More from Books
The Queen’s dedication to service was learnt at her father’s knee
If you have ever thought that there cannot be anything new to say or to learn about the Queen, you…
AOC, America’s youngest congresswoman, has already been compared with FDR and JFK
‘Who is AOC?’ the back cover of this book asks. ‘A wack job!’ says Donald Trump. ‘She needs to run…
Are cancel-culture activists aware of their sinister bedfellows?
Is there a woke case to be made for freedom of expression? Jacob Mchangama certainly seems to think so. This…
Zimbabwe’s politics satirised: Glory, by NoViolet Bulawayo, reviewed
NoViolet Bulawayo’s first novel We Need New Names,shortlisted for the Booker in 2013, was a charming, tender gem, suffused with…
The parent snatchers: The School for Good Mothers, by Jessamine Chan, reviewed
Frida Liu, the 39-year-old mother of a toddler named Harriet, has a very bad day which will haunt her for…
History must at least be readable if we’re to learn anything from it
Richard Cohen was once one of our foremost book editors as well as being an Olympic sabre champion. Since moving…
Homage to Joseph Johnson, the radical 18th-century publisher
There’s no excuse for dullness, especially when writing about a life as eventful as Joseph Johnson’s, the publisher and bookseller…
You’d never guess from her art how passionate Gwen John was
‘Dearest Gwen,’ writes Celia Paul, born 1959, to Gwen John, died 1939, ‘I know this letter to you is an…
From hearts of oak to hulls of steel: centuries of the British at sea
An ocean of clichés surrounds Britain’s maritime history, from Chaucer’s Shipman to the ‘little ships’ at Dunkirk. Tom Nancollas, whose…
Is the Virgin Mary being sidelined by Rome?
The Catholic church has always venerated Mary (‘Mother of God’) above other saints. But in recent years there has been…
Proof at last that the Great Pyramid wasn’t built by aliens
Because I once made the mistake of dabbling in Egyptology, some ‘friend’ will schwack me every other week with a…
How I narrowly escaped joining Argentina’s ‘disappeared’
A bully-boy leader. A corrupt, out-of-touch regime. A twisted reading of history. An unprovoked, military-led landgrab. A domestic disinformation blitz.…
Has gambling become the great British addiction?
When I was 14 my father took me to a bookmaker’s and encouraged me to place a bet. He wanted…
Britain’s money laundering scandal goes back a long way
The war in Ukraine has turned a lot of people’s attention to oligarchs in the UK. How did these guys…
Character is king in the latest crime fiction
Thriller writers are hard pressed to stand out in what’s become a very crowded field. As a result, from Cardiff…
Sex and politics in the precincts of St Paul’s Cathedral
In the tight dark maze of alleys that wind between the Thames and St Paul’s the pleasures of the living…
The Greek myths are always with us
Once upon a time there was a collection of stories that everybody loved. They involved brave heroes such as Perseus…
The ghostly ruins of vanished Britain
Take a walk in the English countryside and you get the impression that little has changed. The churches and farmhouses,…
Enjoy your beloved car while you can
Remember ashtrays in cars? Soon cars will themselves become objects of wet-eyed nostalgic reverie. A thrilling era of propelling ourselves,…
The Belfast Blitz: These Days, by Lucy Caldwell, reviewed
Caught outside at the start of a raid in the Belfast Blitz as the incendiary bombs rain down, Audrey looks…
Portrait of a domestic tyrant: The Exhibitionist, by Charlotte Mendelson, reviewed
If vivid, drily hilarious tales about messy families stuffed with passive aggression and seething resentment are your thing, you will…
Knotty problems: French Braid, by Anne Tyler, reviewed
Anne Tyler’s 24th novel French Braid opens in 2010 in Philadelphia train station. We find the teenage Serena, who has…
Jesus’s female disciples remain women of mystery
Is there a patron saint of conjecture? Perhaps it is a name known only to Bible scholars, who have rich…
Abandoned for a bogus guru – Lily Dunn’s harrowing family memoir
Sins of My Father begins with an ending. Describing her 61-year-old parent’s final desperate flight from a life of vibrant…
Has the past decade blunted our sense of the duty of care?
Jay Elwes 2 April 2022 9:00 am
Modern British history can be divided into two parts: before Covid and after. That is the central pillar of this…