Friday, April 4, 2025

Books

Lessons in Censorship: A Cautionary Tale against Bodleian Blacklists 

For some authors, the Bodleian Libraries have not always a safe haven for their work. Although marginalised texts are no longer demarcated with the phi symbol on their spines, with many having re-entered the undergraduate canon, Sophie Price discusses the valuable lessons we can learn from the Bodleian blacklist which remain pertinent today.
Books Sophie Price -

Should ‘Orbital’ have won The Booker Prize? 

Laurence Cooke reviews Samantha Harvey's 'Orbital', the winner of the 2024 Booker Prize.
Books Laurence Cooke -

The Secret History Characters as Oxford Tropes

Donna Tartt's novel The Secret History is set in an exclusive college in Vermont but can be read as a satire of Oxford and its students. It invites us to question how little differentiates us from the elitist American universities.
Books Christina Scote -

Review: The Proof of My Innocence by Jonathan Coe

There are some writers whose line of literary descent is so clear as to...
Books Hassan Akram -
Latest

Beyond Juvenal: “who will guard the guardians?”

One line in Juvenal’s Satire VI finds itself reincarnated in countless modern pop culture references.

The Bookshelf: Charlotte Brontë’s ‘Villette’

In the first of our blog series on your favourite books and poems, Jenny Scoones finds the passionate love and faith in Bronte’s later, lesser-known novel to rival the author's more canonical works

Milkman by Anna Burns: a pertinent portrait of life during the Troubles

An exploration of Anna Burns' The Milkman and its chilling relationship to the violence of the Troubles.

Poetry in motion: the nature of lyrics

Should lyrics be given the same respect as poetry?

Armitage’s Gawain: translating in wylde wayeȝ

"Translation is not without flaws – it cannot help but alter authorial voice, although the degree to which this takes place is certainly not consistent."

Autumn by Ali Smith: a seasonal portrait of post-Brexit Britain

The first book in Smith's ongoing quartet reminds us that sympathy is possible in our polarised times

Strange creatures: monstrosity in Kafka’s ‘The Metamorphosis’

The world of literature is abundant with monsters: physical monsters, psychological monsters, benevolent monsters, evil monsters. However, there is hardly a monster as puzzling...

Normal People Review – ‘a novel that speaks to the current climate’

Jenny Scoones discusses the portrayal of masculinity and friendship in Sally Rooney's second novel

Factfulness review: On the importance of truth

Dr Hans Rosling's final book reminds us of the enduring importance of truth, says Harry Lloyd

Idle reading: books in praise of laziness

A consideration of two books with different approaches to the same philosophy: the art of laziness.

Stephen King’s It: the horror novel that sparked a love affair

The pleasure and terror of reading Stephen King

Characters we love to hate

Sam Millward surveys the rise of the antihero as a problematic but compelling character

The ‘Brideshead Revisited’ reputation haunting Oxford

Is there any truth in the fictional portrayals of the University?

‘I have only ever tried to show you beauty’: Florence Welch’s ‘Useless Magic’

Kate Haselden considers how the publication of Florence Welch's first book proves her affinity for beauty, and talent as an artist, extends beyond music into poetry

Review: Charly Cox ‘She Must Be Mad’

Charly Cox's poetry confronts the reality of life as a young woman in the age of social media

Modern China from a new perspective

Jacob Cheli talks to BBC Correspondent Michael Bristow about his travels around China with a cross-dressing language teacher

Is the publishing boom ‘a sign of cultural vitality’?

Despite the recent publishing boom, the literary landscape is looking increasingly

In search of Irish Revolutionaries

Eric Sheng discusses former Oxford don Roy Fisher’s recent work on Revolutionary Ireland

Travels with a Cross-Dressing friend: A Personal Biography of China

Michael Bristow, a former BBC Foreign Correspondent, hopes his book will challenge the Chinese government

‘Reversed’: An interview with Lois Letchford

Kurien Parel interviews author Lois Letchford about her memoir 'Reversed' which follows the journey of her learning disabled son, Nicholas, from the bottom of the class to Oxford PHD student.
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