Margaret Atwood has become a cultural weathervane, blamed for predicting dystopia and celebrated for resisting it. Yet her ‘memoir of sorts’ reveals a more complicated, playful figure.

@sophieolive introduces us to a young Peggy.

Sophie Oliver - Ms Fixit’s Characteristics

Sophie Oliver: Ms Fixit’s Characteristics - Book of Lives: A Memoir of Sorts by Margaret Atwood

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For a writer so ubiquitous, George Orwell remains curiously elusive. His voice is lost, his image scarce; all that survives is the prose, and the interpretations built upon it.

@Dorianlynskey wonders what is to be done.

Dorian Lynskey - Doublethink & Doubt

Dorian Lynskey: Doublethink & Doubt - Orwell: 2+2=5 by Raoul Peck (dir); George Orwell: Life and Legacy by Robert Colls

literaryreview.co.uk

The court of Henry VIII is easy to envision thanks to Hans Holbein the Younger’s portraits: the bearded king, Anne of Cleves in red and gold, Thomas Cromwell demure in black.

Peter Marshall paints a picture of the artist himself.

Peter Marshall - Varnish & Virtue

Peter Marshall: Varnish & Virtue - Holbein: Renaissance Master by Elizabeth Goldring

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