Independent Thinking, from Foyles and Faber

‘Independent Thinking’ is a programme of events in which experts from a range of fields present new ideas and perspectives on the subjects close to their heart. Each month one author will outline their take on a subject in a short manifesto which will be followed up at the end of the month with a thought-provoking talk or debate.

Tobias Hill on The Hidden

You’re ours, Ben. Now you are. Now you’re one of us.

Acclaimed author Tobias Hill discusses his extraordinary novel of ancient secrets, modern conflict and what it costs to belong.

The Age of Absurdity

The good news is that the great thinkers from history have proposed the same strategies for happiness. The bad news is that these turn out to be the very things most discouraged by contemporary culture. Michael Foley has written an investigation into how the desirable states of wellbeing and satisfaction are constantly undermined by modern life.

Win a copy of The Boy Next Door [closed]

Find our more about Irene Sabatini’s tale of growing up and falling love amidst the chaos of post-colonial Zimbabwe, watch a trailer and try and win a copy too.

Read an extract from The Reluctant Hero, by Michael Dobbs

Harry Jones, hero of The Edge of Madness is caught in a web of international intrigue, with an old friend as bait, and a female scorpion at his side.

Best of the Web: Neil Cross

Neil Cross is one of the most exciting crime authors publishing today. Not only has he just unleashed his latest novel, Captured, but he’s also written the forthcoming BBC drama, Luther; and was lead writer on the ever popular spy series, Spooks.

Lance Price on Where Power Lies

A witty and informed look at the century-old battle between journalism and politics and what happened to the truth along the way, Lance Price talks about Where Power Lies.

Win a pair of tickets to Literary Death Match, part of YARNfest 2010 [closed]

It’s literature’s answer to the X-Factor, a titanic struggle of (t)wits to see who can triumph, it can only be… Opium’s Literary Death Match. It’s back in London, and we have a pair of tickets to be won!

Festival preview: The London Word Festival, 7 March – 1 April 2010

London’s pioneering celebration of words, text and language returns for a third year, playing host to the most adventurous programme yet. Bringing to light the finest array of artists working with words.

Little Hands Clapping and a short film

Canongate is re-issuing Dan Rhodes’s Anthropology and Timoleon Vieta Come Home to coincide with the publication of Little Hands Clapping, the latest novel from the man described by the Guardian as ‘reliably odd but fabulous’.

Win a pair of tickets to Four Stories High, part of YARNfest 2010 [closed]

Novelists, thespians, auteurs and musicians from across London come together on February 23rd to retell the story of Homer’s epic, The Odyssey, and we have a pair of tickets to be won…

Read the first chapter of The Secret Speech

Tom Rob Smith talks about his hotly-anticipated follow-up to the Booker long-listed Child 44, The Secret Speech, and we let you read the whole of Chapter One.

The Lieutenant: author’s note

Kate Grenville penned an author’s note at the end of The Lieutenant, published in Feburary 2009.

Irene Sabatini: The Book That…

What do writers read? Irene Sabatini, whose debut novel The Boy Next Door has just been published, tells us about the books that have made her laugh, cry, kept her awake at night, and more.

Songs for the Butcher’s Daughter – a note from the author

“When I talk to readers about my book I often lead with a joke that goes something like this: My last book Vows, was about how my father the Catholic priest met my mother the Catholic nun, so it was inevitable that my next book would be about Yiddish.”

The Candle Problem

‘The Candle Problem’ is a classic experiment created by the Austrian psychiatrist Karl Duncker in 1945.

We ask science writers Jonah Lehrer and Daniel Pink to explain what this exercise can teach us about creativity, motivation and decision making.

This Valentine’s Day, say it with Bookhugger… [closed]

The most romantic day of the year is fast approaching, and what better way to win over the one you love than with flowery verse, delicious chocs, sparkling wine and romantic prose. Win them all in our great competition – the winner will have them in time for the big day!

100 Stories for Haiti

100 Stories for Haiti is a collection of short stories sold to raise money for relief efforts in disaster-striken Haiti. All proceeds go to the Red Cross.