A review of The Complete Works of Oscar Wilde Vol 4: Criticism; and Coffee With Oscar Wilde by Merlin Holland. A review of Ezra Pound: Poet: Volume 1: The Young Genius, 1885-1920 by A David Moody. Deed and word: Winston Churchill said that history would treat him kindly, because he would write it. And he did—with a prodigiousness that almost defies belief; but also with a literary craftsmanship that made his Nobel prize far more than just a Swedish thank you note. A poet's warning: In a witty 1946 poem, W.H. Auden contrasted the way of "experts" with the Hermetic path of the trickster. William Skidelsky on masters of disgrace: Philip Roth and JM Coetzee are very different writers, but with age, their visions are getting closer. Zuckerman Unbound: What should we make of Philip Roth's alter ego in his declining years? Was George Plimpton a literary giant? Uh, no—why does Philip Roth insist on arguing that he was? A review of Due Considerations: Essays and Criticism by John Updike. How gay were the Hardy Boys? Did their original author hide secret jokes inside the famous children's detective books? J. K. Rowling may think of Dumbledore as gay, but there is no reason why anyone else should.
