fiction
Nicole Krauss’s love letter to (an imagined) Kafka
A breathtaking novel that bleeds existential urgency from every page
by Beth Benedix
The autumn of our discontent
As leaves fall from the trees, Ali Smith helps us fall into the dreams and fears of her characters.
Marilynne Robinson's vision for democracy
Critics are correct that Robinson doesn't offer an alternative to the Christian Right. But she never claimed to.
The postapocalyptic strength of the Amish
The strange hope of dystopian fiction since The Road
Surviving and communing together are sacred gestures.
Brian Doyle’s ferocious attention
Doyle’s exuberant writing praised particular things in rich detail. It cut to the pulsing heart of life.
A novel about the evils of capitalism
There’s nothing subtle about Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o’s Marxist critique of life in postcolonial Kenya.
A novel at the edge of faith
It’s rare to encounter a female protagonist in theological fiction.
by Amy Frykholm
A president walks into a Buddhist purgatory
The new George Saunders novel turns a crazy idea into a deeply moving story.
by David Crowe
Dostoevsky and Flannery O'Connor help Marcel Proust edit his long sentences
Who I'd invite to my writers' dinner party
The line between here and there
Two novels explore what happens when wars persist and borders are permeable.
Mother's Day picks
Looking for a gift for a mother in your life? Here are some possibilities.
Dorothy Sayers, Charles Williams, and W. H. Auden discuss their unconventional love lives
Who I'd invite to my writers' dinner party
A novel for frightening times
Han Kang’s main theme is the dignity and the cowardice that atrocity brings forth from people—often the same person.
Love and horses
In C.E. Morgan’s world, anything goes as long as it’s couched in the language of the equine.
by Win Bassett
A transgender child in fiction
Beautifully honest, this novel blurs the line between fiction and reality.
The crisis we ignore
What would it take for us to stop denying climate change—and to find reasons for hope?
To name or not to name
The Holocaust was perpetrated against specific groups of people. Is this fact a crucial part of every retelling?
Stories that leave us with questions
In Dana Johnson's new collection, nothing is easy.
Hands on
Nothing much happens in this novel—and yet, everything happens.