The Best of Five Books
10+ most popular Five Books articles, as voted by our community.
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Historical Fiction Set Around the World
From Africa to the Middle East to Korea and Japan, British novelist Jane Johnson recommends historical novels set around the world.
The Scottish Highlands
Five of the best books on the Scottish Highlands, as recommended by nature writer and crofter Annie Worsley
Five Books on Books
Hallucination
The best books on hallucinations, as recommended by research psychologist Ben Alderson-Day: from R.D. Laing to Oliver Sacks
The Best Science Fiction & Fantasy Books of 2023: The Hugo Award Nominees
The Hugo Awards, first presented in 1953, were originally known as the 'Science Fiction Achievement Awards.' But, in practice, their shortlists encompass speculative fiction as a whole, including…
Five Books on Future Cities
Future Cities
Urban planning is becoming ever more data-driven. Architecture expert Davina Jackson shares five books explaining the technology behind future cities.
«This was in 1995, when we had only just begun using email. The internet was being described as an ‘infobahn’.»
Five Books on History
Ireland as a Colony
Ireland was England's first colony. Here historian, Jane Ohlmeyer explains the importance of that for Ireland and other colonised countries.
Five Books on Philosophy
The Best Philosophy Books of 2021
The best philosophy books of 2021, as picked by Five Books philosophy editor, podcaster and broadcaster Nigel Warburton
«2021 is the number of excellent works of public philosophy—by which I mean, accessible books that are outward facing, that deal with real life problems, and connect with a wider readership.»
Key Philosophical Texts (in the Western Canon)
Five key works of philosophy from the western canon, important in the history of ideas and interesting to read, recommended by Nigel Warburton
«They’re all male authors, which reflects, sadly, the history of philosophy up until the 20th century, dramatically skewed towards male writers for all kinds of sociological reasons that have nothing to do with women’s ability or potential to write great philosophy.»
Five Books on Ukraine
The Best Ukrainian Literature
Since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine last year, many people around the world have become more familiar with the country's recent history, but many of us still don't know much about its…
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These are some all-time favorites with Refind users.
Ukraine and Russia
This best books on Russia-Ukraine relations, recommended by Serhii Plokhy, Professor of Ukrainian History at Harvard University
The Best Nonfiction Books of 2020 | Five Books Expert Recommendations
A personal selection of the best nonfiction books of 2020, recommended by Sophie Roell, editor of Five Books and journalist.
The Best Nonfiction Books: The 2023 Baillie Gifford Prize Shortlist
If you're looking for compelling stories that also happen to be true, the UK's Baillie Gifford Prize for Non-Fiction is a great place to start. Frederick Studemann, Literary Editor of the Financial…
The Best Crime Novels of 2023
From a police procedural set in World War II Berlin to a man pushing his in-laws off a wall in Ningbo, the variety of settings for crime fiction continue to provide a lot of opportunities for armchair…
Award-Winning Novels of 2023
A helpful round-up of the novels that won big book prizes during the 2023 literary awards season—and a few notable shortlistees.
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