How Should A Person Be by Sheila Heti
“Every so often, this book approaches a solitary, troubled, deep, entirely personal intensity that flickers into acutenesss. (‘I see that I’ve done as little as anyone else in this world to deserve the grand moniker, I.’) But Heti never pursues that solitary note with the rigor that it deserves. It is easier, more charming, more hospitable, more successfully evasive, to bring in the gang of friends and get a ‘vaguely intelligent’ conversation going.” –James Wood, The New Yorker
The Lives of Things by José Saramago
“In this and other stories, Saramago allowed leftist doctrine, above all else, to guide his narratives. The result is something pamphlet-like, the author's literary imagination shackled to cant. Purely political criticism is indeed a vulgar exercise. But it may be a necessary one when, as in Saramago's work, literary ambition is so deeply compromised by toxic politics.” –Sohrab Ahmari, The Wall Street Journal
Dan Gets A Minivan: Life at the Intersection of Dude and Dad by Dan Zevin
“The book has apparently been optioned by Adam Sandler. That seems about right: funny, but, you know, not too funny.” –Dan Saltzstein, The New York Times
The Age of Miracles by Karen Thompson Walker
“It perfectly captures what it's like to be a teenager: always feeling like the world is going to end, waiting for the day when life goes back to normal, until you grow up and discover that it never really does.” –Melissa Maerz, Entertainment Weekly
A Nation of Wusses: How America's Leaders Lost the Guts to Make Us Great by Ed Rendell
“The Mayor is supposed to make a fool of himself on occasion, perhaps as a demonstration that he does not place himself above his constituents. I like to think of it as a demonstration of his commitment to the public good.” –Mark Bowden, The New Republic
The Genesis Race: Our Extraterrestrial DNA and the True Origins of the Species by Will Hart
“As for the end times, if extraterrestrial beings or gods guided the Mayans with their accurate calendars, 2012 AD is a likely end time. Did you notice that the US is getting ready to blow a hole into an extra-terrestrial comet? Hart's book and web site are recommended.” –Robert Berringer, Cloudrider Books