Reviews Archive | Los Angeles Review of Books

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Always One More Time: On Walter Benjamin’s “One-Way Street” and “The Storyteller”
Michael Blum takes a fresh look at the shorter work of Walter Benjamin.
Michael BlumDec 13, 2016
- Fiction
- Philosophy & Religion
Field of Dreams: Public Higher Education in the United States
Paul Reitter and Chad Wellmon review Christopher Newfield’s new book on public universities.
Chad Wellmon, Paul ReitterDec 13, 2016
Now It Looks Like Camelot
Who was President Clinton? John Compton looks to Russell L. Riley's oral history "Inside the Clinton White House" to find out.
John ComptonDec 12, 2016
- History
- Politics
Scenes from the Uneasy Cafe
Greg Cullison looks to Kaya Genç's "Under the Shadow" to make sense Turkey's past few years of protest and tumult.
Greg CullisonDec 11, 2016
- Around the World
- Politics
Up Out of the Darkness: A New History of Monsters
Colin Dickey reviews Leo Braudy’s “Haunted: Witches, Vampires, Zombies, and Other Monsters of the Natural and Supernatural Worlds.”
Colin DickeyDec 11, 2016
- History
- Literary Criticism
To Read is to Choose
Christina Lupton on Matthew Rubery's "The Untold Story of the Talking Book."
Christina LuptonDec 11, 2016
- Cultural Studies
- Philosophy & Religion
Workers Are People: The Economics of the Immigration Debate
Nikita Lalwani and Sam Winter-Levy unravel George J. Borjas's immigration narrative.
Nikita Lalwani, Sam Winter-LevyDec 10, 2016
- Economics and Finance
- Politics
Solving Shakespeare’s Sonnets: Elaine Scarry’s “Naming Thy Name”
Who was Shakespeare’s fair youth? Matthew Harrison reviews Elaine Scarry’s “Naming Thy Name: Cross Talk in Shakespeare’s Sonnets.”
Matthew HarrisonDec 9, 2016
- Literary Criticism
Breaking Godwin’s Law: Stoddard Martin’s “Monstrous Century”
Houman Barekat appreciates the old-school rigor of “Monstrous Century: Essays in The Age of the Feuilleton” by Stoddard Martin.
Houman BarekatDec 8, 2016
Pig, Pig, Pig: Eating Spain with Matt Goulding
Matt Goulding fell in love with Spain, Spanish food, and his Spanish wife, in that order.
Samantha Reid AviñaDec 8, 2016
- Food & Drink
- History
Of Truth and Schmaltziness: Michael Chabon’s “Moonglow”
Menachem ponders the Chabonian mode of “Moonglow” by Michael Chabon.
Menachem KaiserDec 8, 2016
- Fiction
Blowing His Horn: The Twisted Fiction of Sarban
Sarban’s sadistic atavistic fantasy of an alternate Nazi future has unexpected, chilling resonance in the age of Putin, Trump, and Brexit.
Paul StJohn MackintoshDec 7, 2016
- SF
Cloud with Its Shadow
Bryony White on Marina Abramović's new memoir, "Walk Through Walls."
Bryony WhiteDec 7, 2016
- Art & Architecture
- Memoir & Essay
On Emily Witt’s “Future Sex”
Madeleine Watts tries to find out what we desire in Emily Witt's new book.
Madeleine WattsDec 6, 2016
Gestures That Transcend Borders
A review of Tom Lutz’s two new travel books.
Amalia NegrepontiDec 6, 2016
- Cultural Studies
- Memoir & Essay
In Free Fall: Anne Carson’s “Float” and Mary Ruefle’s “My Private Property”
Nina MacLaughlin on two new books by Anne Carson and Mary Ruefle.
Nina MacLaughlinDec 5, 2016
- Poetry