Reviews Archive | Los Angeles Review of Books

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Black Threads in the Civic Quilt
Rahuldeep Gill considers Ta-Nehisi Coates's "We Were Eight Years in Power: An American Tragedy."
Rahuldeep Gill, Rahuldeep Singh GillOct 14, 2017
- Politics
Dystopian Surrealism for Our Times: Karin Tidbeck’s “Amatka”
Karin Tidbeck’s surrealist novel engages with the inertia of European democratic socialism and imagines a more liberated posthuman condition.
Irene MorrisonOct 14, 2017
- Around the World
- SF
The Experience of Mindfulness
Susan Kaiser Greenland reviews Thomas Joiner’s new book on the mindfulness movement.
Susan Kaiser GreenlandOct 13, 2017
- Religion
A Relic of Apartheid: Daniel Magaziner’s History of Art Education in South Africa
Alex Lichtenstein reviews Daniel Magaziner's "The Art of Life in South Africa."
Alex LichtensteinOct 12, 2017
- Around the World
- Art & Architecture
The Reader as First Interpreter: On Cristina García’s “Here in Berlin”
Michael Valinsky reviews Cristina García's novel "Here in Berlin."
Michael ValinskyOct 12, 2017
- Fiction
Remaking the University: Metrics Noir
A review of three trenchant critiques of the culture of metrics.
Christopher Newfield, Heather SteffenOct 11, 2017
- Politics
- Remaking the University
The Limits of Metaphor: Jeannie Vanasco’s “The Glass Eye”
Andrew Schenker appreciates “The Glass Eye” by Jeannie Vanasco, a memoir that explores the search for meaning and the limits of metaphor.
Andrew SchenkerOct 10, 2017
- Memoir & Essay
What If Your Neighbor Were a Retired Government Torturer? Irony and the Sublime in Geoff Nicholson’s “The Miranda”
Ramsey Mathews reviews Geoff Nicholson's "The Miranda."
Ramsey MathewsOct 10, 2017
- Fiction
Matters Large and Small: Reading Todd May’s “A Fragile Life” in the Wake of Hurricane Harvey
Robert Zaretsky reads “A Fragile Life” by Todd May in the wake of Hurricane Harvey.
Robert ZaretskyOct 10, 2017
- Philosophy & Religion
Between Tragedy and Opportunity: Lynne B. Sagalyn’s “Power at Ground Zero”
Stephen Petrus surveys “Power at Ground Zero” by Lynne B. Sagalyn.
Stephen PetrusOct 10, 2017
- Art & Architecture
- Cultural Studies
Money for Nothing
A book proposing a universal basic income makes some compelling arguments, but falls short of closing the deal, says our reviewer.
Benjamin CunninghamOct 9, 2017
- Economics and Finance
- Politics
The Once and Future Mark Lilla
Mark Lilla’s incendiary new book is at once a stirring call for liberal unity, and an argument that shows some defects on closer scrutiny.
Justin Dean LeeOct 9, 2017
- Politics
The Great Silence: A New Biography of Jens Peter Jacobsen
Dustin Illingworth reviews a new biography of forgotten Danish master Jens Peter Jacobsen.
Dustin IllingworthOct 8, 2017
- Biography & Autobiography
Democracy Wasn’t the Panacea for Myanmar
A new book lays bare the tensions still coursing through Myanmar, and lays some of the blame at the door of democracy’s hero, Aung San Suu Kyi.
Brandon TensleyOct 7, 2017
- Around the World
- Politics
The Polyphonic Stories: “Fresh Complaint” by Jeffrey Eugenides
Kevin Zambrano reviews Jeffrey Eugenides's new short story collection.
Kevin ZambranoOct 7, 2017
- Fiction
I Am Something That You’ll Never Comprehend: Remembering Prince
Sara Scribner considers three books that try to get at the essence of Prince.
Sara ScribnerOct 6, 2017