For The Book Obsessed
[ad_1] Steve Almond fans have waited long and hard for his debut novel and crustaceous hell does it deliver. All the Secrets of the World is a masterful, nervy, complex and confrontational work that flays the white beasts of power, excoriates the American dream, and serves up a ferocious indictment of the Fourth Estate, all … Read more
[ad_1] Narrative structure impacts when we take in information, and how we read a story. Doubtful Kazuo Ishiguro’s Never Let Me Go would have the same impact if we knew from page one what was happening, and surely Leslie Marmon Silko’s Ceremony wouldn’t be as masterful if narrated linearly. In the same way, Michelle Hart’s … Read more
[ad_1] Jennifer Saint’s 2021 debut novel Ariadne, a Sunday Times bestseller and Waterstones Book of the Month released in the US by Flatiron, brought fascinating women from Greek myth to life. She now turns her attention to the famous House of Atreus and the women of the Trojan War in Elektra, sharing the intertwined stories … Read more
[ad_1] Success is difficult to define. In the modern American landscape, it’s a term that’s become more or less synonymous with wealth rather than any sort of achievement. In the podcast The Relentless Picnic, the hosts remarked on the seeming absurdity that one could be considered a born-success. Fortunately, that’s not a problem for Nineteen, … Read more
[ad_1] Do you feel it, dear readers? The April rains and winds are starting to die down, and the sunshine is lingering for longer. Do you hear it, dear readers? It’s the sound of coats being doffed and kids (and teachers) celebrating the imminent end of the school year. Spring has finally arrived, and as … Read more
[ad_1] T. Kingfisher’s most recent novel, Nettle & Bone, is a fairy tale, replete with the usual archetypes: a kind-hearted and naïve protagonist, magical companions, difficult siblings—even a villainous tyrant. The narrative follows the adventures of Marra, a thirty-year-old princess who must save her sister from an evil prince. But T. Kingfisher’s stories are rarely … Read more
[ad_1] Climate change has broken time. Geological processes that normally unfold over millennia are now a matter of urgency, and the rhythms that structure our lives have fallen out of sync. Some changes, like biosphere collapse and the thawing of ice caps, are happening much too quickly; others, like popular uprisings and economic shifts, are … Read more
[ad_1] At the end of the world, Kate is Bertie’s best friend. In the aftermath of a world war, after enduring terror and loss together, they still have each other. Until Kate decides to move away—and Bertie is left to grapple with her own personal apocalypse. In End of the World House, Adrienne Celt delivers … Read more
[ad_1] I don’t really know why I do this to myself. There’s no way to narrow down the fantastic poetry of any year into a brief list. Personal tastes aside, my hope is that you pick up as many poetry books—and chapbooks—as you can. Though the focus of this list is contemporary poetry, read any … Read more
[ad_1] We are surely—hopefully—nearing some kind of peak of cultural reboot fatigue, awash as we are in retellings, re-adaptations, and perpetually rebooting expanded cinematic universes. So it’s either an odd or an apt time to recommend a new entry in King Arthur stories, much-reinterpreted and pieced together from older traditions as those legends are. Fresh, … Read more