Bookmarks: the latest news, views and reviews from Guardian Books

Bookmarks Thursday 26 Feb 2015 g Today's top stories More » Isis destroys thousands of books and manuscripts in Mosul libraries Shocked staff fear further damage and ‘cultural cleansing’ under the militants’ rule  Pauline Fisk obituary Children’s storyteller whose books blend the natural and the supernatural  Seamus Heaney focus of ‘tribute album’ by 50 leading poets Simon Armitage and Lavinia Greenlaw among contributors to special issue of Poetry Ireland Review compiling writers’ tributes to their favourite poems  One of Us: The Story of Anders Breivik and the Massacre in Norway by Åsne Seierstad – review Family dysfunction, sexual failure, grotesque narcissism sad delusions and dreams of martyrdom – the chilling portrait of a killer. By Ian Buruma  Dancing in the Dark – Karl Ove Knausgaard’s teenage years The fourth volume in Knausgaard’s epic series of self-examining novels exposes adolescent desires and torments  Most viewed in Books More » JRR Tolkien falls off children's most popular books list What Kids Are Reading report sees popularity of The Fault in Our Stars and the Hunger Games series, and primary-school kids choose David Walliams’s Demon Dentist as their favourite book  Bookseller offers rarity that inspired Charlotte Brontë – and her pseudonym Thomas Bewick’s History of British Birds, mentioned in Jane Eyre, was owned by Yorkshire philanthropist believed to have supported Brontë family  Why all writers are vain There is an inherent egotism in believing your voice matters – but that’s no reason not to put pen to paper, writes Julian Baggini  Latest reviews More » Get in Trouble review – Kelly Link’s new collection of fantastical short stories Dazzling tales full of gothic discomfort and surreal scenarios  Birth of a Theorem: A Mathematical Adventure by Cédric Villani – review The compelling and uncompromising diary of a prizewinning French enthusiast and eccentric. By Hannah Fry  None of the Above by Rick Edwards; Wasted by Georgia Gould – review Young people don’t vote: how can that be changed? What will make them give politicians a good hard kick in the ballots? An old square, aged 31, looks to two enthusiasts to find out. By Helen Lewis  Talking Points More » Why writing doesn't have to be a lonely struggle Tough love life? Write a nicer one. Feeling old? Write yourself young… Authors Helen Grant and Lydia Syson explain why the writer’s life need not be miserable  Teen novelists: the perils and positives of publishing early Imogen Russell Williams: Helena Coggan is only 15, and yet her debut novel has all the assurance of a writer in mid-stride. If young writers can overcome the stare of the blank page – and take care with characterisation – they can stand as an inspiration to all  Tips, links and suggestions: what are you reading this week? Your space to discuss the books you are reading and what you think of them  Latest podcasts More » John Banville on Raymond Chandler - books podast The Booker-winning novelist sends his alias, Benjamin Black, to discuss his Philip Marlowe novel, The Black Eyed Blonde  How to draw More » Liz Pichon

Don't miss our Guardian Live events Kazuo Ishiguro, 8 March, London In March 2015 acclaimed novelist Kazuo Ishiguro will publish his first novel in ten years, The Buried Giant. Join him for a special Guardian Live event at London's Cadogan Hall. He will be in conversation with Books editor, Claire Armitstead. John Gray and Will Self: Is free will an illusion? 18 March, London Political philosopher John Gray and novelist Will Self ask whether human freedom is a comforting delusion, or do forces - biological, physical, metaphysical - constrain our every action.

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