More from Books
Richard Ellmann: the man and his masks
James Joyce’s celebrated biographer seemed a mild man to fellow academics – but his ambition and steely self-belief made him a callous husband and father
Consorting with the enemy: The Propagandist, by Cécile Desprairies, reviewed
The debut novel by a historian of the Vichy regime is a personal J’Accuse, indicting the collaborators in her family for their part in France’s collapse in the second world war
Private battles: Twelve Post-War Tales, by Graham Swift, reviewed
The latest short stories focus on everyday traumas: ageing, PTSD in a former soldier, and the loss of a parent, spouse or grandchild
A David Bowie devotee with the air of Adrian Mole
Plodding through suburbia in Bowie’s footsteps, Peter Carpenter might be Sue Townsend’s hero incarnate – and there’s even an omnipresent friend called Nigel
From the early 1930s we knew what Hitler’s intentions were – so why were we so ill-prepared?
Intelligence provided by William de Ropp made the situation painfully clear, but the British political establishment, determined on peace, wilfully ignored the warnings
Driven to extremes: The Rest of Our Lives, by Ben Markovits, reviewed
Haunted by his wife’s affair, a middle-aged professor leaves his home and job to take a road trip across America. But will his act of emancipation bring him peace?
The mixed messages of today’s architecture – retro utopias or dizzy towers?
The way out of the muddle, says Owen Hopkins, is ‘post-architecture’ – tied to the earth and purged of vanity – which can be achieved by a close study of 21 remarkable buildings
Keith McNally: ‘Still craving the success I pretend to despise’
In a self-lacerating memoir, the restaurateur describes his many regrets, dislikes and feuds with celebrities, his longing for recognition and his love of family and friends
It’s trust in English kindness that keeps the migrants coming
More than 12 million Brits engage in some form of voluntary work, many of whom have dropped everything to help those arriving in small boats
The grooming of teenaged Linn Ullmann
Ignoring her mother Liv Ullmann’s advice, 16-year-old Linn accepted the offer of a photo shoot in Paris in 1983 – and has been haunted by the experience ever since
It’s a wonder that the Parthenon remains standing at all
From a temple to Athena, it became a Byzantine, then Latin, church, a mosque, a powder magazine and finally a ruin. Lord Elgin’s vandalism was hardly anything new
News from a small island: Theft, by Abdulrazak Gurnah, reviewed
Decades of change follow the 1964 revolution in Zanzibar, with boutique hotels multiplying in Stone Town’s haunted streets. But is a whole way of life being threatened?
Who’s the muse? In a Deep Blue Hour, by Peter Stamm, reviewed
A documentary film-maker grows obsessed by a recurring character in a celebrated series of novels – much to their author’s mounting displeasure
What sea slugs can teach us about organ transplants
The ability of species of nudibranch to incorporate the cells of completely separate species could have profound implications for humanity, says Drew Harvell
When ordinary men did extraordinary things – D-Day revisited
The transporting of 150,000 troops across the Channel in total secrecy and the feats they did that day is a story we never tire of – and Max Hastings tells it exceedingly well
A cremation caper: Stealing Dad, by Sofka Zinovieff, reviewed
Part grief-memoir, part macabre escapade, Zinovieff’s latest book is inspired by her own father’s bizarre strictures regarding his funeral
Cooking up a storm of memories – Bee Wilson’s kitchenalia
A baking tin, a toast rack and a soup tureen conjure poignant reminders of the past - while Wilson’s wedding ring is transformed into the world’s smallest pastry cutter
Rafael Nadal: king of the orange brick court
No tennis player was so well suited to the centre court at Roland Garros, where the Spaniard won a record of 14 French Open titles
The complexities of the dawn chorus
The habits of common or garden birds and their intricate songs prove even more fascinating than the puffins and guillemots of Adam Nicolson’s previous book
The satisfaction of making wine the hard way
An investment banker leaves the rat race to restore a neglected vineyard in the Loire, where he decides to do as much as possible by hand, from pruning the vines to pressing the grapes
Alzheimer’s research is challenging enough without a data manipulation scandal
Two cases of scientific fraud and cover-up are brought to light by Charles Piller, with serious consequences for the Alzheimer’s field in the US
Whether adored or despised, Princess Diana is never forgotten
Edward White examines the effect of the former Princess of Wales on the millions worldwide who never even laid eyes on her
The mother of a mystery: Audition, by Katie Kitamura, reviewed
A married couple’s life is thrown into turmoil with the arrival of a handsome young man out of the blue claiming to be the woman’s son
The enduring lure of Atlantis
Damian Le Bas goes in search of the fabled city beneath the waves in an attempt to overcome the grief of losing his father
The Russian spies hiding in plain sight
A programme of deep-cover espionage, begun in the 1920s, is as important to Russia as ever with the expulsion of so many diplomats in the wake of the war with Ukraine
