Fredrik Backman

From the publisher: My Grandmother Asked Me to Tell You She’s Sorry is told with the same comic accuracy and beating heart as Fredrik Backman’s bestselling debut novel, A Man Called Ove. It is a story about life and death and one of the most important human rights: the right to be different.

“It’s about an elementary school aged girl whose best friend is her grandmother. After her grandmother dies, the girl discovers a series of letters left for her by her grandmother - instructing her to apologize to various people. Along the way, the girl learns about her grandmother’s life and truth.”

Leza Bieber – Partner, Global M&A and Capital – New York, United States

Alain Peyrefitte

From the publisher: Between 1959 and 1969, Alain Peyrefitte had some 300 face-to-face meetings with General de Gaulle. Throughout this period, he took notes on a day-to-day basis, with the General's agreement. These notes are essentially the words spoken by the General, scrupulously collected, with the intention of saving them from oblivion, respecting not only their content, but also the style and tone of the dialogues. Peyrefitte introduces us into the intimacy of the General whom we listen to thinking aloud.

“It is a great piece of historical non-fiction, especially for the history and politics afficionado that I am.  Reading this on the balcony of my Tokyo apartment, under sunny skies and with a glass of wine is a great use of free time.”

Laurent Bougard – Partner, Antitrust, Competition, and Trade – Tokyo, Japan

Yann Martel

From the publisher: The Psoad is an Ancient Greek epic in free verse that follows a goatherd’s son, Psoas of Midea, who leaves his wife and family to fight with the Greeks at Troy. This commoner’s story was lost to time – until Harlow Donne, a Canadian academic who has left his own wife and daughter behind to study at Oxford, discovers its relics nearly thirty centuries later.

“You may remember Life of Pi, also by Yann Martel. Sorry, no tigers in this book. Instead, it is a retelling of the Trojan War story – not from the perspective of a great hero, but rather, pieced together from a common soldier: Psoas, The Son of Nobody. If you’ve enjoyed other recent retellings of the Greek classics, you may like this one. For me, best book of 2026 so far.”

Boris Feldman – Partner, Dispute Resolution – Silicon Valley, United States

Lionel Barber

From the publisher: From film stars to politicians, tycoons to writers, dissidents to lifestyle gurus, Lunch with the FT gathers fifty-two fascinating interviews conducted at the unforgiving proximity of a restaurant table. The list of people who have participated in this popular feature since 1994 reads like an international Who’s Who of our times.

“I typically read a lot of fiction but I love dipping into this book and getting a quick insight into such a variety of people.”

Claire Harrop – Partner, Global M&A and Capital – London, United Kingdom

Karen Christel Krahulik

From the publisher: Through personal stories and historical accounts, Provincetown reveals the fascinating features that have made Provincetown such a textured and colorful destination: its fame as the landfall of the Mayflower Pilgrims, charm as an eccentric artists’ colony, and allure as a Dionysian playground. It also hints at one of Provincetown’s most dramatic economic changes: its turn from fishing village to resort town.

“After vacationing in Ptown for a number of years, I wanted to know more about “Lands End” on the tip of Cape Cod. It’s the first place the pilgrims landed before moving on to Plymouth. For history lovers, this is a great read.”

Paul Humphreys – New York Office Managing Partner and Partner, Global M&A and Capital – New York, United States

George Saunders

From the publisher: For over twenty years, George Saunders has been teaching a class on the Russian short story to his MFA students at Syracuse University. In A Swim in a Pond in the Rain, he shares a version of that class with us, offering some of what he and his students have discovered together over the years. Paired with iconic short stories by Chekhov, Turgenev, Tolstoy, and Gogol, the seven essays in this book are intended for anyone interested in how fiction works and why it’s more relevant than ever in these turbulent times.

“If reading literature could change your life, this book will show you how that could happen. If you feel like it is time to relearn how to read, bringing you back to when you first fell in love with reading as a way to sense more than what you were expecting, then patiently read this book.”

Ethan Klingsberg – Partner, Global M&A and Capital – New York, United States

Patricia Highsmith

From the publisher: Newly arrived in the heady world of Manhattan, Ripley meets a wealthy industrialist who hires him to bring his playboy son, Dickie Greenleaf, back from gallivanting in Italy. Soon Ripley’s fascination with Dickie’s debonair lifestyle turns obsessive as he finds himself enraged by Dickie’s ambivalent affections for Marge, a charming American dilettante, and Ripley begins a deadly game.

“Nothing about Tom Ripley is respectable, honorable, or even likeable. And yet, I really wanted him to succeed! I know they made this into a movie in the 90s, but this older book is nonetheless an enjoyable and worthy investment of free time.”

Kristen Riemenschneider – Partner, Global M&A and Capital – Washington, DC, US

Lily King

From the publisher: The narrator was in her senior year of college when star students Sam and Yash swept her into an intoxicating world of academic fervour, rapid-fire banter and raucous card games – along with unpredictable passions and the intimations of first love. Decades later, she is a successful writer, living a comfortable life with her husband and children, when a surprise visit brings the past crashing into the present, forcing her to confront the decisions and deceptions of her youth.

“This book took me back to my senior year at William & Mary when I spent my days with the English majors in the Writing Resources Center where I worked. The characters in this book reminded me of that tribe and those days of reading, writing, and thinking deep thoughts about books. This one was so good that I picked up the author’s earlier related title, Writers & Lovers, and finished it the same week. 10 out of 10. Highly recommend.”

Meghan Rissmiller – Partner, Antitrust, Competition, and Trade - Washington, DC, US

David McCullough

From the publisher: The National Book Award–winning epic chronicle of the creation of the Panama Canal, a first-rate drama of the bold and brilliant engineering feat that transformed global trade routes and shaped modern American history, as told by Pulitzer Prize–winning author and master historian David McCullough.

“David McCullough is one of my favorite biographers. In light of the canal’s recent reappearance in the news as a geopolitical hotspot between the United States and China, this book feels more timely than ever.”

Yuxin Shen – Partner, Global M&A and Capital – Beijing, China

Ryszard Kapuscinski

From the publisher: In Shah of Shahs, Kapuscinski brings a mythographer’s perspective and a novelist’s virtuosity to bear on the overthrow of the last Shah of Iran... From his vantage point at the break-up of the old regime, Kapuscinski gives us a compelling history of conspiracy, repression, fanatacism, and revolution.

“Interesting to see how history repeats itself.”

Farid Sigari-Majd – Partner, Global M&A and Capital – Vienna, Austria

Vikram Seth

From the publisher: A sweeping panoramic portrait of a complex, multiethnic society in flux, Vikram Seth’s A Suitable Boy tells the story of ordinary people caught up in a web of love, ambition, humor, sadness, prejudice, reconciliation, the most delicate social etiquette, and the most appalling violence.

“At its heart, this is a love story but set against the fascinating political and cultural backdrop of 1950s India. In my opinion, this book is best read on a sun-lounger with a cold drink in hand.”

Victoria Sigeti – UK Managing Partner and Partner, Global M&A and Capital - London, UK

Hannah Rothschild

From the publisher: Annie McDee lives in a shabby London flat, works as a chef, and is struggling to get by. Reeling from a sudden breakup, she’s taken on an unsuitable new lover and finds herself rummaging through a secondhand shop to buy him a birthday gift. A dusty, anonymous old painting catches her eye. After spending her meager savings on the artwork, Annie prepares an exquisite birthday dinner for two—only to be stood up.

“This book came out over 10 years ago. I don’t remember how or when it got into my pile of books but I can’t think of a better read on the plane, in the park, by the pool or on the beach. A down-on-her luck woman buys a painting from a London junk store, and that kicks off a story about whether this painting is or is not a lost masterpiece.  There are so many odd ball characters that you meet as you go deep into the international art scene."

Damien Zoubek – US Regional Managing Partner and Partner, Global M&A and Capital – New York, US

Ian Hewitt – Retired Freshfields Partner, Global M&A and Capital (Former Chairman, All England Lawn Tennis & Croquet Club)

London is, joyfully, a sporting capital of the world. London’s Sporting Heroes is a unique guide to exploring the city’s deep sporting heritage through the fascinating range of plaques, statues and murals dotted around the city that celebrate landmark events, legends and other individuals (many unexpected) who have starred in or shaped sport over the ages.  Delightfully illustrated, the book includes much archive photography and will appeal to the sports fan who enjoys dipping into past memories and discovering often hidden sporting secrets.
 
“I much enjoyed putting the book together and think the publishers have done a great job in its presentation. As a former Freshfields’ partner, I have relished the opportunity later in life to indulge in my love of sport…and books.” 

All author’s royalties will be donated to charity.

Catherine Katz – Senior Associate, Dispute Resolution – Washington, DC, US

We are living in an era defined by rapid technological change that offers both remarkable benefits for humanity, as well as enormous risks, from AI, to quantum computing, to drones. At the same time, we are navigating a period of significant change and uncertainty around the world. Established assumptions about global leadership, national interests, the flow of information, and the institutions that have shaped public life for decades are being tested and reexamined. These two prevailing currents fundamentally shaping our times are not dissimilar to those in the late 1930s, which came head-to-head as the Hindenburg met its tragic end in 1937. However, amidst abstract questions about technology, regulation, institutions, and governance, we can't forget the humanity at stake, the men and women just like you and me whose lives, loves, hopes, and dreams will rise and fall as we rush headlong into the consequences of decisions we make today. Shadow Before the Flame is a work of history, but most importantly, it is a story about the humanity that lies inside every one of us.