Simon Akam

.@simonakam reports on how an attempt to standardize Switzerland’s least known national language ignited quarrels that engulfed classrooms, newspapers, and eventually local politics. newyorkermag.visitlink.me/lZB9pa

.@simonakam reports on how an attempt to standardize Switzerland’s least known national language ignited quarrels that engulfed classrooms, newspapers, and eventually local politics. newyorkermag.visitlink.me/lZB9pa

NEW EPISODE: Journalist and non-fiction author @BenMacintyre1 talks to Simon and Rachel about writing “SAS Rogue Heroes”, the best types of source material and how Agent Zigzag taught him to no longer have a “black and white” view of WW2. alwaystakenotes.com/episodes/214-b…

NEW EPISODE: Non-fiction writer and novelist Andrew O’Hagan talks to Simon and Rachel about how he approaches challenging sources, nailing the narrative voice of the @LRB and why it’s important to be surprised by your writing. alwaystakenotes.com/episodes/212-a…

Congratulations once more to Nero Gold Prize winner @SophieElmhirst, pictured here with Bill Bryson, our chair of judges 🎉

NEW EPISODE: Author and academic Clair Wills tells us how literature gives us a kaleidoscopic view of history, her insider/outsider perspective on Irish culture, and writing about her family and Ireland's Mother and Baby Homes in "Missing Persons". buff.ly/29VNz6b

‘A big deployment does not just mean troops on the ground. It would mean resources, equipment, budgets, promotions, perhaps equally a sense of renewed mission.’ Read @simonakam on the allure of a Ukraine peacekeeping force 👇 buff.ly/vMLAiHY

The prospect of purpose and action is often an enticing one for British generals. But excitement can become a blinding force, writes @simonakam 👇 buff.ly/vMLAiHY