Examining children’s literature and its enduring worth
One of The Haunted Wood’s great strengths is Sam Leith’s awareness of just how important children’s literature is
Books and Arts
Monday
Creation Lake is one of the best books of the year
Creation Lake is a book about how humans deal with what is deemed to be Other
Jane Thynne pulls off a new kind of spy novel
Midnight in Vienna channels the ominous parallels between the present-day rise of fascism in Europe and America with what happened in 1938
In the studio with Merche Gaspar
‘People seek me out because I do things in a certain way’
The life of David Sylvester
The art critic was the master of being in the right place at the right time and with the right people
This month in culture: September 2024
What to watch this September
Thursday
A superbly written and insightful account of the contemporary American military
General McKenzie’s fine memoir is a rich and powerful testament to the qualities that our best military commanders bring to their service to the nation
A compelling and evocative biography of the redoubtable Mrs. Mandelbaum
Margalit Fox brings the period to life by providing sharply drawn cameos of a supporting cast of colorful characters
Pat Nixon, ambassador of goodwill
In a new biography of the former First Lady, Heath Hardage Lee attempts to uncover the real woman
James Shapiro’s timely account of the rise and fall of an influential public theater
The Playbook is a dramatic tale, full of overreaching ambition, dastardly plots, embattled heroes and last-minute reversals
A new and compelling study of the life of the iconic rebel Nat Turner
Anthony Kaye seeks to reframe the life of the famous slave rebel in the context of his religious beliefs
Devil in the detail
How do we recognize the real manifestation of evil in the world? Two new books set out to answer this question and prove that it is a timely one
The Jedermann, the myth, the legend
Adapting Hugo von Hofmannsthal’s play in Salzburg
A new adaptation of The Great Gatsby is enrapturing and impressive
The songs explode. The passion overwhelms. It’s opulent when it needs to be, fun when it needs to be, and intoxicating
Inigo Philbrick, the art world’s wheeler dealer stealer
Orlando Whitfield chronicles his friendship and dealings with the wunderkind art dealer during a heady ‘gold rush’ decade in the art world
A beginner’s guide to buying art
A best-selling author, an entrepreneur and an art collector himself, Magnus Resch has written and commented on the art market for years
This month in culture: August 2024
What should be on your radar this August
Monday
Anne Applebaum’s solutions to the ‘threat’ of autocracy
Autocracy, Inc. is woefully inadequate to the times in which it appears
John Freeman’s Hit and Run is gorgeously crafted
This is a work about significant moments, glittering with reflections and refractions
Stephen King’s You Like it Darker shows a master at his peak
You Like It Darker inevitably harks back to Carrie, King’s debut novel, published fifty years ago this spring