Agatha Christie enjoyed taking us on a nostalgic trip down a middle-class memory lane, back to a Golden Age of orthodoxy, conformism and shockability. Is that why we love the crime writer, asks Andy Martin
Hollywood star's fiction anthology Uncommon Type due to be published in October
The children were later rescued by lifeguards
How has Malcolm Lowry's novel stood the test of time?
The crime novel wanders the mean streets with its mirror and lets you know what is going on in the violent world beyond the kitchen sink. In the new season of thrillers, Andy Martin realises that the best fiction definitely comes from the worst of times
'Anyone know who Jane Austen's agent is? We'd love to book her for an event'
There are spinoff books, spinoff movies, and a spinoff play all about the prolific writer's magical universe and a ton of fascinating facts about all of them
Fierce, funny and unapologetic, Canadian author Scaachi Koul uses sharp wit and candid humour to confront issues of sexism, racism and stereotypes in her debut book
One will take 'readers on a journey through the subjects studied at Hogwarts'
'Do we mean women are better than men? Do we mean all men should be pushed off a cliff? What do we mean? Because that word has meant all of those different things,' says author
The statue will be placed in Austen's birthplace of Steventon, in the south of England
Today (18 July) marks 200 years since the Pride and Prejudice author's death
He also sold less that 20,000 copies of the book Dangerous in the US, despite branding the figures as 'fake news'
The American writer's debut novella is published in the UK, but seems to suggest that the author's real interest lies elsewhere
"I don't know whether it will ever be published, but it's actually hanging in a wardrobe currently," the Harry Potter author says
For some, books line floor to ceiling bookcases or are piled high in children's rooms. But for others, it's a luxury item that is the difference between feeding a family for a day, or not
Russian summerhouses, known as 'dacha', date back to the Tsar period second homes for those who could afford them. Despite not having water or heating, they managed to survive the Soviet period and became real estate. But, why asks Dasha Shkurpela, are these traditional buildings not considered to be architecture
This first novel by The Independent's TV writer moves in unexpected directions and will keep you gripped until the end
The writer could just as easily be remembered as a politician or a saint
The third and final instalment in this powerful family saga is about the radicalisation of a Muslim teen in California
