STEVEN ANDREW is moved beyond words by a historical account of mining in Britain made from the words of the miners themselves

Portrait of Britain Vol 2 PIX TO COME
Kaleidoscope of the extraordinary diversity of Britain’s population
THIS volume, published by Hoxton Press in collaboration with the British Journal of Photography, features the winning photographs of the latter’s open-call competition this year and, like the preceding 2018 work, it’s a kaleidoscope of fascinating images.
Reflecting the incredible diversity of people living in Britain now, there are some very moving portraits. Some are self-indulgent, while others focus on minority or marginalised groups as well as a few — too few, I feel — from the traditional mainstream.
Beyond reflecting our country’s diversity, it’s unclear to me what the book’s aim is. It provokes the question of who exactly are the people who occupy this island today and whether it’s possible to capture the full diversity of our population in a single book like this, however wide the net is cast.

JOHN GREEN recommends a German comedy that celebrates the old GDR values of solidarity, community and a society not dominated by consumerism

JOHN GREEN welcomes an insider account of the achievements and failures of the transition to democracy in Portugal

Mountains of research show that hardcore material harms children, yet there are still no simple measures in place

Peter Mitchell's photography reveals a poetic relationship with Leeds