For The Book Obsessed
[ad_1] When the Mexica emperor Moctezuma sent his emissaries to report on the Spanish conquistadors under Hernán Cortés in 1519, neither side understood what the other was saying. It was only through a chain of translations between a Franciscan friar named Aguilar who spoke some Mayan and a young Nahuatl woman given to Cortés as … Read more
[ad_1] First thing, let me get something out of the way: I’ve known İnci Atrek, author of Holiday Country, for a long time. We went to Wellesley College together and both took an especially memorable travel writing class our senior year. I saw the earliest glimmers of Holiday Country in the personal essays Atrek shared … Read more
[ad_1] We live in a golden age of the armchair detective, a person who aims to help solve a real-life mystery without the official qualifications for such work. Global fascination with true crime has led to an explosion of documentaries, websites, online forums, and more; a 2023 Pew Research Center study1 found that true crime … Read more
[ad_1] It’s probably an impossible task to chronicle every book coming out from writers in a city of nearly three million people, but here we are. This is the second year of what has become my favorite and most daunting annual project, and here I am again worried that I may have missed something. But … Read more
[ad_1] The start of the New Year always brings a lot of excitement as well as a familiar question: What books should I be on the lookout for? As avid readers ourselves, we love the moments of spontaneity that comes with exploring the back corners of a bookstore, only to find a book that completely … Read more
[ad_1] Get your to-read list ready, because with the New Year comes new opportunities to discover exciting debuts and the latest releases from your favorite authors! There is no slow ramp up when it comes to 2024, as January sees a number releases we’ve been greatly anticipating here at the Chicago Review of Books. We … Read more
[ad_1] There is no shortage of literary mashups in contemporary publishing, at least in how books are marketed. Books are described as X meets Y to give readers an idea of what to expect. Katie Cotugno’s latest novel, Meet the Benedettos, is billed as Pride and Prejudice meets the Kardashians, and the characterization is dead … Read more
[ad_1] Every year this list gets longer and my heart grows right along with it. I’m ending 2023 filled to the brim with gratitude for the books that made me feel seen; for who I’ve been, who I am, and who I dream of being. I’m also blown away by the talent exhibited by this … Read more
[ad_1] Many articles have been written about our culture’s shrinking attention spans, largely blaming the rise of smartphones for our dwindling attentiveness. So one might reason the short story should be rising in popularity, but there seems to be no such effect. Maybe because short stories often require more from readers. If you miss something … Read more
[ad_1] If your fondest holiday memories also involve hiding in the bathroom (or closet, or floorboard, or passenger seat of your cool older cousin’s car) to get a moment’s peace from your [insert adjective] family, you’re probably already sold on a distraction. Books can’t yell at you! Or guilt you! Or punish you! Unless they … Read more