Ava Anna Ada by Ali Millar review – at the end of the world Fraught themes of maternal ambivalence and ecological crisis are explored in this intense apocalypse story The Guardian - UK · Jan 4, 2024
Not the End of the World by Hannah Ritchie review – an optimist’s guide to the climate crisis This book is full of pragmatic, hopeful solutions to environmental challenges. But is there something missing? The Guardian - UK · Jan 4, 2024
The Wizard of the Kremlin by Giuliano da Empoli review – a tsar is born The imagined life story of a shadowy Kremlin insider offers a chilling perspective on Putin’s Russia The Guardian - UK · Jan 4, 2024
Hyper by Agri Ismaïl review – the tidal forces of money A Kurdish family is uprooted and blown around the globe in this flinty and ambitious debut of big, heady ideas The Guardian - UK · Jan 3, 2024
A Farage farrago, crypto crime and rivers of cash: the 2023 Observer business awards Bank boss Alison Rose, Binance’s Changpeng Zhao, Sarah Bentley of Thames Water and OpenAI’s Sam Altman feature highly on this year’s prestigious honours list The Guardian - UK · Dec 31, 2023
Feast your eyes, feed your soul: the 31-day art diet for January Brighten up dark January with our one-a-day selection of works of art chosen and introduced by the Observer’s art critic The Guardian - UK · Dec 31, 2023
Grenfell families ‘left in limbo’ lash out at delays to decision on demolition Residents say ministers have wasted six years and ‘dodged’ making plan for tower since fire claimed 72 lives The Guardian - UK · Dec 31, 2023
Tenants left living in squalor in Britain as landlords escape heavy fines Exclusive: housing association payouts over failures to fix life-threatening mould and damp average only £445 The Guardian - UK · Dec 31, 2023
‘The worst meeting I have ever had’: why a Kindertransport hero rejected a film about his life As One Life is released, producer says that Nicholas Winton – the ‘British Schindler’ who saved 669 children – was reluctant for his story to be told The Guardian - UK · Dec 30, 2023
You Dreamed of Empires by Álvaro Enrigue review – the birth of Mexico Real events are compressed into one extraordinary day as Spanish conquistadors penetrate the heart of Aztec civilisation, in a novel of hallucinatory vividness The Guardian - UK · Dec 30, 2023
Francis Spufford: ‘It was the sorrow of my life at age 10 that there wasn’t one more Narnia book to read’ The author on learning to read with JRR Tolkien, being in awe of Patricia Lockwood and the comforts of Katherine Addison The Guardian - UK · Dec 29, 2023
Why? The Purpose of the Universe by Philip Goff review – a real poser An ingenious and accessible discussion of a big question we’ll never answer – the reason for our existence The Guardian - UK · Dec 28, 2023
My Friends by Hisham Matar review – the pain of exile This delicate novel explores the bonds between three Libyan men living in London, far away from their homeland The Guardian - UK · Dec 28, 2023
Shame: The Politics and Power of an Emotion by David Keen review – Trumpism’s lifeblood An intriguing analysis of the driving force behind rightwing populism The Guardian - UK · Dec 27, 2023
The Guardian - UK · Dec 27, 2023 Guardian and Observer charity appeal hits £1m in reader donations More than 8,500 readers have so far given to charities providing help to refugees and asylum seekers
The Guardian - UK · Dec 27, 2023 Normal Women by Ainslie Hogarth review – mother’s ruin In this darkly satirical novel about 21st-century motherhood and women’s labour, the protagonist seeks liberation at a brothel-cum-yoga studio
The Guardian - UK · Dec 27, 2023 Marcia Williams: The Life and Times of Baroness Falkender by Linda McDougall review – notes on a scandal A much-needed retelling of the extraordinary story of Harold Wilson’s right-hand woman
The Guardian - UK · Dec 24, 2023 Escaping Xi’s China by paddleboard: ‘I rushed into the water and thought if they catch me, they catch me’ Dissidents face an uncertain future in Taiwan and South Korea after fleeing
The Guardian - UK · Dec 24, 2023 For many, the case for assisted dying is clear. But life – and death – is often not so simple Diana Rigg made a compelling argument because she had terminal cancer, but recent experiences abroad suggest a more complex reality
The Guardian - UK · Dec 24, 2023 Parenting advice, from the experts of the 1980s What did the last generation of parenting gurus learn from their own parents? The Observer went to find out in 1985
The Guardian - UK · Dec 23, 2023 The Observer view on Tory economic policy: only active public investment will cure Britain’s ills The government’s reliance on the private sector has led to a UK economy on the brink of recession and a crumbling state
The Guardian - UK · Dec 23, 2023 Two former health secretaries join calls for new law on assisted dying Senior Conservative and Labour figures said they would back changes to legislation on the issue in England and Wales
The Guardian - UK · Dec 23, 2023 Profiteering fears as global investment firms increase stakes in England’s child social care Observer investigation finds homes backed by private equity more than doubled in five years, with Qatar and Abu Dhabi sovereign wealth funds among investors
The Guardian - UK · Dec 23, 2023 Schools in England face years of chaos as government stalls on Raac concrete repairs Latest figures show more than 230 schools affected by crumbling concrete, but many have yet to be told when rebuilding will begin
The Guardian - UK · Dec 23, 2023 New plans for HS2 money will bring ‘higher fares and congestion for decades’ Rail experts say predicted passenger congestion north of Birmingham will mean ticket price rises to reduce demand