Robert McCrum
A Delicate Truth by John le Carre - review
John le Carre's latest tale of bungling spooks and government cover-ups ranks finds him back on top form Opening a new Le Carre novel is like stepping into a hushed and well-appointed London club. The tone is English and metropolitan, the mood sombre but
West's World: The Extraordinary Life of Dame Rebecca West by Lorna Gibb - review
Rebecca West deserves better than this sloppy retelling of her fascinating life "Just how difficult it is to write a biography," observed Rebecca West in Vogue in 1952, "can be reckoned by anybody who sets down just how many people know the truth of hi
The Infatuations by Javier Mar
The Infatuations is a metaphysical murder mystery and a stunningly original literary achievement by Javier Mar�as, the internationally acclaimed author of A Heart So White and Your Face Tomorrow. Javier Marías was born in Madrid in 1951. He has publis
Why books need literary prizes
The Costa and Booker prizes may be a literary lottery but awards have more influence now than reviews Tomorrow sees the annual Costa book award : a notoriously hard competition to get a handle on, not least because, now the individual categories (ficti
Why books need literary prizes
The Costa and Booker prizes may be a literary lottery but awards have more influence now than reviews Tomorrow sees the annual Costa book award : a notoriously hard competition to get a handle on, not least because, now the individual categories (ficti
PG Wodehouse's sparkle fades on screen
Blandings - as currently seen on TV - is fun, but much duller than in prose PG Wodehouse is widely recognised as a master of English prose at its purest and most brilliant. But he also owed his success as a comic writer to an important commercial factor:
The Love-charm of Bombs by Lara Feigel - review
Robert McCrum applauds a fine account of how five writers responded imaginatively to the blitz The second world war has suffered in comparison to the great war of 1914-18. Readers' imaginations are still dominated by "Anthem for Doomed Youth" and All Qu
