Books to Look Forward to for a New Year

Along with the promise of a brand-new year come new reading challenges to start and winter weekends that are perfect for cozying up with a good book.

Hanya's Boys

The novelist tends to torture her gay male characters—but only so she can swoop in to save them.

Hanya Yanagihara's Haunted America

Her new novel experiments with alternative versions of history, upending personal and national destinies.

INTERVIEW Laurie R. King

CREATING new works based on an iconic fictional character who’s been around for over a century can be a minefield for an author.

ADVENTURE ON A BAD NIGHT

BEFORE dinner was quite finished Vivien began wanting to get outdoors, into the air she hadn’t seen since afternoon.

THE EDINBURGH BANKERS

“MR. Holmes, I’m not asking for myself. It’s for the livelihood of the rest of us.”

The Adventure of the Home Office Baby

FOLLOWING the occasion of my marriage, and relocation with Mary to our newlywed home in the Paddington district, only a few blocks east of the great station itself, I was able to continue building my new practice while still finding time to assist Sherlock Holmes in a number of investigations.

KEVIN OF THE DEAD

PEOPLE often say to me, “Kevin, what’s it like being undead and all that?” And I say, “It’s a job, you know?” You get up at sunset, brush off the dirt and slugs, climb out of the box, and off you go into the night looking for some poor unfortunate to siphon a pint from.

AUNT NELLIE'S DIARY

MANY contemporary readers know Louisa May Alcott only as the author of the classic Little Women, the much-beloved story of the March sisters’ journey from childhood innocence to mature womanhood.

INTERVIEW John Grisham

FOR the last thirty years, the term legal thriller has been synonymous with John Grisham. Credited with single-handedly popularizing the genre, he has inspired scores of other authors and, in the process, has become both a commercial and critical success.

An Unlikely Series of Conversations

LAERTES Jackson showed up at the human resources office of Martin, Martin, and Moll at 10:37 on a Tuesday morning in May.

INTERVIEW Don Winslow

EVER since Raymond Chandler and Dashiell Hammett revolutionized the crime novel with hardboiled heroes, gritty settings, and moral complexity, countless authors have tried to carry the torch.

The Dowser's Discovery

“IF you don’t mind, sir,” said old Fiedler as he finished pouring our coffee, “I’d like to go into the village this morning with the others. It’s market day.”

THE AMIABLE FLEAS

IN May 1954, more than fifteen years after writing Of Mice and Men and The Grapes of Wrath, John Steinbeck rented a house for himself and his family a stones-throw from the Champs-Elysées in Paris.

The Multiplying Dollar

It was only a dollar. Dylan Belscher noticed it on the floor as he sat at the back of his English class at John F. Kennedy High School in Cheektowaga, New York, in March 2018.

Carry Me Back

Race, history, and memories of a Virginia girlhood.

My Lasting Impression?

She wanted to make a perfect memory for her grandchildren until all you-know-what broke loose

When Disaster Strands Two American Tourists In The Jungle, They Have One Hope

When disaster strands two American tourists in the jungle, unable to walk and unlikely to be found, they have one hope: a phone with a dying battery

The True Feeling Of Success

A man reexamines his life and discovers some unappreciated moments of joy.

The Dog That Came Back From The Dead

On a run in the Rocky Mountains, the author’s dog, Merle, fell 800 feet, injured beyond hope. But he wasn’t done yet.

Jonathan Franzen's Great Expectations - The Novelist As Pundit

How Americas foremost novelist became its leading public moralist.

STAND BY FOR SHADO

This autumn marks the 50th anniversary of Gerry Anderson’s evolution from producing Supermarionation to live-action TV shows with UFO. We take a fond look back on a complex, mature series that took Century 21 Productions to new creative heights…

SHORT AND TO THE POINT

Short films have become a popular staple of film festivals but SHORT SHARP SHOCKS, the 41st release from BFI Flipside, shows us that the format has been used for much more commercial means previously…

ROAD TO OTAKU

YOUR GATEWAY INTO THE WORLD OF ANIME......WITH YOUR NAVIGATOR, JAMES 'MAGIC PERKINS' PERKINS

INDEPENDENTS DAY - FC RABBATH

Born in Alexandra, Egypt in October 1986, director/writer FRED ‘FC’ RABBATH has been an inventor, author, comedian, journalist, and all around entrepreneur. He’s also hugely well-travelled thanks to his father’s work, which required Fred to live in several countries before he was even 16. Tirelessly prolific, he has written and directed a string of acclaimed short films and a number of features including Scarlet’s Witch (2014), The Hum (2015), The Movie Extra (2015), and especially A Brilliant Monster (2018), which we described as ‘quirky and highly watchable… a psychological horror/thriller that examines the nature of creativity and the obsessions which drive the creative mind’ He’s back later this year with THE WAITING, a highly unusual and unpredictable ghost story that turns slowly into an unusual romantic fable. We spoke to Fred about his background and his approach to his work in the independent movie sector.

HEART and SOUL

Known for re-shaping the landscape of movies as we know it (not just animated ones), Pixar has respectfully raised the bar with delightful, heartfelt aplomb. From the intense opening segment of Up where no matter how lacking in emotion you think you are, tears will still come running, to the joyous Randy Newman-scored Toy Story moments, to the roaring, superhero family dynamics in The Incredibles, there’s an endless array of remarkable Pixar memories. Even in just these highlighted animated spectacles alone, Pixar has imprinted many sequences into our brains that we will never, ever forget. Everyone has a favourite Pixar character, scene, quote, song, and catchphrase that still evokes something nostalgically magical in them. So, what’s yours?

TRUTH BE TOLD

Following on from our TRUTH SEEKERS set-visit last issue, we speak with the driving forces behind Prime Video’s excellent new supernatural comedy series, SIMON PEGG, NICK FROST, and SAMSON KAYO...

Telephemera

ALAN BOON DELVES INTO THE TELEVISION ARCHIVES TO UNEARTH ANOTHER LONG-FORGOTTEN CURIO...

AN EYE FOR AN EYE

The controversial 1978 film I SPIT ON YOUR GRAVE has just been released as part of a 6-disc box set that includes the reboot trilogy, the UK debut of the direct sequel, DÉJÀ VU, and a feature-length documentary GROWING UP WITH I SPIT ON YOUR GRAVE. We managed to speak with actors CAMILLE KEATON and JAMIE BERNADETTE as well as the son of the original director, TERRY ZARCHI to find out more about the legendary revenge films…

Memoirs Of The Dead

It’s over 40 years since George A. Romero’s seminal zombie sequel DAWN OF THE DEAD first terrorised the planet, forever changing our demeanour when visiting the local shopping mall. On the eve of its latest disinterment - this time in 4K - we spoke to two actors who lived to tell the tale…