All Book Reviews
'The War Before the War' chronicles the role fugitive slaves played in widening gap between North and SouthAndrew Delbanco’s latest book is richly detailed, thought-provoking, and compelling.
'The Smithsonian History of Space Exploration' is an ideal gift bookThis stunningly illustrated history of space exploration will fill readers with a sense of wonder and possibility.
3 wonderful middle-grade novels for fallIntriguing protagonists, lively cultural mixes, and sensitive writing make these books winners.
'All You Can Ever Know' is a sensitive examination of transracial adoptionNicole Chung’s personal odyssey toward self-understanding and acceptance will speak to all readers with questions about their personal history.
'Unsheltered' challenges readers with interwoven tales from two different erasThe power of Barbara Kingsolver’s writing illuminates the current cultural climate by finding parallels with the past in this novel divided between the 21st and 19th centuries.
In 'Dominion,' nineteenth-century England is exciting place to be – but not pleasantPeter Ackroyd's book is a clear-eyed assessment of the later stages of the British Empire.
'American Prison' presents a highly disturbing insider's view of a private prisonAward-winning reporter Shane Bauer worked as a corrections officer at a prison run by private company CoreCivic. The result is a harrowing but very important book.
'Anne Frank's Diary' is a profoundly moving graphic presentation of the classicA project that could have been a shocking failure is instead a genuine work of art.
'Pride' thrusts Jane Austen into 21-century BushwickIbi Zoboi’s rendition of 'Pride and Prejudice' is crackling and full of life, fit for recommendation to both to fellow Janeites and YA readers at large.
'Gandhi: The Years That Changed the World' establishes how the fighter for Indian independence's reputation was earnedIn the pages of this book, the reader gets a sense of how a sense of intense moral conviction combined with a genuine sense of intellectual curiosity magnified each other inside of Gandhi’s mind.
'On Desperate Ground' chronicles the amazing voyage of the US Marines during the Korean WarHampton Sides' book is a towering tale of official ineptitude and battlefield fortitude that plays out against the backdrop of American's most forgotten modern war.
'Fryderyk Chopin' already qualifies as one of the best biographies of the yearEnglish-Canadian musicologist and university professor Alan Walker spent 10 years doing extensive research into vast archives of primary source material on Chopin, allowing him to produce this MRI-thorough biography.
'In the Hurricane's Eye' puts Revolutionary War conflict the Battle of the Chesapeake back in its deserved spotlight'Hurricane' is the newest book from bestselling author of 'In the Heart of the Sea' and 'Valiant Ambition' Nathaniel Philbrick.
'The Big Fella' portrays Babe Ruth as the first modern sports celebrityBiographer Jane Leavy shows Ruth's greatness as player to be of such a magnitude that it's still hard to grasp.
'If You Ask Me' is a delightful compendium of the thoughts of Eleanor RooseveltEditor Mary Jo Binker works with a wealth of material from the magazine column Roosevelt wrote from 1941 to 1962.
'Killing Commendatore' is the latest evasive, magical, utterly unique novel by MurakamiHaruki Murakami weaves an intriguing, time-challenging story around the life of a portrait painter who is changed forever by a work of art.
'Ninth Street Women' focuses on forgotten stars of Abstract ExpressionismIn this wonderful joint biography, Mary Gabriel convincingly demonstrates that women artists were a key part of Abstract Expressionism.
'Can Democracy Work?' considers the perils and pitfalls of the institution across timeAuthor and academic James Miller examines the idea of democracy in five distinct moments throughout human history, and chronicles how vastly different each iteration has been.
'Reagan' offers a balanced, comprehensive view of Reagan and his legacyBob Spitz’s familiarity with celebrity culture comes in handy when telling the story of Reagan.
'Young Benjamin Franklin' reintroduces an icon, seeing him as neither saint nor sageHistorian Nick Bunker has done a large amount of original research, tracing Franklin more minutely than any previous general biographer.
