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Travellers’ tales
In the absence of their own written records, they have been ‘invented’ and misrepresented in Europe ever since their arrival in the Middle Ages, says Klaus-Michael Bogdal
A feminist finds fulfilment in derided ‘women’s work’
Like many women in mid-life, Marina Benjamin found herself caring for the very young and the elderly – leading her to ‘a radical feminist turn’
An ancient stalemate may provide lessons today
History is always relevant, says Adrian Goldsworthy – and Rome’s long war with Parthia-Persia, ending in deadlock, should make Putin wary
Terrorists you might know or love: Brotherless Night, by V.V. Ganeshananthan, reviewed
When a Sri Lankan medical student finds her brothers joining the Tamil Tigers, she is caught in a tangle of commitments to family, friends, homeland and vocation
The scandal of rubbish disposal worldwide
Food and fashion are the chief culprits, with too much organic waste going to landfill, and 10-15 per cent of new clothing routinely incinerated as ‘deadstock’
Homage to Hatshepsut – a remarkable female pharaoh
Describing the golden age of ancient Egypt, John Romer pays tribute to the chief wife of Thutmose II who proclaimed herself king and ruled successfully for almost 20 years
Searching for the best of all possible worlds – in London
Niall Kishtainy examines the eccentric ideas of Gerrard Winstanley, Thomas Spence, John Adolphus Etzler, Thomas More and other utopians who lived in and around the capital
A born storyteller
Instead of swashbuckling, we get the Parisian art world, trout-fishing, unhappy couples and surrogate parenting – though the 20 stories for children are full of adventure
The shock of the new in feminist art
Laura Elkin looks at women artists from the past century onwards who boldly portray the female body from their own intimate experience
Love in idleness: The Four Corners of the Heart, by Françoise Sagan, reviewed
In an atmosphere of languid torpor on a French family estate, an unfortunate relationship develops between a son, a father and a mother-in-law
Friendless, but not unhappy
A retired librarian reflects on a childhood runaway adventure and a devastating romantic betrayal as he begins to forge new bonds in later life
A 1,000-mile trek through the Caucasus finally clears the mind
Scarred by reporting the Beslan school siege in 2004, Tom Parfitt embarks on a gruelling – and ultimately healing – journey from the Black Sea to the Caspian
Why did Truman Capote betray his ‘swans’ so cruelly?
In an effort to arrest his slide into middle-aged bloat, he attempted a ‘Proustian’ novel, but spilling the secrets of the women he claimed to love was social suicide
The inner world of others
As ever in her short stories, Hadley uses the smallest details – of dress, food and decor – to masterfully convey class, character and the inner world of others
An untrue true crime story: Penance, by Eliza Clark, reviewed
A teasing piece of crime fiction weaves together real and invented murders in a satire on the true crime genre and its devotees
Espionage dominates the best recent crime fiction
Owen Matthews concludes his magnificent KGB trilogy, and there’s a thrilling debut from David McCloskey, a former CIA Middle East specialist
What should we make of the esoteric philosophy Traditionalism?
Depending on one’s perspective, it is either a dangerous way of thinking or one that the decadent West would do well to study, says Mark Sedgwick
How much worse can it get?
The hero of many of Ford’s novels, Frank, now 74, is still trying to bond with his son Paul, who has been diagnosed with an incurable neurodegenerative condition
A whale of a problem
Restoring the painting ‘View of Scheveningen Sands’, an art conservationist uncovers a vital detail, leading her to regret the pact she once made with her husband
A Blakean heaven or hell: fish with coloured lanterns and teeth like primeval beasts
On 11 June 1930, William Beebe and Otis Barton descended into the Caribbean depths to glimpse a world no man had seen before
Barbara Ker-Seymer – Bright Young Person in the shadows
Though she photographed many society figures of the 1930s, Ker-Seymer lacked ambition and remains largely unknown – as she herself seems to have wanted
Sic transit gloria mundi
Katherine Pangonis also traces the histories of Tyre, Antioch, Syracuse and Ravenna, once proud centres of government, trade and culture
The wonder of the marine world is in serious danger
The Atlantic Bluefin Tuna has the misfortune to taste so good that it has been hunted for millennia, and stocks are now dangerously depleted
The devil comes calling
The sinister Sergeant Bertrand arrives in a ‘provincial, mediocre’ Russian town to wreak havoc in the lives of a couple mourning the loss of their son
Broken dreams
Oliver Balch 8 July 2023 9:00 am
Interviewing the Continent’s refugees and poorest rural inhabitants, Ben Judah reveals a world far removed from Brussels politics or Eurovision optimism