For one writer's answer to that question we had in another thread regarding the usefulness of fiction, take a stroll through "Saturday". You'll find yourself admiring his prose and agreeing with his central thought; that in the sometimes nightmare world in which we live, what must sustain us is our private joys.

The climactic scene, whereby violence is averted by the recitation of a Victorian poem, is faintly preposterous. But the choice of poem is apt, and McEwan does hammer home his point, that literature can capture personal life in a historical context (after 9/11).

Joan Didion observes that grief is "the most general of afflictions", and she proceeds to recount her journey through it via her internal voice," magical thinking". It's a rich, rich book and does it resonant...hard, sweet wisdom. But paradoxically it's upbeat, and funny.