I've been diving into the UK's Booker Prize longlisted novels, which have included 'Misinterpretation' and 'One Boat.' Here's why, plus there's a new thriller I flew through and nonfiction I've started about ghosts.
Category: Poetry
A reluctant spy, Ukraine, and a stubborn octogenarian
I chose to read these books because I've admired the work of their authors. William Boyd is one of them, whose "Any Human Heart" remains one of my all-time favorite novels. He's in top form with this new one. Also, Jonathan Littell, who wrote the controversial bestselling novel "The Kindly Ones;" his new book, nonfiction, is brilliant. You'll also find here an author whose novel published mid-20th century is about an old woman thumbing her nose at family expectations. An added bonus: poet Billy Collins.
Books I’m reading and plan to read
Memoirs, fiction, nonfiction, poetry, and a surprising Great American Novels list from The Atlantic magazine are shared in this post. Some of the books are new this month and next. All are what intrigue me right now, and what I'm looking forward to.
For Black History Month: poetry, basketball, and the Jim Crow years
A new biography offers the first full-scale life of Ohio poet Paul Laurence Dunbar in half a century. Also, Hanif Abdurraqib has a new book coming out that is highly anticipated. And a book of stories posthumously published by an author who died in a motorcycle accident in 1966.
September 2023 new books
Sumptuous reading opportunities are arriving soon, including a novel set in the near future, a new translation of "The Iliad" that's getting much attention, intriguing fiction by the admired Ron Rash, and a British novelist's first publication in the U.S.
Staying cool these last hot days of the season
A late blooming poet, the Dutch Golden Age in art history, a Jewish family in peril, and a schoolgirl's mystery. It's a rich mix of fiction and nonfiction I’m currently reading.
These good books: from gripping to inspiring
Here you'll find stories to savor and characters you'll love so much you'll have to put the book down and walk away, to get ready, when things get tense. Also, a memoir about growing up on the largest block of unfenced wilderness in the lower 48 states, and a new novel I'm thinking may just be a spring break beach read.
Now reading: poetry, nature, true crime, and J.S. Bach
For too long, Ilya Kaminsky’s “Deaf Republic” sat on my reading table, a story told in poems that’s not only profound but now so very timely. Also in this blog post you’ll find a compelling mix of fiction and nonfiction, with authors writing about love for the natural world, truth in a murder investigation, and the St. Matthew Passion.
Books to anticipate this September: part one
The 2021 fall season is jam-packed with new books from favorite authors. It's a promising unleashing that will keep readers well stocked in good stories for themselves and their book clubs. One novel in this list has been described as “a plumber’s Mrs. Dalloway.” Who could resist that? Here you'll find five September books with five more coming soon, in part two.
A selection of new books
Here are a few titles I’ve gathered from my ongoing hunt for good books, including novels to anticipate in 2019, more Lucia Berlin stories, and the 2017 Prix Goncourt winner.
Finalists to talk about – and read
The Man Booker 2018 Longlist has produced a baker's dozen of novels readers can get excited about. Finally, they're back to what we want and expect.
An open house with poets
Why is poetry ignored by most Americans? And what if Jay Whitman read more poetry on the CBS drama "Madam Secretary"?
The books I gave this holiday season
Here are six books I selected and wrapped with a bow to surprise and delight my friends.
The time of your life
"Time Present and Time Past" is a slim novel about an ordinary man in Dublin, Ireland, who experiences hallucinations that warp his sense of time. It's a rewarding story with the message that time is much more than the thing we measure with clocks and calendars.
Run to Bethlehem
A Merry Christmas wish via poet W. H. Auden, whose "For the Time Being: A Christmas Oratorio" is available in a new edition from Princeton University Press. I so loved this discovery.
The Longest Chapter 