Imagine? Not here

Cynthia Lennon's biography of her ex-husband John is long on angst, short on insight, says Andrew Anthony.

One from the heart

Chris Patten argues eloquently for our place as part of Europe in Not Quite the Diplomat, says Ian Black.

Modern verse/ just gets worse/ … and worse

The actor and writer Stephen Fry has turned his considerable firepower on contemporary poetry. Now in his own 'how-to' guide he calls for a return to the traditional world of stanza and metre. David Smith reports.

The non-joiner

Simon Callow on the latest instalment of Alan Bennett's autobiographical compendium, Untold Stories.

Fat boy grim

William Leith has bitten off more than he can chew with The Hungry Years, says Alfred Hickling.

Against oblivion

Michael Bywater's Lost Worlds is more than a catalogue of nostalgia, says Nicholas Lezard.

First catch your cook

Kathryn Hughes debunks a larder full of myths in The Short Life and Long Times of Mrs Beeton, says Nicola Humble.

The first domestic goddess

Kathryn Hughes's wonderful new biography, The Short Life and Long Times of Mrs Beeton, reveals how a young housewife helped to transform the lives of Victorian women.

Chronicles of a death foretold

Alan Bennett thought he was dying of cancer when he wrote Untold Stories.The resulting warmth, wit and humanity puts it among his finest works, says Jane Stevenson

Another sunrise

Ethan Hawke is an actor who takes risks. It's why he went back to college after his big film break, why he chanced ridicule by writing novels, and why he loves those challenging roles. Dan Halpern meets him.

Top of the drop-outs

Gary Lachman enjoys the autobiography of the sage of 60s bohemia, Donovan Leitch's The Hurdy Gurdy Man.

Imagine all the butties

Michel Faber wonders if we need another book about John Lennon - even if it is by Cynthia Lennon, his ex-wife.

Out of the asylum

Jonathan Bate admires Iain Sinclair's Edge of the Orison, an ambulatory homage to John Clare.