French bookshops have novel plan to fight VAT rise
Booksellers hint at a possible 'labelling strike' where they would simply refuse to stick new price tags on booksBehind nine vast window displays of graphic novels, art and politics books, hand-written reviews were tacked to recommended fiction and boo...
Ebenezer Scrooge named most popular Dickens character
Penguin Books poll to mark 200th anniversary of author's birth reveals miser from A Christmas Carol as best lovedA cold-hearted miser bullied by ghosts into gaining a conscience has triumphed over a festering, jilted bride and an alcoholic, nihilistic ...
Mike Gillespie obituary
Bronze sculptures by my friend Mike Gillespie, who has died aged 82, can be seen in several Cambridge colleges, at the Gas Research Centre at Loughborough University and in numerous private collections in Britain and abroad. He urged people not to look...
Andrew McMillan obituary
The Australian writer Andrew McMillan has died at the age of 54. When he was diagnosed with bowel cancer in 2010, Andrew announced a "living wake", which was documented by an Australian Broadcasting Corporation TV crew. His friends rallied to his cause...
Basil Payne obituary
My father, the poet and writer Basil Payne, has died aged 88. Basil believed a poet's job was to act not as an oracle, but as a catalyst. He wanted his words to take the reader on a reflective journey of enlightenment, shaped by their own experience.He...
The Unforgotten Coat by Frank Cottrell Boyce – Review
"I would recommend this book to anyone aged between eight and twelve who likes to find out about other children's lives. It is so beautifully written and easy to read"Julie is like any other year six schoolgirl thinking about clothes, boys and best fri...
Fidel Castro launches memoirs in Havana
Former Cuban president makes rare appearance to present 1,000-page book, Guerrilla of Time, charting his rise to powerFidel Castro has made a rare public appearance to launch his memoirs.The increasingly reclusive former Cuban president spent six hours...
10: The long gallery, Chastleton House, Moreton-in-Marsh, 1607-1612
As part of our series exploring Britain's architectural wonders, the Observer's architecture critic introduces a spectacular interactive 360-degree panoramic view of this classic example of the Jacobean long gallery• Explore the Chastleton House long...
Gandhi clan scours India’s largest state for votes among Muslims and outcast
The Congress party of Nehru and Indira Gandhi is accused of sacrificing free speech to make a comeback in India's most populous stateYou can find the Islamic Centre of India in the Aishbagh neighbourhood of the north-eastern city of Lucknow, flanked by...
Tim and Charlotte by Edward Ardizzone – review
'Tim and Ginger are in a lot of books by Edward Ardizzone and I love all of them'This book is about a little girl called Charlotte. It is also about two boys called Tim and Ginger. Tim and Ginger are in a lot of books by Edward Ardizzone and I love a...
How a bearded Virginia Woolf and her band of ‘jolly savages’ hoaxed the navy
Letter to go on sale revealing how Bloomsbury group duped an admiral – but feared fake beards would give them awayOne of the most famous practical jokes in British military history has returned to haunt the Royal Navy – more than a century later.A ...
Ebook sales are being driven by downmarket genre fiction