Gabino Iglesias : NPR

'American Poison' Aims To Show How Race Is At The Root Of U.S. Problems

American Poison: How Racial Hostility Destroyed Our Promise, by Eduardo Porter Knopf hide caption

toggle caption

Knopf

Review

Book Reviews

'American Poison' Aims To Show How Race Is At The Root Of U.S. Problems

March 23, 2020 • Journalist Eduardo Porter has written a book that cuts to the root of racism, tracing it from slavery, Jim Crow, and segregation — and bringing it to today — with unblinking honesty and facts.

Fast, Complex And Funny, 'Deacon King Kong' Is A Love Letter To New York City

Beth Novey/NPR

Review

Book Reviews

Fast, Complex And Funny, 'Deacon King Kong' Is A Love Letter To New York City

March 7, 2020 • James McBride's latest novel starts with a shooting: A broken down preacher shoots the local drug dealer, who dodges at the last minute, losing an ear — and kicking off a chain of consequences.

'The Boatman's Daughter' Dips Her Toes In Horror, Crime And Poetry

Beth Novey/NPR

Review

Book Reviews

'The Boatman's Daughter' Dips Her Toes In Horror, Crime And Poetry

February 15, 2020 • Andy Davidson's novel follows a young girl who scrapes a living working for local criminals along an Arkansas river — but its crime story bumps up against horror in a strange yet seamless fashion.

'Black Sunday' Will Destroy You — Let It

Beth Novey/NPR

Review

Book Reviews

'Black Sunday' Will Destroy You — Let It

February 9, 2020 • Tola Rotimi Abraham's wrenching novel follows a four young children in Lagos, Nigeria, whose comfortable life is blown apart when their mother loses her job, and their father abandons them.

'Little Gods' Reminds Us Some Questions Are Better Left Unasked

Beth Novey/NPR

Review

Book Reviews

'Little Gods' Reminds Us Some Questions Are Better Left Unasked

January 18, 2020 • Meng Jin's new novel shows us a complex woman through the eyes of her husband, her daughter, and her daughter's nanny — all of whom see different, sometimes contradictory facets of her character.

Bloody, Fast-Paced 'Lost Hills' Is A Superb Start For A New Series

Petra Mayer/NPR

Review

Book Reviews

Bloody, Fast-Paced 'Lost Hills' Is A Superb Start For A New Series

December 31, 2019 • Veteran mystery author Lee Goldberg introduces a compelling new character in Lost Hills: Eve Ronin, rookie detective and unwilling media darling after her arrest of a famous actor went viral.

Greely's Polar Expedition Faces Heartbreak Amid Heroism In 'Labyrinth Of Ice'

Labyrinth of Ice: The Triumphant and Tragic Greely Polar Expedition, by Buddy Levy St. Martin's Press hide caption

toggle caption

St. Martin's Press

Review

Book Reviews

Greely's Polar Expedition Faces Heartbreak Amid Heroism In 'Labyrinth Of Ice'

December 4, 2019 • Author Buddy Levy's superbly written, meticulously researched chronicle tells the adventure story of a group of explorers aiming to achieve "Farthest North" and claim the win for the U.S. in 1881.

What Happens To Your Used Stuff? 'Secondhand' Tells Of A Billion-Dollar Industry

Secondhand: Travels in the New Global Garage Sale, by Adam Minter Bloomsbury Publishing hide caption

toggle caption

Bloomsbury Publishing

Review

Book Reviews

What Happens To Your Used Stuff? 'Secondhand' Tells Of A Billion-Dollar Industry

November 13, 2019 • As "traditional bonds disintegrate in the face of industrialization, urbanization, and secularization, brands and objects become a means to curate and project who we are," writes reporter Adam Minter.

In 'Some Of Us Are Very Hungry Now,' Revelations Morph Into Mirrors

Some Of Us Are Very Hungry Now, by Andre Perry Two Dollar Radio hide caption

toggle caption

Two Dollar Radio

Review

Book Reviews

In 'Some Of Us Are Very Hungry Now,' Revelations Morph Into Mirrors

November 12, 2019 • Andre Perry's debut essay collection reads like a slightly fragmented memoir focused on the search for identity, the desire to write, and his constant sense of unease as a black man in Iowa City.

'In The Dream House' Invents A New Form Of Memoir To Convey A Haunting Nightmare

In The Dream House:A Memoir, by Carmen Maria Machado Graywolf Press hide caption

toggle caption

Graywolf Press

Review

Book Reviews

'In The Dream House' Invents A New Form Of Memoir To Convey A Haunting Nightmare

November 5, 2019 • Under Carmen Maria Machado's narrative of a psychologically abusive relationship lies an academic view of female queerness, a play, a choose your own adventure book, a look at the mechanisms of abuse.

'A History Of New York In 27 Buildings' Is A Love Letter To The Big Apple

Empire State Building in 1930. Lewis Hines/National Archives/Courtesy of Bloomsbury Publishing hide caption

toggle caption

Lewis Hines/National Archives/Courtesy of Bloomsbury Publishing

Review

Book Reviews

'A History Of New York In 27 Buildings' Is A Love Letter To The Big Apple

October 24, 2019 • More than a mere chronicler armed with facts and dates, Sam Roberts is a nonfiction writer with the heart of a novelist; he's writing about buildings — but he does so while telling engaging stories.

'How We Fight For Our Lives' Is One Life Story That Finds Connection To Others

How We Fight for Our Lives: A Memoir, by Saeed Jones Patrick Jarenwattananon/NPR hide caption

toggle caption

Patrick Jarenwattananon/NPR

Review

Book Reviews

'How We Fight For Our Lives' Is One Life Story That Finds Connection To Others

October 14, 2019 • Extremely personal, emotionally gritty, and unabashedly honest, Saeed Jones' memoir somehow manages a perfect balance between love and violence, hope and hostility, transformation and resentment.

In Memoir, Imprisoned Turkish Writer Says His Longing Is 'So Naked, So Primal'

I Will Never See the World Again: The Memoir of an Imprisoned Writer, by Ahmet Altan Beth Novey/NPR hide caption

toggle caption

Beth Novey/NPR

Review

Book Reviews

In Memoir, Imprisoned Turkish Writer Says His Longing Is 'So Naked, So Primal'

October 3, 2019 • Confined in a tiny cell, Ahmet Altan recoils into his own thoughts; his talent as a writer allows him to communicate his experience in rich, haunting detail in I Will Never See the World Again.

Patti Smith Weaves Between Worlds Real And Imagined In 'Year Of The Monkey'

Year of the Monkey, by Patti Smith Knopf hide caption

toggle caption

Knopf

Review

Book Reviews

Patti Smith Weaves Between Worlds Real And Imagined In 'Year Of The Monkey'

September 24, 2019 • Smith's musical career sometimes threatens to overshadow her accomplishments in other creative fields, but every page in this book reminds us that she is an accomplished novelist, essayist and poet.

In 'Savage Gods,' An Author Finds That Pondering Being Leads To An Inability To Write

Savage Gods, by Paul Kingsnorth Two Dollar Radio hide caption

toggle caption

Two Dollar Radio

Review

Book Reviews

In 'Savage Gods,' An Author Finds That Pondering Being Leads To An Inability To Write

September 18, 2019 • Paul Kingsnorth moved to a small farm in Ireland to be closer to the land and to reconnect with the essence of being. Instead of contentment, he found that it was tough to find meaning in writing.