Sophie Roell, Editor

In the years after William Shakespeare died, his plays took on a life of their own. They meant different things to different people at different times as they spread around the world, turning a glover’s son from a one-horse town in central England into one of the best-known authors of all time. Emma Smith, Professor of Shakespeare Studies at the University of Oxford, recommends books to better understand ‘Shakespeare reception’—the study of Shakespeare since his death.

For all its horrors, World War II was a time when things happened to people and that, perhaps, is what makes it such an enduring source of fascination. Graham Hurley, author of the Spoils of War series, recommends five of the best World War II thrillers, including one that reads like nonfiction.

Menstruation is a natural process that will happen some 400 times in a woman’s life, and yet it still causes embarrassment. Biological anthropologist Kate Clancy, author of Period: The Real Story of Menstruation, recommends books that shed light not only on periods, but on how to make the world a better place.

This week Virago Press celebrates its 50th anniversary. To mark the occasion, the international feminist publisher is reissuing one iconic book from each decade of its existence. Sarah Savitt, publisher of Virago Press, talks us through their ‘Five Gold Reads’ and explains why they remain important feminist books.

Many of us enjoy thrillers because of the pacy story, but good crime fiction has always been about society, says American novelist Karin Slaughter. She recommends five crime novels that are not only great reads but “pry the scab off the human condition.”

As summer kicks off in the northern hemisphere, it’s a great time to relax and listen to a good audiobook. Michele Cobb, publisher of AudioFile magazine, shares her favourite new audiobooks from the first half of 2023—from cozy mysteries and beach reads to the memoir of an ER doctor during Covid.

The Ottoman ruler Süleyman was one of the most powerful men in early modern Europe and highly adept at building his reputation for posterity. In European languages, he is still often graced with the epithet ‘the Magnificent.’ The reality was much more mixed, as a new biography of Süleyman shows. Historian Kaya Şahin talks us through books to better understand Sultan Süleyman and the world he lived in.

Since its invasion of Ukraine last year, Russia has been much in the news, with many of us struggling to better understand its politics, history, society and culture. Fortunately, we have the Pushkin House Book Prize, which every year celebrates the best nonfiction written about Russia and available in English. Russian political scientist Ekaterina Schulmann, chair of this year’s judging panel, talks us through the books that made the 2023 shortlist.

“You may have the universe, if I may have Italy,” goes the Verdi opera. Italy has had a profound influence on everything from art and food to religion and organized crime. Anglo-Italian journalist Alan Rhode recommends books to better understand Italian politics and history—and the Italians themselves.

Problems in the world economy can have a profound impact on politics. What’s happening in the US and elsewhere is disturbing, says Martin Wolf, chief economics commentator of the Financial Times. He talks us through books to help us reflect on the challenges facing economies. His recommendations include two books that query whether the era of unprecedented economic growth—which has transformed our societies over the last 150 years—is finally coming to an end.