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The Longest Chapter

The Longest Chapter

Literary fiction, poetry, first editions, classics…

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Category: Crime Novels

My 10 favorite books of 2021

December 14, 2021December 17, 2021 ~ The Longest Chapter ~ 10 Comments

A surprising mix of novels became my year-end favorites for their morally conflicted and inspiring characters: from scientists to petty thieves, French Algerians to Chilean dictators, an Indiana farm woman to a Black female executive. And then one book, simply put, I didn't want to end.

A milkman and slow horses: Mick Herron’s brilliant British intelligence series

July 3, 2020August 7, 2020 ~ The Longest Chapter ~ 3 Comments

“The Catch" is a perfect introduction to Mick Herron’s Slough House series about disgraced British spies. It’s a fast-paced novella and the reason I picked up “Slow Horses." Here’s what to love about these two books.

Five books in these days of distraction

March 21, 2020March 30, 2020 ~ The Longest Chapter ~ 2 Comments

How to read when my concentration is shot? I'm channeling Anne Lamott. Also, you'll find here novels by Shirley Jackson, TaraShea Nesbit, Alison Moore, Anne Enright, and Mick Herron.

The books I’ll be reading next

January 23, 2020 ~ The Longest Chapter

A list of books coming in February and March that have me excited, including an essay collection, memoir, biography, fable, crime story and assorted novels.

An astute mystery about racial injustice

July 31, 2019 ~ The Longest Chapter

"The Gone Dead," a novel by Chanelle Benz, immerses readers in the Mississippi Delta with protagonist Billie James suspecting foul play in her father's death 30 years ago. This atmospheric debut explores themes of deceit, race relations and family ties.

A Soviet spy in 1938 Germany

June 25, 2019 ~ The Longest Chapter

A secret agent's diary written in the days leading up to World War II finds its way to upstate New York in 1988 in this compelling new spy novel by David Downing.

The 100 Best Novels in Translation

March 15, 2019 ~ The Longest Chapter ~ 6 Comments

We depend on translators to bring us the world's literature. We also depend on them to make the right decisions on how to bring a novel to life, wrestling with fidelity to the original versus comprehension for the reader. This book is not only a list, but a guide to those who do this marvelous work.

Books I’m talking about

February 20, 2019 ~ The Longest Chapter ~ 4 Comments

Here are books I recently recommended on WOSU All Sides Weekend Books.

How to get your book of the month

February 5, 2019 ~ The Longest Chapter ~ 3 Comments

Book box subscription services are many, but they’re not my preference. So here are my three choices for getting a monthly book delivery.

On the November road

October 8, 2018 ~ The Longest Chapter ~ 2 Comments

Lou Berney, the award-winning author of "The Long and Faraway Gone," has released a new crime novel that takes place during the days following President Kennedy’s assassination. It's intelligent and gripping.

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All Sides Weekend Books: Next Show

I’ll be recommending books on Friday, July 15, 2022 at 11 a.m. You can stream the live show online, sign up for the podcast, or listen from the archives at the NPR member station WOSU 89.7 FM. All Sides Weekend Books airs the third Friday every month with occasional exceptions.

Recommended June 17, 2022

Fellowship Point by Alice Elliott Dark
Hotel de Dream by Edmund White
Catch the Sparrow by Rachel Rear
The Lunar Housewife by Caroline Woods

Recommended May 20, 2022

Gentleman Overboard by Herbert Clyde Lewis
Uncommon Measure by Natalie Hodges
Five Decembers by James Kestrel

Recommended April 22, 2022

The Impossible Us by Sarah Lotz
The Dolphin House by Audrey Schulman
Where Rivers Change Direction by Mark Spragg
Pyre by Perumal Murugan

Recommended March 18, 2022

In His Own Image by Jérôme Ferrari
The Great Passion by James Runci
The Swimmers by Julie Otsuka

Recommended February 18, 2022

The Vanished Collection by Pauline Baer de Perignon
Yonder by Jabari Asim
The Balkan Trilogy by Olivia Manning

Recommended January 21. 2022

Mouth to Mouth by Antoine Wilson
The Pages by Hugo Hamilton
Mrs. Palfrey at the Claremont by Elizabeth Taylor

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