Recent Reviews
‘Us’: A fractured family’s trip into parenthood’s regrets
Author David Nicholls paints a picture of a summer holiday sprinkled with as much humor as tragedy.
Scott McCloud a gifted emcee for ‘Best American Comics’
The guest editor corrals the industry’s “usual suspects” and new stars alike while illuminating cultural shifts.
Three new sci-fi books to rattle your October
Novels by Jonathan Carroll, John Twelve Hawks and R.S. Belcher
A celebration of American reading from an Iranian author
The author of ‘Reading Lolita in Tehran’ dissects three classic American novels.
Book review: John Grisham’s ‘Gray Mountain’
A lawyer must choose between nonprofit legal work in Appalachia and a high-priced firm in New York.
Book review: ‘One Lucky Bastard’ by Roger Moore
In a new memoir, the former James Bond kisses and tells (kind of).
The view from inside the crematory
Caitlin Doughty describes her horrible and humorous life as a worker inside a crematory.
An elusive Senate leader
Alec MacGillis portrays Sen. Mitch McConnell’s hard-ball tactics and intense Republican partisanship.
The confusion of an historic hurricane
Adam Sobel and Kathryn Miles reveal the science and human tragedies of Hurricane Sandy in separate books.
Beer drinking your way through ages
William Bostwick takes readers on a personal tour of beer-making and tasting over the past 5000 years.
Soldier’s best friend
In “War Dogs,” Rebecca Frankel writes about dogs at war and the humans who handle them.
How women gained control of pregnancy
Jonathan Eig explores the medical and cultural journey toward the creation of the birth-control pill.
Book Review: ‘Tinseltown’ by William J. Mann
New clues — and new theories — in a long unsolved Hollywood murder mystery.
The wicked new alphabet book you must get
Oliver Jeffers’s “Once Upon an Alphabet” spells i-r-r-e-s-i-s-t-i-b-l-e.
Book review: ‘The Day of Atonement’ by David Liss
Pupil of one of historical fiction’s ‘most compelling action heroes’ stars in a twisty tale in 18th-century Lisbon.
No, “The Hurt Locker” movie is not based on that poem
War poet Brian Turner has never claimed credit for the movie’s title, but people keep insisting his poem was the inspiration.
Grab a seat at the table for an “Immortal Evening”
Stanley Plumly’s new book lets readers in on a dinner whose guests include Keats and Wordsworth.
National Book Awards finalists announced
The finalists include Pulitzer Prize winners Marilynne Robinson and E.O. Wilson and former U.S. Poet Laureate Louise Glück.
Book review: ‘J’ by Howard Jacobson a vision of anti-Semitism without end
This chilling tale of our anti-Semitic future was shortlisted for the 2014 Man Booker Prize.
Zilpha Keatley Snyder, celebrated children’s author, dies
“The Egypt Game” and other prize-winning books led readers into the terrain between fantasy and reality.
Short story collections to dive into this fall
Paul Theroux, David Guterson and Tony Earley have each turned out accomplished literary anthologies
Book review: ‘Leaving Time’ by Jodi Picoult
The bestselling author’s new novel explores maternal love, loss — and elephants.
Richard Flanagan wins Man Booker Prize
“The Narrow Road to the Deep North” describes the building of the Thailand-Burma Death Railway during World War II.
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‘The Lives of Others,’ by Neel Mukherjee
Shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize, Mukherjee’s novel describes an Indian family shaken by revolution.
How these 10 fossils explain life on Earth
In a new book, the origin of life on our planet is revealed through fossils.
New $25,000 prize for Catholic literary arts
The George W. Hunt Prize is funded by former Major League Baseball commissioner Fay Vincent.
‘Tehran Noir’ is more gray than black
In this anthology of short stories from Iran, the strongest contributors happen to be women.
Carolyn Kizer, poet with feminist point of view, dies at 89
Ms. Kizer, who won the Pulitzer Prize, often wrote about women’s concerns in her formally precise poetry.
Fundraiser put on highway to the danger zone
Celebrated writers delivered a short reading on the perilous theme during the PEN/Faulkner event.
How market fundamentalists got it all wrong
Edward Kleinbard and Jeff Madrick offer differing views to debunk the belief in the market-guided fixes.
Misery and miracles in the New World
Robin Varnum follows explorer Cabeza de Vaca on his hallucinatory trek through 16th century Americas.
Civil rights cold cases
Renee Romano follows the difficult path toward getting justice for civil rights murders committed years ago.
‘Retronaut: Photographic Time Machine,’ by Chris Wild
Eye-popping paintings and photographs of the past like you’ve never seen before.
‘How Star Wars Conquered the Universe,’ by Chris Taylor
New book delves into the past, present and future of the multibillion-dollar “Star Wars” franchise.
Keeping America safe from foreign poets
Homeland Security stopped the Jordanian-British poet Amjad Nasser from flying to a speaking engagement at New York University.
‘The Boy Who Drew Monsters,’ by Keith Donohue
Peter Straub says ‘Donohue always seems to know exactly what he is doing.’
Washington Post Bestsellers Oct. 12,2014
The books Washington has been reading.
‘Us’: A fractured family’s trip into parenthood’s regrets
Author David Nicholls paints a picture of a summer holiday sprinkled with as much humor as tragedy.
The wicked new alphabet book you must get
Oliver Jeffers’s “Once Upon an Alphabet” spells i-r-r-e-s-i-s-t-i-b-l-e.
No, “The Hurt Locker” movie is not based on that poem
War poet Brian Turner has never claimed credit for the movie’s title, but people keep insisting his poem was the inspiration.
Grab a seat at the table for an “Immortal Evening”
Stanley Plumly’s new book lets readers in on a dinner whose guests include Keats and Wordsworth.
‘The Complete Cosmicomics,’ by Italo Calvino
The early history of the universe is retold as a series of unhappy love affairs and old family legends.
‘The Getaway Car’ offers a new look at Donald Westlake
A new collection includes previously unpublished works and a too-brief autobiography by the crime writer.
Soldier’s best friend
In “War Dogs,” Rebecca Frankel writes about dogs at war and the humans who handle them.
The beginning of the tabloid age in politics
In “All the Truth Is Out,” Matt Bai chronicles the rise of the modern political scandal.
‘Embattled Rebel:’ A leader in defeat
James M. McPherson examines Jefferson Davis’s record as Confederate commander in chief.
Literary Calendar
Going Out Guide: Upcoming events
Get the latest on readings, signings and author appearances in the D.C. area.
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