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Jilly Cooper, author of Rivals and Riders, dies aged 88

The author of 18 ‘bonkbuster’ novels including Riders, Rivals and Bella has died following a fall

Jilly Cooper has died at the age of 88, her agent has confirmed.

The author, whose 18 novels include Riders and Rivals, “defined culture, writing and conversation since she was first published over 50 years ago,” said her agent Felicity Blunt. “You wouldn’t expect books categorised as bonkbusters to have so emphatically stood the test of time but Jilly wrote with acuity and insight about all things – class, sex, marriage, rivalry, grief and fertility.”

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Sarah Hall and Charlie Porter among writers on ‘genre-defying’ Goldsmiths prize shortlist

The £10,000 award, whose judges include Mark Haddon and Megan Nolan, recognises ‘mould-breaking’ fiction

Sarah Hall, Charlie Porter and Yrsa Daley-Ward are among the writers shortlisted for this year’s Goldsmiths prize.

The £10,000 award recognises fiction that “breaks the mould or extends the possibilities of the novel form”.

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‘A tool in the fight against Amazon’: independent bookshops to begin selling ebooks

A new platform will be an alternative to Kindle, and bookshops will earn 100% of the profit from sales

The online store Bookshop.org is launching a platform through which independent bookshops in the UK will be able to sell ebooks as an alternative to Amazon’s Kindle offering.

Independent bookshops will earn 100% of the profit from sales, and ebooks will be priced the same as they are on Amazon.

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Tony Harrison, poet and dramatist, dies aged 88

Known for his outspoken politics, the author was acclaimed for work in theatre, opera, film and TV but wanted to be thought of as a poet above all

Tony Harrison, the award-winning poet and dramatist whose writings fuelled national conversations about class, obscenity and politics, has died at the age of 88, his publisher has confirmed.

Harrison, a major voice in British poetry since he published his first collection in 1964, wrote front-page dispatches for the Guardian from the Bosnian war, and scandalised the nation with his 1985 poem V. Written after football hooligans desecrated his parents’ gravestones, the expletive-laden work was described as a “torrent of filth” by the Daily Mail when it was broadcast on Channel 4, prompting an early-day motion in the Commons. It is now studied in schools.

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Sally Rooney unable to collect award over Palestine Action arrest threat

The Normal People author can no longer safely enter the UK without potentially facing arrest, according to a statement read out by her publisher at the prize ceremony

Irish author Sally Rooney could not travel to collect a literary prize this week over concerns that she may be arrested if she enters the UK, given her support of banned group Palestine Action.

Rooney won the Sky Arts award for literature for her fourth novel, Intermezzo. At a ceremony on Tuesday, audiences were told that Rooney “couldn’t be here”, before her editor, Faber publisher Alex Bowler, collected the award on her behalf.

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Allan Ahlberg, beloved children’s author, dies aged 87

Working first with his wife Jane, and later with illustrators including Raymond Briggs and Bruce Ingman, he wrote more than 150 books

Author Allan Ahlberg, who delighted generations of children with colourful characters and nimble rhymes, has died aged 87.

Working with his wife Janet, an award-winning illustrator, Ahlberg produced a host of bestselling nursery classics including Burglar Bill, Peepo!, and Each Peach Pear Plum. After Janet’s death in 1994, he worked with illustrators such as Raymond Briggs and Bruce Ingman, with his career coming full circle in a series of collaborations with his daughter Jessica including Half a Pig and a pop-up set of anarchic variations on the tale of Goldilocks.

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Sarah Jessica Parker in possible conflict of interest over Booker longlisted author

Actor and book prize judge’s production company in process of developing novel by Claire Adam

An apparent conflict of interest has emerged over the Sex and the City star Sarah Jessica Parker’s judging of this year’s Booker prize.

A production company run by the actor is reportedly in the process of developing a book written by Claire Adam, whose second novel, Love Forms, appears on this year’s longlist, announced on Tuesday.

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‘Intense’ novel about robot abused by her boyfriend/owner wins Arthur C Clarke science fiction award

Annie Bot by Sierra Greer wins £2,025 for ‘compelling tale that, like all good stories about robots, is ultimately about the human condition’

A novel told from the perspective of a robot girlfriend has been named winner of the Arthur C Clarke award for science fiction.

Annie Bot by Sierra Greer is “a tightly focused first-person account of a robot designed to be the perfect companion, who struggles to become free,” said chair of judges, the academic Andrew M Butler. The speculative novel follows Annie, the narrator, programmed to cater to the needs of her boyfriend/owner Doug, who treats her in a way that would be abusive if she were human.

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