“I used to feel sheepish describing Studs Terkel as one of my favourite American writers, right up there with Roth and Doctorow, Updike and DeLillo. Yes, OK, his oral histories (Working, Race, Coming of Age) ranked alongside the most compelling and illuminating books produced about the American experience – but how much of this was down to the author? … How stupid I was. The genius of Studs Terkel is in his discretion.”