It’s hard to believe summer is over and we’re in the heart of autumn, and these books kept us warm. From historical retellings, research and fictions to modern day conspiracy theories and media empires. Happy reading!

📖 Books read in September: 8

• 📚 African and Caribbean People in Britain: A History by Hakim Adi (2022). A comprehensive history of African and Caribbean people in Britain, from the Middle Ages to the present day, highlighting their contributions to British society and culture. Check out our interview with Professor Hakim Adi, the Wolfson Prize nomination, and being made redundant at the same time.

• 📚 The Fraud by Zadie Smith (2023). An ambitious historical novel exploring themes of class, race, and identity in 19th-century England, centred on a mysterious man claiming to be the rightful heir to a lost fortune. We also reviewed Zadie Smith’s The Fraud, discussing the idea of imposters.
• 📚 King: A Life by Jonathan Eig (2023). An intimate and revelatory biography of Martin Luther King Jr., based on new research and interviews, revealing his complex humanity and enduring legacy. Similarly, we looked into this remarkable book on MLK by Jonathan Eig, which humanises the man behind the pulpit.
• 📚 Doppelganger: A Trip into the Mirror World by Naomi Klein (2023). A personal and political exploration of our culture’s obsession with doubles and mirrors, and the dangers of the “mirror world” of conspiracy theories and extremism. We’ve been busy this month as we’ve also read Naomi Klein’s mind-bending book about our dark twins.
• 📚 Nineteen Steps by Millie Bobby Brown (2023). A heartwarming and heartbreaking story of love, loss, and resilience in wartime London, inspired by the true story of the Bethnal Green tube disaster. Not only have we looked at the concept of ghostwriting, which is the case in this historical fiction, but we’ve also taken notes about this debut novel by the Stranger Things star.

Read: Ghostwriters used in celebrity books: what’s the issue?

• 📚 One Last Thing: How to Live with the End in Mind by Wendy Mitchell (2023). A personal and insightful exploration of death and dying, offering guidance on how to live a full and meaningful life in the face of our own mortality. For World Alzheimer’s Month in September, we spoke to the incredible Wendy Mitchell about her works.

• 📚 The Fall: The End of Fox News and the Murdoch Dynasty by Michael Wolff (2023). An insider’s account of the decline and fall of Fox News and the Murdoch media empire, rife with intrigue, betrayal, and family drama. It goes without saying that we did a deep dive of Michael Wolff’s new book on the Murdochs and came up with little.
• 📚 Rootless by Krystle Zara Appiah (2023). A poignant exploration of motherhood, sacrifice, and the search for belonging, set against the backdrop of the crumbling marriage of a British-Ghanaian couple.

Tell us what your favourite books were in September!

Finally…

If you found these themes interesting, then check out ghostwriters used in celebrity books. We also visited the Queen’s Park Book Festival, where we saw Zadie Smith live, speaking about The Fraud.

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