The philosopher and author of The Fourfold Remedy: Epicurus and the Art of Happiness on Asterix, architecture, Aristippus and discovering the power of ideas
The author of The Richer, The Poorer on how Orwell, Steinbeck and Galbraith sparked an interest in poverty and inequality, taking a long view and fighting back
The author of Treasured: How Tutankhamun Shaped a Century on finding girls and women in history, archaeology’s ‘heroic’ age and the cultural impact of ‘Egyptomania’
The cultural historian and author of The Art of Self-Improvement on positive transformations, the Stoic approach to life, and what self-help books can reveal about individuals and society
The professor of psychiatry and author of Of Fear and Strangers discusses learning about America from Twain, the ‘history of xenophobia’ and how to address it
The historian and author of Pulp Empire: The Secret History of Comic Book Imperialism on cool kids, a comic book shop as edgy as its contents, and international culture wars
The summer is traditionally when academics turn to the big, serious books they don’t otherwise have time for or grab the chance for a bit of escapism. The pandemic has raised some major new issues they might want to grapple with but also increased the need to switch off. Here our contributors offer their personal thoughts on what they are going to read for enlightenment and for fun