Books
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Losing the 2016 US election was ‘devastating’, but Clinton is keeping up the fight. Mother and daughter talk about authoritarianism, inspiring women and why thrillers are the perfect escape -
The author of Elizabeth Is Missing chooses books that explore the physical and emotional impact of dementia
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The Artemis Fowl author on playing a Norse invader, his dad’s historical walking tours – and being inspired by Philip Ardagh’s beard -
‘Thunderclaps of wonder’ ... a moving memoir by a marine biologist who has spent decades exploring coral reefs, many of which are now imperilled -
Growing up in 1970s Belfast means the thrill of punk and first love as well as the threat of violence
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A brisk account of the African American writer’s insights on race, class and sexuality, which are more relevant than ever -
A gripping narrative of four extraordinary women who delivered intelligence, letters and weaponry in the cause of resisting the German occupation of Italy
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These small masterpieces can capture a character’s essence with a revealing thought or gesture -
Only the young survive in this fascinating thought experiment by the author of The Three-Body Problem -
One of the greatest contemporary Mexican authors weaves a suspenseful fable around a search for a lost couple in the woods
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Bluebeard meets boarding-school comedy in a cruelly funny satire of class and eating disorders -
Ordinary life is a terrifying prospect in this existential satire about a London spook -
The place of women in Malaysia’s strict Muslim society is explored through dream-like narratives and striking imagery
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Two new books are causing a stir by translating the contortions over EU membership into graphic tales of endearing animals -
As the TV adaptation of Philip Pullman’s epic fantasy His Dark Materials reaches our screens, one writer tells how the trilogy changed her life -
As His Dark Materials comes to TV, the prize-winning children’s author Katherine Rundell looks at how a scrappy girl became one of literature’s best-loved characters
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How did a one-woman show at Edinburgh become a worldwide hit? As a book of the series is published, performers and writers ask her about inspiration, sex and guinea pigs -
On this week’s show, Jamie talks about her new essay collection Surfacing and we hear a rare recording of the Cider with Rosie author -
The Observer’s comic-strip artist on her new children’s book and her obsession with invertebrates
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The historian and journalist on what Napoleon can teach us about the art of war leadership -
The ex-climber and author of Touching the Void on the stage version of his story, his reaction to seeing Free Solo and what he does for fun these days -
She survived childhood trauma and alcoholism to flourish as a queer, feminist and punk writer. Now blissfully married to her ‘husband-wife’, she reflects on telling all
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Fowles may do the most postmodern thing ever – disavow postmodernism – in his re-creation of a Victorian novel, but it isn’t a cold or showy exercise -
Seething with contradictory impulses and emotions, this character study is also full of life and wit -
Your space to discuss the books you are reading and what you think of them
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Critic and writer Johanna Thomas-Corr suggests works of nonfiction and fiction
What to read
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Dazzling debut novels, searing polemics, the history of humanity and trailblazing memoirs ... Read our pick of the best books since 2000 -
The novelist and playwright on why he keeps a photo of Anne Frank above his desk and championing Jean Rhys
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The author of Elizabeth Is Missing chooses books that explore the physical and emotional impact of dementia
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For some, ‘cosy crime’ of the 1920s and 30s is class-ridden and formulaic – but classic authors such as Agatha Christie and Josephine Tey paved the way for modern fiction as we know it -
After two years of careful consideration, Robert McCrum has concluded his selection of the 100 greatest nonfiction books of all time. Take a quick look back at five centuries of great writing -
Robert McCrum has reached a verdict on his selection of the 100 greatest novels written in English. Take a look at his list
You may have missed
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After a lifetime of saying the wrong thing and obsessing over road signs, author Tom Cutler finally received a medical opinion that made sense -
Thirty years after the events of 9 November 1989, five German writers reflect on the day they woke to a united country -
Around the world, a movement is gaining momentum that grants legal rights to natural phenomena, including rivers, lakes and mountains. Robert Macfarlane investigates the rise of the new animism -
Psychologists such as Jordan Peterson argue patriarchal society is the ‘natural order’, but it is a relatively new development, writes Gaia Vince
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