Culture What Raymond Williams taught me Attending his lectures at Cambridge in the 1970s, it was clear this was a time of radical change. By David Herman
The long roots of Russian anti-Semitism The most famous pogrom of all took place at Kishinev in 1903. Its consequences were felt for years. By David Herman
The Ordinary Virtues combines powerful moral arguments with superb storytelling Michael Ignatieff's book of essays explores “moral globalisation”. By David Herman
What the poet saw: the extraordinary life of Czesław Miłosz Andrzej Franaszek's biography captures the Polish writer's complexity and darkness. By David Herman
Whatever happened to the public intellectual? Philosophy used to be a staple of television and the newspapers. Not any longer. So where did all the… By David Herman
The Jewish lawyers who reinvented justice Two new books explore the trials of Nazis – and ask how they changed our conception of justice. By David Herman
Mass murder by muddle: a new history of the Holocaust An immense posthumous work from the historian David Cesarani shows that Nazi policies were often “confused, contradictory, half-baked”. By David Herman
Thinking by post: Isaiah Berlin’s letters reveal how his ideas still hold relevance One of the great liberal thinkers of the post-war period, Affirming: Letters 1975-97 makes clear the continuing relevance of Berlin's thought. By David Herman
An Armenian Sketchbook by Vasily Grossman: Far from his beloved Moscow, reflecting on the best and worst of humanity As he connects with Armenian peasants, we are reminded that this ill, suffering man, far from home, is one… By David Herman