Culture news Beloved British children's author Allan Ahlberg dies aged 87 The author of classic titles like 'The Jolly Postman', 'Peepo!' and 'Funny Bones' wrote "mini masterpieces" that have endured for decades. 01/08/2025
Culture news Spain's king Juan Carlos to publish 'uncompromising' autobiography Former monarch Juan Carlos I will publish "Reconciliation", his memoirs at the end of the year. The book will explore his controversial private life, his role in Spain's democracy and reflections from his exile in Abu Dhabi. He's now revealing all he says because his 'story' is being stolen. 01/07/2025
Culture news Cancelled ‘Beauty and the Beast’ book 'finally' released in France The modern retelling of the classic fairytale was commissioned and then cancelled by the French Ministry of Education. Artists and politicians expressed support for the book's release. 18/06/2025
Culture news 'Day of the Jackal' author Frederick Forsyth dies aged 86 Forsyth wrote more than 25 books including "The Afghan," "The Kill List," and "The Fist of God" that have sold over 75 million copies, his agent Jonathan Lloyd said. 09/06/2025
Culture news Stephen King puts Trump vs Musk feud into perspective with savage post The celebrated author adds his name to a long list of celebrities commenting on the very public feud between Donald Trump and Elon Musk. The fallout between the two former allies has also led many online to draw a comparison with one cult 2004 movie... 09/06/2025
Green News Friends complete book of environmental journalist killed in the Amazon Fragments of hope mix with grim realities in How to Save the Amazon, published in the UK and Brazil this week. 29/05/2025
Culture news Celebrated Kenyan author and dissident Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o dies aged 87 Widely regarded as east Africa's most influential writer, Ngũgĩ’s fiction and nonfiction books traced his country's history from British imperialism to home-ruled tyranny and challenged not only the stories told but the language used to tell them. 29/05/2025
Culture news AI blunder: US newspaper's book list recommends non-existent books The recommended reading list contained some works of fiction. It also contained some works that were, in fact, actually fictional. 22/05/2025
Culture news Banu Mushtaq makes history with International Booker Prize win It is the first time that the award has been given to a collection of short stories. "Heart Lamp" is the first book written in the Kannada language to win the prestigious prize. 21/05/2025
Europe News 'It is impossible to invent something as exotic as the Vatican'. In an interview with Euronews, writer Javier Cercas describes Pope Francis as disruptive. Proof of this is the invitation he received from the Vatican to write a book, despite his declared secularism. Thus was born the novel 'El Loco de Dios en el fin del mundo' (God's Fool at the End of the World). 18/05/2025
Culture news Man who stabbed author Salman Rushdie faces sentencing in New York A jury found Hadi Matar, 27, guilty of attempted murder and assault in February. He is expected to be sentenced today, with Chautauqua County District Attorney Jason Schmidt saying he will request the maximum 25 years in prison for the 2022 attack that left Salman Rushdie blind in one eye. 16/05/2025
Culture news Algeria issues two arrest warrants for Gouncourt winner Kamel Daoud The author is accused of having used the story of a survivor of a massacre during the Algerian civil war without her consent – an accusation he denies. Daoud’s publisher denounced the “violent defamatory campaigns orchestrated by certain media close to a regime whose whose nature is well known.” 08/05/2025
Radio Schuman Romania votes again, but where is TikTok 'sensation' Călin Georgescu? Romanians head to the polls again on Sunday to elect a new president. What's at stake? And what happened to TikTok 'star' Călin Georgescu, who won last year's annulled election? 02/05/2025
Culture news Gruffalo set to return next year with first book in more than 20 years British writer Julia Donaldson and German illustrator Axel Scheffler have announced they are working on a new outing for the monster in the deep dark wood... 01/05/2025
Europe in Motion Which formats do online buyers prefer the most for their books? Ireland, the Netherlands and Luxembourg have the highest shares of residents buying printed books, magazines or newspapers online. 29/04/2025
Cinema Joseph Zada and Whitney Peak cast in new Hunger Games prequel A new chapter begins in Panem: The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping casts Joseph Zada and Whitney Peak in the long-awaited Haymitch prequel. 24/04/2025
Culture news Set of first edition Shakespeare plays to sell at auction next month Today is The Bard's 461st birthday and Sotheby's auction house has announced the sale of a set of First, Second, Third and Fourth Folios. 23/04/2025
Living 8 Earth Day reads for people wanting to make a positive impact ‘Humbling and hopeful’ in different ways, these timely reads help people of all ages navigate the climate and ecological crises. 22/04/2025
Living These climate-conscious booksellers are turning words into action From an old coal barge in Leeds, to picturesque Shaftesbury and radical Edinburgh, UK booksellers discuss bookselling during the climate crisis. 21/04/2025
Culture news Lost book bound in skin of notorious murderer on display at UK museum A second copy of a book bound in the skin of a notorious 19th-century murderer is now on display at a museum in Suffolk, England. 16/04/2025