Lead book review
Alexis the Great
Toby Young is struck by how prescient Tocqueville’s observations have proved on the social and political structures of the many countries he visited
In the steps of the Master
Philip Hensher follows Noël Coward from precocious childhood to the vortex of fame
Is this the end of travel writing?
Viv Groskop shares Sara Wheeler’s fears that modern sensibilities are fatally threatening a centuries-old genre
The problem of our insignificance
Alexander Masters examines the top down cosmology proposed by Stephen Hawking and Thomas Hertog
The clock is ticking fast
Our own actions have created the toxic prison in which we now live, says Peter Frankopan, and the future looks terrifying. Adam Nicolson can only agree
What is Asia?
Is it merely a European construct – and what, if anything, do its diverse peoples have in common, wonders Peter Frankopan
The nightmare continues
The Cultural Revolution may have been officially forgotten, but it will always haunt Xinran and her generation
The seeds of the kingdom
Salman Rushdie returns to India with a full-throated mix of history, magic realism and dazzling storytelling, says James Walton
All the world is here
Justin Marozzi celebrates the medieval naturalist Zakariyya Qazwini and his breathtaking bid to capture the marvels of creation
The world turned upside down
Few periods match the British 17th century for turmoil and idealism.No wonder historians have repeatedly been drawn to it, says Lucy Hughes-Hallett
‘Not really big on books’
What makes the Duke of Sussex believe he can lead a charge against practitioners of the written word, wonders Philip Hensher
A young woman in a hurry
Claire Harman discusses ten of Mansfield’s short stories in connection with her tragically short life
The collecting passion
Jonathan Sumption describes the age-old obsession of bibliophiles with acquiring rare illuminated manuscripts
More tales of Tinseltown
If the early days lacked glamour, they certainly provided the best anecdotes, according to a new oral history
The path to power
Robert Skidelsky follows Friedrich Hayek’s progression from technical economics to political thinking after his battles with John Maynard Keynes
Old-world decorum
At times Anne Glenconner seems like a Craig Brown parody – but no, she really exists, and we must celebrate her, says Hermione Eyre
Sunken wreck
A great talent is wasted in Cormac McCarthy’s meandering tale of a mysterious plane crash and its aftermath, says Philip Hensher
Books of the year II
A further selection of recent books enjoyed by our regular reviewers – and a few that have disappointed them
Books of the Year I
Our regular reviewers choose the books they have most enjoyed reading in 2022
The give and take of friendship
Claudia FitzHerbert explores the complex bond between two remarkable writers in the interwar years
We love you, Uncle Xi!
Tom Miller on the cult of personality that China’s ‘core leader’ has so ruthlessly constructed
Secret assignations
Adam Sisman on the private life of John le Carré, revealed in letters and a kiss-and-tell
Never the bride
Tom Williams describes how two women’s hopes of marrying T.S. Eliot came to nothing
His own worst enemy
The Radetzky March must be one of the dozen greatest European novels – but its author was frighteningly unpleasant, says Philip Hensher
Grand old man of British music
Ralph Vaughan Williams’s towering position in our national life is now beyond dispute – and can only grow, says Simon Heffer
