Premium summer big reads: The woman who exposed Cambridge Analytica

Brittany Kaiser, former employee of Cambridge Analytica. Photo / Getty Images

The New Zealand Herald is bringing back some of the best stories of 2019 from our premium international syndicators, including The New York Times, Financial Times, The Times of London and Harvard Business Review.

This afternoon we look at the confessions of a whistleblower, Trump's $1 billion in business losses, Sophie Turner steps out of Sansa's shadow, the bridges of Paris and early risers.

Confessions of a whistleblower

Brittany Kaiser is the politics intern who became a pivotal player at Cambridge Analytica, the notorious company accused of handling stolen Facebook data to influence the Trump election and Brexit referendum. The star of Netflix's documentary The Great Hack has now written a book about her decision to go public. Can she be trusted?

Hugo Rifkind of The Times meets Kaiser to find out for himself.

Kaiser at Burning Man in a scene from The Great Hack. Photo / Supplied

Decade in the red: Trump tax figures show over $1 billion in business losses

Newly obtained tax information reveals that from 1985 to 1994, Donald J. Trump's businesses were in far bleaker condition than was previously known.

Russ Buettner and Susanne Craig from The New York Times investigate.

Donald J. Trump in 1986, during a tumultuous period of his career marked by acquisition and collapse. Photo / Getty Images

Who is Sophie Turner without Sansa Stark?

After years of tragedy, upheaval and cataclysm, Winterfell is now secure and on the way to recovery in the capable hands of the new Queen in the North, Sansa Stark.

Game of Thrones was the defining pop-culture franchise of the decade, so who is Sophie Turner now without Sansa Stark?

We're about to find out, writes Jeremy Egner for The New York Times.

Sophie Turner is finding herself now Sansa Stark is no more. Photo / Valerie Chiang, The New York Times

Paris's bridges and why I'll never get over them

Spanning the Seine, of steel, stone and wood, the city's many bridges offer lessons in history, architecture — and romance.

Elaine Sciolino of The New York Times study's Paris through its history.

The pont of it all: Paris is inseperable from the Seine and the 37 crossing points. Photo / Gautier Salles

Waking up at 4am every day is the key to success. Or to getting a cold

Tim Cook, the CEO of Apple, rises a little before 4am every day. President Donald Trump wrote in his 2004 book that he only needs four hours of sleep a night. David Cush, the former Virgin America CEO, has said that he wakes up at 4:15.

Lots of prominent people like to highlight how early they rise, but The New York Times looks at whether or not it's really something to brag about.

There's no data that shows successful people get less sleep. Photo / 123RF