What we’re reading: George Saunders, Erin Somers and Guardian readers on the books they enjoyed in January
Writers and Guardian readers discuss the titles they have read over the last month. Join the conversation in the comments
Robert Crumb review – sexual deviancy elevated to an art form
Though they were created for comic books, the artist’s horny and hilarious drawings of his own neuroses, and of glamazons in thigh-high boots, are unnervingly powerful on gallery walls
‘I was so, so stupid’: how Animalia and The Eleventh Hour made Graeme Base an unlikely bestseller
Base had no idea what he was doing when he published his wonderfully weird and fiendishly difficult picture books. They became global hits anyway
‘The rise of fascism makes our work even more important’: Montez Press, champions of queer, feminist art
They published a raunchy book inspired by the Guardian’s Owen Jones; broadcast interviews with obscure punk legends; and make calendars to navigate the world of underground art. Now they’re going global
‘For a moment, only that story matters’: my plan to reignite the all-consuming love of books
Reading for pleasure rates are shockingly low in young people. So we should all get behind a new drive to turn them into avid readers. Why not start with books about art?
Art could save your life! Five creative ways to make 2026 happier, healthier and more hopeful
Engaging in creativity can reduce depression, improve immunity and delay ageing – all while you’re having fun
Molly Parkin obituary
Artist, writer, fashion editor and raconteur whose bohemian lifestyle inspired her bonkbuster novels
Veronica Gosling obituary
Other lives: Novelist and artist who was drawn to found objects for their shapes, textures and hidden histories
‘Don’t be disheartened by mistakes’: 10 lessons my artist father taught me
David Gentleman’s brilliant career spans eight decades, from watercolour painting to tube station murals to drawing the Tottenham riots. Here his daughter, the Guardian journalist Amelia Gentleman, dispenses his invaluable advice
Can ceramics be demonic? Edmund de Waal’s obsession with a deeply disturbing Dane
The great potter explains why he turned his decades-long fixation with Axel Salto – maker of unsettling stoneware full of tentacle sproutings and knotty growths – into a new show
Drink tea, tidy up and take action! Can advice from artists really improve your life?
As three self-help books chock full of arty wisdom are released, an art critic tests whether they can improve a seemingly lost cause: him
The platform exposing exactly how much copyrighted art is used by AI tools
From 007 to Elsa, Vermillio claims it can trace percentage of AI-generated image drawn from pre-existing material
Unseen Bohemian Rhapsody verses to feature in Freddie Mercury lyric book
Drafts of other Queen hits and photos from singer’s private archive will also feature in A Life in Lyrics
Artists plan nationwide US protests against Trump and ‘authoritarian forces’
Michael Moore, Lynn Nottage, Ava DuVernay and Amanda Palmer will take part in an event series to ‘unite in defiance’
Mona’s Eyes by Thomas Schlesser review – painfully clunky lessons in art
This French bestseller, in which a girl and her grandfather visit Paris museums, aims to be a Sophie’s World for art history – but the conversations are sentimental and simplistic