As the nights get darker, curing up with a good book seems even more attractive. Infinitely more so when November is proving to be such a bumper month for big names who regularly appear on best seller lists. This is particularly true in the world of non-fiction. Margaret Atwood is back with a new memoir (of sorts), with Patti Smith, Sir Gareth Southgate, Sir Anthony Hopkins, and Sir Paul McCartney (alongside the band Wings) also looking into their past for literary inspiration.
In fiction, Sir Salman Rushdie’s new book of five interlinked stories is sure to be a favourite int he run up to Christmas, and John Irving is returning to St Cloud’s orphanage, the setting of his 1985 novel The Cider House Rules. Add to that Derek Owusu, Karl Ove Knausgaard and Naomi Alderman, you can bet there is something for you to enjoy this November…
Book of Lives by Margaret Atwood
A 600-page sweeping autobiography, capturing Atwood’s childhood, rise to literary fame and political activism with dry wit and clear-eyed candour. Expansive, with the same microscopic detail found in her fiction.
Chatto & Windus, £30
The Eleventh Hour by Salman Rushdie
Spanning India, England and America, five interlinked stories explore loss, legacy and the approach of death. From quarrelsome elders to undead professors, it’s a meditation on mortality and meaning.
Jonathan Cape, £18.99
We Did OK, Kid by Anthony Hopkins
In this surprisingly elegant account of addiction, fame and craft, the 87-year-old actor tells his life story – which began with a tough childhood in South Wales and has taken him to places he never imagined.
Simon & Schuster, £25
The School of Night by Karl Ove Knausgaard
When a photography student meets an older artist in 1980s London, he’s pulled into an intense orbit where art justifies everything – until the cost becomes too great. A provocative novel about ambition and morality.
Harvill, £25
Dear England by Gareth Southgate
Part-memoir, part-leadership manual, Southgate’s account of managing England offers insight into decision-making under pressure, public responsibility and building a team with decency at its core.
Century, £25
Don’t Burn Anyone at the Stake Today by Naomi Alderman
The award-winning author of The Power turns to non-fiction in this deep dive into the chaos of the modern information age, comparing it to crises
of the past. A call to examine how we think.
Fig Tree, £16.99
Wings by Paul McCartney
Built from hours of interviews, this immersive account of McCartney’s post-Beatles band can also be read as a study in reinvention and resilience. Complete with never-before-seen photography.
Allen Lane, £35
In Love with Love by Ella Risbridger
Love stories matter, and they always have. So says Risbridger in this lively defence of romantic fiction, which tackles snobbery head-on and celebrates everything from Austen to fanfic and the late, great Jilly Cooper.
Sceptre, £16.99
One Aladdin Two Lamps by Jeanette Winterson
Weaving together fiction, memoir and philosophy, the author of Oranges are Not the Only Fruit uses the folk tales of One Thousand and One Nights to explore the importance of storytelling.
Jonathan Cape, £18.99
Borderline Fiction by Derek Owusu
Told through dual narratives, this novel offers a raw, poetic insight into the mind of a young black man in Britain, 25-year-old Marcus, as he navigates trauma, love, masculinity and identity.
Canongate, £18.99
Muslim Europe by Tharik Hussain
A counter-history that places Islam at the heart of European culture, this urgent corrective draws on everything from ancient mosques to overlooked thinkers to chart the importance of Muslims to Europe’s past.
Viking, £25
Queen Esther by John Irving
A return to St Cloud’s orphanage follows Esther, a Jewish girl navigating 20th-century America. A story about survival, identity and family, with the same sweep that made The Cider House Rules such a defining novel.
Scribner, £22
Bread of Angels by Patti Smith
In her most personal memoir yet, Smith paints a vivid picture of post-war childhood, creative awakening and loves and losses. Her voice is both tender and incantatory, with the ease of a seasoned storyteller.
Bloomsbury, £25
The Silver Book by Olivia Laing
Set on surreal Italian film sets, this noir-tinged novel explores queer desire, creativity and dangerous secrets. Loosely based on real events, it captures the glamour and moral fog of the 1970s art world.
Hamish Hamilton, £20
