Our top book picks this week: Egypt since the fall of Mubarak and more

The Widow

Fiona Barton,

Bantam Press, January 14

A loving person or cold blooded killer? The one person who would know is the woman gripping his arm in the courtroom. Jean Taylor has lived a blissful life until the man she loves is charged with a terrible crime. Now it’s time to tell her story. Thriller of the Gone Girl type.

The Trouble with Goats and Sheep

Joanna Cannon,

The Borough Press, January 28

After a woman goes missing, gossip among the community is rife. Two young friends decide to take matters into their own hands and investigate the disappearance, but the amateur sleuths find out much more than they bargained for. Black comedy set in the 1970s.

In a Land of Paper Gods

Rebecca Mackenzie, Tinder Press, January 28

It’s China, 1941. Etta attends school while her parents try to bring their brand of religion to remote provinces. But Etta learns she has her own inner calling and, together with her classmates, finds the lines between reality and make-believe are more than blurred.

The Egyptians: A Radical Story

Jack Shenker,

Allen Lane, January 28

This look at the events that toppled Hosni Mubarak also examines many other fault lines in Egypt. These include the fight against gender discrimination, cultural responses to oppression and a struggle against economic exclusion.

Masterpieces of Soviet Painting and Sculpture

Renina Lavery and Ivan Lindsay,

Unicorn Press, January 5

Richly illustrated survey of 1920 to 1991. It looks at styles such as Socialist Realism and Severe Style, and also how in addition to large public monuments, sculptors created more personal works in their own studios.

El Sistema: Orchestrating Venezuela’s Youth

Geoffrey Baker,

Omnibus Press, January 11

El Sistema (the system) is a music programme for disadvantaged children, best represented by the the Simón Bolívar Youth Orchestra. But this book argues it is less about promoting civic values than previously thought.