The best camera is the one you have with you in your pocket. The same might now be true for books. With smartphones growing increasingly large, will they push the e-reader into redundancy? And is the future of e-books shifting towards the small screen over dedicated devices and tablets?

Japan's conservative views on sexuality are well known. But things are starting to change, as LGBT issues gain more attention in the media and younger generations become more liberal. Manga series Ototo no Otto is now presenting everyday LGBT issues to a mainstream audience.

With Haruki Murakami at its centre, Japanese fiction is booming overseas. The literary journal Monkey Business: New Writing from Japan is proof that the acclaimed writer is part of a lush literary landscape. Could the nation’s novels be an overlooked piece of the ‘Cool Japan’ puzzle?

From Coasties to the Americana, the US is home to a range of teen subcultures. In the fifth of a series exploring Gen Y and Z tribes, Andrea Graham Richeson explores the Neat Geeks, mega-fans who live to collect toys and pop culture novelties. Is the big kid lifestyle set to enter the mainstream?