Alison has more books than she can fit in her house but cannot bear to part with any. (Don't get her started on the costs of off-site storage.) It is the thought that she can reach for one of them at any moment and re-enter its particular world that makes them precious to her. She loves the company of writers, whom she finds endlessly varied and always fascinating, so ChipLitFest is the perfect weekend for her. By day, Alison is the only non-economist on the editorial team of the Oxford Review of Economic Policy, an academic journal. Since its aim is to influence public policy and to be read by the interested lay person as well as other economists, it makes sense to have one non-specialist on the team.