Do not speak ill of the dead: so runs a familiar injunction, often recalled when it is already too late, and ill has been spoken. And sometimes the dead themselves set a terrible example. Consider the

A letter, a book and two paintings by Tracey Emin; right, Ruth Fairlight’s copy of The Colossus Ruth Fainlight and Alan Sillitoe were both in their twenties when they met in a bookshop in Nottingham.

Valerie Eliot and John Haffenden, editors The Letters of T. S. EliotVolume 10: 1942–19441,136pp. Faber. £60. During the Second World War, Shamley Wood House in Surrey was a place of refuge for T. S. E

Review of reviews: Books

Catherine Clarke A History of England in 25 Poems400pp. Allen Lane. £25. Mark Forsyth Rhyme and ReasonA short history of poetry and people (forpeople who don’t usually read poetry)368pp. Allen & Unwin

Best books… Roy Foster The emeritus professor of ...