Trade that can't be contained Trump's volley of tariffs hasn't reined in global commerce. In fact, it just keeps on growing. writes James Crabtree igns of a new era of de- globalisation are hard to spot in Taiwan, where the econ- omy grew by an astonishing 13 per cent in the last quarter. That would be extraordinary in an emerging economy, let alone an advanced one, and shows how demand driven by …
iterary spin-offs are a testa- ment to the enduring appeal of Daphne du Maurier’s Rebecca and the intrigue sur- rounding its author. Now come two books to stir our interest again: another reinvention of the classic story, this time in the hands of a cele- brated novelist, and a family history. Du Maurier’s gothic masterpiece hasa particular quality: in both the 1938 book and Hitchcock's film, it's…
BOOKS ‘It’s a thing of beauty, and each piece of music is like a Jormel full of Snot, Turn it eal and try it agen —~FLEMING BROWN Tune and Tune Again Our Common Life By Stephen Wade Illinois, 488 pages, $29.95 ByDavio Yezzr Davip YEZZI XTRAORDINARY 6 how potent cheap music is,” Noél Coward wrote. Vernacular music has long exerted a powerful hold over our American identity. Field hollers, blues, ba…
Roy Cohn, the utter villain who mentored Trump Political fixer, ‘killer fruit’ and sociopath — his malevolence knew no bounds. By John Maier oy Colm is one of those figures of American history about whom there exists a broad consensus: he was an utter villain. Ugly in form and spirit. Small. Reptilian. His pale blue eyes bulged out of his face. A scar ran down his nose, the result of a botched chi…
Grow up! TV writers arent social workers This ‘queer journey through modern TV’ shows the silliness of identity politics. By Gareth Roberts any of televisions carly doubters thought the new medium would unhinge people. On the evidence of Out Now, a personal survey of “queers” on TV during the authors teens, they had a point. It is a deeply spurious and trivial book, but also rather sad Scott Bryan…
[s this the real life? Ludovic Hunter-Tilney on Freddie Mercury as revealed by his lyrics and the memories of his former fiancée reddie Mercury, who once attended a Come as Your Favourite Person fancy dress party as himself, loved throw- ing extravagant bashes for his birthdays. This year, on September 5, he would have been 80. A fan club party is planned for the anniversary, with guests encourage…
Adrift in the scroll Have smartphones killed reading? Houman Barekat looks at a polemic that claims we're becoming a post-literate society ames Marriott is worried that people aren't reading. Literature undergraduates are having trouble focusing on long texts, because constant digital distraction has created a “hostile envi- ronment” for learning. As a result, the transmission of knowledge “is bre…
Books Goodbye to old Vienna A family archive provides the basis for this vivid account of persecution, betrayal and genocide. By Luka Ivan Jukic ienna was once a city in which Jews did not have to be Jews. To be Viennese meant stepping beyond the limits of one’s identity intoa cosmopolitan world of Kultur, where race and religion could be hidden behind aveil of refinement and achievement. It was a…
emancipation Sebastian Barry's fictional life of a former slave in 19th-century America blazes with authenticity. By Max Liu reed not the same as free” is how Tennyson Bouguereau, the Black narrator of Sebas- tian Barry's 12th novel, describes his status in Amer- icaafter the abolition of slavery. From his childhood in 1840s Tennessee, through the civil war and to the end of the 19th century, Tenn…
The tragedy o David and Victoria''s fame has had a devastating effect on their rather ordinary son. By Sarah Ditum lison Boshoff has two main beats as a showbusiness reporter at the Daily Mail: the Beckhams and the Sussexes. That in itself tells you something about the exalted position held by the Beckhams in British culture. Since David Beckham and Victoria Adams (as she then was) began dating in…
