Katie Kitamura: ‘Almost every writer changes my mind – that’s the point of reading’
The American author on the magic of Yasunari Kawabata, the hidden layers of Henry James and coming late to the genius of Muriel Spark
A Rising of the Lights by Steve Toltz review – a darkly funny take on the male loneliness epidemic
A miserable misogynist is on a quest for redemption in Toltz’s fourth novel, which fizzes with dynamic prose but struggles to engender empathy for its protagonist
David Fairhall obituary
Guardian defence, aviation, shipping and nuclear specialist with a lifelong love of sailing
Careless People by Sarah Wynn-Williams audiobook review – the insider story that Meta tried to stifle
The author reads her account of her time as a senior executive at Facebook with a mixture of dark humour and astonishment at the working culture in which she finds herself
What we’re reading: writers and readers on the books they enjoyed in April
Luke Kennard, Sophie Ratcliffe and Guardian readers discuss the titles they have read over the last month. Join the conversation in the comments
Hey, Good Morning, How Are You? by Martina Hefter review – a hit in Germany that falls flat in English
The premise of this novel about a ballet dancer who baits love scammers into conversation is great – but the story feels overwritten and underfelt
From Life Itself by Suzy Hansen review – Turkey in the age of Erdoğan
This portrait of everyday life in an Istanbul neighbourhood buffeted by change has far wider relevance
Ruth Lesser obituary
Other lives: Speech therapist who helped the PALPA language assessment tool
What If Reform Wins by Peter Chappell review – a massive wake-up call
This ‘nonfiction thriller’ takes us through exactly what would happen if Nigel Farage won his dreamed-of majority
Devotions by Lucy Caldwell review – short stories that are frightening, passionate and comforting too
The Northern Irish writer explores music and family, memory and duty in this stunning collection of sharply observed tales
Lost copy of seventh-century poem in Old English discovered at Rome library
Dublin scholars find 1,200-year-old manuscript of Caedmon’s Hymn composed by Northumbrian cattle herder
‘Relentless’ focus on literacy undermines reading for pleasure, says report
New HarperCollins study finds that daily reading for pleasure among five- to 17-year-olds fell from 39% in 2012 to 25% in 2025
‘It’s not a story that’s over’: inside the battle against hatred in America
In The Secret War Against Hate, Pulitzer-prize finalist Steven J Ross looks back at those who infiltrated and prevented hate groups in the US
‘This is so taboo’: Kimberley Nixon on the hell of perinatal OCD – and how she survived it
After the birth of her son during lockdown, the Welsh actor was flooded by disturbing thoughts she couldn’t shake, a plunge into darkness and isolation. She discusses how it changed her and what helped her recover
‘They’re supposed to be handmade’: zine creators fight to resist AI influence
Artists and writers argue scrappy nature of self-published booklets is incompatible with artificial intelligence