John Self

So, you’ve read White Nights – what should you read next?

From classic fables to modern bestsellers, here’s our selection of some of the best books from Korea that have been translated into English. 

Get to know the works of Franz Kafka, the author of Metamorphosis famed for his twisted stories, dark humour, and unique view of the world.

Translated fiction is a great way to expand your mind by seeing how other cultures view the world, and what better way in than the classics? Here are some funny, accessible, strange and short books in translation to get you going.

Japanese fiction is the UK’s most popular form of translated literature. Here’s our list of some of the best places to begin with the genre.

The best science fiction fires our imagination at the same time as making us look inward. Here are the must-read sci-fi classics novels.

The best books to begin with, from one of literature’s most compelling and idiosyncratic minds.

There are 128 books in the Little Black Classics box set; here, we pick the best ones to kick off your reading journey.

One of the joys of fiction is that it allows writers to bend the rules – even those of time. Here are the best time travel books to transport you.

Since he shook up the boring old book world 30 years ago, Irvine Welsh has enthralled millions of readers with his stories – the blackest of comedies, the trickiest of tragedies – often set in the housing estates of working-class Scotland. Like Nick Hornby before him and Helen Fielding after, Welsh has produced many imitators, […]

Booker Prize-winner Julian Barnes has a top-notch bibliography to dive into – but with such a varied spread of books, where to begin? John Self guides you through.

Want to break into the canon but not sure where to start? John Self talks you through the things to consider to find the classic books to suit you.

From Arabic masterpieces to Japanese novellas, these books will transport you to places – and eras – you’ve never been to before. How many have you read?

From nature and literature to sexuality, Jeanette Winterson has long tackled matters of substance in her work. Here’s how to get into it.

To mark to release of Blake Bailey’s celebrated new biography of the literary giant, here is the perfect primer for anyone interested in delving into the work of Philip Roth, from his breakthrough successes to late career triumphs.

D. H. Lawrence’s classic novel was his attempt to “make the sex relations valid and precious, instead of shameful”; the court case it prompted, and its revolutionary result, now stand as moments of national pride.

Sharp, sparkly and endlessly versatile, Evelyn Waugh’s overlooked novels make him the perfect choice to cheer us all up, says John Self.

Fiction about pandemics and plagues is experiencing a huge surge of interest. Which are the best examples, and what do they have to tell us?

From dystopia to satire to State of the Nation fiction, the UK’s prolonged exit from the European Union has had a huge impact on the work of some of our best novelists, and helped inspire many new voices. Has Brexit led to a golden age of fiction?

John Self looks at how novelist Georges Simenon reinvented the detective novel with his extensive series featuring the exceptional Inspector Jules Maigret.

From Extinction Rebellion and ‘protest as spectacle’ to gender fluidity and fake news, Jeanette Winterson’s fiction has consistently foreshadowed the big issues of our times. As she celebrates her sixtieth birthday, John Self celebrates a novelist always a few steps ahead

Discover Yūko Tsushima’s brilliant short novel Territory of Light as part of the Penguin Classics Book Club.