Books

  There is an exquisite beauty and loveliness to the writing of Sarah Winman. With every artfully-chosen word – artful in the sense that it is rich and poetic, not artificial or posed – and perfectly-expressed idea you are subsumed into stories that are suffused with humanity, joy, sadness, regret Continue Reading

  It is safe to say that the end, and indeed the beginning of the world, have never been rendered so poetically, or daringly, as in The End We Start From by English author Megan Hunter. A poet whose work has been shortlisted for illustrious awards such as the Bridport Continue Reading

  As we lurch somewhat uncertainly to the end of the second decade of the 21st century, fearfully drunk on the spectre of apocalyptic everything, it would be easy to see civilisation-ending reds under every bed, to co-opt some old Cold War anti-communist lingo. To some extent Happiness for Humans Continue Reading

  We are all, for better or worse, heavily influenced by the environments in which we grow up. Whether we remain captive to those influences is another matter entirely and the subject of an entirely different article possibly; but suffice to say, what happens to us in our formative years Continue Reading

  Imagine being told you have approximately 100 days to live, thanks to an incredibly aggressive tumour in your liver that has now metastasized to your lungs? No, seriously, go on do it; not that easy is it? That’s because, explains Lucio, the incredibly likable and real protagonist in Fausto Continue Reading

  Though humanity likes to wrap its relationship with the natural world in Disney-esque romantic notions of togetherness and interdependence, the harsh reality is that since we first picked up tools and starting altering our environment, we have been doing the animals around us a great disservice. This has only Continue Reading

  Dylan Mint, the refreshingly honest protagonist of Brian Conaghan’s debut novel, When Mr Dog Bites, is a typical 16-year-old in many ways. He has a “best bud” named Amir, with whom he texts and discusses girls, life and the things they want to do to make it mean something, Continue Reading

  The machines are coming to get us. That’s been the consistent message for years now from within the world of science fiction (Terminator et al) and without – surprisingly, one Elon Musk, champion of the future, being the standard bearer for this cause – and to be fair, acclaimed Continue Reading

  Ever since I was a kid, reading has been a central, if not the central, way for me to relax, to escape, to find adventure, excitement and quirky emotional resonance far from the banalities of everyday life. There is something deeply wondrous and magically exciting about the promise of Continue Reading