Our Island Stories
A new book by Harry Mount attributes the particular, phlegmatic character of the English to the nature of England itself
Politics, Ideas and the Arts
Jihad Central
As Robert S. Leiken argues in his brilliant new book, Britain's lost confidence in nationhood has made it the centre of European jihadism
Bouquets and Barbed Wire
Orlando Figes's Just Send Me the Word conveys the enduring love of a couple whose incarceration in Stalin's gulags couldn't suppress
Truths Stranger Than Fiction
Lionel Shriver's new novel brilliantly describes the problems of on-the-spot reportage, a journalistic difficulty negotiated deftly in two recent books about The Troubles
Never a Dull Verse
Clive James's new collection of poetry looks at his past but is far from mournful nostalgia; it celebrates his eventful life
The Mask of the Monarchy
In six decades of portraits the Queen’s impenetrable expression has barely altered
“Weary of Silence, Soon Sickened by Words”
Delving into the various linguistic predicaments of Samuel Beckett reveals the beautiful complications of his writings.
Finns’ Baton Charge
Now Sakari Oramo is cheif conductor at the BBC Symphony Orchestra, many fear a Scandinavian supremacy in British music. It was a morose morning-after at the maestros’ bar. “What do the Finns have
Homage to the Spanish
Book review of The Spanish Holocaust by Paul Preston
Can We Ever Escape Him?
Book review of Hitler: A Short Biography by A.N. Wilson
The Empire is Still Evil
Book review of Deception: Spies, Lies and How Russia Dupes the West by Edward Lucas
Peace At Any Price
Book review of Peace, They Say by Jay Nordlinger