilarious tale of growing up in the slums of Aberdeen. Hard to put down owing to the power of the narrative, its DNA is part Roddy Doyle/part Irvine Welsh

A sumptuous novel. Read it for the sentences and smarts, and for the copious sexy parts

Everything I want from a love story: sexy, convincing, baffling, funny, sad and unforgettable

Banville's exquisitely written novel unravels the deceptions of memory with wit and pathos