Library Poem by Julia Donaldson
Libraries are being closed all over the country, so children's laureate Julia Donaldson has written this poem specially for National Libraries DayEveryone is welcome to walk through the door.It really doesn't matter if you're rich or poor.There are boo...
Save Our Libraries: Readers’ reports
We catch up with campaigners working hard to keep their local services goingWith National Libraries Day taking place on Saturday 4 February, we invited readers to tell us in their own words, how their campaigns to save their local library have progress...
Juan Gabriel Vásquez at A Room for London
A Room for London is a small living space in the shape of the Roi des Belges - the boat in Joseph Conrad's novella The Heart of Darkness, which has been moored on the top of the South Bank as part of the Cultural Olympiad. For four days every month, as...
Haunting stories
As the film company Hammer – famous as a purveyor of horror movies – moves into publishing, we hear from its boss Simon Oakes about the thinking behind the new venture, which has just produced its first literary title, The Greatcoat, Helen Dunmore....
Waterstones ends unpaid work placements after investigation
Waterstones stops using unpaid jobseekers, as government rebuts claim that scheme is contrary to Human Rights ActThe high street book store Waterstones has pulled out of a government scheme that employed unpaid jobseekers in its stores after a Guardian...
Unlikely animal friendships – in pictures
From a monkey cuddling a dove to a sheep spending time with an elephant, a new book shows the remarkable friendships that can exist between wildly different animals
Blue Peter asks children to choose ‘the best book of the decade’
As a BBC poll is launched to find the best children's book of the decade, who would you vote for? Email us at childrens.books@guardian.co.uk and we'll print your responses belowAn unusual children's books poll is pitching the bestselling authors of las...
Alain de Botton, author
Alain de Botton is a writer of essayistic books that have been described as a "philosophy of everyday life". He has written about love, travel, architecture and literature. His latest book is Religion for Atheists.Alain de Bottonguardian.co.uk © 2...
Charles Dickens’s characters come to life – in pictures
Some of English literature's best-known characters have been traced to individuals who lived in the same Marylebone streets as the teenage Charles Dickens
James Dawson’s top 10 books to get you through high school
The teen thriller writer picks his favourite school survival stories, from Matilda to MachiavelliJames Dawson grew up in West Yorkshire, writing imaginary episodes of Doctor Who. He became a journalist and then a teacher. He now writes full time and hi...
Free audiobook download: The Power of Positive Thinking
The final in our series of inspiring self-help audiobooks is Norman Vincent Peale's The Power of Positive Thinking. Mobile users – please visit the desktop site.
The Big Ideas podcast: Friedrich Nietzsche’s ‘God is dead’