Books
This novel is a fun, light read. But best-selling author Richard Osman needs to take more time to delve into his characters if he wants to equal his previous cozy mysteries.
What Ian O’Donnell underlines so powerfully in “Prison Life” is the necessity of positive human interaction anywhere, including among incarcerated citizens.
If you want to tell people the truth,” quipped Oscar Wilde, “make them laugh, otherwise they’ll kill you.” Louis Bayard’s novel offers a compelling vision of what happened to Oscar and his family when the laughter stopped.
In her debut novel, Alina Grabowski taps into today’s zeitgeist — this is a story of compelling women who must deal with men who disappear or let them down.
Moon Unit devotes less than a quarter of her book to the three decades since her father’s death. Despite his failings as a parent, she wants to respect Frank Zappa’s stature as an artist.
In his letters, Irish poet Seamus Heaney’s tone, and the expanse of his openness, varies according to the addressee — but his approach to all is inevitably marked by seriousness and elegance.
A round-up of new children’s books that celebrate diverse cultures.
In her fine book, Lisa Volpe examines mid-’50s picture-making expeditions taken across the U.S. by photographers Robert Frank and Todd Webb.

Book Reviews: Joan Acocella and Andrea Marcolongo — Writers Who Think Fearlessly
Joan Acocella is more than a critic. She is a thinker, writing at a time when thinkers are not valued much, when exegesis in places other than scholarly journals sometimes seems like a lost art.
Read More about Book Reviews: Joan Acocella and Andrea Marcolongo — Writers Who Think Fearlessly