Weekend reading: Two podcasts on moderation, two books on Russia absolutely worth reading, lots on China and a bumper selection of factoids

Still struggling to find anything which makes me smile (!?!) but this week I do share some excellent new books and two podcasts.

Factoids

·         The myth of Empty Homes. An analysis by the LSE found no evidence of homes being left deliberately empty. And as data man Tom Forth shows, England has the lowest rate of empty homes in the OECD, and Greater London has about one-tenth the level of Paris, with just 0.7% of properties being empty compared to 6.5%. Ed West.

·         UK is…