It's 1979. The Soviet Union invades Afghanistan, China introduces its one-child policy, Margaret Thatcher is elected as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, and an old Cambridge student magazine is relaunched. This special edition marks Granta's 40th birthday by bringing together some of its best writing from the past forty years. Featuring: Angela Carter, Kazuo Ishiguro, Todd Mcewen, Bruce Chatwin, James Fenton, Primo Levi, Amitav Ghosh, Raymond Carver, Philip Roth, John Gregory Dunne, Ryszard Kapuściński, Joy Williams, Don Delillo, John Berger, Gabriel García Márquez, Bill Buford, Lindsey Hilsum, Lorrie Moore, Hilary Mantel, Ian Jack, Edward W. Said, Diana Athill, Edmund White, Ved Mehta, Alexandra Fuller, Binyavanga Wainaina, Mary Gaitskill, Lydia Davis, Jeanette Winterson, Herta Müller