With thousands of AI‑written, edited or ‘polished’ books being sold, LAURA BEERS hears an eerie echo of Orwell’s ‘novel‑writing machines’
Latest editorial
The Man Who Shook his Fist at the Tsar by Jack Robertson
Compelling account of the great Russian poet Alexander Pushkin's defiance of autocracy
Portrait of Pushkin by Orest Kipresnky, 1827
ANDY HEDGECOCK is entertained by a playful novel that embeds a fictional game at its heart
Death comes for Liberals, entitled murder, Vatican hit squads, and fraternising with the Blitz killer
New releases from Public Image Ltd, William Basinski, and John Luther Adams
GABRIELE NEHER draws attention to an astoundingly skilled Flemish painter who defied the notion that women cannot paint like men
The Bard pays homage to Hull’s finest promoter and venue, and awards Douze Points to Laibach
AN AMALGAM of biography, history, politics and literature, all woven together by informed commentary and observation, it is difficult to categorise Jack Robertson’s book on Alexander Pushkin.
Taking the reader down numerous fascinating discursive byways, the focus is on the acknowledged founder of Russian literature and his great 1833 poem The Bronze Horseman.
Its title references the great equestrian statue in St Petersburg’s Senate Square celebrating the founder of the city, Peter the Great.
Similar stories
GORDON PARSONS is intrigued by a biography of the Marxist intellectual and author, made from the point of view of his son
JULIA THOMAS unpicks the mental processes that explain why book-to-film adaptations so often disappoint
By Alexis Lykiard
Heart Lamp by the Indian writer Banu Mushtaq and winner of the 2025 International Booker prize is a powerful collection of stories inspired by the real suffering of women, writes HELEN VASSALLO