Book reviews roundup: Jacobson’s savage satire; McInerney’s miracles; memories of Sacks

What the critics thought of Howard Jacobson’s Pussy, Lisa McInerney’s The Blood Miracles and Bill Hayes’s Insomniac CityTwo eagerly anticipated and very different novels divided critics this month. Howard Jacobson’s Pussy was written in two months in “a fury of disbelief” after Donald Trump’s US election victory, and is set in a fictionalised world in which spoiled Prince Fracassus rules. “Flawed but fascinating” wrote Anita Sethi in the i, summing up many critics’ feelings. “At its best, the book brilliantly portrays a world in which language and the complexity of ideas that it can convey have been devalued … ” The Observer’s Andrew Anthony also accentuated the positives, finding “many aesthetic pleasures to be had in Pussy. If Trump’s presidency is a source of continuing anxiety, then among its very few benefits is that it is has moved one of our finest comic writers to write an elegantly savage satire of a man who defies satire.” But this satirising of the unsatirisable vexed some. “The more you share its premises, the more you wish this satire had sharper edge. Fracassus’s unsavoury grotesqueness never trumps Trump’s,” wrote Peter Kemp in the Sunday Times, while the Independent’s Lucy Scholes felt “inclined to wonder what [Jacobson’s] hurry was. From a novelist of his pedigree ... I wanted something more considered.”Lisa McInerney’s The Blood Miracles is the follow-up to her Baileys women’s fiction prize-winning debut The Glorious Heresies and focuses on that novel’s... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'

[ The Guardian | 2017-04-21 00:00:00 UTC ]

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A History of the Book Review Through Its Fonts

On the 125th anniversary of the Book Review, we look back at some of our earliest flourishes, curlicues, flowers and scrolls. Continue reading at The New York Times

[ The New York Times | 2021-05-28 16:20:05 UTC ]
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Christina McDowell’s satire ‘The Cave Dwellers’ belongs among the essential books about Washington

This is an author who knows her victims’ antique attitudes as well as Marjorie Merriweather Post knew her china settings. Continue reading at The Washington Post

[ The Washington Post | 2021-05-24 10:01:07 UTC ]
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World Book Day: A Rights Roundup From Five Markets

Today's Rights Roundup, coinciding with World Book Day, includes titles from Germany, Finland, Canada, Sweden and the United Kingdom. The post World Book Day: A Rights Roundup From Five Markets appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2021-04-23 17:25:41 UTC ]
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A Very Bad Poem From the Book Review Archives

As we scour the past issues of the Book Review on its 125th anniversary, we have come across a lot of commissioned poetry — including this interesting specimen. Continue reading at The New York Times

[ The New York Times | 2021-04-23 15:47:00 UTC ]
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New York Times's Book Review Podcast Celebrates 15 Years

‘The Book Review’ podcast began as a brief show with a rebellious touch. It became a forum for some of the biggest names in literature. Continue reading at The New York Times

[ The New York Times | 2021-04-15 13:38:51 UTC ]
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15 Favorite Episodes as the Book Review Podcast Turns 15

Pamela Paul, the editor of the Book Review, highlights memorable episodes from her eight years hosting the show, including conversations with Robert Caro, Isabel Wilkerson, James McBride and others. Continue reading at The New York Times

[ The New York Times | 2021-04-14 13:30:36 UTC ]
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Rights Roundup: The Pandemic Changes the Book Fair Calendar Again

Titles in our Rights Roundup come from Japan by way of Finland, as well as Slovakia, Sweden, Germany, Turkey, the United States, and France. The post Rights Roundup: The Pandemic Changes the Book Fair Calendar Again appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2021-04-09 16:27:44 UTC ]
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Book Review: ‘On the House,’ by John Boehner

“On the House” is an anecdote-rich memoir by the former speaker of the House that fails to give readers the whole picture. Continue reading at The New York Times

[ The New York Times | 2021-04-09 13:05:40 UTC ]
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Book Review: ‘Model Citizen,’ by Joshua Mohr

In the memoir “Model Citizen,” Joshua Mohr recounts a life of substance abuse, real love and “cheery nihilism.” Continue reading at The New York Times

[ The New York Times | 2021-03-09 10:00:09 UTC ]
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Book Review: ‘Burnt Sugar,’ by Avni Doshi

“Burnt Sugar,” a debut novel by Avni Doshi, depicts a particularly intense mother-daughter relationship — from the tormented daughter’s point of view. Continue reading at The New York Times

[ The New York Times | 2021-03-02 10:00:08 UTC ]
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Book Review: ‘Under a White Sky,’ by Elizabeth Kolbert

In “Under a White Sky,” the Pulitzer Prize winner Elizabeth Kolbert meets people who are trying to reverse the course of man-made environmental disaster. Continue reading at The New York Times

[ The New York Times | 2021-02-10 10:00:00 UTC ]
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Wilmers steps down as London Review of Books editor

Mary-Kay Wilmers is stepping down as editor of the London Review of Books after nearly three decades in the post. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2021-01-29 16:45:23 UTC ]
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London Review of Books editor Mary-Kay Wilmers steps down after 30 years

Influential editor and co-founder of the literary magazine to be succeeded by senior staffMary-Kay Wilmers is stepping down from her role as editor of the London Review of Books, a position she has held for almost 30 years.Wilmers was one of the founders of the literary magazine in 1979, along... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2021-01-29 15:28:52 UTC ]
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25 Great Book Reviews From the Past 125 Years

To celebrate the Book Review’s 125th anniversary, we’re dipping into the archives to revisit our most thrilling, memorable and thought-provoking coverage. Continue reading at The New York Times

[ The New York Times | 2021-01-25 16:00:20 UTC ]
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Book Review: ‘Saving Justice,’ by James Comey

Comey’s “Saving Justice” is a revealing memoir that describes his feelings about Trump and his worries about the nation. Continue reading at The New York Times

[ The New York Times | 2021-01-10 23:00:02 UTC ]
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The 10 most-read book reviews of 2020

Bestsellers, celebrities and Trump satires were of particular interest this year. Continue reading at The Washington Post

[ The Washington Post | 2020-12-28 13:19:00 UTC ]
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What 2020 Children’s Book Roundups Are Missing

Feature image from Akiko Miyakoshi’s I Dream a Journey * I knew things were going to get hard when the library closed. I am, by profession, a writer and a professor of storytelling. I’ve read to my twin children—now four—since their infancy. But as avid readers as we already were, 2020 upped our... Continue reading at Literrary Hub

[ Literrary Hub | 2020-12-21 09:49:02 UTC ]
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Bite-size book reviews: Fiction our readers loved in 2020

Need a new novel? Classic adventures, satire, and dystopian science fiction top this year's round-up of reader book recommendations for fiction. Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor

[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2020-12-18 22:08:27 UTC ]
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Bite-size book reviews: Fiction our readers loved in 2020

Need a new novel? Classic adventures, satire, and dystopian science fiction top this year's round-up of reader book recommendations for fiction. Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor

[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2020-12-18 22:08:27 UTC ]
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Bite-size book reviews: Fiction our readers loved in 2020

Need a new novel? Classic adventures, satire, and dystopian science fiction top this year's round-up of reader book recommendations for fiction. Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor

[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2020-12-18 22:08:27 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #readers loved #classic adventures #science fiction