It is often said, with some justification, that there is no current British novelist who shows an interest in, and understanding of business life to match, say, Tom Wolfe. I can think of no fictional representation of the flora and fauna of London's financial markets to rivalThe Bonfire of the Vanities. Nor can I imagine a British novelist who could write a magnificent novel about an estate agent, like Richard Ford's recent The Lay of the Land.

Most of our novelists are more preoccupied with life after working hours and below the waist. That is understandable, up to a point - even investment bankers make time for affairs, I am told - but limiting. Mr Wolfe and Mr Ford draw great inspiration from business relationships. And the British commercial world could benefit from the pitiless gaze of our best novelists.