AltWeeklies Wire
The Stories in 'Woman From Shanghai' Survey Mao's Prison Systemnew
Woman From Shanghai: Tales of Survival from a Chinese Labor Camp is Xianhui Yang's first book translated into English and a record of the extremities endured by Mao Zedong's prisoners at Jiabiangou.
The Georgia Straight |
David Chau |
08-31-2009 |
Nonfiction
Lisbeth Salander Makes a Blazing Return in 'The Girl Who Played With Fire'new
The late Stieg Larsson's follow-up to the sprawling, expertly plotted crime novel The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo, is in most ways as gripping as the previous one.
The Georgia Straight |
Brian Lynch |
08-31-2009 |
Fiction
John Hoerr Returns to the Steel-Making McKeesport of His Youth in His First Novelnew
Unlike his first three books, Monongahela Dusk is a work of fiction. But readers will find plenty of familiar ground, from Hoerr's thoughts on how workers -- not just managers -- can make steel better; the ubiquity of gambling rackets in mill towns; and the red-baiting.
Pittsburgh City Paper |
Kate Giammarise |
08-31-2009 |
Author Profiles & Interviews
Randy Jurado Ertll Seeks to Improve Life for Fellow Salvadoran-Americansnew
Ertll, executive director of the Latino advocacy organization El Centro de Accion Social, documents the trials minority children face in America in his new book, Hope in Times of Darkness: A Salvadoran American Experience.
Pasadena Weekly |
Megan Sebestyen |
08-31-2009 |
Author Profiles & Interviews
In 'The Big Rewind,' Nathan Rabin Uses His Pop-Saturated Memory as a Window into His Lifenew
Did I mention that most of this book is extremely funny? Rabin is aware that there are plenty of hard-luck stories out there, and he's just as hard on himself as he is on such targets as a video store boss, several girlfriends from hell and a Movie Club co-commentator married to the guy who wrote Soul Plane.
INDY Week |
Zack Smith |
08-28-2009 |
Nonfiction
I Have to Wonder: Who Exactly is 'Porn & Pong' Written For?new
Nothing Brown presents in Porn & Pong is going to be a huge revelation if you're already mired in gamer culture, and I just can't see the average person choosing the book over Stephenie Meyer's sparkly vampires.
The Portland Mercury |
Earnest "Nex" Cavalli |
08-28-2009 |
Nonfiction
In 'Inherent Vice,' a Dope-Buzzed PI Watches the '70s California Dream Unravelnew
In his zany new novel, Thomas Pynchon goes back to the Golden State to paint a nostalgic portrait of a fictional beach town near LA in the '70s -- when the counterculture finally lost the battle to the forces of control, governmental power and sobriety.
Las Vegas Weekly |
John Freeman |
08-27-2009 |
Fiction
'Deeply Rooted' Profiles Farmers Who Refuse to Fit the Agribusiness Moldnew
Even though Lisa Hamilton narrows her focus to the extent that Deeply Rooted doesn't capture the breadth that it might have otherwise, she still conveys the raw truth that a positive food future lies in the hands of irascible individuals rather than corporations and captains of industry.
Santa Fe Reporter |
Zane Fischer |
08-27-2009 |
Nonfiction
The Unexpected Angles and Concluding Twists in 'Mirrors' Keep Readers Hookednew
Galeano regales us with tales from our shared history in an inclusive manner, from cultural creation myths to major historical figures and inventions to significant current events. It is a truism that history is written by the victors; what if, Galeano seems to ask, history were told instead by the vanquished, the oppressed and the downtrodden of all cultures and times?
The Texas Observer |
Liliana Valenzuela |
08-26-2009 |
Nonfiction
Magic Mixes With Mayhem in the Latest from Rock Star/Novelist 'Dr. Frank'new
Although Frank Portman already knew how to write songs, learning to write books was, at first, "like watching grass grow while hitting your head against a rock." But it was a natural career move for the lifelong book lover.
East Bay Express |
Anneli Rufus |
08-26-2009 |
Author Profiles & Interviews
'All My Bones Shake' Explains Robert Jensen's Personal, Alternative Theologynew
Jensen would redefine Christian religion to help himself lead a good life as a socially and politically aware human who believes and practices Jensenist Christianity. But it is difficult to call what he is doing "religion."
The Texas Observer |
Tom Palaima |
08-26-2009 |
Nonfiction
Thomas Pynchon's 'Inherent Vice' is an Endlessly Entertaining Variation on the Detective Yarnnew
Unlike any previous Pynchon work, Vice fully embraces genre. And in doing so it's difficult to tell if the genre is merely pliable enough to accommodate all of Pynchon's literary whims or if the now 72-year-old author has basically been riffing on this form his entire career.
Baltimore City Paper |
Bret McCabe |
08-25-2009 |
Fiction
With 'The Waxman Report' Henry Waxman Shows 'How Congress Really Works'new
Assisted by Joshua Green, a senior editor at the Atlantic, Waxman has written an informative, fast-moving manifesto against the gut-the-government politics that have been in vogue since the Reagan administration.
Chicago Reader |
Mick Dumke |
08-24-2009 |
Nonfiction
New Anthology 'Love Is a Four-Letter Word' Examines Relief, Regret and Repentancenew
This anthology of "true stories of breakups, bad relationships and broken hearts" included stories from well-known writers like Junot Diaz, Gary Shteyngart, George Singleton, Lynda Barry and well-linked lit blogger Maud Newton. The book's epigraph, from Oscar Wilde, captures the complexities of the book's tone nicely; the heart, the Irish satirist tells us, was made to be broken.
INDY Week |
Gerry Canavan |
08-21-2009 |
Nonfiction
'That Old Cape Magic' is Incrementally Less Magical Than Richard Russo's Previous Worknew
Cape Magic lacks the expansive, roomy quality of Russo's best work, but his trademark warmth makes it a worthwhile read all the same -- after all, it's only 261 pages.
The Portland Mercury |
Allison Hallett |
08-20-2009 |
Fiction
