In 2007, Faber published an attention-grabbing debut novel called Apples, a read-in-a-day tale of adolescent angst and ecstasy written by young Middlesbrough resident Richard Milward. I am so confident you will like it, I shall allow you to break off now and read it without delay. I will still be here when you’ve finished.

There! Good, wasn’t it? You were doubtful at first – all that date rape and horrid food. But you shared the temptations and vulnerabilities of Eve, the high-seeking heroine, and Adam, the awkward hero, to such an extent you forgave the fact they were called Adam and Eve