Ghost Wedding by David Park review – a thought-provoking novel about the power of the past
The romance is beautifully drawn in this tale of two couples whose lives overlap at a Northern Irish manor house, a century apart
Aidan Chambers obituary
Teacher and writer of ‘youth novels’, which he defended as a literature worth studying and preserving
Kataraina by Becky Manawatu review – a generous and masterful novel
Both a sequel and prequel to the Māori and Pākehā author’s acclaimed debut, Auē, Kataraina is filled with heart-achingly beautiful vignettes
Aftertaste by Daria Lavelle review – what exactly is ‘clairgustance’?
A chef can taste the favourite foods of the departed, in this debut mash-up of satire, ghost story and slushy romance
Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o, giant of African literature, dies aged 87
Kenyan writer’s death announced by his daughter, who wrote: ‘He lived a full life, fought a good fight’
‘Infused with the fire born of resistance’: the magic of the Calabash literary festival
Marlon James, Ian McEwan and Sheryl Lee Ralph lit up the Jamaican book event, celebrating the small island’s gargantuan cultural footprint with readings, discussions and DJs
Spent by Alison Bechdel review – the graphic novelist faces up to midlife
In this playfully fictionalised memoir, Alison runs a pygmy goat sanctuary while making a name for herself on stage and screen
Ripeness by Sarah Moss – a beautifully written novel of place and identity
An English woman’s tale of migration, alternating between mid-60s Italy and present-day Ireland, considers family heritage and the treatment of refugees
The Empress Murders by Toby Schmitz review – jazz age mystery packed with corpses and charisma
The actor’s first novel, set on (and sometimes narrated by) a luxury boat in 1925, swerves from cosy Christie homage into something far more brutal
American Dirt author Jeanine Cummins: ‘I didn’t need to justify my right to write that book’
Five years after being vilified for exploiting the migrant experience in her bestseller, the author reveals how the backlash inspired her latest novel
‘My legal work sows the seeds of my stories’: International Booker prize winner Banu Mushtaq
The author and activist, who was subject to a fatwa in 2000, has won the prestigious prize for translated fiction with her translator Deepa Bhasthi for her collection of short stories about the lives of Muslim women. They explain why Heart Lamp’s themes ‘are universal’
Andrew Hunter Murray: ‘Every time I read Pride and Prejudice I find more jokes’
The author and podcaster on taking inspiration from The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, welling up to Charles Dickens, and the enduring appeal of Jane Austen
Michelle de Kretser wins Stella prize for book that ‘expands our notions of what a novel can be’
The two-time Miles Franklin winner adds the $60,000 prize for women and nonbinary writers to her accolades, for a novel that troubles the line between fiction and memoir
The Boys by Leo Robson review – a likable debut with aimless charm
The critic turned author’s witty, eccentric novel follows a Londoner reading Susan Sontag and looking for love
Awkward clapping, no-sand beaches and Alexander Skarsgård’s thigh-high boots: a trip to Cannes to see my film
Harry Lighton’s film Pillion is based on the novel Box Hill so, misgivings riding alongside, it felt right for the author to motorbike to the film festival for its premiere