The enduring power of books

We have wandered many months through this land of Building Blocks. It is time for a break. Learning is a weary trek. And writing is not all about learning. Writing is about, well, writing. The doing o

Broadcaster and author Clare Balding shares the reads that have been her escape and inspiration

What childhood book sparked your love of reading? One that really stands out for me is Winnie-the-Pooh. I was given a hardback copy on my seventh birthday, and I still treasure it. The maps in the fro

Novels, for me, have come from somewhere I wasn’t looking. In my twenties I was carrying an idea about a woman wandering around Ireland on a quest she didn’t understand and I sat in the Reading Room o

It’s the cosy season of sitting down with a good book. Here, authors heading for Raworths Harrogate Literature Festival this month share their writing styles

Best books… Susie Dent Countdown ’s lexicographer picks ...