Less, by Andrew Sean Greer Less, the sixth book and fifth novel by Andrew Sean Greer, is a jewel-box of a novel—compact, sparkling, and filled with treasures. Winner of the 2018 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction, Greer’s novel is an effortless read, though that’s not to say that the story—and its […]
I often wonder what Shakespeare would think of his legacy. It would be difficult to imagine what ambitions he had when he began his writing career. Eternal fame, legendary status was, perhaps, not on his bucket list. To say Shakespeare has become immortal through his sonnets and plays would be […]
The things we remember most in our favorite novels, are the words that trap our attention, secure a place in our minds that is relenting and not easily forgotten. There have been great novels that include great lines, but sometimes a truly remarkable quote, a great monologue, rests firmly in […]
Vanity Fair, by William Makepeace Thackeray July 18 marks the 210th birthday of William Makepeace Thackeray, whose novel of social-climbing, backbiting, profligate behavior, and true love, Vanity Fair, was published in 1848 and made him a wealthy man. With numerous audio, film, and television adaptations, Vanity Fair endures, and like […]
Midsummer Reads I’ve got a beautiful TBR stack, and in recent months I’ve been spending time with some fantastic books. I’m trying to be methodical, but curiosity often gets in the way and so now there are a more than a few reads in-progress. Here’s a quick round-up so far. […]
Four New Adaptations from Kirkus Reviews’ Book to Screen This week at Kirkus, the legendary book review site, their Book to Screen column ran a feature on four very different upcoming book adaptations for the small screen, literary miniseries that range from mystery to YA to historical, all of which […]
The Vexations: a novel, by Caitlin Horrocks The lives of artists should portray artmaking for the work it is, anything else is a romanticized view, and Caitlin Horrock’s debut novel, The Vexations, is an intricate portrayal of the life of modernist composer Erik Satie—and his artmaking—that mines his most nuanced […]
The books closest to our hearts become a part of us. We love them for various reasons, and when a story is great, we tend to gravitate toward its author. Their worlds speak to us. Their characters resonate with us. And while it’s true that even our favorite authors and […]
Women in Their Beds — Gina Berriault To cap off #ShortStoryMonth, my rec this week revisits a collection by one of my favorite story writers, Gina Berriault. Her admirers span Richard Ford, Grace Paley, and Robert Stone, but American fiction writer Berriault may be one of most revered writers you’ve […]
New Titles From WTAW Press The Groundhog Forever, by Henry Hoke Mark this month’s celebration of pride with the queer sequel to the movie “Groundhog Day.” In Henry Hoke’s debut novel, two film students in post-9/11 Manhattan relive the same day over and over together: the day they meet Bill Murray […]
On this day, December 3, in 1857, Joseph Conrad was born in Berdichev, Imperial Russia (modern
Ukraine, then a part of Poland). While he settled in England and wrote in English, he always considered himself a Pole. Heart of Darkness, one of the most famous of his 20 novels (which explores colonialism and the attitudes regarding what constitutes a barbarian versus civilized society) is considered one of the best English novels of the 20th century, as is his novel Lord Jim, which chronicles a crew’s abandonment of its disabled ship. Conrad died in England in 1924 at age 66.