Books
Denis Johnson sees that New Age thinking is a response to something very American, very late-twentieth-century—namely the precariousness of identity.
In his profound new book Age of Anger, historian Pankaj Mishra finds the key to Trump-worship.
Rapture is a worthwhile curio that grapples, entertainingly, with Modernism’s artistic, structural, and revolutionary quandaries.
For a reader without the reference points of mid-twentieth century Lithuania and Poland, this deeply researched biography can be a slog.
On the whole, this anthology, along with igniting discussions about sins of omission, will make for entertaining browsing.
George Prochnik’s biography of Gershom Scholem is flawed, but well worth reading, especially for those struggling with their Jewish and Israeli identities.
Alannah Hopkin demonstrates a near impeccable sense of craft, including a talent for coming up with surprises.
Many of the poems live up to the title’s shout-out to Walt Whitman, cutting through the current political miasma with fresh wit, insight, and lyrical outrage.
Sara Baume’s sophomore novel insists that we rethink the value of empathy: depend on it, yes, but also be suspicious.
What could easily have become a dense, jargon-filled work of cultural psychology instead reads like a thoughtful conversation.
Arts Remembrance: Sonny Rollins, Jazz’s ‘Saxophone Colossus,’ Dies at 95