The new alliances dedicated to destroying democracy
Despite their diverse ideologies, autocracies in China, Iran, Russia and Latin America are increasingly collaborating to sabotage a rules-based international order
Doomed to immortality: The Book of Elsewhere, by Keanu Reeves and China Miéville, reviewed
For the past 80,000 years, our protagonist has been fated to respawn himself. With a similar being now tracking him, he longs for the option of non-existence
Mother of mysteries: Rosarita, by Anita Desai, reviewed
On a break in Mexico, a young Indian woman is regaled with stories of her mother’s past by a total stranger. But is it all a con?
The power of the brown American diva
Deborah Paredez celebrates ‘bold, beautiful, messy’ stars such as Tina Turner, Celia Cruz, Vikki Carr, Grace Jones and Aretha Franklin as fabulous role models for the oppressed
‘I am haunted by waters’: Norman Maclean and his lyrical ‘little blue book’
The author of A River Runs Through It emerges as wiry, sardonic, compassionate and inspirational from Rebecca McCarthy’s trenchant memoir
Born in the U.S.A.: how Bruce Springsteen’s 1984 album bridged the American political divide
Steven Hyden traces the impact of the title song, whose coruscating verses and affirmatory choruses cut both ways, and made its creator for a time the world’s greatest rock star
No laughing matter: The Material, by Camille Bordas, reviewed
A graduate course at the University of Chicago teaches stand-up to a group of aspiring young comedians. But the more you analyse humour, the less funny it becomes
The futility of ever hoping to give peace a chance
After 400 generations of martial conflict on Earth, mankind now faces the prospect of wars in space, as China and America vie for mastery of the heavens
Tall tales of the Golden East: the fabulous fabrications of two 20th-century con artists
Capitalising on his Afghan-Indian heritage, Ikbal Shah claimed to have crucial inside knowledge of Central Asia, while his son Idries later purveyed a rebranded Sufism for the West
Making the fur fly: Mary and the Rabbit Dream, by Noémi Kiss-Deáki
When a poor peasant named Mary Toft claimed to have given birth to 17 rabbits, many in Georgian Britain believed her, including senior members of the medical profession
The hunt for the next Messi: Godwin, by Joseph O’Neill, reviewed
A video file of an African teenager with legendary ball skills is circulating far from his homeland – wherever that is. How hard can it be to track him down?
Why Joni Mitchell sounded different from the start
Polio in childhood weakened her left hand, leaving her to devise alternative tuning, surprising phrasing and ‘chords of inquiry’ that hang like question marks in the air
The woman fighting to bring down Nicolás Maduro’s regime
Maria Corina Machado is showing the world how opposition politicians can fight an autocrat. When President Nicolás Maduro tried to…
The Obamas — finally — endorse Harris
The support for Kamala Harris within the Democratic Party springs eternal. Last night, activist Shannon Watts organized a “white women…
What’s behind Wes Streeting’s quality care reforms?
One of the big themes of Keir Starmer’s government could well end up being accountability in the public sector, which…
Keir cracks the whip on his Starmtroopers
As the third week of Sir Keir Starmer’s Labour government comes to an end, there’s certainly been a lot of…
Chaos ensues hours before the Olympics
France’s Olympics could not have got off to a worse start. Hundreds of thousands of train passengers have been left…
Does Labour care about free speech on campus?
Universities fought tooth and nail against plans to impose fines if they failed to uphold freedom of speech. That proposal…
Could Kamala Harris end the war on weed?
Kamala Harris is the Democrats’ new hope for keeping Agent Orange out of the Oval Office. It’s probably for the best.…
How Labour plans to justify its tax hike
Oh, the suspense. It seems that we will have to wait until next week to discover the details of the…
Prince Harry will never win his war on the tabloids
The enemy of my enemy is my friend, according to the old adage; and so it stands that someone who…
There is nothing new about the £20bn ‘black hole’
Labour’s pro-growth reforms were fun while they lasted. Now here come the tax rises. That’s not quite how Rachel Reeves will…
France descends into chaos on the Olympics’ opening day
France’s Olympics could not have got off to a worse start. Hundreds of thousands of train passengers have been left…
