by Mark Stevens and Annalyn Swan (HarperCollins, January)
the volatile Irish-born English painter Francis Bacon (1909-1992) was thrown out of the family home in his early 20s for wearing his mother’s underwear. ‘The divine demon of British art’, as he became known, was obsessed with chronicling the ‘brutality’ of human flesh. His work tackled war, faith and his discomfort with his homosexuality. Drawing on extensive new material, Stevens and Swan argue that Bacon’s talent is more varied than has been acknowledged and that ‘the 20th century does not know itself without him’.
Helen Brown reveals a selection of the best non-fiction books to start the year. Pictured: Abbie Cornish as Fanny Brawne and Ben Whishaw as John Keats