'Now doesn't that make a lot of sense' illustration by Lucy Davey ©Lucy Davey Jan 18, 2013

Nonsense and sensibility

Demanding, surreal poems of great lyric beauty. Ian Thomson reviews ‘Quick Question’, by John Ashbery

Close-up of the wrinkled face of a 99-year-old Evenki woman ©Corbis Jan 18, 2013

‘The Last Quarter of the Moon’

Kelly Falconer reviews Chi Zijian’s tale of nomadic lives threatened by politics and change in China

The Lawgiver Jan 18, 2013

Wholly Moses

A prophet is transported to Hollywood. Michael Prodger reviews ‘The Lawgiver’, by Herman Wouk

Past the Shallows Jan 18, 2013

In brief

‘Past the Shallows’, by Favel Parrett; ‘70% Acrylic, 30% Wool’, by Viola Di Grado; ‘Capital’, by John Lanchester; ‘Resurrection Engines’, edited by Scott Harrison; ‘The Explorer’, by James Smythe

An illustration of Slaughterhouse Village by Toby Whitebread ©Toby Whitebread Jan 11, 2013

Appetite for corruption

A story of unbridled rapacity mirrors China’s path to modernisation. Krys Lee reviews ‘Pow!’, by Mo Yan

The Monday Review

De la Démocratie en Europe book cover

Two politicians make a powerful case that the European project suffers from too little ambition

Small talk

Philippe Claudel

Philippe Claudel: Who would I like to be stuck in a lift with? God, if He takes the lift

Jan 11, 2013

Promised land

One family’s struggle in 20th-century America. Maria Crawford reviews ‘The Twelve Tribes of Hattie’, by Ayana Mathis

Jan 11, 2013

In brief

David Evans reviews ‘The Gurkha’s Daughter’, by Prajwal Parajuly, and ‘How to Be a Good Wife’, by Emma Chapman

An illustration of dysfunctional people by Amanda Hutt ©Amanda Hutt Jan 4, 2013

‘Tenth of December’ by George Saunders

Tales of a dysfunctional America redeemed by kindness. Ludovic Hunter-Tilney reviews ‘Tenth of December’, by George Saunders

The Orchardist Jan 4, 2013

Forbidden fruit

An impressive debut set in the Pacific Northwest. Suzi Feay reviews ‘The Orchardist’, by Amanda Coplin

The Cook Jan 4, 2013

Felony and fine dining

David Evans reviews ‘The Cook’, by Wayne Macauley

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working words

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Rod Taylor filming a western in 1972 ©Raymond Depardon/Magnum Photos Peter Aspden explores how the movies that shaped America lost their myth-making power

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Simon Schama The Bodley Head yielded a harvest of essays so rich in imaginative subject matter

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