The Triangle of Power by Alexander Stubb: Finnish president’s view of a fractured world
How ‘values-based realism’ shapes Stubb’s vision of international order
Book Reviews
Glyph by Ali Smith: Ghosts in our machinery
This short, smart and bleakly funny novel is fuelled by incredulity at the state of contemporary England
Paschal Donohoe on Capitalism, A Global History by Sven Beckert: Demanding but magisterial
Its more than 1,000 pages require sustained focus and stamina but it should not languish unread on dusty shelves
The Power of Guilt by Chris Moore: A formidable read that will challenge, unsettle and provoke
Moore takes a scholarly and personal deep dive into one of the most excruciating emotions we experience
A Sicilian Man by Caroline Moorehead: Leonardo Sciascia’s ‘consciousness of doubt’
Biography explores the writings of Italian author who regularly took swipes at the church, the state and, most dangerously, the Mafia
Worlds of Islam: A Global History - epic, authoritative, multilayered reading
Author takes pains to break down crucial distinctions between peace-loving creed and political Islamism
Books in brief: Benbecula; Evolution of Telecommunications; Hurling 1810
Dark, twisty fare from the Hebrides; Ireland’s place in telecoms history; and small ball meets Big House
The True True Story of Raja the Gullible (and His Mother) by Rabih Alameddine: A deeply human novel of reckoning and love
The Lebanese author makes writing look easy, though only a master craftsperson could produce this book
Chosen Family by Madeleine Gray: Compelling take on queer adolescence and platonic parenthood
The book shines in the adolescent scenes, which have real emotional impact
Scifi/fantasy: Dave Rudden’s Sister Wake a politically charged epic that draws on Irish history
Plus Artificial Wisdom by Thomas R Weaver, The Killing Time by Elly Griffiths, and more
John Boyne’s review of Crux by Gabriel Tallent: It’s refreshing to read positive aspects of youth
The author’s focus is on the resilience of young people confronted by difficult family circumstances
Exit Stalin: The Soviet Union as a Civilization – Accessible history of a new society
Mark B Smith ends on a poignant note and makes a rare confession for a historian
New poetry: Tom French reclaims calm, Susanna Galbraith offers a visually arresting debut
The Convent of Mercy by Tom French; Clockhammer by Paul Perry; Morsels by Susanna Galbraith; Goatsong by Phoebe Giannisi
Ai Weiwei on western thought policing; plus, the overlap between writers and terrorists
On Censorship by Ai Weiwei; Loren Ipsum by Andrew Gallix; Helen of Nowhere by Makenna Goodman
May We Feed the King by Rebecca Perry: A macabre fable about appetite in all its guises
This is a taut and assured debut novel from a writer to watch
Celtic Magic: A Practitioner’s Guide by Brigid Ehrmantraut - Was the wicker man real, as Julius Caesar claimed?
The pile of provably Celtic magic practices is disappointingly sparse
Made in America by Edward Stourton: Patchy illumination of ‘dark history’ of Trump’s rise
The author turns to American history as a kind of grab bag but does not connect the dots needed to understand how we got here
Out of the Blue ... Pink: Pat Ingoldsby collection a beautiful monument to ‘pirate of poetry’
The former broadcaster was a close observer of the street life around him in his native city
Lost Lambs: A pleasurably ridiculous story about the usual American neuroses
Madeline Cash is at her best when she really leans into the increasingly preposterous, Pynchonian rabbit holes of her plot
Swiftynomics: At times reading like a self-help book, it carries hefty political analysis
Misty L. Heggeness offers a rich economics history and veritable coterie of feminist heroes, drilling deep into the concept of care-privilege
Intimate Power: fiercely local, profoundly international biography of city of Liverpool
Ireland’s presence throughout Catherine Morris’s book is persistent and unsettling
Irish Romanticism: A Literary History by Claire Connolly – A lively tradition that still has much to teach us
Claire Connolly’s ambitious study captures well both the gradual development of Irish Romanticism and its ‘copiousness’
Esther is Now Following You by Tanya Sweeney: A joyride that’s challenging not to finish in one go
This book is unsettling when we have to remind ourselves that the protagonist is made up
Vigil by George Saunders: A bleak, sharp novel about a not-so-wonderful life
This book may really be about the ways in which we rationalise our lives, fates, choices, when all is ‘too late’
Into the Weeds by Lydia Davis: Smart insights on writing
For a book-length lecture, Davis was invited to speak about why she writes
Best new music books: Bowie, Boston and the Scatman’s Bop-Ba-Dop-Bop
Recent 10th anniversary of David Bowie’s death saw the publication of numerous books about him
Next Year Will Be a Good One by Shivaun O’Casey: Life in the benevolent shadow of Seán O’Casey
More important than any encomium from this quarter, Seán O’Casey’s daughter diligently captures his life and legacy
Translated fiction: books by Maria Stepanova, Édouard Louis, Anna Nerkagi, Michelle Steinbeck, Helle Helle and Pirkko Saisio
New books in translation from Russia, France, Switzerland, Norway and Finland
National Hunt and Point-to-Point Racing in Ireland by Frances Nolan: A rich vein of national pride
A worthy read accompanied by more than 100 evocative photographs along with paintings, cartoons and reproductions of historic documents
One Sun Only by Camille Bordas: a truly effortless collection
Stories that capture the zeitgeist, without being expressly ‘contemporary’
This is Where the Serpent Lives by Daniyal Mueenuddin: A future classic, pure and simple
As close to flawless as possible, it’s one of those novels that renew your faith in the possibilities of the genre
Reviews in brief: Wild Thing; Unveiling the Sun; The Bookseller of Hay
A fascinating chronicle of rewilding in Meath; observing nature in Mayo; and using books to transform a town on the Welsh-English border
Gaza. The Dream and the Nightmare: Learning more about this enclave’s past and present
A slim, assiduously researched social and political history of the past 100 years in Gaza
Half His Age by Jennette McCurdy: Darkly comic tale of a high-schooler’s illicit affair
McCurdy’s debut novel fails to offer much more than its deadpan, Bret-Easton-Ellis-adjacent comedy
Crosswords & Puzzles
Crosswords & puzzles to keep you challenged and entertained
Common Ground
How does a post-Brexit world shape the identity and relationship of these islands
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Weddings, Births, Deaths and other family notices