What distinguishes ‘us’ from ‘them’, we learnt in the bomb-shelter era, is ‘the rule of law’. We’ve got it; they don’t. Watching foundations and universities over a…
Every evening before her sons’ bedtime, my mother read to us. She also read to us while nursing my youngest brother of the moment. Even after I was…
But for its stellar cast and director, ‘Night Train to Munich’ (1940) would be just another ill-plotted British flag-waver with a couple of very good bits. The…
A new favorite writer offers a respite from our steamy weather: Now it is snowing, one of the terrific storms that first mute and then obliterate the…
For 40 years, I’ve seen Enemies of Promise cited, quoted and (often, but not always) admired. I have finally bought a copy. Cyril Connolly wrote this memoir of growing…
Some presidents produce wonderful anecdotes. For a supposedly dour, laconic man, Calvin Coolidge left us with some very funny stories and even funnier pictures — ever see the one…