books
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A gay Slovakian heroine makes a new life in rural England in this quirky debut novel
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The first short stories smuggled out of North Korea represent a unique challenge for their translator, Deborah Smith
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Gordon spent five years writing his acclaimed biography of Carter and joined us to answer your questions about Carter’s thoughts on feminism, ‘modern’ fairytales and which authors she thought were bores...
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Short stories Whatever Happened to Interracial Love? by Kathleen Collins – black power and pathos
Colin GrantWritten during the 1960s and 70s, these posthumously published stories from the civil rights activist and film-maker seem startlingly prescient -
Stories are a key support for each person’s identity, so it’s vital we defend those going unheard and unread – or leave a void to be filled by the far right
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The Chinese-American author discusses her breakdown and facing up to the trauma of her past
news
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Librarians call for a national audit after inventory count of Suffolk libraries reveals 10,000 books are missing, despite computer records saying otherwise
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Fences, Moonlight, Manchester by the Sea … why are there no novel adaptations on this year’s Academy Award shortlist?
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The Books for Grown Ups series is worth nearly £30m – so it’s no wonder that retro books for ‘kids’ have spread to other publishers. Now, serious subjects are getting the toilet-book treatment, too
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books in 2017
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Jane Austen’s bicentenary, Arundhati Roy’s first novel in 20 years, and unpublished F Scott Fitzgerald ... the literary year ahead
regulars
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PodcastPodcastReclaiming history with Yaa Gyasi and Chibundu Onuzo - books podcastThe authors of two buzzy new novels, Homegoing and Welcome to Lagos, explore ancient and modern stories of west Africa
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Reading groupReading groupAngela Carter webchat – your questions answered by biographer Edmund GordonGordon spent five years writing his acclaimed biography of Carter and joined us to answer your questions about Carter’s thoughts on feminism, ‘modern’ fairytales and which authors she thought were bores...
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The first book interviewThe first book interviewAlice Broadway: 'I guess it's inevitable that I became a bit death-obsessed'Ink’s heroine loses faith in a culture where people’s histories are etched on their skin – reflecting its author’s own disaffection from evangelical Christianity
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Book of the dayBook of the dayChristodora by Tim Murphy review – solidarity in the shadow of AidsNew York’s East Village is the setting for this brilliantly kaleidoscopic story about the city’s haves and have‑nots, both brought together and torn apart by an epidemic
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Nothing actually ‘goes viral’, and consumers are both conservative and curious, argues this engaging cultural study
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Paperback of the week The Dedalus Book of Gin by Richard Barnett
Nicholas LezardNicholas Lezard’s paperback of the week: an entertaining look at the drink’s history – complete with ‘Hogarth-rating’ tasting notes
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An optimistic book argues with gusto for universal basic income and other policies but lacks a broad or deep perspective
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Daniel Swift’s account of the disgraced poet’s years in a mental hospital is enthralling but leaves us little wiser as to his state of mind
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History The Last of the Tsars: Nicholas II and the Russian Revolution by Robert Service
Catherine MerridaleThe prolific historian’s account of the doomed Romanovs is rich in drama -
Biography Theresa May by Rosa Prince – a sphinx without a riddle
Andrew RawnsleyA biography of the prime minister reveals a politician of steely self-control with a taste for vengeance
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A brilliant, genre-bending French bestseller uses the story of the early church as a parable for the author’s own life
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There are shades of Jeanette Winterson and Ian McEwan in this atmospheric follow-up to The Girl in the Red Coat
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New York’s East Village is the setting for this brilliantly kaleidoscopic story about the city’s haves and have‑nots, both brought together and torn apart by an epidemic
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The Image imprint continues to thrive, plus a cherubic demon-hunter protects Prague from ancient threats
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Fiction Three Daughters of Eve by Elif Shafak – a rich journey into romance and religion
Natasha WalterA young Muslim woman’s spiritual quest takes her from Istanbul to Oxford as she learns about love, faith and real life -
A war reporter heads home to Herne Bay, but is haunted by Aleppo and childhood abuse
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Fiction The Crime Writer by Jill Dawson – suspense in 60s Suffolk
Hannah BeckermanPatricia Highsmith is involved with a married woman in this fascinating fictional biography of the late writer
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When we read to a child we are also reading to ourselves – and, in our increasingly polarised society, small choices make a big difference
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Young adult Another Brooklyn by Jacqueline Woodson – dreams and danger on the streets of New York
Bernardine EvaristoAn allusive, less-is-more approach works beautifully in this coming-of-age novel -
The bond between schoolchildren and their teachers is lovingly explored in this story of a boy who loses the class bear
people
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With Tom Hanks announcing a collection of typewriter-themed short stories, which other stars have tried and failed to become bestselling authors?
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The author of The Story of Pain explains how an agonising hospital stay prompted her to explore an experience felt very differently down the ages
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The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter, her debut novel of desolate southern lives, made McCullers an instant star – something she never fully recovered from
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The American journalist on ageing, coming to terms with Parkinson’s disease and why baby boomers should be taxed
A selection of our favourite literary content from around the world
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The Little Library CaféThe Little Library CaféFood in books: pig cheeks from Fingersmith by Sarah WatersUnctuous and tender, pig cheeks are less popular now as a cut than past times. Kate Young brings them back in style, to celebrate a meal from Sarah Waters’s Victorian novel
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Interview with a Bookstore by Literary HubInterview with a Bookstore by Literary HubInterview with a Bookstore: Blue Willow Bookshop in HoustonCelebrating 20 years since owner Valerie took over, Blue Willow Bookshop is equally split between adults and children’s books, and staffed with knowledgable booksellers who can do anything - including fixing vacuum cleaners
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pictures, video & audio
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The authors of two buzzy new novels, Homegoing and Welcome to Lagos, explore ancient and modern stories of west Africa
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The Pulitzer prize-winning novelist looks back on a modern classic at a Guardian book club event
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In the week Sebastian Barry picked up his second Costa book of the year award, he joins us in the studio to read from and discuss Days Without End
you may have missed
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In hospital in 1972, Paula Keogh fell in love with the poet Michael Dransfield. In her new memoir she captures the voice of her illness and the man she loved
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A new exhibition charts the changing place of electricity in our lives, our homes and in literature
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The author recalls her youthful dreams of a Turner prize victory and the run-in with doctors that led to her second novel
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As Nazis occupy our TV screens in the adaptation of Len Deighton’s novel, DJ Taylor explores the alternative world of counter-factual novels
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Reference and languages Oxford Dictionaries add 'clicktivism' and 'haterade' as new words for angry times