Nonfiction

"There is nothing more poetic and terrible than the skyscrapers' battle with the heavens that cover them." — Federico García Lorca

Mistrust on Both Sides: On Terry Lautz’s “Americans in China” and John Delury’s “Agents of Subversion”
Jeremiah Jenne reviews John Delury’s “Agents of Subversion: The Fate of John T. Downey and the CIA’s Covert War in China” and Terry Lautz’s “Americans in China: Encounters with the People’s Republic,” two books about the people who shaped the contours of United States–China relations in the 20th century.
Jeremiah JenneMar 5, 2023
- Nonfiction
Shelves Full of Bread: On Joan Ramon Resina’s “Cultures of Currencies”
Christoph Wulf reviews “Cultures of Currencies: Literature and the Symbolic Foundation of Money,” edited by Joan Ramon Resina.
Christoph WulfMar 5, 2023
- Nonfiction
The Flat Circle: On Jenny Odell’s “Saving Time”
Mary Retta reviews Jenny Odell’s “Saving Time: Discovering a Life Beyond the Clock.”
Mary RettaMar 2, 2023
- Nonfiction
Adventures in the Sky and Misadventures on the Ground: On William D. Kalt III’s “America’s 1890s Parachute Queen” and Jana Bommersbach and Bob Boze Bell’s “Hellraisers and Trailblazers”
Julie Morrison reviews two books about 19th-century Wild West women.
Julie MorrisonFeb 27, 2023
- Nonfiction
Unearthing Conflict and Complicity: On Kerri K. Greenidge’s “The Grimkes”
Elaine Elinson reviews Kerri K. Greenidge’s “The Grimkes: The Legacy of Slavery in an American Family.”
Elaine ElinsonFeb 15, 2023
- Nonfiction
A Quicksand of Narcissism: On Archway Editions’ “NDA” Anthology of Autofiction
Taylor Lewandowski reviews “NDA: An Autofiction Anthology,” edited by Caitlin Forst.
Taylor LewandowskiFeb 15, 2023
- Nonfiction
The Children of California Shall Be Our Children: On Malcolm Harris’s “Palo Alto”
Ben Beitler reviews Malcolm Harris’s “Palo Alto: A History of California, Capitalism, and the World.”
Ben BeitlerFeb 14, 2023
- Nonfiction
A Lost World: On Travis Zadeh’s “Wonders and Rarities”
Nile Green reviews Travis Zadeh‘s “Wonders and Rarities: The Marvelous Book That Traveled the World and Mapped the Cosmos.”
Nile GreenFeb 12, 2023
- Nonfiction
An Unnatural Spring: On Haruki Murakami’s “Novelist as a Vocation”
Robert Allen Papinchak reviews Haruki Murakami’s “Novelist as a Vocation,” translated by Philip Gabriel and Ted Goossen.
Robert Allen PapinchakFeb 10, 2023
- Nonfiction
When Perry Miller Invented America: On Abram C. Van Engen’s “City on a Hill”
Ed Simon reviews Abram C. Van Engen’s “City on a Hill: A History of American Exceptionalism.”
Ed SimonFeb 5, 2023
- Nonfiction
All Despotisms Must End: On Lydia Moland’s “Lydia Maria Child”
J. C. Hallman reviews Lydia Moland’s biography of a 19th-century abolitionist, “Lydia Maria Child: A Radical American Life.”
J. C. HallmanFeb 5, 2023
- Nonfiction
The Costs of Women’s Writing: On Devoney Looser’s “Sister Novelists”
Thomas McLean reviews Devoney Looser’s “Sister Novelists: The Trailblazing Porter Sisters, Who Paved the Way for Austen and the Brontës.”
Thomas McLeanFeb 2, 2023
- Nonfiction