The long-running revival of Powell kicked off in 1987, when Gore Vidal championed her work in the New York Review of Books. Since then, there’s been a biography by Tim Page, two volumes of her fiction in the Library of America, and publication of her Diaries and Selected Letters. Yet, as critic Ilana Masad laments, […]
The story opens some time past the 2040s in an underground “pod” bunker, where 16-year-old Eten has formidable psychic powers and trademark silver hair. Her younger siblings share similar genetic traits, though not so strongly developed. Eten can teleport herself or other objects, divine other peoples’ thoughts to some extent, and, most importantly, fight and […]
Twenty-five years into his prolific career, Lemire (Minor Arcana, 2025, etc.) humbly reflects on his expansive bibliography and guides readers through his progression from producing his own self-published zines to inking production deals with Netflix. Each chapter primarily focuses on one book’s genesis and is packed with character studies, sketches, and archival photos. Lemire worked […]
A Chicago felon with the unlikely name of Alan Sweetcheeks has just been released from Stateville Prison, where he served time for homicide. Chicago had been rough; he scavenged for scrap metal for a living before his prison stay. Now, he is heading to Boon, Alaska, a small town where a shop owner named Mr. […]
Navya’s aunt—whom she calls Athai—and cousin Shruti have come all the way from India to celebrate Navarathri. Athai suggests that Navya sing the song that Athai taught her last month. Navya demurs, saying that she’ll sing next time. On the nights that follow, Navya visits friends’ houses and listens to other girls and women sing […]
Left unexpectedly to reckon with life as a single parent, Silva turns to language to comprehend heartbreak, betrayal, and what it means to be human in the rapidly advancing digital age. “We joined up our bookcases and we joined up our minds and we joined up our bodies,” she writes. “Like a male seahorse I […]
What to do on this rainy Saturday? Poofy the dog and the nameless talking sandwich—both of whom readers will remember from the earlier book—convince Marco that video games are out (the sandwich lacks opposable thumbs), as is pranking sister Julia, who’s now a potential ally. Then the sun emerges, and Marco and the sandwich decide […]
One of the most distinct psychological traits possessed by humans, author Rye notes in the book’s introduction, is object permanence. This ability to know that something exists even when out of view is connected, per Rye’s analysis, to humanity’s adherence to intangible belief systems. In other words, “All our political, economic, and religious institutions are […]
New Yorker staff writer and journalism professor Lemann, author of a previous title on the SAT (The Big Test), contributes to Princeton’s “Our Compelling Interests” series by addressing the problem of access to higher education. With some selective colleges and universities reinstating the standardized SAT as an admissions criterion (after dropping the requirement during the […]
“They stood out like skunks in their brown shirts, black pants, and jackboots.” Rolf is upset to see the deteriorating relationship between his always-angry older brother, Romer, and their widowed father. But he’s more disturbed by evidence that Romer is drifting toward sinister, spiderlike Hans and the squad of uniformed thugs behind him—particularly after the […]