Russell Williams contemplated the seriousness of Satie; Marie Darrieussecq considered the nostalgia of a love affair; Gary Sheffield scrutinized the narrative of D-Day; Anna Girling revisited Una Marson’s editorial ventures; our contributors picked their summer books. Here are some highlights from the month:
‘A dear little genius’: Mark Twain and the making of an American literary revolution
Furniture music: The playful, melancholic genius of Erik Satie
Young and damned: Three teen-centric novels arrive at a time of national soul-searching
Beyond the longest day: How the US snatched the glory in Normandy
Already slipping away: A love triangle in a France where nothing comes easy
Our young people: Una Marson’s magazine
Darkness visible: Colm Tóibín meditates on Pat Steir’s painting ‘Night’
Facebook in the firing line: A whistleblower on the company’s relationship with morality
Summer books 2025: Twenty-four TLS writers share their summer reading