New data reveals how many holidaymakers headed off for a summer break lugging an extra 1.1kg of reading.

When the two library assistants reflect on the past year they both note an increase in the lending of erotic paperbacks.

They were the men who played for their country before dying for it.

For generations, they were the books that defined childhood .But Asterix cartoons and the works of Roald Dahl and even J.K. Rowling appear to have fallen out of favour with younger readers.

We take a look back at the top rating books stories over the year and share links in case you missed it.

Don Brash has just finished writing a book evaluating his successes and failures.

Sports books are a great Christmas buy. Andrew Alderson and Dylan Cleaver, two great devourers of the genre, offer 11 good reads (and one not so good) for this year.

Auckland Libraries has added thousands of new, free electronic texts to its collection.

A novel approach to reading has kids blogging and commenting online about what should happen next in books - and authors follow the instructions.

British writer Tom Cox has attracted an avid following through his blogs and books about living in the Norfolk countryside with a gang of cats. He talks to Linda Herrick

Morrissey has left fans in the US baffled after his best-selling memoir was released Stateside minus the details of his relationship with a male photographer.

Albert Uderzo, co-creator of the Gallic comic book hero Asterix, is suing his daughter and son-in-law for "psychological violence" to stop them "getting their hands" on his legacy.

An ecstatic bisexual orgy, which climaxes against a backdrop of imminent nuclear annihilation, has secured the prized Bad Sex in Fiction award for Manil Suri and his novel, The City of Devi.

This book is a view through the lens of Austrian-born photographer Arno Gasteiger, taking the journey east to west along the 45th parallel.

As the centenary of the crossword approaches, Gyles Brandreth and his daughter Saethryd explain why the word puzzle is still so popular.

Without the culture and conflicts of the 2000s, The Hunger Games might never have come into being, writes Tim Walker.

Former TV host Helena McAlpine and boyfriend Chris Barton share their extraordinary love story with Suzanne McFadden.