Oscar Wilde cultivated an image of himself as an idle genius, dashing off masterpieces with a lazy brilliance. But below the glittering linguistic surface of his works, suggests Sos Eltis, lies an anarchic politics and a phenomenal analysis of power.

“Do not ask who I am and do not ask me to remain the same,” wrote Michel Foucault; a brilliant transdisciplinarian whose work spanned philosophy, history, social theory and literary criticism. He mined past ways of thinking so as to see present-day assumptions and practices afresh, explains the philosopher Gary Gutting.

Autofiction is writing that blurs the boundaries between autobiography and fiction. The writer of Trans: A Memoir, Juliet Jacques, picks her top five examples of the genre.

For thousands of years, human societies have tried to regulate sexual activity. The author of Sex and Punishment tells us why this should be so, and how what’s permissible has varied according to time and place.

The author, gender theorist and self-described “SM femme tranny dyke” tells us why gender isn’t binary, and recommends books that give long-suppressed voice to the transgender community

The author, critic and creative writing professor tells us about the battle to establish gay fiction. He recommends five novels where beautiful writing and gay themes come together.

The Guardian’s chief arts writer, Charlotte Higgins, believes that the contemporary value of the Classics is incalculable – here, she tells us why, via her selection of the great and good of classical literature.

The graduate of West Point Military Academy, fluent Arabic speaker and Iraq war veteran, talks about the books that inspired him to take a stand against the US military’s regressive Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell policy

Founders of the Handspring Puppet Company pick their favourite five books on puppeteering. Enid Blyton and African Scenery and Animals both make the cut, as does same-sex behaviour in the natural world

The National Journal columnist and author of Gay Marriage: Why It Is Good for Gays, Good for Straights, and Good for America recounts his own marriage odyssey, starting with Mary Poppins.