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Lessons In Coming and Going or Neti-Neti (Not This Not That)

Glicksman, an American English professor and jewelry importer before his death in 2021, recaps three decades of periodic sojourns in the Middle and Far East starting in 1971. The author usually traveled on his own, in threadbare circumstances. His destinations included Turkey, where he encountered “hashish of a legendary quality” that made “the air…thick and […]

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DREAD MONDAYS

The best stories among the 35 set in workplaces in this volume, the second such anthology released in recent months by Whisper House Press, skillfully highlight the breadth of horror. Barry Charman’s “The Ghouls” is a timely tale about the catastrophic impact of misinformation specialists on society. “Cute Aggression” by Emily Flynn-Jones details the increasingly […]

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LOST SYNAGOGUES OF EUROPE

Among the many scars left by the Holocaust remain the gaping grounds and bulldozed squares where houses of Jewish worship once stood. More than sites of faith, these buildings were community centers, nodes for family and social life. And in their shape and size, the European synagogues were structures unique to a time and place. […]

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POLITICAL FICTIONS

Early in this sometimes difficult text, which owes much to fellow Collège de France professor Michel Foucault, Boucheron distinguishes analytical logic from fiction, noting that whereas the former gives the illusion that the world is logical, the latter “reveals to us the possibilities of thought.” The stories that critique or shore up political discourses, whether, […]

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ONCE UPON A YOU

“The story of you began the day you were born. With each passing year, as you grow and change, so does the story of you.” These sentences bookend a double-page spread showing a brown-skinned child with curly dark hair in a simultaneous succession of five points of growth—from infant to toddler to young running child. […]

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OGALLALA

Semi-retired Bennett, a man “accustomed to mild interest” in most things, embarks on a road trip to visit ex-girlfriend Jenn in Ann Arbor after she texts him out of the blue. He’s not expecting much but brings along lubricants and lotions just in case. Jenn, however, seems more interested in Bennett’s rental car than romance. […]

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THE EASTERN FRONT

Even after a century, the bloody, mud-soaked images of World War I are deeply ingrained in the public consciousness. However, that is only one part of a larger picture, according to veteran WWI historian Lloyd, author of The Amritsar Massacre, Hundred Days, and Passchendaele. In Eastern Europe, there was a very different war. This book […]

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EXPLORING MATH-FOCUSED CAREERS

Dougherty opens by explaining the many ways that math is applied in the real world, including online data encryption, digital animation, and even when strategizing specific plays in sports. The six subsequent chapters each focus on specific careers that center on math—being an actuary, economist, financial analyst, math teacher, physicist, and operations research analyst. Each […]

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EDDIE HEST VS. SUBURBIA

Eddie Hest loves living in Detroit and doesn’t want to move, but her landlord has sold the building where she resides. Divorced from her young daughter’s drug-addicted father, Eddie has only 30 days to find a new place for herself and Grace. Eddie has always been a bit of a nonconformist (think purple hair and […]

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ACCIDENTAL DEMONS

Bernadette Crowley’s family are an esteemed Missoula, Montana, clan of Irish American witches led by powerful and spirited Grandma Orla. But their specialty—using blood for summoning demons—has become more complicated since 13-year-old Ber’s diabetes diagnosis. Because she must prick her finger to check her glucose levels, she’s begun summoning by accident. Big sister Maeve cooks […]