To err is human – even for the greatest poets
For centuries, critics have tried to disguise mistakes in verse as intentional literary licence. An Oxford academic begs to differ
A comic for Covid-19: the tale of a plague-hit Derbyshire village
Nick Burton’s Our Plague Year draws eerie parallels between Eyam in 1665-66 and today – complete with self-sacrifice, selfish second-homers and confusing public messages
Johny Pitts wins Jhalak prize for ‘beautiful’ history of black Europe
Television presenter and musician wins £1,000 prize for writers of colour, with ‘exceptionally thoughtful’ debut Afropean
Sex, lies and despair: unseen letters reveal Larkin’s tortured love
A cache of 2,400 letters between the poet and his long-time lover and muse, Monica Jones, charts an explosive and flawed romance
Rutger Bregman: ‘classic household set-up’ may allow abuse to go unchecked
Historian responds to increase in domestic violence in lockdown during online Hay festival talk
The English towers and landmarks that inspired Tolkien’s hobbit sagas
Book identifies middle England sources for sites of key scenes from Middle-earth books
Author Michael Rosen out of intensive care after 47 days
Wife tweets first update in two weeks, saying his recovery on the ward will take time
Owen Sheers selects 10 writers shaping the UK’s future
The author explains his choice of writers meeting the challenge of giving literary shape to the climate crisis, sexism, racism, inclusivity, and still making good art
Gloria Steinem says TV drama of 1970s feminist history ‘ridiculous’
In interview for Hay festival feminist writer says Mrs America misrepresents equal rights movement
Scottish national poet Jackie Kay talks about racism she endured as a child
Scotland’s makar recalls being taunted and beaten up by older boys as an eight-year-old and reflects on a much-changed country
Print and digital readers like different books, library data suggests
Ebook lending has been included for the first time in UK libraries’ annual tally of loans, and indicates distinct preferences between media
Neil Gaiman apologises to people of Skye for breaking lockdown rules
American Gods author says he needed space so travelled ‘masked and gloved’ from New Zealand to his home on the island
Waterstones plans to put its books under a 72-hour quarantine
Boss says books handled by customers will be removed to allow time for virus to die
How a badly behaved heroine transformed my grey little life
Alan Warner’s Morvern Callar taught me about rooting for the wicked, giving up control and the beauty in ambiguity, says author Sophie Mackintosh
Burgess papers reveal alternatives to notorious Earthly Powers ‘catamite’ opening
As the novel turns 40, researchers discover manuscripts with different versions of the provocative first line