‘At 98, I wouldn’t be so sharp without puzzles’: do crosswords and quizzes really boost your brain power?

We’re told that they give us a mental workout, but the evidence suggests it’s a bit more complicated …

Consuming arts and culture is good for health and wellbeing, research finds

Engaging with arts improves quality of life, increases productivity and creates financial ‘dividend’

In brief: Eurotrash; Overcoming: A Workbook; What Writers Read – review

An unsettling semi-autobiographical road trip; practical life advice from Michelle Obama; and essays by leading writers on the books they love

An Improbable Psychiatrist by Rebecca Lawrence review – doctor turned patient

A brave memoir from a psychiatrist with severe mental illness that describes a failing system from within

Not quite religion, not quite self-help: welcome to the Jordan Peterson age of nonsense

Unintelligible as it is, new book is part of a ‘manifesting’ trend offering the young and spiritually lost an illusion of control

‘The very thought of it repelled me’: how a skiing accident left me unable to read

After suffering a head injury, I found I was unable to read without headaches, eye strain and wild mood swings – and that my condition was far from rare

‘I was doing a reverse Samson’: comedian Lloyd Griffith on having a hair transplant

For years, Lloyd Griffith had been worried about going bald. Finally, he took the plunge and had a hair transplant. Here, he describes the unexpectedly empowering result of tackling his fears

Remote islands free the imagination – but they also stir up fear

Bestselling author Paula Hawkins set her new book on a fictional tidal island. Here she examines the power and appeal of islands

‘They remind me there’s a life after cancer’: how paintings in NHS hospitals help patients feel better

Feedback on the benefits of displaying pictures on wards, now gathered in a new book, is backed by scientific studies

Breakthrough by William Pao review – the drugs do work

From sickle cell to Covid antivirals – the stories behind medical innovations that have transformed lives