Reviews

On my bookshelf

The Double Helix by James Watson

Ancient Worlds, Manchester Museum

Manchester Museum's archaeology collection has been magnificently redisplayed in new galleries, says Jane Weeks

Death: A Self-Portrait, Wellcome Collection, London

Rachel Souhami looks death in the face at an exhibition based around the extraordinary collection of one man

Dr Susan Weber Gallery, Victoria and Albert Museum, London

The V&A has adapted a tricky space to create impressive displays in its first dedicated furniture gallery, writes Caroline Worthington

Discover Preston, Harris Museum and Art Gallery, Preston

The Harris Museum's Discover Preston gallery has avoided the pitfalls of many local history spaces, writes Mark Suggitt

On my bookshelf

1984 by George Orwell

Books: Museum Bodies, the Politics and Practices of Visiting and Viewing

A study of the behaviour of visitors in museums and galleries poses some interesting questions, says Sharon Heal

Catalogue: The First Cut

Fiona Corridan discusses the success of a catalogue that accompanies a show about artists who use paper to create works of art

Modern British Childhood 1948-2012, Museum of Childhood, London

Sharon Heal on an exhibition that reveals how children's lives have changed over the past 60 years

Books: Shakespeare’s Restless World

Neil MacGregor's use of objects to explore the age of Shakespeare is a great read, writes Louise Gray

On my bookshelf

Written in Stone by Brian Switek

Catalogue: In Front of Nature: The European Landscapes of Thomas Fearnley

When is a catalogue not a catalogue? Andrew Davies on developing a publication about an obscure 19th-century Norwegian painter