Joseph Conrad

Was this Irish spy the inspiration for James Bond’s ‘M’?

William Melville created the blueprint for the popular culture spy we know today

Where do atheists get their values?

John Gray explores fixed idea, unquestioning atheism in his new book Seven Types of Atheism

Rare books pair turning a new leaf in Blackrock

‘Most of the books we sell are to Ireland but the more expensive books tend to go abroad’

Clashes of Culture – An Irishman’s Diary on Dostoevsky in Kavanagh Country and Casement meeting Conrad

Now is no time for ‘soft news’ says journalist Martin Bell

Former BBC foreign correspondent expresses concern over ‘celebrification’ of news agenda’

The Russification of America under Donald Trump is gathering pace

Putin’s macho authoritarianism, disdain for press, and mockery of truth has installed itself in Trump’s America

Roger Casement: A romantic defender of the oppressed

On the centenary of his tragic execution, it is worth recalling the rebel’s adventurous life

On Corporation Street review: Anu explores what it takes to rebuild shattered city

The theatre company’s latest show explores the legacy of the Manchester bombing

Centenary concerts neglect to take the revolutionary road

Michael Dervan: Two evenings of music and words as part of Ireland 2016 got me thinking about the links that were missed

Hearts of darkness: Joseph Conrad and Roger Casement in the Congo

For their collaboration commemorating the Rising at the NCH, Colm Tóibín and Donnacha Dennehy have focused on the uneasy time when Casement and Conrad shared quarters in the Belgian colony

Aleksandar Hemon: ‘It’s the end of America. They just don’t know it yet’

Interview: The Bosnian-American writer’s new novel is a comedy with tragedy at its heart: the main characters have all been destroyed by state-sponsored conflicts

The Last Four Days of Paddy Buckley review: undertaker with a death wish

This darkly funny debut novel from a former Dublin mortician offers a unique perspective on dying

Authors on Africa, from Heart of Darkness to The Heart of the Matter

For Africa Day, Eileen Battersby selects 13 classic novels set in Africa but written by outsiders, including several Irish authors

The Laughing Monsters by Denis Johnson: More Butch Cassidy than Le Carré

Spy thriller is a labour of loyalty to the underrated and original Johnson

Dawn of the Planet of the Apes review: A slam-bang apocalyptic western

Irish translation of ‘Dracula’ funded by minister who slashed the old-age pension

A fresh insight into Mr Blythe’s economic stewardship has been highlighted by the discovery of a rare copy of Dracula “as Gaeilge”