All Book Reviews
'Far and Away' lets readers travel the world with Andrew SolomonA lifetime of travel writing by Solomon includes a wide array of adventures, all wonderfully observed.
'Her Again' tells how Meryl Streep became a starEven as a teenager, Meryl Streep was already a standout.
'Free Verse' is the tale of a young girl saved by words and loveWhere 'Free Verse' diverges from the typical words-saved-my-life narrative is in the way it chronicles Sasha’s development as a writer.
'America's War for the Greater Middle East' surveys decades of failed policyThe note of precisely controlled anger in this book is nothing short of mesmerizing.
'The Lost Book of Moses' is a mystery of biblical proportionsDecades before the discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls, did a Jerusalem antiquities dealer really find a first draft of the Bible?
'The Summer Before the War' speaks directly to Downton Abbey fansHelen Simonson, author of 'Major Pettigrew's Last Stand,' lovingly recreates the days before World War I, an era about to be obliterated by the twin agents of technology and war.
'Till We Have Built Jerusalem' blends architecture, identity, and historyHoffman’s engaging book delves into biography, architectural and political history, and reportage in this ancient and troubled city.
'The Fires of Spring' tries to make sense of Arab SpringVeteran Middle East hand Shelly Culbertson weaves history, culture, politics, and economics into a cohesive narrative.
'Jimmy Carter in Africa' profiles a Carter most Americans never knewNorth Carolina State University history professor Nancy Mitchell rewrites the narrative on the Carter years, insisting that the president was 'a Cold Warrior from day one.'
'The Murder of Mary Russell' explores the women closest to Sherlock Holmes'The Murder of Mary Russell' is the best installment in a series that so far has been excellent.
'The Lady with the Borzoi' profiles publishing legend Blanche KnopfAlfred and Blanche Knopf did not have a happy marriage but together they founded a publishing house with a genius for zeitgeist.
'The Translation of Love' seeks meaning amid the heartache of post-war TokyoThis debut novel by third-generation Japanese Canadian writer Lynn Kutsukake presents resonating testimony to humanity’s resilience.
'The Girl from Everywhere' is rich with pirates, time travel, and cartographyThis debut novel, featuring a time-traveling sea captain and his teenage daughter, is a sinuous and delightful read.
'Wind Sprints' serves up the wit of Joseph Epstein in bite-sized piecesEpstein excels at lively, instructive, and often funny essays. In 'Wind Sprints' he proves he can also write short.
'Prisoners of Hope' fully, shrewdly chronicles LBJ’s 'Great Society'For liberals, Johnson’s domestic record ranks him among the greatest presidents in American history.
'High Dive' reimagines the IRA plot to assassinate Margaret ThatcherBased on the true story of a 1984 crime, Jonathan Lee's debut novel follows the young IRA recruit assigned to the deadly mission.
'Frederick the Great' occasionally rises to greatnessThe foremost strength of Blanning's biography is its ability to capture the quicksilver nature of the mind of the fabled Prussian monarch.
'A Doubter's Almanac' brings deep insight to a story of genius squanderedThe son of a mathematical prodigy seeks – with compassion – to understand his father and his wasted gifts.
'The Selected Letters of Laura Ingalls Wilder' shows a devotion to readersIn her letters, just as in her books and in person, Laura Ingalls Wilder is effortlessly sunny good company.
'The Little Red Chairs' poignantly asks how the displaced find homeEdna O’Brien's latest novel spins a story loosely based on Radovan Karadžić, the war criminal who eluded capture for 12 years following the Bosnian War ceasefire.
