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Recent Reviews
Sarah Manguso
Positive Booklist The novel becomes a compelling psychological study, revealing how easy it is for a woman to betray her own sense of self.
Tiya Miles
Positive Booklist Miles’ thoughtful engagement with Tubman’s contemporaries allows her to place the icon within a proud lineage of Black female mystics and preachers. Bridging theology, environmental writing, and history, Miles leaves readers with a truly unique analysis of how Tubman positioned herself within the world.
Jessica Goudeau
Positive Booklist Some of the most moving parts of the book come from Goudeau finding the people helped—and harmed—by her ancestors’ choices. This is is an empathic and thoughtfully told work, sure to encourage reflection on the legacies we choose to inherit.
Gabriella Burnham
Positive Booklist Whimsical and poignant, this is a story readers will return to again and again.
James Goodhand
Positive Booklist A page-turner, even as it focuses on the mundanities of life: love, aging, the responsibilities of being a son and mentor. Empathetically told, with a bit of moralism, it offers a hopeful view of destiny and contemporary manhood.
Barbara Weisberg
Positive Booklist Every character feels alive; many involved believed the case could decide not just the fate of one family but the fate of marriage itself. This sense of moral conviction makes the betrayals and redemptions within the Strong household all the more riveting.
Sheila Heti
Positive Booklist Playful yet disciplined ... This will be a particularly suitable offering for readers who enjoy the intimacy of memoir but wish to delve into more experimental work.
Patricia Evangelista
Rave Booklist Meticulously researched ... The bleak, gripping prose is reminiscent of a crime novel. It is gruesome without feeling exploitative. Evangelista unravels the web of dehumanization and everyday failures that led to Duterte’s rise, leaving the reader with few answers and an unsettling picture of the future. Analytical, ambitious, and told with empathy, this will stand as a definitive historical account of the Philippines’ drug war.
Shane McCrae
Positive Booklist Although McCrae’s life is haunted by his early kidnapping as well as his grandfather’s abuse, he relates explicitly violent details sparely. More than a traditional true-crime narrative, this is an interesting read for those curious about hybrid forms of poetry and nonfiction
Aisha Harris
Positive Booklist Wannabe is better suited as an entry point for young adults, or those just starting to explore pop culture criticism as a topic of interest.
Anna Metcalfe
Positive Booklist Those interested in broader examinations of self-help culture should look elsewhere, though, for the woman’s impact as an online phenomenon is given little consideration. The questions around solitude and agency are interesting, if a bit heavy-handed; character relations, while sincere, are cynical. This compelling read succeeds more as a page-turner than as a philosophical exploration.
Rachel Heng
Positive Booklist The islands are an important plot point for the first hundred pages or so, then lose relevance for long stretches of time. Much more developed is Ah Boon’s evolving relationship to authority. As Ah Boon grows into adulthood, Heng paints a striking portrait of a man struggling to find his place in history. The novel is ultimately a well-rendered piece of historical fiction that questions who gets left behind in the march toward progress.
Laura Cathcart Robbins
Positive Booklist She stays honest about how she felt in each moment ... Stash is an earnest and well-crafted memoir that will be especially useful for readers interested in secular addiction memoirs or those looking for sobriety literature that puts motherhood at the forefront.