‘I am very serious about being silly’: children’s illustrators on the art of storytelling
From The Twits to the Gruffalo… Quentin Blake, Cressida Cowell, Axel Sheffler, Lauren Child and more reveal how they bring children’s books to life
From Make That Movie to Sugar: the week in rave reviews
Sam Campbell’s meta sitcom might well be the funniest show of the year, and Bob Mould and co return to the live stage as loud and joyous as ever. Here’s the pick of the week’s culture, taken from the Guardian’s best-rated reviews
Submissions open for 4thWrite short story prize
Now in its 10th year, the £1,000 competition is held by publisher 4th Estate and the Guardian, and open to Black, Asian and minority ethnic writers in the UK and Ireland
Virginia Evans: ‘I loved books about things that can’t exist’
The Women’s prize-shortlisted novelist on taking inspiration from John Steinbeck, Joan Didion and Jhumpa Lahiri, and weeping through Little Women in her 30s
The best recent translated fiction – review roundup
Sisters in Yellow by Mieko Kawakami; All Flesh by Ananda Devi; The White Desert by Luis López Carrasco; The Home of the Drowned by Elin Anna Labba
Prestige Drama by Séamas O’Reilly review – brilliant wry comedy of Derry and the shadow of the past
A British and American film crew descend on the Northern Irish city to film a drama about the Troubles, in a keenly observed and snappily written debut
Obama’s former speechwriter Ben Rhodes examines the US through its 15 most defining speeches
From Frederick Douglass to Obama, Ben Rhodes shares the speeches that explain the US in his new book, All We Say
‘True trailblazer’: British author and activist Maureen Duffy dies aged 92
Duffy wrote novels, plays and poetry, campaigned for gay rights, and was a ‘tireless advocate’ for authors’ rights
Capture by Amanda Lohrey review – a superb novel about a study of alien abductees
The Miles Franklin winner’s plot teeters on the edge of profound silliness, but it’s also a vehicle for making meaning of our lived experiences – and those of others
The Book of Birds by Robert Macfarlane and Jackie Morris audiobook review – a love letter to our feathered friends
This compendium profiles 49 of Britain’s threatened species, with each entry featuring a prose poem evoking the unique qualities of each bird and their meticulously recorded call
Whisper it: becoming a mum can make you a more productive writer
Before having children, I had endless days to think about writing. Now, half an hour can suddenly become a window of creativity, says Tania Roettger, a journalist based in Berlin
Kingfisher by Rozie Kelly review – lust at first sight
Shortlisted for the Women’s prize, this story of a writer’s infatuation with an older woman begins with bracing verve
Escaping Babylon by Jesse Bernard review – an intimate history of Black British music
A personal exploration of the sounds that defined a community, from Soul II Soul to Dizzee Rascal
Peter Tolhurst obituary
Other lives: Founder of Black Dog Books, publishing titles celebrating East Anglia’s cultural landscape
Novel about ‘Disneyfication’ of nature wins climate fiction prize
Hum, Helen Phillips’ third novel, featuring a woman whose job is taken by a humanoid robot, is a terrifying look into a future where AI rules and nature is scarce