Niebelung kebab
John Man's biography of Attila the Hun leaves Ranjit Bolt feeling faint.
The cutting edge
PD Smith enjoys Wendy Moore's The Knife Man, a gruesome but fascinating biography of one of Britain's great surgeons.
At £7,500 for the set, you’d think they’d get their facts right
Throwing the book at the Dictionary of National Biography.
1.2m pupils ‘unable to read properly’
More than a million children have been failed by Labour's national literacy strategy, which has left them unable to meet basic standards of English, according to a new report out today.
Churchill sequel provides epic task for author
Historian will add a fifth volume to the wartime leader's narrative - and vows to put facts before polemic.
Why two caves are better than one
Sebastian Mallaby combines a history of the World Bank with a biography of its flamboyant president. It will make uncomfortable reading for some, says Richard Adams.
Good enough
Tom Shone is nearly seduced by The Whole Equation, a history of Hollywood from the film critic's film critic, David Thomson.
Where there’s a Will there’s a payday
A surefire way to ruin a scholar is to offer them so much money that they write books - on Shakespeare in this case - which the hucksters in the trade want rather than the works their discipline needs, says John Sutherland.
Wandering star
In Ramblin' Man, Ed Cray tells how Woody Guthrie was a mystery to everyone, including himself, says Mike Marqusee.
Hits and myths
Steven Poole grapples with David Sinclair's all singing, all dancing tribute to the Spice Girls, Wannabe.
Why school is just like No 10
Catherine Bennett: When Peter Hyman told Tony Blair he was leaving No 10 to work in an inner city school, the Prime Minister twice hailed his decision as "noble". And for once, a great many people agreed with him.