Xiaoda Xiao's debut novel is a work of history in fictional form. Its spare prose lures us into a powerful story of imprisonment and human rights violations in Mao's communist China. Here's a review.
While holiday shopping … 5 books
When it comes to buying books-as-gifts for readers, I'm challenged to find something they'll like but haven't already read. So I'm on the alert for unusual books. These five caught my eye.
You can’t begin again with “Beginners”
It's been widely known for a long time that editor Gordon Lish reworked Raymond Carver's short stories. A new biography about Carver as well as one of Carver's original manuscripts pulls back the curtain on what went on between the writer and Lish. But how does that influence the way we read Carver going foward?
The book I missed: “Tears in the Darkness”
Here's the book I knew last summer I should read. "Tears in the Darkness" is described as history written as story. The husband-and-wife authors created it from thousands of sources and hundreds of interviews. They have received nothing but praise.
Content & design: “Too Much Happiness”
Alice Munro's recently released collection of short stories is predictably winning praise. But it's the design of her new book that's initially caught my attention.
This thanks-giving holiday, thank you
Some thanks, some poetry, some good wishes and more in this Thanksgiving message originally posted in 2009.
Read me! A collection of American book ads
Dwight Garner's new book "Read Me: A Century of Classic American book Advertisements" gathers 300 vintage ads published during the 20th Century -- the century when "The Great Gatsby," "Ulysses," "On the Road," "Lolita," "Silent Spring," "The Joy of Sex," "Gone With the Wind," "To Kill a Mockingbird," "Helter Skelter" and so many other classics hit our bookshelves.
In “A Meaningful Life” everything is all wrong
L. J. Davis's 1971 novel “A Meaningful Life” was reissued this year. It's a funny story about a protagonist who gets a wake-up call to do something about his dull life.
2009 National Book Award Winners
Awards were announced late Wednesday night. Colum McCann won for fiction. Here are all the winners.
The surprise of “American Salvage”
Here's a collection of short stories that's risen to the literary forefront, thanks to its National Book Award nomination. The author of "American Salvage," Bonnie Jo Campbell, writes with unsettling grace.
“The Anatomy of Melancholy”
Robert Burton's 17th Century exploration of melancholy is a best seller for The New York Review of Books Classics. But why?
Lost in the coliseum
You never know what you'll find at the Dayton Book Fair, and that's the fun of it. It's held this time every year in the Montgomery County Fairgrounds Coliseum. I went and had a blast.
The Prix Goncourt and IMPAC literary prizes
France announced its 2009 top literary award winner. Plus, we've got the long list for Dublin's 2010 IMPAC, a great resource for international reading.
The book that got me off the bad news train
The fate of books is discussed in several publications I picked up recently. I found relief from the dark clouds in a book on My Reading Table.
Getting Louise Erdrich’s signature
I went to Kenyon College Saturday night with my 4 Louise Erdrich novels. Ms. Erdrich was the featured author at the Kenyon Review Literary Festival.
The Longest Chapter 