Book Review
The Sweet Indifference of the World
In Peter Stamm’s philosophical novel "The Sweet Indifference of the World", writers and actors who’re struggling to make art become a means of exploring both identity and reality. Christoph is a writer who sends Lena, a young...
Book Review
Big Familia
In Tomas Moniz’s bighearted novel "Big Familia", a man comes to terms with changes in his family, his neighborhood, and himself. Juan Gutiérrez lives with his daughter, Stella, in a gentrifying neighborhood in Berkeley. Stella is...
Book Review
Exquisite Mariposa
Fiona Alison Duncan’s "Exquisite Mariposa" is a funny, thought-provoking novel that levels pointed critiques at gender and class inequality and captures what it’s like to be a young person today. The novel’s narrator—a woman in...
Book Review
Harbart
Nabarun Bhattacharya’s "Harbart" is a wild ride—a short novel that documents the unexpected rise and precipitous fall of Harbart’s fortunes in vibrant, humorous prose. The novel opens with a scene of debauchery that is followed by...
Book Review
Mr. K Released
Matéi Visniec’s "Mr. K Released" is a delightfully absurd and surreal novel about the disorienting qualities of freedom. Mr. K, called Kosef J in a nod to Kafka, finds himself released from prison. He is jubilant but also confused by...
Book Review
Among the Lost
Emiliano Monge’s "Among the Lost" is a harrowing novel about migration and human trafficking, told from the points of view of both victims and victimizers. Set in an unnamed country that resembles Mexico and taking place over the...
Book Review
Flannelwood
Raymond Luczak’s novel "Flannelwood" is a subtle, sexy exploration of love gained and lost—and a moving literary tribute to Djuna Barnes and her groundbreaking novel Nightwood. Bill, a forty-year-old MFA who’s getting by with a...
Book Review
The Stonewall Riots
Marc Stein’s The Stonewall Riots: A Documentary History is an essential collection of primary sources including newspaper articles, opinion pieces, court documents, and photos that place a central event in LGBTQ+ history in context....