Books
Zaina Arafat on queer love, desire, and Palestinian identity
2020’s breakout author — The author’s powerful debut novel, You Exist Too Much, follows the story of a bisexual Palestinian-American with a penchant for unattainable women.
Written by: Kate Wyver
What comic books can teach us about war, guilt and trauma
Haunted histories — Set during the Sri Lankan Civil War, Vanni is a haunting new graphic novel told from multiple, semi-fictional Tamil viewpoints.
Written by: Samuel Horti
Mark O’Connell’s guide to surviving the apocalypse
Notes from the end of the world — In his new book, Notes From An Apocalypse, the Irish author investigates our in-built obsession with the end of the world – meeting preppers, bunker entrepreneurs and would-be Mars colonists from around the globe.
Written by: Colin Gannon
Carmen Maria Machado on lockdown, utopias and writing
‘Survival is its own art form’ — The US author reflects on the success of her genre-bending queer gothic memoir, In The Dreamhouse.
Written by: Kate Wyver
Nature and mental health: why our minds need the wild
Invisible magic — In her new book Losing Eden, science writer Lucy Jones explores the intimate link between the human psyche and the natural world.
Written by: Lewis Gordon
Othering the other: the plight of the black goth
More than just makeup — To be black in America is to be marginalised. But if you’re a goth too, the otherness doubles – it goes past the margins and right off the page.
Written by: Leila Taylor
Rob Doyle: ‘so much political discourse is performative’
At the Threshold — The acclaimed author – lauded as one of the most vital voices in contemporary Irish fiction – talks psychedelics, Twitter, and his undefinable new novel, Threshold.
Written by: James Greig
Mat Osman: ‘I went from being a rock star to driving a van’
Out of the ruins — The Suede bassist is releasing his first novel, The Ruins, this month. He reflects on the personal highs and lows, as well as the wider cultural changes, that helped bring it into being.
Written by: Jeremy Allen
The countercultural power of American pulp fiction
Mid-century rebellion — Popular mid-century paperbacks would often tackle radical issues shunned by the high-brow mainstream, disguising them in accessible language and compelling plots.
Written by: Miss Rosen
Sex work allowed Isa Mazzei to embrace her outsider status
Behind closed doors — Last year, the award-winning writer took Hollywood by storm with a psychological horror based on her own experience in the sex industry. Now, ahead of the release of her debut memoir, she’s looking back on how her time as a cam girl saved her at her lowest point.
Written by: Lydia Morrish