From public bar to cocktail bar: books for the discerning drinker
There’s something for all tastes this year, whether poetic meditations on the pub, advice on wines for extended cellaring or recipes for new-wave martinis
Waifs and strays: Gliff, by Ali Smith, reviewed
Two lonely, recalcitrant children, Briar and Rose, find themselves among a bunch of other rag-tag misfits resisting ‘re-education’ by the brutal regime in power
The mystery of Area X: Absolution, by Jeff VanderMeer, reviewed
We are never told the exact location of this highly toxic zone in Florida, but any scientist investigating it has been monstrously affected, either physically or mentally
Truly inspirational: the hospital diary of Hanif Kureishi
‘My world has been smashed...and there is nothing I can do about’, writes Kureishi of the freak accident in 2022 that has left him paralysed. ‘But I will not go under. I will make something of it’
The many passions of Ronald Blythe
Some he kept hidden, such as his affairs with soldiers in the second world war, but his love of nature, literature, naked sunbathing and moonlit bicycling are all well-attested
Out of the depths: Dante’s Purgatorio, by Philip Terry, reviewed
Having toured the infernal campus of the University of Essex, Terry arrives at the coast, to be confronted by a strange artificial mountain which he now must climb
You didn’t mess with them – the doughty matriarchs of the intelligence world
Claire Hubbard-Hall pays tribute to the legions of women who devoted their lives to the British secret service but whose efforts went largely unacknowledged
A geriatric Lord of the Flies: Killing Time, by Alan Bennett, reviewed
Chaos reigns at an old people’s home when Covid strikes, but the more rebellious residents won’t take the situation lying down
All human life – and death – is here: the British parish church
As a skilled stonemason, Andrew Ziminski has dug deep into the fabric of countless churches and can explain every conceivable aspect, from baptismal fonts to gravestones
‘I like it when my pupils run the world’: a celebration of Jeremy Catto
The convivial Oxford don who died in 2018 is remembered by his many devoted students, who include bankers, barristers, diplomats and politicians as well as other distinguished historians
They weren’t all scheming poisoners: the maligned women of imperial Rome
Joan Smith criticises the distortions of Robert Graves in particular, whose villainisation of the empress Livia had no historical basis whatever
Wondrous treasure troves: the Jewish country houses of Europe
Among the greatest collectors was Baron Ferdinand de Rothschild, whose furniture, paintings and objets at Waddesdon Manor rivalled those of many museums
Biden scores another ‘own goal’ over Trump’s ‘garbage’ supporters
The latest wisdom from our tottering, angry president was to call Donald Trump’s supporters “garbage.” He was responding to the…
Tories overtake Labour in Sunak’s final poll
It’s Rishi Sunak’s final week as Tory leader, but should he be asked to carry on? On Wednesday he charmed…
Germany’s gender madness is a worry for women everywhere
Germany has gone further than most countries in failing to stand up to the relentless march of transgender ideology. Its…
Can the OBR be trusted?
It was the absence of the Office for Budget Responsibility’s judgment that was blamed for the bond market crisis after…
Donald Trump, Liz Cheney and the great realignment in US politics
For Donald Trump fans, one of the many creepy curiosities of this year’s presidential election is that Liz and Dick…
Reform warns Starmer of ‘national crisis’ over immigration data
One of the key issues at play in this year’s July election was the matter of immigration. Sir Keir Starmer…
Is staff sickness crippling the NHS?
Some £22 billion of the £40 billion in tax rises the Chancellor announced this week will go straight to the…
Has Labour given up on the City?
It seems that the Budget isn’t going down terribly well in the City. Ministers have been out on the airwaves,…
Labour’s by-election nightmare
Sir Keir Starmer’s Labour party has not had the easiest time in government so far – and last night’s local…
Will the ‘value for money’ tsar really overrule Rachel Reeves?
Is there any word more laughably misapplied than ‘tsar’? We have already had an ‘antisemitism tsar’ and now we are…
The path to falling university rankings is paved with bureaucratic intentions
Regulation of speech leads to regulation of thought
Values, ethics: what’s the difference?
In response to a decision by Jeff Bezos, the owner of the Washington Post, not to endorse a Presidential candidate,…
