Books

Catherine Grant explores spectators' desire for the cinema and the new universes that it opens up

The world cannot sustain rampant consumerism, but Jules Pretty doesn't buy all the arguments

Steve Edwards finds positives and negatives in the claim that photos are a key part of political culture

Graham Farmelo admires the philosophy of a scientist who advocates cross-border research

Andrew Blake is not bothered by the eclectic examples but rather by an emphasis on privilege

A riveting narrative looks at the science behind rebuilding robust ecosystems, says Jessica Flack

Despite the bad press, journalists played an important role in the conflict, says Julius Ruiz

The relationship between creatives and their backers can be fraught, discovers Sally Feldman

In the cultural jungle, one person fights the good fight, finds Fred Inglis

Joanna Lewis on the riches that cast a shadow over an African nation's once-bright future

Michelene Wandor on writers' revealing accounts of both their muses and their demons

David Ayers finds that creative influences migrate both ways in the literature of the Americas

A case study on musical performance takes us into rarely charted waters, finds Martin James

A physicist's stories captivate Chris Sachrajda

James T. Crouse finds a work that plots the course of US aviation law is a breath of fresh air

Katrina Schlunke is captivated by a work that navigates the tricky waters of historical reputation

Traditional textbooks can encourage intellectual passivity in students. But alternatives are beginning to emerge, writes Matthew Reisz