Latest from Books

Book review: Stone Mattress

Book review: Reach

Books: Of mums and murder

Liane Moriarty’s latest novel is a darkly comedic tale about a trivia night death, writes Shandelle Battersby.

'Teach kids resilience' - Kirwan

Sir John Kirwan's new push: “We teach them maths, English, science, but we don’t actually teach them resilience. I think it has to become part of the curriculum."

'Depression made me a better parent'

His own experience has taught him the importance of simply being available for his kids and willing to listen.

Kirwan's new book: Exclusive extract

An exclusive extract from Stand by Me by Sir John Kirwan, his guide for helping parents and teens around mental health.

How to refresh a bungalow

They came out of California, featured window seats and shingled tiles, were clad in weatherboard and Auckland has thousands of them.

Motherhood myths laid bare

Mantel's Thatcher assassination fantasy

Booker-prize-winning author admits she thought about killing the British PM when she found herself within shooting range of her in 1983.

David Mitchell: Offering a way to become better

Keith Richards to chop Fiji tree down

That tree Keith Richards fell out of and almost killed him when he was last down this way? It's not long for this world.

JK Rowling hits back at online abuse over gay Dumbledore

The author told her ex-fan to follow alleged homophobe Brian Souter instead.

Heartbreak through Irish eyes

Elegant writing takes us through the highs and lows of a woman’s life.

Self-publish and be damned

Sometimes it’s the only way to get in print, and sometimes it’s the best way to keep control of your work. James Russell charts the rise of self-publishing.

Ian McEwan: Great expectations

Ian McEwan’s new novel centres around a family court judge who gets too involved in one of her cases. She blows it, McEwan tells Linda Herrick.

Sarah Waters: Blood, sweat and scrubbing

Sarah Waters’ new novel explores what happens when an ‘unruly passion’ in the form of two lodgers enters a house. She talks to Linda Herrick.

Book review: Four Stories

Oh, to write like Alan Bennett. The consummate modulations of mood and structure. The utterly English urbanity and self-deprecation.

Book review: The Zone of Interest

Martin Amis is a child of the 20th century, both literally and by literary preoccupation. He was born in the aftermath of World War II and grew up in the shadow of the unholy trinity of great ideologies — fascism, communism and capitalism.