When you shop through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. This educational content is not intended to be a substitute for professional advice.
20 Best Book Critics (2023 Update)
Are you looking for the Best Book Critics? If so, you’ve come to the right place.
Choosing the Best Book Critics can be difficult as there are so many considerations, such as LEGO, Lion Brand, Nintendo, Penguin Random House, Amazon.com. We have done a lot of research to find the Top 20 Best Book Critics available.
The average cost is $24.15. Sold comparable range in price from a low of $8.89 to a high of $78.36.
Based on the research we did, we think Inside the Critics’ Circle: Book Reviewing in Uncertain Times [Book] is the best overall. Read on for the rest of the great options and our buying guide, where you can find all the information you need to know before making an informed purchase.
20 Best Book Critics (20 Sellers)
Product Image | Product Name | Features | Check Price |
---|---|---|---|
|
|||
|
|||
|
|||
|
|||
|
|||
|
|||
|
|||
|
|||
|
|||
|
|||
|
|||
|
|||
|
|
||
|
|||
|
|||
|
|||
|
|||
|
|||
|
|||
|
|
Features:
- Series: princeton studies in cultural sociology
- Binding type: paperback
- Publisher: princeton university press
Features:
- Binding type: paperback
- Publisher: penguin putnam inc
- Year published: 2017-02-07
Features:
- Binding type: paperback
- Year published: 2019-05-11
- Number of pages: 536
Features:
- Winner of the 2001 national book award for fiction
- Nominated for the national book critics circle award
- An american library association notable book
Features:
- Series: vintage international
- Binding type: paperback
- Publisher: random house usa inc
Features:
- Real life : riverhead books : 9780525538899 : 16 feb 2021 : a finalist for the 2020 booker prize.
- A new york times editors' choice.
- A novel of startling intimacy, violence, and mercy among friends in a midwestern university town, from an electric new voice.
Features:
- Binding type: paperback
- Publisher: black cat
- Year published: 20210216
Features:
- Author: peng shepherd
- Languages: english
- Product format: paperback / softback
Features:
- Binding type: paperback
- Year published: 2002-04-02
- Number of pages: 816
Features:
- Over two million copies sold! a new york times, usa today, wall street journal, and publishers weekly bestseller poignant, engrossing.
- People – lisa wingate takes an almost unthinkable chapter in our nation's history and weaves a tale of enduring power.
- Paula mclain memphis, 1939.
$78.36
Features:
- Critical response to lear's literary, journalistic, musical and artistic output.
- Binding type: hardback.
- Publisher: boydell & brewer ltd.
$23.99
Features:
- Binding type: paperback
- Publisher: xlibris
- Year published: 2010-06-08
Features:
- Binding type: hardback
- Publisher: penguin press
- Year published: 2017-03-14
Features:
- The dust jacket if present may be marked and have considerable heavy wear or might be missing.
- The book might be ex-library copy and may have the markings and stickers associated from the library.
- The book may have some highlights/notes/underlined pages.
Features:
- New york times "magisterial.".
- The new yorker "an intoxicating writer.".
- The atlantic "a classic!".
Features:
- Finalist for the national book critics circle award in criticism
- 1 book of the year from brain pickings
- Named a best book of the year by npr, newsweek, slate, pop sugar, marie claire, elle, publishers weekly, and lit hub
$27.95
5.0
Features:
- Winner of the 2018 national book critics circle award for nonfiction
- Longlisted for the 2018 national book award for nonfiction
$48.95$39.16
Features:
- Binding type: paperback
- Publisher: taylor & francis ltd
- Year published: 2020-09-30
$15.81
5.0
Features:
- Binding type: paperback
- Publisher: penguin putnam inc
- Year published: 2022-02-15
1. Inside The Critics’ Circle: Book Reviewing In Uncertain Times [Book]
Product Details:
Drawing on interviews with critics from such venues as the new york times, los angeles times, and washington post, phillipa chong delves into the complexities of the review-writing process, including the considerations, values, and cultural and personal anxieties that shape what critics do.chong explores how critics are paired with review assignments, why they accept these time-consuming projects, how they view their own qualifications for reviewing certain books, and the criteria they employ when making literary judgments. she discovers that while their readers are of concern to reviewers, they are especially worried about authors on the receiving end of reviews. as these are most likely peers who will be returning similar favors in the future, critics’ fears and frustrations factor into their willingness or reluctance to write negative reviews.at a time when traditional review opportunities are dwindling while other forms of reviewing thrive, book reviewing as a professional practice is being brought into question. inside the critics’ circle offers readers a revealing look into critics’ responses to these massive transitions and how, through their efforts, literary values get made.
2. Better Living Through Criticism: How To Think About Art, Pleasure, Beauty, And Truth [Book]
Product Details:
Yet what a.o. with penetrating insight and warm humor, scott shows that while individual critics–himself included–can make mistakes and find flaws where they shouldn't, criticism as a discipline is one of the noblest, most creative, and urgent activities of modern existence.using his own film criticism as a starting point–everything from his infamous dismissal of the international blockbuster the avengers to his intense affection for pixar's animated ratatouille–scott expands outward, easily guiding readers through the complexities of rilke and shelley, the origins of chuck berry and the rolling stones, the power of marina abramovich and 'ode on a grecian urn.' drawing on the long tradition of criticism from aristotle to susan sontag, scott shows that real criticism was and always will be the breath of fresh air that allows true creativity to thrive. "the time for criticism is always now," scott explains, "because the imperative to think clearly, to insist on the necessary balance of reason and passion, never goes away."
3. The Road [Book]
Product Details:
National bestsellerpulitzer prize winner national book critic's circle award finalist – a new york times notable book – one of the best books of the year – the boston globe, the christian science monitor, the denver post, the kansas city star, los angeles times, new york, people, rocky mountain news, time, the village voice, the washington post – the searing, postapocalyptic novel destined to become cormac mc – carthy's masterpiece. – a father and his son walk alone through burned america. nothing moves in the ravaged landscape save the ash on the wind. it is cold enough to crack stones, and when the snow falls it is gray. the sky is dark. their destination is the coast, although they don't know what, if anything, awaits them there. they have nothing; just a pistol to defend themselves against the lawless bands that stalk the road, the clothes they are wearing, a cart of scavenged food—and each other. – the road is the profoundly moving story of a journey. it boldly imagines a future in which no hope remains, but in which the father and his son, "each the other's world entire," are sustained by love.
Specifications:
Weight | 1.48 lb |
Reviews:
I was assigned to read this book for my college literature and composition class and I was surprised at how good the actual story is. It is written in beautiful language, and has an incredible story about a father and his son in post-apocalypic America. They are heading south, where its warmer, and encounter several distractions. The only problem I have with this book, which is a BIG problem, is the grammar. My professor told us about this, and that it is something that Cormac McCarthy often does, however after about a quarter through the book I couldn't understand if the characters were talking or if it was being narrated. It is similar to this: The boy looked up at his dad and asked are we going south. Yes the dad said to the boy, that is where we are going. Because it is warm there right, the boy said. The dad thought for a second yes that is exactly why we are going there. (No quatation marks or paragraph changes) Once you get used to this however, it becomes a great book.colesunday7
The Road won Cormac McCarthy the Pulitzer. It is a well written and interesting novel. McCarthy is perhaps America's very best. His talent is undeniable. That being said, The Road is not his best work. It did not produce the sense of constant suspense of No Country for Old Men. The Road is a very good, very readable novel. It is not McCarthy's masterpiece.JIM
The writing is sparce and beautiful, near poetry. And yet it is about the most horrific scenario: a post apocolyptic landscape of danger and death, this bleak simplicity where a man and his son walk the main road in the midst of nuclear and perhaps humanity's winter. "The Road" examines hope as the prime motivator of life. It poses the question "what is living" and what one will do to sustain a life. Is being alive the same as living? Where does love come into the equation of life and living? Father and son walk the most dangerous road avoiding beggars/ cannibals/murderers. Still they are in search of life, always looking for the "good guys" all the while with only a smidgen of hope sustained by their love and need of one another's company and the father's memories of a life not so bleak. But they may be as dead as the world around them. This is an overwhelming and powerful book. Not for someone looking for an upbeat story.arttoots
4. The Picture Of Dorian Gray: Authoritative Texts, Backgrounds, Reviews And Reactions, Criticism [Book]
Product Details:
This norton critical edition includes: the 1890 (lippincott's magazine) version and the 1891 (book) version of the novel. under the editorial guidance of wilde scholar michael patrick gillespie, students have the opportunity to comparatively read and analyze both texts of this controversial novel. – editorial matter by michael patrick gillespie." backgrounds" and "reviews and reactions" sections that allow readers to gauge the picture of dorian gray's sensational reception and to consider the heated public debate over art and morality that followed–including oscar wilde's vehement replies to individual critics. – seven critical essays–six of them new to the third edition–that address the novel's major themes: aestheticism, decadence, and vice. contributors include joseph carroll, nils clausson, emily eells, michael patrick gillespie, richard haslam, donald l. lawler, and ellen scheible. – a chronology and a selected bibliography. – about the series – read by more than 12 million students over fifty-five years, norton critical editions set the standard for apparatus that is right for undergraduate readers. the three-part format–annotated text, contexts, and criticism–helps students to better understand, analyze, and appreciate the literature, while opening a wide range of teaching possibilities for instructors. whether in print or in digital format, norton critical editions provide all the resources students need.
Specifications:
5. The Corrections: A Novel [Book]
Product Details:
Winner of the 2001 national book award for fiction – nominated for the national book critics circle award – an american library association notable book – jonathan franzen's third novel, the corrections, is a great work of art and a grandly entertaining overture to our new century: a bold, comic, tragic, deeply moving family drama that stretches from the midwest at mid-century to wall street and eastern europe in the age of greed and globalism. franzen brings an old-time america of freight trains and civic duty, of cub scouts and christmas cookies and sexual inhibitions, into brilliant collision with the modern absurdities of brain science, home surveillance, hands-off parenting, do-it-yourself mental healthcare, and the anti-gravity new economy. with the corrections, franzen emerges as one of our premier interpreters of american society and the american soul. – enid lambert is terribly, terribly anxious. although she would never admit it to her neighbors or her three grown children, her husband, alfred, is losing his grip on reality. maybe it's the medication that alfred takes for his parkinson's disease, or maybe it's his negative attitude, but he spends his days brooding in the basement and committing shadowy, unspeakable acts. more and more often, he doesn't seem to understand a word enid says. – trouble is also brewing in the lives of enid's children. her older son, gary, a banker in philadelphia, has turned cruel and materialistic and is trying to force his parents out of their old house and into a tiny apartment. the middle child, chip, has suddenly and for no good reason quit his exciting job as a professor at d—— college and moved to new york city, where he seems to be pursuing a "transgressive" lifestyle and writing some sort of screenplay. meanwhile the baby of the family, denise, has escaped her disastrous marriage only to pour her youth and beauty down the drain of an affair with a married man–or so gary hints. – enid, who loves to have fun, can still look forward to a final family christmas and to the ten-day nordic pleasurelines luxury fall color cruise that she and alfred are about to embark on. but even these few remaining joys are threatened by her husband's growing confusion and unsteadiness. as alfred enters his final decline, the lamberts must face the failures, secrets, and long-buried hurts that haunt them as a family if they are to make the corrections that each desperately needs.
Specifications:
Reviews:
Jonathan Franzen's "The Corrections" doesn't mention the names George W. Bush or Osama bin Laden once and yet the book, which was published on September 1, 2001, eerily anticipates the major issues that have transpired since September 11. Franzen creates a nation kept awake at night by nameless dread in his second sentence: "You could feel it: something terrible was going to happen." Franzen uses his main characters- the Lamberts, a Midwestern family with three adult children who resist their mother's hysterical insistence that they make it home for Christmas- to expound on many of the themes that have dominated the first decade of the twenty-first century: global warming, economic recession, HMOs, psychopharmaceuticals, viral marketing, Eastern European instability, even the organic food movement. Readers familiar with the book's history know that Oprah Winfrey selected "The Corrections" for her book club, but Franzen made some ungracious comments about being in the company of her past "schmaltzy" selections. He was labeled elitist, and she withdrew the invitation. But even this controversy was prophetic, as a strain of anti-intellectualism has become prevalent in the national conversation, as exemplified by George W. Bush's avowed suspicion of "fancy talk." In truth, "The Corrections" is anything but elitist. The novel is a warm social epic, the sort of cultural commentary that many novelists have tried to write since September 11. Because Franzen got there before the 9/11 problem- an event too big to be ignored and too unwieldy to be taken head-on- his book serves as an excellent idea that our culture can be neatly divided into "before" and "after," the events about which others struggle to write.theestatepreserve
Jonathan Franzen's THE CORRECTIONS may one day be seen as wickedly funny satire. For many readers, though, it will be so true to life that they will miss the satirical aspects. Meet the Lamberts. Well, there are the aging midwestern parents, Alfred and Enid. Are they like your parents? Probably, but if you are lucky the resemblance isn't too close. Alfred is Having Problems and Enid is losing her patience with him. Meanwhile, they have Three Beautiful Children. Gary is the oldest. He lives in Philadelphia. He has a beautiful rich wife and three beautiful sons. And his life is a parade of depression. Then comes Chip, the academic (and presumably more like people Mr. Franzen has MET than like Mr. Franzen himself). Chip is a screwup. He has lost his job teaching at a liberal arts college in a spectacular way. Now he is in New York, trying hard to get some traction on his book. He is broke and his parents have come to visit on their way to an OCean Cruise. And then there is Denise, the younger sister, whose life only seems OK when she compares it to Chip's. Franzen has a remarkable eye for detail and his depictions of conversations between adult children and their parents sometimes ring so true that you get a headache. He presents the dawn of the 21st century, with Buyouts, IPOs and Central European upheavals in a way that really is funny, if you can just step back and be glad this isn't happening to you. This book is Franzen's third novel. The previous ones were workmanlike, but nowhere near this one in scope or intensity. He became briefly famous when he declined Oprah Winfrey's favor of making this book a part of her book club. Many copies are marked with her seal of approval, despite his wishes to the conrary. No matter what you think of Oprah, this is a book you should read.wentworth-on-tradd
6. Let Me Tell You What I Mean [Book]
Product Details:
New york times bestseller – from one of our most iconic and influential writers, the award-winning author of the year of magical thinking: a timeless collection that reveals what would become joan didion's subjects, including the press, politics, california robber barons, women, and her own self-doubt. "didion’s remarkable, five decades-long career as a journalist, essayist, novelist, and screen writer has earned her a prominent place in the american literary canon, and the twelve early pieces collected here underscore her singularity."—o magazine with a forward by hilton als, these pieces from 1968 to 2000, never before gathered together, offer an illuminating glimpse into the mind and process of a legendary figure. they showcase joan didion's incisive reporting, her empathetic gaze, and her role as "an articulate witness to the most stubborn and intractable truths of our time" (the new york times book review). here, didion touches on topics ranging from newspapers ("the problem is not so much whether one trusts the news as to whether one finds it"), to the fantasy of san simeon, to not getting into stanford. in "why i write," didion ponders the act of writing: "i write entirely to find out what i'm thinking, what i'm looking at, what i see and what it means." from her admiration for hemingway's sentences to her acknowledgment that martha stewart's story is one "that has historically encouraged women in this country, even as it has threatened men," these essays are acutely and brilliantly observed. each piece is classic didion: incisive, bemused, and stunningly prescient.
Specifications:
Language | English |
Release Date | January 2022 |
Length | 192 Pages |
Dimensions | 0.7" x 5.1" x 7.9" |
Reviews:
Good book, good price.huascar1
Just finished my first Joan Didion book. This is a book of short essays she wrote over the years. The first essay was a tough one for me and I was a bit worried that she might not be my jam. The rest of the essays are quite amazing, insightful, and powerful at the same time. If you are looking for some cool opinion essays the check this babe of literature out.kimberly.t
This group of essays by the acclaimed writer Joan Didion have been brought together for the first time. They cover the period 1968-2000. She offers much in the way of perceptive insights on a variety of subjects. Perhaps the two best articles deal with Nancy Reagan during the time she served as First Lady of California and the ever present Martha Stewart.Jimbo
7. Real Life: A Novel [Book]
Product Details:
A finalist for the booker prize, the national book critics circle john leonard prize, the vcu/cabell first novelist prize, the lambda literary award, the nypl young lions award, and the edmund white debut fiction award “a blistering coming of age story” —o: the oprah magazine named a best book of the year by the new york times, the washington post, new york public library, vanity fair, elle, npr, the guardian, the paris review, harper's bazaar, financial times, huffington post, bbc, shondaland, barnes & noble, vulture, thrillist, vice, self, electric literature, and shelf awarenessa novel of startling intimacy, violence, and mercy among friends in a midwestern university town, from an electric new voice. almost everything about wallace is at odds with the midwestern university town where he is working uneasily toward a biochem degree. an introverted young man from alabama, black and queer, he has left behind his family without escaping the long shadows of his childhood. for reasons of self-preservation, wallace has enforced a wary distance even within his own circle of friends—some dating each other, some dating women, some feigning straightness. but over the course of a late-summer weekend, a series of confrontations with colleagues, and an unexpected encounter with an ostensibly straight, white classmate, conspire to fracture his defenses while exposing long-hidden currents of hostility and desire within their community. real life is a novel of profound and lacerating power, a story that asks if it’s ever really possible to overcome our private wounds, and at what cost.
Specifications:
Weight | 0.57 lb |
Reviews:
Trigger warnings ➡️Child sexual assault ➡️Physical abuse during sex ➡️Racism ➡️Homophobia Real Life is an aching, bruising story about a young Black gay man struggling to wade through his circumstances that will leave you gutted. And the way Brandon Taylor uses words is incredible.Aditi
8. Writers And Lovers [Book]
Product Details:
#readwithjenna book club pick as featured on today emma roberts belletrist book club pick a new york times book review's group text selection "i loved this book not just from the first chapter or the first page but from the first paragraph… the voice is just so honest and riveting and insightful about creativity and life." –curtis sittenfeld an extraordinary new novel of art, love, and ambition from lily king, the new york times bestselling author of euphoria following the breakout success of her critically acclaimed and award-winning novel euphoria, lily king returns with another instant new york times bestseller: an unforgettable portrait of an artist as a young woman. blindsided by her mother's sudden death, and wrecked by a recent love affair, casey peabody has arrived in massachusetts in the summer of 1997 without a plan. her mail consists of wedding invitations and final notices from debt collectors. a former child golf prodigy, she now waits tables in harvard square and rents a tiny, moldy room at the side of a garage where she works on the novel she's been writing for six years. at thirty-one, casey is still clutching onto something nearly all her old friends have let go of: the determination to live a creative life. when she falls for two very different men at the same time, her world fractures even more. casey's fight to fulfill her creative ambitions and balance the conflicting demands of art and life is challenged in ways that push her to the brink. writers & lovers follows casey–a smart and achingly vulnerable protagonist–in the last days of a long youth, a time when every element of her life comes to a crisis. written with king's trademark humor, heart, and intelligence, writers & lovers is a transfixing novel that explores the terrifying and exhilarating leap between the end of one phase of life and the beginning of another.
Specifications:
Language | English |
Release Date | March 2020 |
Length | 336 Pages |
Dimensions | 8.3" x 0.8" x 5.5" |
Reviews:
This book is such a good coming of age novel from a different standpoint (based on age). I enjoyed reading this and it’s just such a heartfelt novel with some comedic aspects that overall create an environment that I think most would enjoy. The lessons implemented within the story really helped my viewpoint on things. A lovely book that I recommend to all my friends – even if they’re not big readers!!christina.l
This is a fabulous feel-good book! Highly recommend it!sandytulsa
I've just started it, but so far, so gooddixieb_25
9. The Book Of M: A Novel [Book]
Product Details:
Brad thor's summer 2018 fiction pick for the today show! named a best book of 2018 by elle – refinery29 – pop – sugar – verge"eerie, dark, and compelling, [the book of m] will not disappoint lovers of the passage and station eleven." –booklist – what would you give up to remember? set in a dangerous near future world, the book of m tells the captivating story of a group of ordinary people caught in an extraordinary catastrophe who risk everything to save the ones they love. it is a sweeping debut that illuminates the power that memories have not only on the heart, but on the world itself. – one afternoon at an outdoor market in india, a man’s shadow disappears—an occurrence science cannot explain. he is only the first. the phenomenon spreads like a plague, and while those afflicted gain a strange new power, it comes at a horrible price: the loss of all their memories. – ory and his wife max have escaped the forgetting so far by hiding in an abandoned hotel deep in the woods. their new life feels almost normal, until one day max’s shadow disappears too. – knowing that the more she forgets, the more dangerous she will become to ory, max runs away. but ory refuses to give up the time they have left together. desperate to find max before her memory disappears completely, he follows her trail across a perilous, unrecognizable world, braving the threat of roaming bandits, the call to a new war being waged on the ruins of the capital, and the rise of a sinister cult that worships the shadowless. – as they journey, each searches for answers: for ory, about love, about survival, about hope; and for max, about a new force growing in the south that may hold the cure. – like the passage and station eleven, this haunting, thought-provoking, and beautiful novel explores fundamental questions of memory, connection, and what it means to be human in a world turned upside down.
Specifications:
Reviews:
I'd heard a lot of varying opinions about this book, even before I had a copy in my hands. A lot of people found it too slow, a lot of others absolutely loved it and some even said it was too vague a book. The Book of M is part dystopian fiction, part contemporary romance that answers the question: What makes you human, and what are you willing to give up be more? It took me a while to get used to the characters and the writing, but I really ended up enjoying this unique, brilliantly written book. MY THOUGHTS: 1. Peng Shepherd's writing was STUNNING throughout the book, but especially as she wrote Max's point of view. The more Max lost her memory, the better Shepherd's writing got. It was heart-breaking as a reader and fascinating as a writer to watch how masterfully Shepherd broke down Max's memories of the person she used to be. 2. I also liked the way she built up and described her characters. This book was completely non-linear, making the reader sit up, pay attention, and piece facts together from so many different parts. I loved the loyalties that were formed, the hope that something better awaited them and the cast of characters all around, shadowed and shadow-less. 3. Just like her writing of Max, I LOVED the descriptions and feats of magic in this book. It was such subtle, underrated magic that had no spells or wands, but a price to pay in exchange and it was just SO BEAUTIFUL TO READ? 4. At the same time, when the biggest plot twists came around, especially with Gajarajan, I was left feeling like it all wasn't explained to me enough. I also struggled to get a physical sense of Ory, Max and the rest of the characters in terms of their age, and, most importantly, the when and how long aspect of how everything was happening. Full Review on A Thousnad Words A Million BooksAditi - ATWAMB
The book arrived promptly in excellent condition, exactly as described. Like new.Nick
10. Shelley's Poetry And Prose: Authoritative Texts, Criticism [Book]
Product Details:
This volume contains one of the fullest, and certainly the most accurately edited, collections of shelley s poetry and prose available. all the texts have been re-edited from primary sources especially for this edition. included in the selection are four early poems from the esdaile notebook; queen mab, alastor, mont blanc, and hymn to intellectual beauty ; lines written among the euganean hills, julian and maddalo, prometheus unbound the sensitive-plant, the cenci, peter bell the third letter to maria gisborne, the witch of atlas, epipsychidion, adonais, hellas and the triumph of life (all complete), as well as such important shorter poems as ozymandias, ode to liberty, ode to the west wind, the cloud, to a sky-lark, and the late lyrics to jane williams. there are also selections from laon and cyntha (the revolt of islam). prose pieces included are a defence of poetry, on life and on love. all the poems and prose pieces have been thoroughly annotated, with unusual diction defined and with all biographical, historical, geographical, and literary allusions identified (many of them for the first time anywhere). to further assist the student and teacher, fifteen essays are included representing the best of scholarship and criticism on shelley s poetry. among them are several general studies that illuminate the historical, philosophical, symbolic, and mythic approaches to the poet s work; a number of other essays assist the reader s entry into specific poems. the critics represented are kenneth neill cameron, c. pulos, earl r. reiman, evan k. gibson, charles h. vivian, m. abrams, d. j. hughes, irene h. chayes, carlos baker, ross woodman, carl woodring, and g. m. matthews. a selected bibliography and an index of titles and first lines are also included. about the series: no other series of classic texts equals the caliber of the norton critical editions. each volume combines the most authoritative text available with the comprehensive pedagogical apparatus necessary to appreciate the work fully. careful editing, first-rate translation, and thorough explanatory annotations allow each text to meet the highest literary standards while remaining accessible to students. each edition is printed on acid-free paper and every text in the series remains in print. norton critical editions are the choice for excellence in scholarship for students at more than 2,000 universities worldwide.
Specifications:
Reviews:
Donald Reiman's editorial skills are manifest here. His editing of Shelley's writing, from manuscript, the past five decades, has been one compelling reason for the long overdue renaissance in Shelley studies…and the consequences from that renaissance are aptly displayed in this volume, the second edition of the poets poetry and prose. I now have both. In the age of Trump and his ilk, it's important to return to writers who experienced the same sort of authoritarian venality we witness today…and resisted it with passionate and unyielding spirit…and the art such passion produced. Buy this, read the late poems, follow the journey…Song to the Men of England, Ode to the West Wind…and that last, amazing production, left incomplete at the poet's early death…The Triumph of Life…will leave you astonished at this young man's genius. You won't be disappointed…skynotes02
11. Before We Were Yours: A Novel [Book]
Product Details:
The blockbuster hit—over two million copies sold! a new york times, usa today, wall street journal, and publishers weekly bestseller“poignant, engrossing.”—people – “lisa wingate takes an almost unthinkable chapter in our nation’s history and weaves a tale of enduring power.”—paula mclainmemphis, 1939. twelve-year-old rill foss and her four younger siblings live a magical life aboard their family’s mississippi river shantyboat. but when their father must rush their mother to the hospital one stormy night, rill is left in charge—until strangers arrive in force. wrenched from all that is familiar and thrown into a tennessee children’s home society orphanage, the foss children are assured that they will soon be returned to their parents—but they quickly realize the dark truth. at the mercy of the facility’s cruel director, rill fights to keep her sisters and brother together in a world of danger and uncertainty. aiken, south carolina, present day. born into wealth and privilege, avery stafford seems to have it all: a successful career as a federal prosecutor, a handsome fiancé, and a lavish wedding on the horizon. but when avery returns home to help her father weather a health crisis, a chance encounter leaves her with uncomfortable questions and compels her to take a journey through her family’s long-hidden history, on a path that will ultimately lead either to devastation or to redemption.
Specifications:
12. Edward Lear And The Critics [Book]
Product Details:
Critical response to lear's literary, journalistic, musical and artistic output. this book is a history of how critics from the nineteenth century on have regarded lear's extensive work. the survey includes not only what has been written in great britain and north america; it is also includes that which has come out of spain, italy, germany, france, greece, india and the ukraine. in addition to offering a chronological sense of the various responses to lear's work, the book identifies patterns of thought that run through the numerous critical reactions.
Specifications:
13. The Critics' Review [Book]
Product Details:
Specifications:
Language | English |
Release Date | June 2010 |
Length | 495 Pages |
Dimensions | 9.0" x 1.1" x 6.0" |
14. The Idiot [Book]
Product Details:
A new york times book review notable book longlisted for the women's prize for fiction "an addictive, sprawling epic; i wolfed it down."–miranda july, author of the first bad man and it chooses you "easily the funniest book i've read this year." –gq a portrait of the artist as a young woman. a novel about not just discovering but inventing oneself. the year is 1995, and email is new. selin, the daughter of turkish immigrants, arrives for her freshman year at harvard. she signs up for classes in subjects she has never heard of, befriends her charismatic and worldly serbian classmate, svetlana, and, almost by accident, begins corresponding with ivan, an older mathematics student from hungary. selin may have barely spoken to ivan, but with each email they exchange, the act of writing seems to take on new and increasingly mysterious meanings. at the end of the school year, ivan goes to budapest for the summer, and selin heads to the hungarian countryside, to teach english in a program run by one of ivan's friends. on the way, she spends two weeks visiting paris with svetlana. selin's summer in europe does not resonate with anything she has previously heard about the typical experiences of american college students, or indeed of any other kinds of people. for selin, this is a journey further inside herself: a coming to grips with the ineffable and exhilarating confusion of first love, and with the growing consciousness that she is doomed to become a writer. with superlative emotional and intellectual sensitivity, mordant wit, and pitch-perfect style, batuman dramatizes the uncertainty of life on the cusp of adulthood. her prose is a rare and inimitable combination of tenderness and wisdom; its logic as natural and inscrutable as that of memory itself. the idiot is a heroic yet self-effacing reckoning with the terror and joy of becoming a person in a world that is as intoxicating as it is disquieting. batuman's fiction is unguarded against both life's affronts and its beauty–and has at its command the complete range of thinking and feeling which they entail. named one the best books of the year by refinery29 – mashable one – elle magazine – the new york times – bookpage – vogue – npr – buzzfeed -the millions
Specifications:
Language | English |
Release Date | February 2018 |
Length | 464 Pages |
Dimensions | 1.1" x 5.4" x 8.1" |
Reviews:
Ordered paperback but was sent a very big hardbackSophie
The Idiot is a very refreshing book. It tells about how it feels to be a person who lives more by words and language, rather than earthy stuff, and shows how this kind of person can be very vulnerable in her constructed world. Elif Batuman has a very easy-going, funny and intelligent style. The literary games are fruitful and well-played. Nina in Siberia and the email exchanges subtly construct a second constructed world within the novel and that's how we actually understand how it feels to be Selin, i.e. the narrator.cansyukse0
Runner's up for the Pulitzer are well worth the time to read ….Edward
15. An American Marriage (Oprah's Book Club): A Novel [Book]
Product Details:
A new york times and washington post notable book a 2018 best of the year selection of npr * time * bustle * o, the oprah magazine * the dallas morning news * amazon.com oprah’s book club 2018 selectionwinner of the women's prize for fictionwinner of the 2019 aspen words literary prize winner of the 2019 naacp image award for outstanding literary work—fictionlonglisted for the 2018 national book award for fiction“a moving portrayal of the effects of a wrongful conviction on a young african-american couple.” —barack obama “haunting . . . beautifully written.” —the new york times book review “brilliant and heartbreaking . . . unforgettable.” —usa today “a tense and timely love story . . . packed with brave questions about race and class.” —people “compelling.” —the washington post “deeply moving . . . thought-provoking." —bill gates “epic . . . triumphant.” —elle newlyweds celestial and roy are the embodiment of both the american dream and the new south. he is a young executive, and she is an artist on the brink of an exciting career. but as they settle into the routine of their life together, they are ripped apart by circumstances neither could have imagined. roy is arrested and sentenced to twelve years for a crime celestial knows he didn’t commit. though fiercely independent, celestial finds herself bereft and unmoored, taking comfort in andre, her childhood friend, and best man at their wedding. as roy’s time in prison passes, she is unable to hold on to the love that has been her center. after five years, roy’s conviction is suddenly overturned, and he returns to atlanta ready to resume their life together. this stirring love story is a profoundly insightful look into the hearts and minds of three people who are at once bound and separated by forces beyond their control. an american marriage is a masterpiece of storytelling, an intimate look deep into the souls of people who must reckon with the past while moving forward—with hope and pain—into the future.
Specifications:
Imprint | Algonquin Books |
Pub date | 06 Feb 2018 |
DEWEY edition | 23 |
Language | English |
Spine width | 36mm |
Reviews:
This book looks at several issues: gender, race and social norms told from the viewpoint of 2 daughters. Things are not always as they seem, but the crushing weight of lies impacts both girls in who they are, what they become, their relationships and self worth. Heart wrenching at times.josk_an
16. Girlhood [Book]
Product Details:
National book critics circle award winner – national bestseller – lambda literary award finalist – named one of the best books of the year by time * npr * the washington post * kirkus reviews * washington independent review of books * the millions * electric literature * ms magazine * entropy magazine * largehearted boy * passerbuys“irreverent and original.” –new york times“magisterial.” –the new yorker“an intoxicating writer.” –the atlantic“a classic!” –mary karr“a true light in the dark.” –stephanie danler“an essential, heartbreaking project.” –carmen maria machado – a gripping set of stories about the forces that shape girls and the adults they become. a wise and brilliant guide to transforming the self and our society. – in her powerful new book, critically acclaimed author melissa febos examines the narratives women are told about what it means to be female and what it takes to free oneself from them. – when her body began to change at eleven years old, febos understood immediately that her meaning to other people had changed with it. by her teens, she defined herself based on these perceptions and by the romantic relationships she threw herself into headlong. over time, febos increasingly questioned the stories she’d been told about herself and the habits and defenses she’d developed over years of trying to meet others’ expectations. the values she and so many other women had learned in girlhood did not prioritize their personal safety, happiness, or freedom, and she set out to reframe those values and beliefs. – blending investigative reporting, memoir, and scholarship, febos charts how she and others like her have reimagined relationships and made room for the anger, grief, power, and pleasure women have long been taught to deny. – written with febos’ characteristic precision, lyricism, and insight, girlhood is a philosophical treatise, an anthem for women, and a searing study of the transitions into and away from girlhood, toward a chosen self.
Specifications:
Imprint | Bloomsbury |
Pub date | 08 Jul 2021 |
DEWEY edition | 23 |
Language | English |
Spine width | 34mm |
Reviews:
17. The Lonely City: Adventures In The Art Of Being Alone [Book]
Product Details:
Finalist for the national book critics circle award in criticism#1 book of the year from brain pickings – named a best book of the year by npr, newsweek, slate, pop sugar, marie claire, elle, publishers weekly, and lit hub – a dazzling work of biography, memoir, and cultural criticism on the subject of loneliness, told through the lives of iconic artists, by the acclaimed author of the trip to echo spring. – when olivia laing moved to new york city in her mid-thirties, she found herself inhabiting loneliness on a daily basis. increasingly fascinated by the most shameful of experiences, she began to explore the lonely city by way of art. moving from edward hopper’s nighthawks to andy warhol’s time capsules, from henry darger’s hoarding to david wojnarowicz’s aids activism, laing conducts an electric, dazzling investigation into what it means to be alone, illuminating not only the causes of loneliness but also how it might be resisted and redeemed. – humane, provocative, and moving, the lonely city is a celebration of a strange and lovely state, adrift from the larger continent of human experience, but intrinsic to the very act of being alive.
Specifications:
Imprint | Picador USA |
Pub date | 06 Jun 2017 |
DEWEY | B |
Language | English |
Spine width | 18mm |
Reviews:
Deeply empathetic, tender and beautifulzak-stratfold
thoroughly depressing, gave up after 2 or 3 chapters.squatdwarf
18. Directorate S: The C.i.a. And America's Secret Wars In Afghanistan And Pakistan [Book]
Product Details:
Winner of the 2018 national book critics circle award for nonfictionlonglisted for the 2018 national book award for nonfictionfrom the pulitzer prize-winning author of ghost wars, the epic and enthralling story of america's intelligence, military, and diplomatic efforts to defeat al qaeda and the taliban in afghanistan and pakistan since 9/11prior to 9/11, the united states had been carrying out small-scale covert operations in afghanistan, ostensibly in cooperation, although often in direct opposition, with i.s.i., the pakistani intelligence agency. while the us was trying to quell extremists, a highly secretive and compartmentalized wing of i.s.i., known as "directorate s," was covertly training, arming, and seeking to legitimize the taliban, in order to enlarge pakistan's sphere of influence. after 9/11, when fifty-nine countries, led by the u. but more than anything, as coll makes painfully clear, the war in afghanistan was doomed because of the failure of the united states to apprehend the motivations and intentions of i.s.i.'s "directorate s". this was a swirling and shadowy struggle of historic proportions, which endured over a decade and across both the bush and obama administrations, involving multiple secret intelligence agencies, a litany of incongruous strategies and tactics, and dozens of players, including some of the most prominent military and political figures. a sprawling american tragedy, the war was an open clash of arms but also a covert melee of ideas, secrets, and subterranean violence. coll excavates this grand battle, which took place away from the gaze of the american public. with unsurpassed expertise, original research, and attention to detail, he brings to life a narrative at once vast and intricate, local and global, propulsive and painstaking. this is the definitive explanation of how america came to be so badly ensnared in an elaborate, factional, and seemingly interminable conflict in south asia. nothing less than a forensic examination of the personal and political forces that shape world history, directorate s is a complete masterpiece of both investigative and narrative journalism.
Specifications:
Narrator | Malcolm Hillgartner |
Length | 28 hours 28 minutes |
Language | English |
Published on | February 6, 2018 |
Reviews:
Nice item at a great price. Thank you!rontario33_1
19. The Art Of Comparison: How Novels And Critics Compare [Book]
Product Details:
Comparison underlies all reading. readers compare words to words, and books to all the other books which they have read. some books, however, demand a particular comparative effort – for example, novels which contain parallel plot lines. in this ambitious and important study catherine brown compares daniel deronda with anna karenina and women in love in order to answer the following questions: why does one protagonist in each novel fail whilst another succeeds? can their failure and success be understood on the same terms? how do the novels' uses of comparison compare to each other? how relevant is george eliot's influence on lev tolstoi, and tolstoi's on d. h. lawrence? does tolstoi being a russian make this a 'comparative' literary study? and what does the 'comparative' in 'comparative literature' actually mean? criticism is combined with metacriticism, to explore how novels and critics compare. book jacket.
Specifications:
Published | United Kingdom, 29 September 2020 |
Writer | Catherine Brown |
Age Range | 15+ |
Dimensions | 24.1 x 17 x 1.5 centimeters (0.39 kg) |
20. No One Is Talking About This: A Novel [Book]
Product Details:
Finalist for the 2021 booker prize & a new york times top 10 book of 2021winner of the dylan thomas prize “a book that reads like a prose poem, at once sublime, profane, intimate, philosophical, witty and, eventually, deeply moving.” —new york times book review, editors’ choice “wow. i can’t remember the last time i laughed so much reading a book. what an inventive and startling writer…i’m so glad i read this. i really think this book is remarkable.” —david sedaris from "a formidably gifted writer" (the new york times book review), a book that asks: is there life after the internet? as this urgent, genre-defying book opens, a woman who has recently been elevated to prominence for her social media posts travels around the world to meet her adoring fans. she is overwhelmed by navigating the new language and etiquette of what she terms "the portal," where she grapples with an unshakable conviction that a vast chorus of voices is now dictating her thoughts. when existential threats–from climate change and economic precariousness to the rise of an unnamed dictator and an epidemic of loneliness–begin to loom, she posts her way deeper into the portal's void. an avalanche of images, details, and references accumulate to form a landscape that is post-sense, post-irony, post-everything. the people of the portal ask themselves. suddenly, two texts from her mother pierce the fray: "something has gone wrong," and "how soon can you get here?" as real life and its stakes collide with the increasingly absurd antics of the portal, the woman confronts a world that seems to contain both an abundance of proof that there is goodness, empathy, and justice in the universe, and a deluge of evidence to the contrary.fragmentary and omniscient, incisive and sincere, no one is talking about this is at once a love letter to the endless scroll and a profound, modern meditation on love, language, and human connection from a singular voice in american literature.
Specifications:
Imprint | Riverhead Books |
Pub date | 15 Feb 2022 |
DEWEY edition | 23 |
Language | English |
Spine width | 27mm |