In Orbital, six astronauts rotate in their spacecraft above the earth. They are there to collect meteorological data, conduct scientific experiments and test the limits of the human body. But mostly they observe. Together they watch their silent blue planet, circling it sixteen times, spinning past continents and cycling through [...]
The Booker Prize 2025 longlist © Yuki Sugiura for Booker Prize Foundation by Sophie It's only 29 July, but autumn is surely around the corner because the Booker Prize just announced its longlist! The Booker Prize is one of the most influential prizes in the annual literary calendar, [...]
From the acclaimed author of The Hole and The Factory, a thrilling and mysterious work that explores fertility, masculinity, and marriage in contemporary Japan. In these three interconnected stories, Hiroko Oyamada revisits the same set of characters at different junctures in their lives. In the back room of a pet [...]
In Invisible Cities Marco Polo conjures up cities of magical times for his host, the Chinese ruler Kublai Khan, but gradually it becomes clear that he is actually describing one city: Venice. by Damla “You take delight not in a city's seven or seventy wonders, but in [...]
On a brisk autumn day in 1686, eighteen-year-old Nella Oortman arrives in Amsterdam to begin a new life as the wife of illustrious merchant trader Johannes Brandt. But her new home, while splendorous, is not welcoming. Johannes is kind yet distant, always locked in his study or at his warehouse [...]
Kokoro by Natsume Sosoki Kokoro – "the heart of things" – is the work of one of Japan's most popular authors. This thought-provoking trilogy of stories explores the very essence of loneliness and stands as a stirring introduction to modern Japanese literature. What is love, and what is friendship? What is [...]
by Damla Today we celebrate all the fathers and father figures in our lives by highlighting the most remarkable fathers in literature. Whether they symbolise a guiding light, a sturdy support, or an overbearing power, these paternal icons are an undeniable force that give direction to unforgettable stories with their presence [...]
by Damla “Tea ... is a religion of the art of life.” – Kakuzō Okakura, The Book of Tea A cozy, heart-warming International Tea Day to all! Whether it is a symbol for a warm cup of comfort, a foundation stone of cultural rituals, or a golden opportunity for trade (and [...]
by Damla Happy Mother’s Day to all the mothers and mother figures out there! Today, we celebrate the wide range of experiences on motherhood, from relatable to singularly strange, eccentric to traditional, yet all remarkable. Take a look at our picks that shine the spotlight on unforgettable, powerful, and certainly remarkable [...]
The Names by Florence Knapp It is 1987, and in the aftermath of a great storm, Cora sets out with her nine-year-old daughter to register the birth of her son. Her husband intends her to follow a long-standing family tradition and call the boy after him. But faced with the [...]
