The former BBC Washington correspondent chooses five of his favourites. His latest book, "The Forever War: America's Unending Conflict with Itself", is out now.
Glued to the box
The first grown-up book I recall buying with my pocket money was this compilation of Clive James's TV reviews, which features a display of linguistic pyrotechnics every bit as eye-catching as the Sydney fireworks on New Year's Eve. In the land of Waugh and Greene, I joined a cohort of aspiring journalists who wanted to mimic "the kid from Kogarah". Not even James's buddy Christopher Hitchens could have pulled off a zinger likening Arnold Schwarzenegger to "a brown condom full of walnuts", or comparing the mascara and geisha-white complexion of Barbara Cartland to the corpses of two crows that had crashed into a chalk cliff.
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Wifedom
Anna Funder, 2023
"Animal Farm" was a formative influence on me as a young child, just as George Orwell was a formative influence on me as a young journalist. But the book I’d recommend is Funder's, which brings into focus the invisible life of Orwell's wife, Eileen O'Shaughnessy.
The Bonfire of the Vanities
Tom Wolfe, 1987
More so even than a great American novel, I have always loved a great New York novel. Two stand out. Tom Wolfe's "The Bonfire of the Vanities" perfectly captures the energy of the Big Apple.
Let the Great World Spin
Colum McCann, 2009
This book is another masterpiece. For me, it remains the superlative 9/11 novel, even though it’s set in 1974.
President Reagan: The Role of a Lifetime
Lou Cannon,1991
Owing to my fixation with American history, there's a special section on my bookshelf for Robert Caro's portraits of Lyndon Johnson. But Caro fans should also read this classic. Ronald Reagan's performative presidency helps make more sense of Donald Trump, a tycoon who in many ways personified the excesses of the Reagan era.
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In Okinawa, experience the more tranquil side of JapanThe Week Recommends Find serenity on land and in the sea
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The Curious Case of Mike Lynch: an ‘excellent, meticulously researched’ biographyThe Week Recommends Katie Prescott’s book examines Lynch’s life and business dealings, along with his ‘terrible’ end
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Can You Keep a Secret? Dawn French’s new comedy is a ‘surprising treat’The Week Recommends Warm, funny show about an insurance scam is ‘beautifully performed’
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Hamnet: a ‘slick weepie’ released in time for Oscar glory?Talking Point Heartbreaking adaptation of Maggie O’Farrell’s bestselling novel has a ‘strangely smooth’ surface
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The 8 best spy movies of all timethe week recommends Excellence in espionage didn’t begin — or end — with the Cold War
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Book reviews: ‘The Score: How to Stop Playing Somebody Else’s Game’ and ‘The Sea Captain’s Wife: A True Story of Mutiny, Love, and Adventure at the Bottom of the World’Feature Comparing life to a game and a twist on the traditional masculine seafaring tale
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Brigitte Bardot: the bombshell who embodied the new FranceFeature The actress retired from cinema at 39, and later become known for animal rights activism and anti-Muslim bigotry
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Scoundrels, spies and squires in January TVthe week recommends This month’s new releases include ‘The Pitt,’ ‘Industry,’ ‘Ponies’ and ‘A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms’
