The big idea: is it time to stop worrying about stress?
Our beliefs about difficult feelings may do more damage than the feelings themselves
Everything Is True by Roopa Farooki review – the first 40 days on the Covid frontline
An author turned junior doctor’s account of the chaos at work and anguish at home as Covid-19 arrived in the UK is vital, cathartic reading
Dr Julie Smith: ‘Mental health is no different to physical health. No one is immune’
The clinical psychologist has 3 million TikTok followers and now her book is a bestseller. She talks about the simple tools that really help
What I Wish People Knew About Dementia by Wendy Mitchell review – a book of hope
Wendy Mitchell’s good-humoured practical guide to living with dementia has a deeper, more existential message for all of us: connect, forgive, accept and live
Sweat by Bill Hayes review – a history of the physical that gets personal
An all-encompassing book about bodies and exercise through the ages that leaves you hungry for more
Smile: The Story of a Face by Sarah Ruhl review – a bruising battle with Bell’s palsy
The playwright’s fascinating book shows how a decade-long struggle with the condition profoundly affected her sense of self
Recovery: The Lost Art of Convalescence by Dr Gavin Francis review – the art of getting better
This helpful history and guide reveals that the sometimes difficult healing process is part of what makes us human
Smile by Sarah Ruhl review – what if you could no longer look happy?
Robbed of her smile by Bell’s palsy, the playwright is forced to confront difficult truths in this moving and subtle memoir
The big idea: should we eat like our ancestors?
Are eating plans like the paleo diet really healthier - or more ethical - than the way we eat now?
Top 10 books about self-improvement
In time for new year resolutions, a cultural historian chooses some of the best guides to making a better life, dating back to some of our earliest literature