Substacks recommended by Sarah Harkness | Advocating for the Ignorant: The Macmillans' crusade

Recommended by Sarah Harkness

A collection of the finest newsletters with fewer than 1,000 subscribers, with special love given to the under 500 subscriber stacks out there.

Katie Lee's Top Secret Project

I figured the best way to handle my feelings of utter horror about being open about this project was to write about my feelings of utter horror about being open about this project

Economical with Fiction

By E.J. Barnes

Exploring fiction of the 1920s and 30s, the crossover of economics and fiction, stories of the Great Depression, women writers from historical novelist E.J. Barnes, author of Mr Keynes' Revolution

Fascinated by the literature and people of tge 1920s and 30s? You'll enjoy this!

- Sarah Harkness

Laura Thompson’s Substack

By laura thompson

Writing on writers - Nancy, Agatha, various Elizabeths and more. And on other things, from classical ballet to classic murder trials. Whatever interests me, and I hope you also.

If like me you are fascinated by the 1920s and '30s, that strange time when women were first allowed to be independent people, who could work, vote, drive, have careers and choose whether or not to have a family, then Laura's substack will be right up your street!

- Sarah Harkness

Cambridge Ladies' Dining Society

By Ann Kennedy Smith

Exploring books, literary lives and Cambridge women’s history

Ann knows so much, and writes so well, about the women of Cambridge. Always a treat!

- Sarah Harkness

A Fan's Notes, by Nick Hornby

Music, books, movies, work, football, TV and so on.

This is such a treat: the lovely, funny Nick Hornby, author of High Fidelity and About a Boy and other brilliant novels, right here on Substack!

- Sarah Harkness

All Things Italy . . . and a little bit more

By Etta Madden

Etta Madden's reflections from research and writing about Italy, past and present

Etta has been a great help and encouargement to me ever since we both became fascinated by Nelly Erichsen, and met in Bagni di Lucca. Always interesting!

- Sarah Harkness

Wald of Words

By Zoe Grunewald

A bi-monthly politics & culture newsletter

She's a great young writer, she is immersed in British politics, she's very funny, and she's my daughter!

- Sarah Harkness

The Eye of the Beholder

By Peter Harkness

It's not just beauty which is in the Eye of the Beholder - I write about anything which catches my attention, as I amble through the worlds of art, history, politics and anywhere else I like.

From the pen of a seasoned journalist, these are well-crafted pieces, always about things that really matter to the writer

- Sarah Harkness

Beautiful Things: Letters from Abroad

By jodi {fiftybeautifulthings}

Letter writer. Travel lover. Lover of beautiful things.

This takes me back to places I have been and want to go again, or places I have planned to visit - and the photogrpahs are so beautiful

- Sarah Harkness

Samuel Adamson: The Essence of the Thing

I'm a playwright who writes about twentieth-century novels. They are usually British, Australian, lesser-known, by women, LGBT, and so on. I also ramble into other literary and theatrical areas.

There are some really excellent and interesting books reviewed in here, Barbara Pym, Elizabeth Jane Howard, Isabel Colgate. and a particular favourite of mine, RC Sherriff!

- Sarah Harkness

Animated

By Jon

Revealing the stories behind some of the most iconic cartoons.

I love this thread, I learn something different every week, and some of it is pure nostalgia. I had never really thought about the effort that goes into making a truly immersive children's programme - this did the trick!

- Sarah Harkness

Books & Victorians

By Despina Kay

History, 19th-century women, books, literature and essays

Receipt from the Bookshop

By Katie Clapham is Terrible

My weekly post - Receipt from the Bookshop - is written in real time from my award-winning independent bookshop in St. Annes-on-Sea, UK. Paid subscribers also get an additional weekly essay/book review and access to my book club.

Tales from the actual frontline...of bookselling! Very funny

- Sarah Harkness

The Dialectic

By Jules

Culture, music, society and current affairs.

Jules and I seem to share so many tastes in common - James Taylor, Dorothy Sayers, Three Men in a Boat...its an eclectic mix, and that's what you'll get with Jules!

- Sarah Harkness

A Narrative Of Their Own

By Kate Jones

Essays on the lives and literature of women, written & researched by an independent scholar of modernist women's literature.

This is a fascinating story, something I knew nothing about. Louisa Garrett Anderson, the surgeon who led the hospital, was the eldest daughter of Elizabeth Garrett Anderson and niece of Millicent Fawcett, friend of the Macmillans

- Sarah Harkness

Footnotes and Tangents

By Simon Haisell

Slow reads of great books. Book guides and a reading community to help you get more from the best stories.

Beyond Bloomsbury

By Victoria K. Walker

Historical artist and writer biographies.

The Dinner Party

By Rosie Mackean

A full four course Dinner Party once a month, how to get ahead and how to make it easy and beautiful. From chef and food stylist @rosiemackeanpastaqueen

These are such simple easy and delicious dishes, I always want to start cooking straightaway! and gorgeous photos. I promise you will be tempted!

- Sarah Harkness

The Newsletter of (Not Quite) Everything

By Jonn Elledge

assorted nerdery from a man who should probably be doing something else

The Common Reader

By Henry Oliver

Helping you make the most of your reading. "One of my favourite Substacks." Helen Lewis

Odds and Ends of History

By James O'Malley

Why that thing you retweeted is probably wrong.

The Bluestocking

By Helen Lewis

I read the internet, so you don’t have to.