Books

Fifth magician blues

He made the tea, he forged the autographs, and only once did he run out of plectrums

Learning in the round

Spreading fingers over a globe, not pinching them on a screen, is the best way to answer questions

Taking on the right-on with cold, hard facts

A practical manual for anyone who has no choice but to sit on committees with idealistic intellectuals

You can’t judge a book by its cover

All novels should be like this: stripped of the necessary but boring connective tissue

Turning a blind eye to a tilted playing field

Not only is it a page-turner, it’s also an essential manual for defending women’s sport

Where has all the money gone?

Even Booker Prize-winning novelists struggle to make a living from writing

Carr’s sound, satisfying, and solid creations

A new book on an inventive, unjustly underrated, provincial architect is handsome but flawed

Murders for the New Year

From Oxford to Italy, the murders continue in 2024

The bad old days

The “golden years” of publishing were characterised by booze, bullying and amateurishness

Satire, sci-fi and a sting in the tale

It’s time for our annual guide to the best new fiction of the year