Reviews Archive | Los Angeles Review of Books

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Between East and West, I Lost Myself: “Refuge” by Dina Nayeri
Azarin Sadegh ventures through Dina Nayeri's "Refuge."
Azarin SadeghJul 21, 2017
- Fiction
Where We Run Out of Continent: On Daniel Riley’s “Fly Me”
Sarah Tomlinson appreciates the loving portrait of Southern California in “Fly Me” by Daniel Riley.
Sarah TomlinsonJul 21, 2017
- Fiction
Rough Men Standing Ready: On Mark Moyar’s History of US Special Ops
Henrik Bering vets “Oppose Any Foe: The Rise of America’s Special Operations Forces” by Mark Moyar.
Henrik BeringJul 20, 2017
- History
- Politics
Black-and-Gray Realism
Jason S. Sexton connects to the story of legendary Los Angeles tattoo artists Freddy Negrete, as told in his memoir, “Smile Now, Cry Later.”
Jason S. SextonJul 20, 2017
- Memoir & Essay
Pointing at the Wrong Villain: Cass Sunstein and Echo Chambers
David Weinberger on the problems of Cass R. Sunstein's "#Republic: Divided Democracy in the Age of Social Media."
David WeinbergerJul 20, 2017
Reverse Robin Hood: The Historical Scam of Global Development
When a world system is based on the creation of scarcity, it is the meek that inherit that scarcity.
Levi VonkJul 19, 2017
A Piece of the Action: Recent Books on the Digital Economy
Ron Hogan reviews three new books on the digital plutocracy.
Ron HoganJul 19, 2017
- Economics and Finance
- Science & Technology
The Folkloric and the Fantastic: Hiromi Kawakami’s “Record of a Night Too Brief”
M. W. Larson reviews Hiromi Kawakami's recently translated story collection "Record of a Night Too Brief."
M. W. LarsonJul 19, 2017
- Fiction
C. E. Morgan’s Great American Novel
Morten Høi Jensen appreciates “The Sport of Kings,” a great American novel by C. E. Morgan.
Morten Høi JensenJul 18, 2017
- Fiction
Pulling the Fire Alarm: The “L. A. Times” Editorial Board Versus the Bully-in-Chief
The “L. A. Times” editorial board indicts the 45th president.
Tom ZoellnerJul 18, 2017
- Politics
Traces of Glory: On Wilma Stockenström’s “The Expedition to the Baobab Tree”
Lily Saint appreciates the challenge to imperialism’s pernicious fictions in “The Expedition to the Baobab Tree” by Wilma Stockenström.
Lily SaintJul 18, 2017
- Around the World
- Fiction
Silicon Valley’s Bonfire of the Vainglorious
W. Patrick McCray looks at two new books about Silicon Valley, Mark O'Connell's "To Be a Machine" and Alexandra Wolfe's "Valley of the Gods."
W. Patrick McCrayJul 17, 2017
- Science & Technology
Has Society Reached Peak Globalization? On “Grave New World”
Does the retreat from globalization also mean the withering of democracy? A new book worries so, says our reviewer.
David TalbotJul 16, 2017
- Economics and Finance
- Politics
Wild Thing: A New Biography of Thoreau
A quiet bombshell of a biography that reclaims a revolutionary Thoreau for the 21st century.
Daegan MillerJul 16, 2017
- Biography & Autobiography
Can a Machine Be Alive?
Julien Crockett reviews Jessica Riskin's "The Restless Clock: A History of the Centuries-Long Argument over What Makes Living Things Tick."
Julien CrockettJul 14, 2017
- Philosophy & Religion
- Science & Technology
Talking, Not Listening: Paul Theroux Focuses on Family in “Mother Land”
Dave Seminara appreciates the family dynamics of “Mother Land,” by acclaimed travel writer and novelist Paul Theroux.
Dave SeminaraJul 13, 2017
- Fiction