Gideon Haigh is one of the finest cricket writers at work today. His latest book, On Warne, is not a biography of arguably the greatest leg spin bowler of all time, it is an extended meditation on the magic and charisma of Shane Warne, the making and sustaining of his legend. Read more

I enjoyed many more books this year than I can possibly list, but the following – as with all lists – is selective and subjective. Books on the list are not necessarily ones that were published in 2012; rather, they are books I enjoyed reading this year. Read more

In the November 17 print edition of Hindustan Times, I wrote a piece about Philip Roth and his decision to not write any longer. Read more

I was out of town for work over the weekend. And for the first time since I had begun to read as a small child, I travelled without any books. Well, not without any books. I went on the trip without a physical book. I took along my e-reader. Read more

Simon Kuper is one of England’s most astute football writers, and one of the leading commentators on the global game. Read more

After the disappointment of his last book, The Possibility of an Island, Michel Houellebecq – called, among other things, “France’s greatest literary export” – returns to his audacious, sardonic self in his new novel, The Map and the Territory. Read more

I am not sure how well AA Gill is known as a food writer in India, but if you have not read him, you could do worse than to make his acquaintance. Read more

“Writers have no small talk, said Auden, and so when they run into each other, there is nothing for them to talk about except money.” So begins Sean French’s introduction to this delightful anthology of writers on writers. Read more

In an essay for the Los Angeles Times, Pico Iyer sounds a rallying cry for the long, winding, clause-filled sentence that majestically unfurls itself. Read more

On the third day of the new year, I decided to put out for you links to a wealth of reading. Start clicking through. Have a lovely 2012. Read more