| New and notable book releases for spring and summer.
· Samuel Beckett: Anatomy of a Literary Revolution by Pascale Casanova (Verso Press, 160 pp.) – Slim volume discusses Beckett’s work historiographically. Academic and politically charged, Beckett fans will want to check it out. Intro by Terry Eagleton.
· Nuns: A History of Convent Life by Silvia Evangelisti (Oxford University Press, 304 pp.) – Detailed, thoroughly researched history of the cloistered life, from St. Teresa of Avila to the modern day.
· Deep Alberta: Fossil Facts and Dinosaur Digs by John Acorn (University of Alberta Press, 200 pp.) – Cretaceous lizards, parkosaurus, Tyrannosaurus rex – this colourful museum book has info an all your favourite Alberta dinos, with concise entries and great photos.
· The Wall of the Sky, the Wall of the Eye by Jonathan Lethem (Harcourt, 304 pp.) – Reissue of a collection of surreal short stories, with a white collar zombie and a man whose lovers molecularly implode after meeting him.
· David Golder by Irène Némirovsky (Vintage Canada, 176 pp.) – Early novel from the French author, whose undiscovered Suite Francaise was publicized to wide acclaim last year. Moralistic tale of a man’s rise to wealth, causing him to disconnect with his family.
· The Solitude of Thomas Cave by Georgia Harding (Bloomsbury U.K., 256 pp.) – Creepy novel with echoes of Poe and Lovecraft, of a man who makes a wager (in 1616) to leave his whaling ship and survive the fall in the Arctic. An oddity that should find its cult audience.
· Voices from the Street by Philip K. Dick (Tor Books, 304 pp.) – Dick’s first novel, now in print, about a working man’s slide into insanity. Like Theodore Drieser on speed, not sci-fi, but a must-read for fans anyway.
· The Lying Tongue by Andrew Wilson (Atria, 320 pp.) – Debut novel from Wilson, who also penned a great biography on Patricia Highsmith. Clever mystery of a disgraced author in exile and his inquisitive assistant. Echoes Highsmith’s own artful chillers.
· Descartes by A.C. Grayling (Simon & Schuster, 368 pp.) – Graying, himself a philosopher, gives an absorbing account of the scientist and mathematician.
· The End of East by Jen Sookfong Lee (Knopf Canada, 256 pp.) – Debut from Vancouver author is a family drama following three generations of a Chinese family. Usual elegant Can-lit.
· Ja, No, Man – Richard Poplak (Penguin Canada, 344 pp.) – Memoir of growing up white in Apartheid-era South Africa. Well-trod territory, but funny and unsettling, done with an eye for pop culture and slang.
· Paris: The Secret History by Andrew Hussey (Bloomsbury USA, 512 pp.) – 2000 years of history seen from the seamy underbelly, from Napoleon to existentialism.
· Stacked: A 32 DDD Reports from the Front by Susan Seligson (Bloomsbury USA, 240 pp.) – An ode to breasts, not historical so much as a cultural treatise.
· Knots by Nuruddin Farah (Penguin, 432 pp.) – Perennial Nobel favourite’s new novel follows a Somali woman, Cambara, raised in North America, who returns to a country she barely recognizes. Farah’s novel packs a lot in, often leading to awkward, distracting prose, but Cambara is a wonderfully realized heroine.
· Poet’s Choice by Edward Hirsch (Harcourt, 456 pp.) – Volume brings together the poet and critic’s musings on verse. Won’t make converts out of non-poetry readers, but Hirsch’s bite-sized pieces are playful and precise.
· Ace of Spades by David Matthews (Henry Holt, 320 pp.) – Matthews was abandoned by his mother at birth, told he was Jewish and raised by a black activist and his blonde hippie wife. Dull and lackadaisical tone leads the book astray.
· Afterwards by Rachel Seiffert (Knopf Canada, 336 pp.) – British author’s new book is a dour tale of guilt and love between a nurse and painter, set against Ireland during "the troubles." Depressing novel of the well-mined "war is hell" genre given a lift by Seiffert’s odd structure and icy prose.
· The Scorpion’s Sweet Venom by Bruna Surfistinha (Bloomsbury UK, 176 pp.) – Slim volume by 21-year-old Brazillian blogger and ex-prostitute, detailing her sexual exploits. Not nearly as good as it sounds. Has sold more than 250,000 copies in Brazil, due apparently to its lame "advice" passages and rote sexual acrobatics.
· Spymistress: The Life of Vera Atkins, the Greatest Female Secrent Agent of World War II by William Stevenson (Arcade, 384 pp.) – Bio of the famous British spy, who hunted Nazi war criminals after the war ended. Atkins was extremely private about her secret spy life and agreed only to reveal it to Stevenson, to be published after her death.
· Him Her Him Again The End of Him by Patricia Marx (Scribner, 240 pp.) – Former Saturday Night Live writer’s wacky tale of obsessive love, sex and academia – misanthropic and hilarious.
· Jesus Land by Julia Scheeres (Counterpoint Press, 363 pp.) – Published to acclaim last year in the U.S., now available in Canada, journalist Scheeres’s memoir of growing up in ’80s Indiana with her adopted brother David, who is black, a Bible-thumping mother and abusive father. At times painfully raw, but compelling.
· Collected Poems 1956-1998 by Zbigniew Herbert (HarperCollins Canada, 624 pp.) – Nine years after his death, the brilliant Polish poet’s work has been collected in whole. Skillfully translated by Alissa Valles.
· Salt Rain by Sarah Armstrong (MacAdam Cage, 230 pp.) – Some of the best prose today is coming out of Australia, and you can add this novel to the list. Armstrong’s debut of a young girl growing up on her aunt’s farm after her mother’s mysterious death is sparse and full of pathos, rich with the land and those trying to build a life on dry, cracked dirt.
· The Meaning of Life by Terry Eagleton (Oxford University Press, 200 pp.) – Famed literary critic tackles the big question. Short, erudite volume with examples ranging from Schopenhauer to Monty Python.
· The History of Vegas by Jodi Angel (Chronicle Books, 192 pp.) – Collection of short stories dealing with bored twentysomethings engaging in drugs and sex.
· Skids by Cathleen With (Arsenal Pulp Press, 152 pp.) – More short stories dealing with the down-and-out. With’s tales of lost Vancouver kids strays too far into a distracting, barely-literate teenage vernacular.
· Other People’s Property: A Shadow History of Hip-Hop in White America by Jason Tanz (Bloomsbury USA, 272 pp.) – White kids stealing hip hop culture isn’t anything new, but Tanz delves further into a culture of corporate shilling and subgenres, like nerdcore.
· Ten Days in the Hills by Jane Smiley (Knopf Canada, 464 pp.) – Fantastic new novel from the Pulitzer Prize-winner, documenting 10 days of Hollywood debauchery, loosely modelled on Boccaccio’s Decameron. Hilarious and full of sex and backstabbing – one of this year’s best.
· Power of Art by Simon Schama (Viking Canada, 416 pp.) – Beautiful hardcover featuring eight essays of "art as revolution," from Caravaggio to Rothko.
· A Game as Old as Empire: The Secret World of Economic Hit Men and the Web of Global Corruption, edited by Steven Hiatt (Berrett-Koehler Publishers, 310 pp.) – Companion to John Perkins’s Confessions of an Economic Hitman, a series of shocking essays looking at sinister economic dealings from offshore banking to Nigerian oil and the World Bank.
· Better: A Surgeon’s Notes on Performance by Atul Gawande (Metropolitan Books, 288 pp.) – Surgeon and writer Gawande’s (Complications) collection of essays on the pursuit of perfection in modern medicine, from hygiene to birth and malpractice cases.
· Liberty: The Lives and Times of Six Women in Revolutionary France by Lucy Moore (HarperCollins Canada, 496 pp.) – Moore animates the lives of her heroines with a novelistic flare to create an engrossing history full of sex, violence and tragedy. Some background in the French Revolution helps.
· Leni: The Life and Work of Leni Riefenstahl by Steven Bach (Knopf Canada, 400 pp.) – Masterful and damning biography of the German filmmaker best known for her documentary Triumph of the Will, a work of propaganda made during the Nuremberg Rally, glorifying the Nazi Regime. Riefenstahl spent her life denying knowledge of the concentration camps, but as Bach’s bio shows, she was no innocent. Could have used more insight into her later years, but a great read nonetheless.
· The Line Painter by Claire Cameron (HarperCollins Canada, 232 pp.) – Pulpy, terse debut about a woman who catches a ride with the wrong trucker. Lesson: people who pick up hitchhikers tend to be insane murderers.
· The Sweet Scent of Death by Guillermo Arriaga (Washington Square Press, 160 pp.) – Largely unsatisfying tale of lust and revenge from the screenwriter of 21 Grams and Babel.
· Kafka by Robert Crumb and David Zane Mairowitz (Fantagraphics Books, 176 pp.) – Illustrated biography of the Czech author, with illustrated synopses of his novels and short stories. Ideal for Crumb fans and as an intro for those looking for a concise Kafka bio.
· Nebula Awards Showcase 2007 (Roc, 400 pp.), edited by Mike Resnick – Great volume with this year’s Nebula winners, with additional essays and fiction from Harlan Ellison, Robert J. Sawyer and others.
· Horseradish: Bitter Truths You Can’t Avoid by Lemony Snicket (HarperCollins Canada, 176 pp.) – Collection of aphorisms from the Series of Unfortunate Events scribe. Fun – serious, even – but will probably only appeal to fans.
· My Father’s Secret War: A Memoir by Lucinda Franks (Miramax Books, 320 pp.) – Pulitzer-prize winning journalist’s memoir of her haunted father’s secret past as a Second World War spy. Brutally honest, at times uncomfortably so, but an absorbing, historical tale of suspense.
· Tent Boxing: An Australian Journey by Wayne Mclennan (Granta Books, 256 pp.) – Memoir/travelogue following the history of Aboriginal tent boxing in Australia. Somewhat dull coming-of-age tale/sports book.
· How Doctors Think by Jerome Groopman, M.D. (Houghton Mifflin, 320 pp.) – Fascinating look at the inner workings of the medical profession and how to create better communication between doctors and patients.
· Extraordinary Evil: A Brief History of Genocide by Barbara Coloroso (Viking Canada, 224 pp.) – Coloroso applies her work in bullying and conflict resolution to historical genocide, its causes and implications. Broad, overarching principles made compelling with Coloroso’s research and humanist touch.
· 40 Days and 40 Nights: Darwin, Intelligent Design, God, OxyContin and Other Oddities on Trial in Pennsylvania by Matthew Chapman (HarperCollins Canada, 288 pp.) – Surreal tale of the Kizmiller vs. Dover Board of Education trial, with intelligent design going toe-to-toe with evolution. Chapman – the great, great grandson of Charles Darwin – has a journalist’s eye for details, writing an account unbiased, scary and human.
· Nine by Andrzej Stasiuk (Harcourt, 240 pp.) – Polish author’s tale of a generation of post-communist Polish youth set adrift. Gritty and exhausting social drama.
· America Youth by Phil Lamarche (Knopf Canada, 240 pp.) – Surreal debut of an American boy caught in a cult of school violence. Taught and painful – recommended.
· God is Not Great: How Religion Poisons Everything by Christopher Hitchens (McClelland & Stewart, 320 pp.) – Polarizing journalist/polemicist’s latest target, religion, gets a good thrashing. Hitchens’s latest zealous turn as a neo-con makes this new work more than a little didactic and suspect, but an entertaining, thought provoking read as always.
· Animal, Vegetable, Miracle: A Year of Food Life by Barbara Kingsolver (HarperCollins Canada, 384 pp.) – Kingsolver’s latest is fantastic, following her family as they spend a year buying locally and growing their own food. Full of odd detours into farming and agricultural production, recipes and more.
· The Pesthouse by Jim Crace (Bond Street Books, 272 pp.) – Post-apocalyptic tale with echoes of Cormac McCarthy’s The Road. Crace’s genre-bending approach provides one of the best voices in modern fiction and this lonely tale about a disease-ravaged America is one of his best.
· After Dark by Haruki Murakami (Bond Street Books, 208 pp.) – Another metaphysical mystery from the deservedly popular Japanese author. More somber than his previous works, but fans will want to check it out.
· Rant by Chuck Palahniuk (Doubleday Canada, 336 pp.) – Cult author’s new twisted novel is an oral history of the rabies-infected Buster Casey, who may or may not be the most prolific serial killer in history. Not as grotesque as his last novel, Haunted, but the structure (in the vein of George Plimpton’s Edie and other oral biographies) makes it just as impenetrable. Still, Palahniuk continues to surprise and hone his macabre esthetic with each novel, and this ranks among his best.
· The Mistress’s Daughter by A.M. Homes (Viking Canada, 240 pp.) – Best-selling author Homes’s memoir of adoption and the search for family history. Homes’s encounters with her birth mother, a needy hypochondriac and her father, a wealthy, married jerk leads to a mystery of buried secrets and forgotten pasts. Her pared-down prose is perfectly suited to this strange, candid tale.
· Batman: Detective by Paul Dini (DC Comics, 144 pp.) – The first volume of the Paul Dini-led Detective Comics. Dini (who, among other Batman achievements created the character Harley Quinn, the Joker’s insane girlfriend) returns the Dark Knight to his crime-fighting glory, as each issue is presented as a stand-alone story – using the huge cast of characters and mythology present in the Batman universe, but open to fans who don’t collect each monthly title or mini-series. Recommended.
· My Side of the Story by Will Davis (Bloomsbury UK, 256 pp.) – Gay coming-of-age tale of a young British kid named Jarold who dreams of boys at the local club. Somewhat smart, sensitive tale derailed by "I’m like," "He’s Like," prose that’s more lazy and uninspired than it is witty.
· Easter Everywhere: A Memoir by Darcey Steinke (Bloomsbury USA, 240 pp.) – Steinkey’s memoir of growing up a stuttering tomboy with a transient, minister father is both a raw biography and intelligent rumination on the nature of faith.
· Anthem of a Reluctant Prophet by Joanne Proulx (Viking Canada, 336 pp.) – Smart and punchy novel about a young man, Luke, whose prophetic vision of a friend’s tragic death sends his life into turmoil. Seems marketed to teens, but should appeal to anyone looking for strange, pop culture-driven writing.
· The Average American Male by Chad Kultgen (HarperCollins Canada, 256 pp.) – Part cruelly compelling, part annoyingly dumb and all-around dismal novel about a young man working, eating and fucking (mostly fucking) his way through life. Avoid.
· US Guys: The True and Twisted Mind of the American Man by Charlie LeDuff (Penguin, 256 pp.) – Weak premise of travelling through America to find out what makes the average male tick instead becomes a strange, often hilarious collection of freakish set-pieces, from unemployed clowns to grumpy detectives.
· The Biggest Modern Woman of the World by Susan Swan (Lester, Orpen and Denny, 360 pp.) – The Governor General’s Award-nominated classic, now back in print. The semi-fictionalized story of the Nova Scotia-born Anna Swan, who was seven foot six and weighed 413 pounds and later became part of P.T. Barnum’s museum of freaks, influenced Barbara Gowdy and other writers finding humanity in the strange and marginalized. Still a powerful classic – highly recommended.
· Inner Workings: Literary Essays 2000-2005 by J.M. Coetzee (Harvill Secker, 256 pp.) – Collection of essays, forewords and reviews from the Nobel Prize-winner, on everyone from Graham Greene to Samuel Beckett and Philip Roth. |
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