Book Reviews

Books
Arts

'Persona' Is A Dangerous Dance Of Diplomacy And Celebrity

7:03am March 14, 2015

by Amal El-Mohtar

Genevieve Valentine's new novel is set in a world where diplomats are the equivalent of Hollywood stars, glamorous Faces manipulated by behind-the-scenes handlers and stalked by eager paparazzi.

Books
Arts

In Vargas Llosa's Latest, Dickens Meets Soap Opera

12:27pm March 13, 2015

by Alan Cheuse

The Peruvian Nobel Prize-winning writer, Mario Vargas Llosa, has a new novel out, and he's not resting on his laurels. It's an ambitious and weighty novel that's worth the effort.

Books
Arts

How We Deal With Loss In Different Ways In Two Beautifully Written Memoirs

7:16pm March 12, 2015

by Maureen Corrigan

In Abigail Thomas' What Comes Next and How to Like It, the aging process robs the 70-something of beauty and energy. In H Is for Hawk, Helen Macdonald trains a goshawk after her father dies.

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The Ecstatic, Erotic Joy Of Reading 'Girl In The Dark'

5:45pm March 12, 2015

by Annalisa Quinn

Anna Lyndsey's pseudonymous memoir of her severe light sensitivity is full of rich, sensuous language, all grounded in the ever-present limits of a body that keeps her to the margins of normal life.

Books
Arts

'B & Me' Is Intelligent, Immoderate, And A Bit Belabored

5:18pm March 11, 2015

by Heller McAlpin

J.C. Hallman's audacious account of his engagement with the erotic writing of Nicholson Baker makes a splash, but critic Heller McAlpin says the book sometimes runs aground in self-indulgence.

Books
Arts

In 'Shadow,' Change And Growth As A Story Sheds Its Scales

4:10pm March 11, 2015

by Amal El-Mohtar

Rachel Hartman continues her tale of half-dragon musician and unwilling diplomat Seraphina in Shadow Scale. Reviewer Amal El-Mohtar says the new book doesn't just live up to the old, it outgrows it.

Books
Arts

Shockwaves Of A Kidnapping Echo In 'Barefoot Dogs'

5:07pm March 10, 2015

Alan Cheuse reviews Antonio Ruiz-Camacho's first book, a collection of interwoven short stories called, Barefoot Dogs. He's a Mexican-born writer who spent much of his career as a reporter.

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Arts

From The Gathering Of Juggalos To Farthest Australia In 'Timid Son'

12:41pm March 10, 2015

by Michael Schaub

Kent Russell (brother of Swamplandia! author Karen) makes a striking debut with a collection of essays that double as memoir. Critic Michael Schaub calls the book tough, tender and deeply original.

Books
Arts

A Tale Of Two Captains On A Tragic Journey In 'Dead Wake'

11:11am March 10, 2015

by Jean Zimmerman

Erik Larson's new book about the sinking of the liner Lusitania by a German U-boat in 1915 brings the past stingingly alive. Reviewer Jean Zimmerman calls Dead Wake "thrilling, dramatic and powerful."

Books

Jynne Dilling Martin's New Poems Capture 'Zaniness Of Being Alive'

8:07pm March 09, 2015

Poet Tess Taylor reviews Jynne Dilling Martin's poetry collection, We Mammals in Hospitable Times, that drew much of its inspiration from her time in Antarctica.

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