Pass notes No 3,098: Herman Van Rompuy
The president of the European Council is spreading a little happiness among his fellow world leaders this year
Christmas gifts 2011: which books will be under your tree?
Our critics choose the books they intend to give this Christmas, and the ones they hope to receive
The Brain is Wider Than the Sky by Bryan Appleyard – review
Are we wrong to compare our brains to our technology? By Simon Ings
Guardian First Book award shortlist: Siddhartha Mukherjee
Siddhartha Mukherjee introduces The Emperor of All Maladies
The Emperor of All Maladies by Siddartha Mukherjee – review
Siddhartha Mukherjee's masterly 'biography of cancer' makes for a great story, as well as an important history of scientific progress, writes Sarah Boseley
A new view of self-harm
The phenomenon has spread to older people over the past 10 years. Why?
Rob Buckman obituary
Oncologist, writer and broadcaster who investigated medical matters with humour and zest
What is Madness? by Darian Leader – review
Darian Leader's study of madness contains superb insights but leaves Alexander Linklater with a sense of hopelessness
What Is Madness? by Darian Leader – review
How best to treat mental disorder? Jacqueline Rose admires a new manifesto