Life being put on hold was just the spur this writer needed to fulfil her youthful ambition

Charlotte Northedge wrote a new novel in lockdown. She considers others who have realised the dreams of their youth

Four Thousand Weeks by Oliver Burkeman review – a brief treatise on time

A sage and sane theory of ‘time unmanagement’ exhorts us to stop chasing the seconds and embrace the joy of missing out

Dear Diary: how keeping a journal can bring you daily peace

Writing a diary is a great way to offload – and, if memory fails, it’s a wonderful window on the past

Can ‘smart thinking’ books really give you the edge?

Trust your gut, boost your memory, de-bias your decision making… can we train our brains to perform better?

Inflamed by Rupa Marya and Raj Patel review – modern medicine’s racial divide

The colonial legacy of healthcare is laid bare in an urgent study of how medicine has progressed – and who has been left behind

Putting down my phone and picking up a book has saved my sleep

I dreaded doing without my device’s dopamine dripfeed, but insomnia was out of control. Now I’m not only sleeping but reading with real pleasure

And relax! From gong baths to mindful drinking: how to really unwind on a holiday at home

With the pandemic scrambling travel plans, many of us are staying put this summer. But can your own house ever be as restful a vacation setting as flopping on a sunlounger? One writer spends a week finding out

I used to think life was too short to read the same book twice. Not any more

I’m planning to reread the books I once loved, hoping they’ll reinvigorate me at a time when all our batteries are flashing low

Through the Looking Glasses by Travis Elborough review – the spectacular life of spectacles

From Henry VIII on his charger to the sex symbol Michael Caine, this close-up history of glasses illuminates their special kind of cool

Spike by Jeremy Farrar and Anjana Ahuja; and Vaxxers by Sarah Gilbert and Catherine Green – review

Two urgent and fascinating accounts from the frontlines show how scientists succeeded, and failed, at saving us from Covid-19