Cal Flyn, Deputy Editor

Europe experienced huge cultural, social and religious change throughout the Middle Ages. You may know it as an age of kings and queens, castles, crusades and chivalric knighthoods, but historians of the period often neglect the seismic events of the far north and east, explains Thomas Williams. Here, he recommends five books that may upend your understanding of medieval Europe.

The Royal Society celebrates the best new popular science writing every year through the prestigious Trivedi Science Book Prize. We asked Professor Michael Benton, the eminent palaeontologist and chair of the 2026 judging panel, to talk us through their six-book shortlist: from a globe-trotting history of alchemy to a fast-paced account of memory manipulation by optogenetics researchers at the cutting edge of science.

Each year, judges for the Booker Prize whittle their longlist down to a five- or six-book shortlist for the title of the best new novel of the previous twelve months. This year, the finalists include two previous Booker winners– Douglas Stuart and Marlon James – and a previous shortlistee in Elizabeth Strout. We asked Rebecca Liu, 2026 judge and Guardian journalist, to talk us through the shortlisted novels.

James Baldwin was a hugely influential figure in 20th-century writing – “one of the foremost American authors of his generation” – explains the literary scholar Ahmed Honeini, as he offers an overview of Baldwin’s remarkably varied output, which comprises “extraordinarily creative” fiction and playwriting as well as a body of searing social commentary.

Historical fiction can be both a valid and a valuable mode of examining unrecorded or forgotten figures in history, argues the award-winning novelist Alice Jolly. That is especially the case for women’s history, which is so often thinly documented. Here she highlights five immersive novels that foreground female stories.

Society is facing an honesty crisis, argues Christian B. Miller, a professor of ethics and moral philosophy at Wake Forest University. Plagiarism, fake news and political deception are all commonplace in contemporary culture—and even the little white lies we tell every day are more problematic than you might think. Here, he recommends the best books on honesty and dishonesty.

Many people are leery of creepy crawlies—but insects are critical to the functioning of the planet, says Dino Martins, the entomologist, evolutionary biologist and author of Hidden Creatures. We asked him to recommend five entomology books that seek wonder in unexpected places, including bee colonies and termite mounds.

Anthropologists look for cultural and political currents reflected in everyday behaviours, says Ruben Andersson, the Oxford academic and author of a new book about the contemporary obsession with self-protection, Age of Security. Here, he recommends five anthropology books that have influenced his work and writing—and reflects on the difficulties of recognising patterns in our own thinking.

Adolescence is an “electrifying” time of self-definition, explains the award-winning novelist Tom Newlands. Here he recommends five of the best ‘coming of age’ novels that capture the porosity and potential of those vivid teenage years when everything, just everything, seems possible.

Body horror is often bloody and gory, argues the novelist Heather Parry, but it is also a vessel for social commentary. Here she recommends five books that explore notions of bodily autonomy, capitalism and technology through the form of a horror novel – cult hits that will make you wince, but also make you think.