A long, slow descent into hell
Decades of bitter fighting have left Sri Lanka bereft. Novelist Romesh Gunesekera mourns his island's fate
Top 10 stories for sitting out swine flu
John Sutherland: As you pack your bag and head off to a cabin in the Hebrides, what should you take to read as the pandemic panic passes?
The demon in Dan Brown
Carrie Quinlan: I share the Vatican's horror at the flouting of a ban on filming Angels and Demons. But mainly because it's a rubbish book
The cosmic clock with Ballard at its core
The late writer was a big influence on Tacita Dean. She remembers her friend - and their shared obsession with an artwork in Utah
My week: Geoff Dyer
The author flies around America promoting his latest blockbuster Jeff in Venice, Death in Varanasi
The great frame-up
Even as Stalin was having revolutionary allies executed at the Moscow show trials, the police kept a meticulous photographic record, now unearthed by David King
Chanel’s war years: secrets and style
There is much that is admirable about fashion designer Coco Chanel, and much that remains mysterious
Prince Charles set to help save the planet
Book and film, both titled Harmony, seek to reconnect 'humankind with ancient wisdom and intuition'
Amazon’s unlikely new bestseller
Rory Carroll: Since Chávez gave Obama a copy of Open Veins of Latin America it has zoomed from ranking 54,295th on Amazon.com to the number two spot
Chávez’s perfect gift to Obama
Richard Gott: Presenting Eduardo Galeano's book, Open Veins of Latin America, to the US president was a brilliant idea
Australian authors defend language
Writers oppose productivity commission's aim to abolish 'territorial copyright' and 'parallel import restrictions'
Chávez creates overnight bestseller with book gift to Obama
Sales surge for book about the history of Latin America's exploitation after exchange at summit of Americas
In search of India
This year's London book fair celebrates the diversity of contemporary Indian writing. How much do the novelists of the new generation have in common, asks Amit Chaudhuri. Writers and publishers recommend old favourites and rising stars
The Red Cross Torture Report: What It Means
ICRC Report on the Treatment of Fourteen "High Value Detainees" in CIA Custody by the International Committee of the Red Cross. 43 pp., February 2007
An animated dispute in Egypt
Katy Evans-Bush: The confiscation of Metro, the first Arabic adult graphic novel, raises important questions about free speech in Egypt