20 Best Books Of Last Decade (2023 Update)

Our "thirty-is-the-new-twenty" culture tells us the twentysomething years don't matter. some say they are a second adolescence. others call them an emerging adulthood. dr. meg jay, a clinical psychologist, argues that twentysomethings have been caught in a swirl of hype and misinformation, much of which has trivialized what is actually the most defining decade of adulthood.drawing from a decade of work with hundreds of twentysomething clients and students, the defining decade weaves the latest science of the twentysomething years with behind-closed-doors stories from twentysomethings themselves.

Michelle knight, the first of the three women abducted by notorious cleveland kidnapper ariel castro, recounts the full story of her years in captivity, her escape, and the powerful inner strength and capacity for hope that has helped her rebuild her life. michelle was a young single mother when she was kidnapped by a local school bus driver named ariel castro. for more than a decade afterward, she endured unimaginable torture at the hand of her abductor. in 2003 amanda berry joined her in captivity, followed by gina dejesus in 2004. their escape on may 6, 2013, made headlines around the world.

Including contributions by w. h. auden – elizabeth bishop – john cheever – janet flanner – john hersey – langston hughes – shirley jackson – a. j. liebling – william maxwell – carson mccullers – joseph mitchell – vladimir nabokov – ogden nash – john o'hara – george orwell – v. s. pritchett – lillian ross – stephen spender – lionel trilling – rebecca west – e. b. white – williams carlos williams – edmund wilson and featuring new perspectives by joan acocella – hilton als – dan chiasson – david denby – jill lepore – louis menand – susan orlean – george packer – david remnick – alex ross – peter schjeldahl – zadie smith – judith thurman the 1940s are the watershed decade of the twentieth century, a time of trauma and upheaval but also of innovation and profound and lasting cultural change. this is the era of fat man and little boy, of fdr and stalin, but also of casablanca and citizen kane, zoot suits and christian dior, duke ellington and edith piaf. the 1940s were when the new yorker came of age. a magazine that was best known for its humor and wry social observation would extend itself, offering the first in-depth reporting from hiroshima and introducing american readers to the fiction of vladimir nabokov and the poetry of elizabeth bishop. in this enthralling book, masterly contributions from the pantheon of great writers who graced the new yorker 's pages throughout the decade are placed in history by the magazine's current writers. included in this volume are seminal profiles of the decade's most fascinating figures: albert einstein, marshal petain, thomas mann, le corbusier, walt disney, and eleanor roosevelt. here are classics in reporting: john hersey's account of the heroism of a young naval lieutenant named john f. j. liebling's unforgettable depictions of the fall of france and d day; rebecca west's harrowing visit to a lynching trial in south carolina; lillian ross's sly, funny dispatch on the miss america pageant; and joseph mitchell's imperishable portrait of new york's foremost dive bar, mcsorley's. this volume also provides vital, seldom-reprinted criticism. h. auden on t. s. eliot, lionel trilling on orwell. here are the new yorker' s original takes on the great dictator and the grapes of wrath, and opening-night reviews of death of a salesman and south pacific. perhaps no contribution the magazine made to 1940s american culture was more lasting than its fiction and poetry. included here is an extraordinary selection of short stories by such writers as shirley jackson (whose masterpiece the lottery stirred outrage when it appeared in the magazine in 1948) and john cheever (of whose now-classic story the enormous radio new yorker editor harold ross said: it will turn out to be a memorable one, or i am a fish. ) also represented are the great poets of the decade, from louise bogan and william carlos williams to theodore roethke and langston hughes. to complete the panorama, today's new yorker staff, including david remnick, george packer, and alex ross, look back on the decade through contemporary eyes. whether it's louis menand on postwar cosmopolitanism or zadie smith on the decade's breakthroughs in fiction, these new contributions are illuminating, learned, and, above all, entertaining.

Paul in 1982, he had no idea the visit would change his life. he walked in as a psychiatric counselor and walked out as the store's new owner. in the last bookseller goodman describes his sometimes desperate, sometimes hilarious career as a used and rare book dealer in minnesota–the early struggles, the travels to estate sales and book fairs, the remarkable finds, and the bibliophiles, forgers, book thieves, and book hoarders he met along the way. paul book bandit, stephen blumberg, who stole 24,000 rare books worth more than fifty million dollars; john jenkins, the texas rare book dealer who (probably) was murdered while standing in the middle of the colorado river; and the eccentric melvin mccosh, who filled his dilapidated lake minnetonka mansion with half a million books. in 1990, with a couple of partners, goodman opened st. croix antiquarian books in stillwater, one of the twin cities region's most venerable bookshops until it closed in 2017. this store became so successful and inspired so many other booksellers to move to town that richard booth, founder of the "book town" movement in hay-on-wye in wales, declared stillwater the first book town in north america. the internet changed the book business forever, and goodman details how, after 2000, the internet made stores like his obsolete. in the 1990s, the twin cities had nearly fifty secondhand bookshops; today, there are fewer than ten. as both a memoir and a history of booksellers and book scouts, criminals and collectors, the last bookseller offers an ultimately poignant account of the used and rare book business during its final golden age.

Michelle was a young single mother when she was kidnapped by a local school bus driver named ariel castro. for more than a decade afterward, she endured unimaginable torture at the hand of her abductor. in 2003 amanda berry joined her in captivity, followed by gina dejesus in 2004. their escape on may 6, 2013, made headlines around the world. barely out of her own tumultuous childhood, michelle was estranged from her family and fighting for custody of her young son when she disappeared. local police believed she had run away, so they removed her from the missing persons lists fifteen months after she vanished. castro tormented her with these facts, reminding her that no one was looking for her, that the outside world had forgotten her. but michelle would not be broken. in finding me, michelle will reveal the heartbreaking details of her story, including the thoughts and prayers that helped her find courage to endure her unimaginable circumstances and now build a life worth living. by sharing both her past and her efforts to create a future, michelle becomes a voice for the voiceless and a powerful symbol of hope for the thousands of children and young adults who go missing every year.

"a rare book that makes you question your assumptions about the world.” —the wall street journalfrom the middle east and its political instability to china and its economic rise, the vast region stretching eastward from the balkans across the steppe and south asia has been thrust into the global spotlight in recent years. frankopan realigns our understanding of the world, pointing us eastward. it was on the silk roads that east and west first encountered each other through trade and conquest, leading to the spread of ideas, cultures and religions. from the rise and fall of empires to the spread of buddhism and the advent of christianity and islam, right up to the great wars of the twentieth century—this book shows how the fate of the west has always been inextricably linked to the east.also available: the new silk roads, a timely exploration of the dramatic and profound changes our world is undergoing right now—as seen from the perspective of the rising powers of the east.

New york times bestseller – the specter of graduation looms large as naomi novik’s groundbreaking, new york times bestselling trilogy continues in the stunning sequel to a deadly education. “the climactic graduation-day battle will bring cheers, tears, and gasps as the second of the scholomance trilogy closes with a breathtaking cliff-hanger.”—booklist (starred review)hugo award finalist – locus award finalist – one of the best books of the year: polygon, thrillist, she reads in wisdom, shelter. that’s the official motto of the scholomance. i suppose you could even argue that it’s true—only the wisdom is hard to come by, so the shelter’s rather scant. our beloved school does its best to devour all its students—but now that i’ve reached my senior year and have actually won myself a handful of allies, it’s suddenly developed a very particular craving for me. and even if i somehow make it through the endless waves of maleficaria that it keeps throwing at me in between grueling homework assignments, i haven’t any idea how my allies and i are going to make it through the graduation hall alive. unless, of course, i finally accept my foretold destiny of dark sorcery and destruction. that would certainly let me sail straight out of here. the course of wisdom, surely. but i’m not giving in—not to the mals, not to fate, and especially not to the scholomance. i’m going to get myself and my friends out of this hideous place for good—even if it’s the last thing i do. with keen insight and mordant humor, novik reminds us that sometimes it is not enough to rewrite the rules—sometimes, you need to toss out the entire rulebook.the magic of the scholomance trilogy continues in the golden enclaves

The author of the international bestsellers gates of fire and tides of war delivers his most gripping and imaginative novel of the ancient world–a stunning epic of love and war that breathes life into the grand myth of the ferocious female warrior culture of the amazons.steven pressfield has gained a passionate worldwide following for his magnificent novels of ancient greece, gates of fire and tides of war. in last of the amazons, pressfield has surpassed himself, re-creating a vanished world in a brilliant novel that will delight his loyal readers and bring legions more to his singular and powerful restoration of the past. in the time before homer, the legendary theseus, king of athens (an actual historical figure), set sail on a journey that brought him into the land of tal kyrte, the “free people,” a nation of proud female warriors whom the greeks called “amazons.” the amazons, bound to each other as lovers as well as fighters, distrusted the greeks, with their boastful talk of “civilization.” so when the great war queen antiope fell in love with theseus and fled with the greeks, the mighty amazon nation rose up in rage. last of the amazons is not merely a masterful tale of war and revenge. pressfield has created a cast of extraordinarily vivid characters, from the unforgettable selene, whose surrender to the greeks does nothing to tame her; to her lover, damon, an athenian warrior who grows to cherish the wild amazon ways; to the narrator, bones, a young girl from a noble family who was nursed by selene from birth and secretly taught the amazon way; to the great theseus, the tragic king; and to antiope, the noble queen who betrayed tal kyrte for the love of theseus. with astounding immediacy and extraordinary attention to military detail, pressfield transports readers into the heat and terror of war. equally impressive is his creation of the amazon nation, its people, its rituals and myths, its greatness and savagery. last of the amazons is thrilling on every page, an epic tale of the clash between wildness and civilization, patriotism and love, man and woman.

A new york times bestseller! who is the last ronin? in a future, battle-ravaged new york city, a lone surviving turtle embarks on a seemingly hopeless mission seeking justice for the family he lost. from legendary tmnt co-creators kevin eastman and peter laird, get ready for the final story of the teenage mutant ninja turtles three decades in the making! what terrible events destroyed his family and left new york a crumbling, post-apocalyptic nightmare? all will be revealed in this climactic turtle tale that sees longtime friends becoming enemies and new allies emerging in the most unexpected places. can the surviving turtle triumph? eastman and laird are joined by writer tom waltz, who penned the first 100 issues of idw's ongoing tmnt series, and artists esau & isaac escorza (heavy metal) and ben bishop (the far side of the moon) with an introduction by filmmaker robert rodriguez! collects the complete five-issue miniseries in a new graphic novel, an adventure as fulfilling for longtime turtles fans as it is accessible for readers just discovering the heroes in a half shell.

From the winner of the 2021 nobel prize in literature, an astounding meditation on family, self and the meaning of home.abbas has never told anyone about his past-before he was a sailor on the high seas, before he met his wife maryam outside a drugstore in exeter, before they settled into a quiet life with their children, jamal and hanna. now, at the age of sixty-three, he suffers a collapse that renders him unable to speak about things he thought he would one day have to.jamal and hanna have grown up and gone out into the world. they were both born in england but cannot shake a sense of apartness. hanna calls herself anna now, and has just moved to a new city to be near her boyfriend. she feels the relationship is headed somewhere serious, but the words have not yet been spoken out loud. jamal, the listener of the family, moves into a student house and is captivated by a young woman with dark blue eyes and her own complex story to tell. abbas's illness forces both children home, to the dark silences of their father and the fretful capability of their mother, maryam, who has never thought to find herself-until now.

"the last last-day-of-summer reminds me that all children deserve to exist in magical spaces where their imaginations and familial bonds will them into heroism. every single child should have the freedom to be one of the legendary alstons. and i, for one, am grateful to giles, and this brilliant story, for that reminder." –jason reynolds, author of newbery honoree long way down "the legendary heroes of this legendary book are already legendary when the story begins from there things can only get legendary-er " –tom angleberger, author of the origami yoda series "lamar giles has written an instant classic–readers won't want their time with the legendary alston boys of logan county to end." –gwenda bond, author of the lois lane seriesthe hardy boys meets the phantom tollbooth, in the new century when two adventurous cousins accidentally extend the last day of summer by freezing time, they find the secrets hidden between the unmoving seconds, minutes, and hours are not the endless fun they expected. otto and sheed are the local sleuths in their zany virginia town, masters of unraveling mischief using their unmatched powers of deduction. and as the summer winds down and the first day of school looms, the boys are craving just a little bit more time for fun, even as they bicker over what kind of fun they want to have. that is, until a mysterious man appears with a camera that literally freezes time. now, with the help of some very strange people and even stranger creatures, otto and sheed will have to put aside their differences to save their town–and each other–before time stops for good.

A successor to phaidon's award-winning century: one hundred years of human progress, suffering, regression and hope (1999), decade provides a comprehensive visual overview of the last 10 years in world history. adhering to the same standards of historical accuracy and scholarship as its predecessor, this book offers a sensitive anthology of 10 years in photography that will appeal to readers of all ages and interests. decade presents 500 engaging photographic images, both iconic and idiosyncratic, selected by acclaimed photo editor eamonn mccabe and arranged in chronological order to tell the story of the first decade in our new millennium. the shorter historical span of this book, compared to century, allows this sequence to explore more deeply developments in art, architecture, sport and technology, alongside key moments in international political affairs, so that the reader encounters surprising moments from our history alongside those familiar from coverage in the mass media. global in scope, these photographs tackle subjects ranging from the world trade center attacks of '9/11' to the aids epidemic in africa, from the first tests of the hadron collider at cern, geneva, to the death of the king of pop, michael jackson. award-winning documentary photography sits alongside the new 'citizen journalism', which has seen ordinary bystanders capture historic events equipped with nothing more sophisticated than a mobile phone camera. each image is accompanied by both a short descriptive and an extended, historical caption, to provide a wider context within which to understand these often beautiful, always surprising, photographs. 15 historical and thematic essays are also included, exploring the events, trends and social phenomena that have characterized the decade. engaging with debates in photography, while providing a visual record of world events both regional and international, this book provides an extraordinary insight into our recent history – dramatic, nostalgic, intimate and educational by turns.

A successor to phaidon's award-winning century: one hundred years of human progress, suffering, regression and hope (1999), decade provides a comprehensive visual overview of the last 10 years in world history. adhering to the same standards of historical accuracy and scholarship as its predecessor, this book offers a sensitive anthology of 10 years in photography that will appeal to readers of all ages and interests. decade presents 500 engaging photographic images, both iconic and idiosyncratic, selected by acclaimed photo editor eamonn mccabe and arranged in chronological order to tell the story of the first decade in our new millennium. the shorter historical span of this book, compared to century, allows this sequence to explore more deeply developments in art, architecture, sport and technology, alongside key moments in international political affairs, so that the reader encounters surprising moments from our history alongside those familiar from coverage in the mass media. global in scope, these photographs tackle subjects ranging from the world trade center attacks of '9/11' to the aids epidemic in africa, from the first tests of the hadron collider at cern, geneva, to the death of the king of pop, michael jackson. award-winning documentary photography sits alongside the new 'citizen journalism', which has seen ordinary bystanders capture historic events equipped with nothing more sophisticated than a mobile phone camera. each image is accompanied by both a short descriptive and an extended, historical caption, to provide a wider context within which to understand these often beautiful, always surprising, photographs. 15 historical and thematic essays are also included, exploring the events, trends and social phenomena that have characterized the decade. engaging with debates in photography, while providing a visual record of world events both regional and international, this book provides an extraordinary insight into our recent history – dramatic, nostalgic, intimate and educational by turns.

Alfred e. newman does disco? ecch! in the bestselling tradition of mad about the sixties, here is a hilarious look back at the disco decade from america's foremost satire magazine. illustrated throughout in color and black and white, this madcap compendium rehashes the best send-ups, takeoffs, and put-ons from the era that gave us spiro agnew, smiley faces, and the bee gees. you'll be grateful for these dead-on paradies as the usual gange of idiots – the artists, writers, and editors of mad magazine – present classic features from their past. so sit back, grab a billy beer, and get down, get funky, and get it on with mad about the seventies. and may their farce be with you!

Alfred e. newman does disco? ecch! in the bestselling tradition of mad about the sixties, here is a hilarious look back at the disco decade from america's foremost satire magazine. illustrated throughout in color and black and white, this madcap compendium rehashes the best send-ups, takeoffs, and put-ons from the era that gave us spiro agnew, smiley faces, and the bee gees. you'll be grateful for these dead-on paradies as the usual gange of idiots – the artists, writers, and editors of mad magazine – present classic features from their past. so sit back, grab a billy beer, and get down, get funky, and get it on with mad about the seventies. and may their farce be with you!

John steinbeck (1902-1968) born in salinas, california, grew up in a fertile agricultural valley, about twenty-five miles from the pacific coast. both the valley and the coast would serve as settings for some of his best fiction. in 1919 he went to stanford university, where he intermittently enrolled in literature and writing courses until he left in 1925 without taking a degree. during the next five years he supported himself as a laborer and journalist in new york city, all the time working on his first novel, cup of gold (1929). after marriage and a move to pacific grove, he published two california books, the pastures of heaven (1932) and to a god unknown (1933), and worked on short stories later collected in the long valley (1938). popular success and financial security came only with tortilla flat (1935), stories about monterey's paisanos. a ceaseless experimenter throughout his career, steinbeck changed courses regularly. three powerful novels of the late 1930s focused on the california laboring class: in dubious battle (1936), of mice and men (1937), and the book considered by many his finest, the grapes of wrath (1939). the grapes of wrath won both the national book award and the pulitzer prize in 1939. early in the 1940s, steinbeck became a filmmaker with the forgotten village (1941) and a serious student of marine biology with sea of cortez (1941). he devoted his services to the war, writing bombs away (1942) and the controversial play-novelette the moon is down (1942). cannery row (1945), the wayward bus (1948), another experimental drama, burning bright (1950), and the log from the sea of cortez (1951) preceded publication of the monumental east of eden (1952), an ambitious saga of the salinas valley and his own family's history. the last decades of his life were spent in new york city and sag harbor with his third wife, with whom he traveled widely. later books include sweet thursday (1954), the short reign of pippin iv: a fabrication (1957), once there was a war (1958), the winter of our discontent (1961), travels with charley in search of america (1962), america and americans (1966), and the posthumously published journal of a novel: the east of eden letters (1969), viva zapata! (1975), the acts of king arthur and his noble knights (1976), and working days: the journals of the grapes of wrath (1989). steinbeck received the nobel prize in literature in 1962, and, in 1964, he was presented with the united states medal of freedom by president lyndon b. johnson. steinbeck died in new york in 1968. today, more than thirty years after his death, he remains one of america's greatest writers and cultural figures.

Pulitzer prize winner – a modern american classic, this huge and galvanizing biography of robert moses reveals not only the saga of one man’s incredible accumulation of power but the story of his shaping (and mis-shaping) of twentieth-century new york. and in telling the moses story, caro both opens up to an unprecedented degree the way in which politics really happens—the way things really get done in america's city halls and statehouses—and brings to light a bonanza of vital information about such national figures as alfred e. smith and franklin d. roosevelt (and the genesis of their blood feud), about fiorello la guardia, john v. lindsay and nelson rockefeller. but the power broker is first and foremost a brilliant multidimensional portrait of a man—an extraordinary man who, denied power within the normal framework of the democratic process, stepped outside that framework to grasp power sufficient to shape a great city and to hold sway over the very texture of millions of lives. how, rebuffed by the entrenched political establishment, he fought for the power to accomplish his ideals. how he first created a miraculous flowering of parks and parkways, playlands and beaches—and then ultimately brought down on the city the smog-choked aridity of our urban landscape, the endless miles of (never sufficient) highway, the hopeless sprawl of long island, the massive failures of public housing, and countless other barriers to humane living. how, inevitably, the accumulation of power became an end in itself. moses built an empire and lived like an emperor. he was held in fear—his dossiers could disgorge the dark secret of anyone who opposed him. he was, he claimed, above politics, above deals; and through decade after decade, the newspapers and the public believed. meanwhile, he was developing his public authorities into a fourth branch of government known as "triborough"—a government whose records were closed to the public, whose policies and plans were decided not by voters or elected officials but solely by moses—an immense economic force directing pressure on labor unions, on banks, on all the city's political and economic institutions, and on the press, and on the church. he doled out millions of dollars' worth of legal fees, insurance commissions, lucrative contracts on the basis of who could best pay him back in the only coin he coveted: power. he dominated the politics and politicians of his time—without ever having been elected to any office. he was, in essence, above our democratic system. robert moses held power in the state for 44 years, through the governorships of smith, roosevelt, lehman, dewey, harriman and rockefeller, and in the city for 34 years, through the mayoralties of la guardia, o'dwyer, impellitteri, wagner and lindsay, he personally conceived and carried through public works costing 27 billion dollars—he was undoubtedly america's greatest builder. this is how he built and dominated new york—before, finally, he was stripped of his reputation (by the press) and his power (by nelson rockefeller). but his work, and his will, had been done.

There is no better record of events then the new york times, and now, the times of the seventies captures the history, culture, and personalities of the decade through hundreds of hand-selected articles and compelling original commentary in this unique and fascinating book.the new york times: the times of the seventies is a brilliant time capsule containing all of the greatest, most important, and most memorable moments and events from the decade. organized by sections such as national news, business, science & health, sports, arts & entertainment, life & style, the articles include coverage of historic events like the watergate scandal, the end of the vietnam war, the 1973 oil crisis, and the iranian revolution of 1979; cultural highlights like the break-up of the beatles, the rise of disco, reviews of movies like star wars, the godfather, jaws, and saturday night fever, and features on musicians like jimi hendrix, janis joplin, the bee gees, and patti smith; plus pieces on influential personalities such as gloria steinem, bobby fischer, and farrah fawcett and pivotal political figures like richard nixon, pol pot, and augusto pinochet.the stories are written by the great times writers, including murray schumach, nan robertson, craig claiborne, mimi sheraton, meyer berger, r.w. apple, jr., john rockwell, clive barnes, and john russell. editor clyde haberman has selected each and every article and guides readers through the stories, putting the events into historical context and exploring the impact these events and individuals eventually had on the future. also included are hundreds of color photographs from the times and other sources.also available from black dog & leventhal publishers is the new york times: the times of the eighties (978-1-57912-933-0)

Praise for solitary: finalist for the pulitzer prize in general nonfictionfinalist for the national book award in nonfictionnamed one of barack obama's favorite books of 2019winner of the stowe prize – named the louisiana endowment for the humanities book of the year – named a best book of the year by the new york times, the washington post, npr, publishers weekly, book – browse, and literary hub – winner of the book – browse award for best debut of 2019a new york times book review editors' choice"an uncommonly powerful memoir about four decades in confinement . . . a profound book about friendship . . . woodfox reminds us, in solitary, of the tens of thousands of men, women, and children in solitary confinement in the united states. this is torture of a modern variety. if the ending of this book does not leave you with tears pooling down in your clavicles, you are a stronger person than i am. more lasting is woodfox's conviction that the american justice system is in dire need of reform."–dwight garner, new york times"a candid, heartbreaking, and infuriating chronicle . . . as well as a personal narrative that shows how institutionalized racism festered at the core of our judicial system and in the country's prisons . . . it's impossible to read solitary and not feel anger . . . a timely memoir of that experience that should be required reading in the age of the black lives matter movement. it's also a story of conviction and humanity that shows some spirits are unbreakable."–npr"heart-rending . . . solitary is woodfox's pointillist account of an already boxed-in childhood and adolescence in the streets of new orleans–by his own admission, an existence marked by ignorance and devoted to petty and increasingly serious crime–and the near entirety of an intellectually and spiritually expansive adulthood spent in one of the most brutal prisons in the country (and therefore the world) . . . some of the most touching writing on platonic male friendship i have every encountered . . . it lifts the book above mere advocacy or even memoir and places it in the realm of stoic philosophy."–thomas chatterton williams, new york times book review"wrenching, sometimes numbing, sometimes almost physically painful to read. you want to turn away, put the book down: enough, no more! [solitary's] moral power is so overwhelming . . . solitary should make every reader writhe with shame and ask: what am i going to do to help change this?"–washington post"solitary is evidence of woodfox's extraordinary mental resilience in the face of relentless state cruelty. the pacing is brisk, with brief stops to reflect on the united states' mass incarceration of black people, woodfox's black identity, and his personal philosophy, much of it centered on the black panther party's 10-point program. anyone who believes in capital punishment should read it . . . how can you call for the death penalty when you know an innocent man could be in the gallows? is that risk civilized society can take? not here, not now. not ever again."–art cullen, storm lake times"[woodfox's] incredible story is necessary reading, not only to understand our era of mass incarceration, but the entire history of the judicial system in america."–town & country"in this devastating, superb memoir, woodfox reflects on his decades inside the louisiana prison system . . . the book is a stunning indictment of a judicial system 'not concerned with innocence or justice, ' and a crushing account of the inhumanity of solitary confinement. this breathtaking, brutal, and intelligent book will move and inspire readers."–publishers weekly (starred review) "in beautifully poetic language that starkly contrasts the world he's describing, woodfox awes and inspires. he illustrates the power of the human spirit, while illuminated the dire need for prison reform in the united states. solitary is a beautiful blend of passion, terror, and hope that everyone needs to experience."–shelf awareness (starred review) "a man who spent four decades in solitary confinement for a crime he did not commit tells his shocking story . . . woodfox explains how he overcame [brutal conditions] despite relentless despair . . . an important story for these times . . . an astonishing true saga of incarceration that would have surely faced rejection if submitted as a novel on the grounds that it could never happen in real life."–kirkus reviews "solitary is an astounding story and makes clear the inhumanity of solitary confinement. how albert woodfox maintained his compassion and sense of hope throughout his ordeal is both amazing and inspiring."–ibram x. kendi, author of stamped from the beginning, winner of the national book award "sage, profound and deeply humane, albert woodfox has authored an american testament. solitary is not simply an indictment of the cruelties, absurdities and hypocrisies of the criminal justice system, it is a call to conscience for all who have allowed these acts to be done in our name."–jelani cobb, author of the substance of hope"a man who would not be broken. not by more than 40 years of solitary in angola, not by maddening injustice in courts, not by beatings, isolation, or loneliness. albert's courage, wisdom, and kindness will inspire all who fight for social justice and have the good sense to read this book."–barry scheck, co-founder of the innocence project "albert woodfox's extraordinary life story is both an inspiring triumph of the human spirit and a powerful call for the necessity of prison reform."–van jones, president of the dream corps and host of cnn's "the van jones show" "albert woodfox shares his coming-of-age story with crystal clear-eyed perspective, holding nothing back as he unwraps the unvarnished truth of his life. in it a giant, albert woodfox, carries us boldly and without apology through the powerful, incredibly painful yet astonishingly inspiring story of a life lived virtually in chains. he is, as readers will learn, a 'man of steel.' every white person in america must read this book. it should be required reading for every advocate of 'law and order, ' every prosecutor, every warden, every prison guard and every police officer in america. it should be taught in every law school and every political science class. and any 'public servant' currently holding a local, state or federal office who refuses to read it should step down. as a citizen of the united states, this book embarrasses me deeply. and it makes me furious."–mike farrell, author of just call me mike and of mule and man

If you ever lived in a small town, or wished you had, or wondered what life there was like, join the author as he revisits rushville, il, his hometown. the time is the decade of the 1940s, a period now remembered as a simpler, more relaxed era. it was a time of front porch sitting, door locks for which keys have long been misplaced, innocent romances beginning with subtle glances, saturday matinees, near-noiseless lawn mowers and strict parental and classroom discipline.but the author looks beyond the seeming tranquility and feels the town's push toward change–progress away from the deprivation of the great depression years, through days of world war ii fears, and on to the excitement and fulfillment of dreams of better lives to come.a reader will experience humor, nostalgia, history and insight into another time–yet the ageless innocence and uncertainty of youth will be recognized and remembered by people of all decades. the author invites you to recall a period of innocence in your life as you experience his.