Fiction

"Fiction is obliged to stick to possibilities. Truth isn't." — Mark Twain

America First: Reading “The Plot Against America” in the Age of Trump
Mark P. Bresnan views the rise of Donald Trump through the lens of “The Plot Against America” by Philip Roth.
Mark P. BresnanSep 11, 2016
- Fiction
- Politics
A Clanking Ride to an Uncertain Freedom
“The Underground Railroad” makes claims about history and the present that are much less straightforward than the hype around the novel would suggest.
Matt SandlerSep 10, 2016
- Fiction
Against Accessibility: On Robert Irwin, Chinua Achebe, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, and Imbolo Mbue’s “Behold the Dreamers”
As Imbolo Mbue's "Behold the Dreamers" comes out, Tope Folarin considers what kind of novel we expect from African writers.
Tope FolarinSep 8, 2016
- Fiction
A Nomad Between Worlds
Erdağ Göknar discusses Mohed Altrad’s “Badawi” and the complexity of tradition versus modernity in the Middle East and Europe.
Erdağ GöknarSep 6, 2016
- Fiction
Bugs Bunny, the Novel, and Transnationalism
Ysabelle Cheung talks to Xu Xi about her new novel, "That Man in Our Lives."
Ysabelle CheungSep 4, 2016
- Fiction
Novels in Third Places: The Case for More Classrooms in Our Literature
Jenny Davidson on the importance of classrooms in literature.
Jenny DavidsonSep 1, 2016
- Fiction
Reading in a World of Wonderlands
Have you really read "Alice in Wonderland" until you've read it in Esperanto? Rebecca L. Walkowitz finds out in her review of "Alice in a World of Wonders."
Rebecca L. WalkowitzAug 31, 2016
Outside the Tent: Ludmila Ulitskaya’s Latest Novel and the End of an Era
Marijeta Bozovic examines “The Big Green Tent,” a sprawling elegiac novel by Ludmila Ulitskaya, and finds hope in the younger generation of Russian poets.
Marijeta BozovicAug 30, 2016
- Fiction
Historical Mysteries: Sarah Kaufman Returns
“Rule of Capture” presents a biting commentary on the uneasy truce between Latino L.A. and the city’s entrenched political, cultural, and economic elites.
Abel SalasAug 23, 2016
- Fiction
- Noir
Remembering How It Felt to Burn: Robin Wasserman’s “Girls on Fire”
Robin Wasserman's "Girls on Fire" is a mystery and a tangled love triangle and a ruthless thriller, and it’s satisfying and troubling on all these levels.
Briallen HopperAug 21, 2016
- Fiction
“The Cauliflower”: Deconstruction of a Hindu Mystic’s Spiritual Legacy
Anita Felicelli on Nicola Barker's "The Cauliflower".
Anita FelicelliAug 19, 2016
- Fiction
The Great Slovenian Novel
Zack Hatfield on Lojze Kovačič "Newcomers: Book One".
Zack HatfieldAug 18, 2016