Heartbreaking scenes: Annihilation, by Michel Houellebecq, reviewed
Set in 2027, with France in a state of economic and moral decay, Houellebecq’s deeply affecting novel is really a meditation on love and death and the way we treat the dying
Enemy of the Disaster: Selected Political Writings of Renaud Camus, reviewed
The French writer does not accept that all incomers to his country can be truly ‘French’, and considers the dramatic change of population an unprecedented disaster
The exquisite pottery of Lucie Rie
Lucie Rie had no time for high-flown talk about the art of ceramics. ‘I like to make pots – but…
The exquisite pottery of Richard Batterham
Richard Batterham died last September at the age of 85. He had worked in his pottery in the village of…
Michel Houellebecq may be honoured by the French establishment, but he’s no fan of Europe
For many years, Michel Houellebecq was patronised by the French literary establishment as an upstart, what with his background in…
A Jack Reacher travesty: The Sentinel, by Lee Child and Andrew Child, reviewed
So upsetting it would have been, for those of us who rate Lee Child’s Jack Reacher thrillers so highly, if…
Down – if not out – in Paris
Virginie Despentes remains best known in this country for her 1993 debut novel, Baise-Moi, about two abused young women who…
The really shocking thing about Michel Houllebecq’s Soumission — he rather likes Islam
News of Michel Houllebecq’s Soumission caused such a stir that the book was pirated online before publication. David Sexton reports on the latest literary event in France
‘J’adore Michel’
Michel Houellebecq’s sixth novel, imagining an Islamic government taking power in France in 2022, has been widely assumed to be…
‘J’adore Michel’
Michel Houellebecq’s sixth novel, imagining an Islamic government taking power in France in 2022, has been widely assumed to be…
One Leg Too Few may be one biography too many
It’s no joke, writing about comedians. Their work is funny, their lives are not. Rightly honouring the former while accurately…
Bitter Experience Has Taught Me, by Nicholas Lezard - review
What, really, is a literary education for? What’s the point of it? How, precisely, does it help when you’re another…
