A travel writer is drawn into a world of espionage from Congo to the eastern bloc in this portrait of a vanished era
An international study of how human history has reshaped the planet, and vice versa
Some big names missing from a final six that includes the largest number of female authors in the fiction prize’s history
‘Want’, an anthology of sexual fantasies collected by Gillian Anderson, and Helen King’s scholarly ‘Immaculate Forms’ continue the boom of sex-positive books by female writers
Exciting first novels cover themes from America’s racial divide to writing as therapy — and riding to the rescue in the Iraqi desert
The gripping account of the Ukrainian plant workers who saved the world from another nuclear disaster
The author’s latest book, inspired by the intimate diaries kept by his mother, Elaine, is arguably his most mature novel yet
On the 50th anniversary of her bestselling novel La Storia, we remember a writer inextricably linked to Italian political history
In his follow-up to the bestselling ‘Four Thousand Weeks’, the writer aims to unshackle us from the never-ending dream of life improvement
A brilliantly funny and well researched biography of Elizabeth II has to contend with its uniquely inscrutable subject
An outstanding history of the trade routes that linked a civilisation’s wealth and wisdom to the world beyond
The American writer continues the story of his auto-fictional alter-ego amid a devastating mid-life illness
Judges of the £30,000 annual prize select the year’s most compelling and enjoyable title
The author has turned his back on Fancy Coffee Places and started working in less salubrious establishments — and the words flow
Women’s bodies and Gillian Anderson’s anthology of fantasies; Serhii Plokhy on how Putin’s invasion came to Chernobyl; Craig Brown’s funny but circuitous life of Queen Elizabeth II; Oliver Burkeman on the pressure for self-improvement; new books from Will Self and Garth Greenwell that blur the boundaries between life and fiction; a history of ancient India’s cultural conquests — plus Nilanjana Roy on Elsa Morante and Barry Forshaw’s pick of crime titles
France’s most famous and controversial writer on Trump, Ukraine and what he believes lies behind the rise of the far right
Greats like Dickens and Flaubert were unafraid to grapple with complex financial ideas
CDC officials recount the critical role of politicians and others surrounding the story of HIV
A new book pays homage to the grande dame of drape
Two charming memoirs celebrate the simple appeal of the potter’s wheel and the lathe
Like many, I have often aspired to a house by the coast — this wonderful story exposes the messy reality lurking behind the fantasy
The latest novels from Attica Locke, Linwood Barclay, Simon Mason and more
Yuval Noah Harari and Parmy Olson on how the race for superintelligence may amplify the worst of human nature
The former UK prime minister’s ‘how to’ manual captures his infectious optimism and mastery of the political arts
The Norwegian author’s dark novel underscores how love and suffering are often bedmates
Olive Kitteridge and Lucy Barton finally meet in the author’s perfectly rendered world of Crosby, Maine
A hugely ambitious, insightful and readable account of our relationship with money
An emotionally compelling account of the traumatic and miraculous ramifications of an organ transplant
From Lewis Carroll to Roald Dahl and Harry Potter, Sam Leith’s engrossing book is more than a history — it’s a celebration
Encouraging wealth creators helps to generate economic growth and affluence
In Yoko Ogawa’s beautifully composed novel, a young girl tries to make sense of the world around her
Capers in Constantinople and Cornwall — plus a chilling story of espionage set in 1930s Vienna — are among the most compelling new spy novels
As head of America’s Barnes & Noble chain he reinvented the business, but could not compete with Amazon’s disruption
Diarmaid Ferriter’s history of modern Ireland chronicles the dramatic social, political and economic shifts that have taken place within a generation
An autobiography that’s also a work of criticism — and all the better for it
The best things to eat, buy and see this month
Uwe Neumahr’s story of the journalists at the war crimes trial tackles thorny questions about bias and collective German guilt
