The pet I’ll never forget: Mishka, the surly but beloved raccoon

She hated water, attacked our Christmas tree, destroyed our wallpaper – but everyone who met her was won over

Literary Theory

Check out more from this issue and find your next story to read.

Mum loved warm weather, I loved winter, and the space where we met was our veranda

Since my mum died, I've taken solace in recalling the times we could sit together and be content as mother and daughter

Tim Dowling: I’ve already used up all my optimism for the year. What now?

The misery of the English winter has made me homesick for extreme US weather. I hate to miss a hurricane

What links Derek Malcolm, Roger Ebert and Philip French? The Saturday quiz

From arctos and americanus to North America’s ‘other’ US, test your knowledge with the Saturday quiz

The hill I will die on: Britons love saying thank you – I think we should ban the phrase

Really, what is the point of this endless conversational back and forth? Step out of the loop, and change your life