Lauren Oyler’s defence mechanisms
Can the master of the hatchet-job place herself beyond criticism?
By
Lola Seaton
Lola Seaton is an associate editor at New Left Review and a contributing writer at the New Statesman.
Latest articles
All Articles
Zadie Smith: the reluctant historical novelist
The author’s first period piece, The Fraud, is curiously absent of her usual strengths. Was her heart really in…
By
Making a murderer
Mark O’Connell’s portrait of a notorious Irish killer becomes a study of the desire to turn reality into fiction.
By
Who is criticism for?
Seth Rogen’s protest against bad reviews misunderstands the role of the critic in the fight against mediocrity.
By
Adam Gopnik’s pursuit of the perfect sentence
The New Yorker journalist’s latest book, The Real Work, sheds light on a career spent obsessively attempting to master…
By
The Light We Carry: Michelle Obama’s self-help slogans
In converting her life story into self-empowering bromides, the former first lady has exposed the limits of her politics.
By
The lessons of Corbynism
In their new books, Andrew Murray and James Schneider ask what the left can learn from its time in…
By
Reviewed in short: New books from Geoff Mulgan, CJ Hauser, Matt Rowland Hill and Hans Fallada
Another World Is Possible by Mulgan, The Crane Wife by Hauser, Original Sins by Rowland Hill and Lilly and…
By
Why I haven’t been watching the 2022 Women’s Euros
I was a devoted footballer as a child, often the only girl on the team. So why can’t I…
By