All Book Reviews
'Finale,' set in the Reagan years, confirms Thomas Mallon as a master of political theaterThomas Mallon fictionalizes the life of Averell Harriman and other 20th-century politicos in this novel of the late-Reagan era.
'The Shepherd's Crown' offers the joy of one final Terry Pratchett novelWarning to all Pratchett fans: You may not get past the dedication page without tears.
‘Beirut, Beirut’ follows one man’s search for ideals in a war-torn countrySonallah Ibrahim’s historical fiction novel ties his personal experiences with news stories to a transitional period in Lebanese history.
'Crooked Heart' is the most purely charming read of the seasonMeet odd-duck orphan Noel Bostock: He’s not cute or plucky, doesn’t sing a note, and was raised by a suffragette with an outsize vocabulary.
'Purity' shows a new Jonathan Franzen: funnier, looser, and more caring'Purity,' Franzen's fifth novel, is the best book the prodigiously talented novelist has written.
'Founding Grammars' traces the battles Americans have fought over languageAn impassioned history of primary US prose offers 'entertaining historical perspective on these linguistic clashes.'
'Kissinger's Shadow' accuses the controversial statesman of militarizing US foreign policyAuthor and historian Greg Grandin makes bold but compelling accusations, blaming Kissinger for setting aggressive precedents that support perpetual war.
'A River Runs Again' tells five tales of India at the crossroadsJournalist Meera Subramanian beautifully crafts a filigree of cautionary and celebratory stories about India future and past, voiced with dignified passion.
'The Last Love Song' offers a sympathetic, insightful look at the life of Joan DidionBiographer Tracy Daugherty wonderfully chronicles the life and work of American icon Joan Didion.
'The Love She Left Behind' is a finely drawn, dark comedy of manners, classThe death of a matriarch sets in motion this acerbic British comedy from an acclaimed London screenwriter.
'The Speechwriter' tells the story of a disgraced governor's former scribeThe man who put words into the mouth of former South Carolina governor Mark Sanford takes readers behind the political curtain.
'The Automobile Club of Egypt' depicts an Egyptian family and nation split by ideologyAlaa Al Aswany, author of 'The Yacoubian Building,' tells a finely textured story of politics, class, romance, and family set post-World War II Cairo.
'The Last Bus to Wisdom' is Ivan Doig's final tribute to the American WestIvan Doig's last novel is his most autobiographical and a gentle close to a worthy career.
'The Orpheus Clock,' a true story of Nazi art theft, is fascinating, horrifying, and essentialSimon Goodman’s account of his family's quest to recover art stolen by the Nazis is at once a family history, a memoir, a mini-social history of Germany pre-1914, a Holocaust story, and a revealing look at the inner workings of the art world.
'The Road Not Taken' reveals the unexpected in Frost's most famous poemNew York Times poetry critic David Orr wonders why Americans have so consistently and so willfully misread one of the best known poems in the English language.
'Give Us the Ballot' is an urgent, moving, deeply important history of American voting rightsThe story journalist Ari Berman sketches has two bookends: the passage of the Voting Rights Act in 1965 and the Supreme Court’s decision in Shelby County v. Holder in 2013 striking down a key section of the VRA.
'Between the World and Me' examines race in America with sharp intellect, gorgeous proseTa-Nehisi Coates, a national correspondent at The Atlantic, has crafted a highly provocative, thoughtfully presented, and beautifully written narrative about the ongoing racial struggle in America.
'Walking with Abel' takes readers across the Sahara with grace and intimacyAnna Badkhen sketches the lives of the nomadic Fulani tribe, as well as the changes they are facing.
'One Man Against the World' is a dark and troubling portrait of Richard NixonThe second big Nixon book this summer (after "Being Nixon" by Evan Thomas) paints an unforgiving picture of a deeply flawed man and president.
'Buckley and Mailer: The Difficult Friendship that Shaped the Sixties'Kevin M. Schultz attempts to analyze the influence of two antagonistic thinkers of their time.
