Category Archives: writers

‘You could say I’m reluctantly retired from writing books’: travel writer Dervla Murphy

In a rare interview, the much-loved author of Full Tilt and Through Siberia by Accident, now 86, looks back on more than 50 years of pioneering, intrepid travel

New Moomin museum opens in Finland

Tove Jansson never took her family of fairytale characters too seriously, but they now have their own museum in Tampere, attracting Moomins fans from around the world

Tale of Dickens’ fight to save Shakespeare house retold in exhibition

Events in which novelist helped save bard’s birthplace from clutches of US showman PT Barnum will be celebrated in Stratford

The retreats where famous authors found inspiration – in pictures

Former president Barack Obama is to journey to the South Pacific island of Tetiaroa, once owned by Marlon Brando, to write his memoir. Here’s a look at where other famous authors found the inspiration to write

Miracles and Idolatry

I have just finished reading the book “Miracles and Idolatry” by Voltaire. I am genuinely impressed that someone can place so much knowledge about religion, history, philosophy, and the human condition on so many different subjects, ranging from ‘Apocalypse’ to ‘Martyrs’ and ‘Cannibals’ to ‘Luxury’, into such a short book. His summation of the various importantContinue reading “Miracles and Idolatry”

Temples of literature: writers’ houses – in pictures

From the abbey where Byron partied to the house where Agatha Christie tested out her whodunnits, Nick Channer tells the inside story of the homes behind some of the great works of English literature

Reading American cities: Los Angeles in books

Whether hymning it as the City of Angels or writing it off as La La Land, thousands of authors have pictured Los Angeles in prose Here the author defends its romantic appeal and recommends the essential literary companions for a trip to this West Coast metropolis, from tales of eccentric architecture to the darkest LA noir