The Book of Air
I was about to write my promised piece on Anna Karenina, when my editor suggested that perhaps it would be a good idea to mention
Language and the Presidency
I ended my last piece with a promise not to waste any more words on the self-publicist and arch-troll Milo Yiannopoulos. I break that
The unsolved mystery of Elena Ferrante
Elena Ferrante is an Italian novelist in her 70s who has been producing published work for about 25 years. But it was only four years
The new plot against America
In his novel The Plot Against America, Philip Roth imagines two years of alternative history for the United States.
The flawed brilliance of Bob Dylan
Ever since he appeared on the New York folk scene, presenting himself as an anonymous exile from a place of no distinct identity – “My name it means nothing, my age it means less, the country I come from it's called the Midwest” – Bob Dylan has worked to elude definition.
The Other Handmaid's Tale
I happened to be living in California when the twin towers were destroyed and, although a long way from New York, I observed
When your word is someone else's bond
Within minutes of Melania Trump finishing her speech at the US Republican Convention, the news was out that she had plagiarised a
Drone strikes and authorial intentions
I saw Eye in the Sky the afternoon it opened in London. I went with few preconceptions, knowing only that it was about drones and
April 8, 2017
The Book of Air
I was about to write my promised piece on Anna Karenina, when my editor suggested that perhaps it would be a good idea to mention
March 11, 2017
Language and the Presidency
I ended my last piece with a promise not to waste any more words on the self-publicist and arch-troll Milo Yiannopoulos. I break that
January 14, 2017
The unsolved mystery of Elena Ferrante
Elena Ferrante is an Italian novelist in her 70s who has been producing published work for about 25 years. But it was only four years
December 10, 2016
The new plot against America
In his novel The Plot Against America, Philip Roth imagines two years of alternative history for the United States.
November 19, 2016
The flawed brilliance of Bob Dylan
Ever since he appeared on the New York folk scene, presenting himself as an anonymous exile from a place of no distinct identity – “My name it means nothing, my age it means less, the country I come from it's called the Midwest” – Bob Dylan has worked to elude definition.
October 29, 2016
The Other Handmaid's Tale
I happened to be living in California when the twin towers were destroyed and, although a long way from New York, I observed
August 27, 2016
When your word is someone else's bond
Within minutes of Melania Trump finishing her speech at the US Republican Convention, the news was out that she had plagiarised a
June 18, 2016
Drone strikes and authorial intentions
I saw Eye in the Sky the afternoon it opened in London. I went with few preconceptions, knowing only that it was about drones and
May 21, 2016
Reading Bellow in Chicago
Last month Donald Trump and I happened to be in Chicago at the same time. He was there for the Republican primary. I wasn't.
March 5, 2016
A living celebration of Shakespeare's sonnets
Four hundred years after his death, Shakespeare's works still seem inexhaustible as a source of pleasure and a spur to creative
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