Behind the Mask: The Life of Vita Sackville-West review – a catalogue of sexual conquests
No salacious detail of her love affairs is spared in an infuriating new life of Vita Sackville-West, writes Rachel Cooke
Dear Thief by Samantha Harvey review – a heady portrait of eroticism and loss
Harvey’s third novel, framed as a woman’s letter to her friend-turned-foe, is a meditative portrait of love, ageing and betrayal, writes Claire Kilroy
Please, Mister Postman review – a charming sequel from Alan Johnson
The followup to the former home secretary's This Boy will do nothing to calm the Labour party's current bout of AJ fever. By Helen Lewis
Private Peaceful review – fails to deliver emotional punch of Morpurgo story
The poignancy in this tale of brothers at war is deserted by the clutter of the National Youth Theatre’s clumsy production, writes Lyn Gardner
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time review – no mystery to teen Sherlock’s Broadway appeal
Alex Sharp delivers a star turn in an amped-up staging of Mark Haddon’s bestselling novel, writes Alexis Soloski
The Love Song of Miss Queenie Hennessy review – Rachel Joyce’s companion novel to The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry
The story of Harold Fry’s 600-mile walk to visit a dying colleague is retold from the dying colleague’s point of view, writes Sophia Martelli
The Rich: From Slaves to Super Yachts review – a witty, readable and informative history
Kwasi Kwarteng enjoys John Kampfner’s sweeping, salutary survey of the wealthy down the ages
Adventures in Stationery: A Journey Through Your Pencil Case review – the final word in pens and paperclips
James Ward explores the enduring appeal of stationery in this entertaining history of the stuff on our desks, writes Andrew Martin
Tennessee Williams: Mad Pilgrimage of the Flesh review – John Lahr’s fascinating literary detective work
John Lahr excels once more with this biography of the great American playwright, writes Alexander Larman
Ammonites and Leaping Fish: A Life in Time review – Penelope Lively’s memoir is insightful and fascinating
The Booker prize-winning author explores her life through her memories, beloved objects and musings about age, writes Katharine Whitehorn
On Liberty review – Shami Chakrabarti exposes the tyranny of the state we’re in
The civil-rights campaigner inspires and infuriates in a vital book that should get us all arguing, writes Yasmin Alibhai-Brown
Sheila Hancock: ‘I’m used to getting inside the skin of a person I don’t know’
The actress and author talks to Kathryn Bromwich about writing her first novel, inspirational teachers and fighting apathy
Nora Webster review – Colm Tóibín’s powerful study of widowhood
Personal grief plays out against a backdrop of political turmoil in Colm Tóibín’s love letter to an Ireland in flux, writes Robert McCrum
Napoleon the Great review – an entertaining and deeply forensic examination
Andrew Roberts’s life of Napoleon calls for a radical rethink of our attitudes to his aims and achievements, writes Andrew Hussey
Celebrity memoir roundup
Clare Balding, John Cleese, Graham Norton, Anjelica Huston, Paul Merton, Stephen Fry (again)… Viv Groskop takes a look at the latest starry life stories