Books

Johan Franzén is disturbed by America's failure to protect Iraq's historical artefacts during the war

Louise Hardwick on the imbalance in the US social funding see-saw

A family suffering an unusual condition and their experience of their world intrigues Peter J. Smith

Jo-Ann Wallace finds that a lack of personal detail clouds an otherwise valuable biography

The 'engineers of human souls' occupied a unique role in the Soviet Union, finds Harold Shukman

A weekly look over the shoulders of our scholar-reviewers

A weekly look over the shoulders of our scholar-reviewers

Fred Inglis admires the ambition more than the paean to advertising

Telling the history of higher education in one volume is a tall order, says Geoffrey Alderman

Elizabeth Rechniewski revels in a scholarly account of Parisians breaking the bounds of normality

Jonathan Fenby takes a mixed view of a new examination of the Chinese leader eclipsed by Mao

Trevor Herbert finds resonance in an account of the influence of jazz on American books and films

The case for the study of cinema was hard fought, not least among the believers, finds Philip Kemp

Graham Farmelo admires a sassy new overview of theories of fundamental particles

The Cold War intimacy of America's medical and military establishments bothers Elizabeth Toon

Farzana Shaikh's identity leads to some distrust of her work on Pakistan. Unfazed, she tells Melanie Newman she expects more criticism for her exploration of the country's identity crisis

A focus on Pasolini's conflicted gay identity offers new insights, says John David Rhodes

A thoughtful examination of how homosexuality is portrayed historically rings true with Robert Mills

Durham University's commercial for the range and depth of its work leaves Jon Turney wanting more

A weekly look over the shoulders of our scholar-reviewers

Behaviourism's founder has suffered bad press, writes Janine Spencer

Cornelie Usborne delves into a complex and painful phenomenon of the Second World War

Surveying the forthcoming crop of scholarly books, Karen Shook spots engaging reads suitable for the poolside lounger and weighter tomes for air-conditioned studies

Suroopa Mukherjee finds questions of gender and research in India are addressed, but not answered

A study of a homosexual subculture will provoke debate from all quarters, discovers Ken Plummer

Dale E. Gary enjoys reading about the surprising public outcry that followed Pluto's demotion

Adam Rutherford finds little intellectual punch in an analysis of impossibly muscly men in tights