Book Reviews

The problem of American gun violence is persistent and solutions are hard to come by. But here are 5 books that help put a face to the victims, explain how we got here and how we might get out.

Happy-Go-Lucky is more somber than David Sedaris' usual fare, but there are some fresh, funny bits wedged between the weighty boulders.

The double threat of climate change and the global pandemic has made post-apocalyptic fiction an undeniably thriving and popular genre. Author David Yoon has one of the latest entrants.

New translations of Juan Emar's Yesterday, Cristina Rivera Garza's New and Selected Stories, and Gabriela Alemán's Family Album offer a look at human nature — and adventures along the way.

Jhumpa Lahiri mixes detailed explorations of craft with broader reflections on her own artistic life, as well as the "essential aesthetic and political mission" of translation.

Emma Straub's new novel is a charmer that unleashes the magic of time travel to sweeten its exploration of some heavy themes like mortality, the march of time, and how small choices can alter a life.

In their latest works, Azar Nafisi, Elena Ferrante, and Anna Quindlen vigorously assert that reading and writing can pull us out of our mess. In their hands, reading and writing are worth celebrating.

Author Scott Hershovitz sets out to prove that philosophy, like inquisitive, rowdy children, can offer illuminating insights — even when addressing complex subjects related to misbehavior.

Hernan Diaz's novel is constantly pulling a fast one on the reader. It opens with the saga of a Wall Street tycoon, but soon another narrative comes to upend the truth of everything that came before.