Book Reviews | Atlantic County Library System

'The Last White Man' spins a deft, if narrow, fantasy about identity

NPR Book Reviews - Tue, 08/09/2022 - 5:19am

Mohsin Hamid's surreal new novel centers on a white man who awakens one morning to find that his skin has turned brown. The Last White Man only seriously strains credulity at its very end.

(Image credit: Penguin Random House)

Everything You Always Wanted to Know About ‘Bad Sex’ but Were Afraid to Ask

NY Times Book Reviews - Tue, 08/09/2022 - 5:00am

In a quest to explore her own sexuality, Nona Willis Aronowitz hit the sheets — and the books.

Book Review: “Kiki Man Ray” by Mark Braude

NY Times Book Reviews - Tue, 08/09/2022 - 5:00am

Mark Braude’s biography of a bohemian icon makes a case for Kiki de Montparnasse as an artist in her own right.

Review: ‘Panics,’ by Barbara Molinard; ‘Bad Handwriting,’ by Sara Mesa

NY Times Book Reviews - Tue, 08/09/2022 - 5:00am

Two eerie story collections depict the mundanity of human suffering.

Two sisters fight for Vietnam's independence

NPR Book Reviews - Mon, 08/08/2022 - 6:57pm

The novel Bronze Drum explores the legend of the sisters' rebellion against Chinese rule and the idea of collective memory as resistance.

(Image credit: Grand Central Publishing)

Book Review: “Mothercare,” by Lynne Tillman

NY Times Book Reviews - Mon, 08/08/2022 - 3:30pm

Lynne Tillman’s taut memoir of caring for an aging parent runs an emotional gamut.

New Crime Fiction

NY Times Book Reviews - Mon, 08/08/2022 - 5:00am

Johanna Mo’s new novel, “The Shadow Lily,” is a solid police procedural that brims with twists, turns and surprising revelations.

Review: ‘Three Assassins,’ by Kotaro Isaka

NY Times Book Reviews - Mon, 08/08/2022 - 5:00am

In “Three Assassins,” the Japanese author’s latest thriller to be translated into English, a corporate assassin isn’t far from a corporate automaton.

Review: ‘Diary of a Void,’ by Emi Yagi

NY Times Book Reviews - Sun, 08/07/2022 - 5:00am

In “Diary of a Void,” Emi Yagi unravels the limitless ironies of maternity.

'The Devil Takes You Home' invites readers to consider the depths of darkness

NPR Book Reviews - Sat, 08/06/2022 - 6:00am

Gabino Iglesias' barrio noir may not be a cheerful book, but it still allows glimpses of love, moments of connection, and glimmers of beauty to exist.

(Image credit: Mulholland Books)

For Instant Happiness, Grab a Book and Head Outside

NY Times Book Reviews - Sat, 08/06/2022 - 5:00am

Photographers from The New York Times visited beaches, parks and cafes to capture readers indulging in a timeless pleasure.

Poems in Practice and in Theory

NY Times Book Reviews - Fri, 08/05/2022 - 3:40pm

Elisa Gabbert talks about her poetry criticism and her own poems, and Ian Johnson discusses Wang Xiaobo’s novel “Golden Age.”

Review: ‘Recreation,’ by Mitch Epstein

NY Times Book Reviews - Fri, 08/05/2022 - 5:00am

Between the 1970s and 1990s, the photographer captured a nation at leisure.

Review: ‘Mount Chicago,’ by Adam Levin

NY Times Book Reviews - Fri, 08/05/2022 - 5:00am

“Mount Chicago,” Adam Levin’s new novel, is an absurdist epic for an age of disasters.

Review: ‘Shy,’ by Mary Rodgers and Jesse Green

NY Times Book Reviews - Fri, 08/05/2022 - 5:00am

The daughter of Richard Rodgers, confidante of Stephen Sondheim and composer of “Once Upon a Mattress” holds nothing back in “Shy.”

Review: ‘Bonsai,’ by Alejandro Zambra

NY Times Book Reviews - Fri, 08/05/2022 - 5:00am

In “Bonsai,” Alejandro Zambra tells the story of two young lovers whose lives, relationship and heartbreak intertwine with art and literature.

“The Baby-Changing Station” by Rhett Miller and Dan Santat

NY Times Book Reviews - Fri, 08/05/2022 - 12:06am

Older siblings react to the arrival of new babies — in a picture book, a chapter book, an early reader and a middle grade novel.

6 Audiobooks to Listen to Now

NY Times Book Reviews - Thu, 08/04/2022 - 5:00am

This list includes a lot of murders, real or imagined.

Sarah J. Maas’s Life Sounds Like Pure Chaos — in a Good Way!

NY Times Book Reviews - Thu, 08/04/2022 - 5:00am

Here’s what it looks like for a fantasy author to exist in three different spheres at once.

Review: ‘Acne,’ by Laura Chinn; ‘Walking Gentry Home,’ by Alora Young; ‘Fruit Punch,’ by Kendra Allen

NY Times Book Reviews - Thu, 08/04/2022 - 5:00am

Three women pay homage to their painful pasts with grace, lyricism and a sense of humor.

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