Book Reviews
Book Review: âEyelinerâ examines the staple makeup productâs revolutionary role in global society
Zahra Hankirâs âEyeliner: A Cultural Historyâ takes readers on a global investigation of how the cosmetic product is used worldwide.
Book Review: âI Would Meet You Anywhereâ is a breathtaking account of an adopteeâs search for family
Susan Kiyo Ito always knew she was adopted, but uncovering her birth family became a decadeslong process marked by moments of warm connection and icy divides.
Book Review: San Diego private eye tangles with FBI and Russian mob in fast-paced âOdysseyâs Endâ
In âOdysseyâs End,â the 10th novel in Matt Coyleâs series featuring private eye Rick Cahill, Rickâs wife tires of his perilous life and moves out with their baby daughter.
Book Review: Benjamin Taylorâs brief new biography of Willa Cather displays the devotion of a fan
Benjamin Taylor has published a brief but illuminating biography of Willa Cather as the nation commemorates the 150th anniversary of her birth.
Book Review: âUFOâ is a detailed look at the history of the search for the truth thatâs out there
Garrett M. Graff looks at the history of UFO sightings over the past 75 years in âUFO: The Inside Story of the U.S.
Book Review: Rock ânâ roller and Rush pioneer Geddy Lee goes deep in his memoir, âMy Effinâ Lifeâ
Geddy Lee is a rock star, thatâs undeniable. But heâs also a polite Canadian to the core. So itâs fitting that the Rush icon picked a not-too-bawdy title for his memoir.
Book Review: Mitch Albom spins moving Holocaust tale in âThe Little Liarâ
Mitch Albomâs latest pocket-sized novel packs quite a punch, writes ť¨˝ˇÖą˛Ľ Press reviewer Rob Merrill.
Book Review: Alice McDermottâs âAbsolutionâ captures America with Vietnam War in the background
Alice McDermottâs ninth novel perfectly captures the manner and mood of early 1960s America as the Vietnam War rumbled in the background and women led constricted lives as âhelpmeetsâ for their husbands.
Book Review: Tess Gerritsen writes an un-put-downable spin on espionage novels with âThe Spy Coastâ
Maggie Bird just wants to relax into a quiet retirement, raising chickens in the cold little town of Purity, Maine.
Book Review: Solitary writer ruminates on grief, love and writing during pandemicâs first spring
Sigrid Nunez, the National Book Award-winning author of âThe Friend,â has written a pandemic novel called âThe Vulnerables.â
Book Review: Edel Rodriguez shows Cuban history as a warning for the US in new graphic memoir âWormâ
In his new graphic memoir, âWorm,â Edel Rodriguez mixes historical context and personal stories to recount his harrowing journey growing up under â then escaping â Communism and authoritarianism in Cuba, as well as the warning signs he sees in America decades later.
Book Review: âThe Warped Side of Our Universeâ a novel look at secrets of cosmos
âThe Warped Side of Our Universe: An Odyssey Through Black Holes, Wormholes, Time Travel, and Gravitational Wavesâ explores many secrets of the cosmos.
Book Review: Henry Winkler grapples with the Fonz and dyslexia in his entertaining new memoir
Henry Winklerâs memoir begins on a Tuesday morning in October 1973, at his first audition for âHappy Days.â
Book Review: âWhite Holesâ by Carlo Rovelli reads more like poetry than science lesson
Theoretical astrophysicist Carlo Rovelli takes readers on a journey to the hypothetical inverse of black holes in his latest book, âWhite Holes.â
Book Review: Broad themes meet niche topics in Fadipeâs debut novel âThe Sun Sets in Singaporeâ
Kehinde Fadipeâs debut novel, âThe Sun Sets in Singapore,â follows three expat Nigerian women to highlight the specific struggles that come with their race, gender and backgrounds â particularly in an upscale and competitive environment like Singapore.
Book Review: âA Brief History of Intelligenceâ may help humans shape the future of AI
What can the evolution of the human brain tell us about the artificial intelligence of tomorrow? Thatâs the thesis of Max Bennettâs new book âA Brief History of Intelligence,â on sale Tuesday.
Book Review: Sandra Newman puts a feminist spin on â1984â with âJuliaâ
Rejoice, comrades! Almost 75 years after â1984â was published, readers can return to Airstrip One with âJulia,â a feminist retelling of George Orwellâs classic novel.
Book Review: Dolly Parton gives a tour of her closet in âBehind the Seams: My Life in Rhinestonesâ
Dolly Partonâs iconic look â big hair, big heels and tight low-cut dresses covered in rhinestones or beads â is a big part of her lasting appeal, nearly as important as her vast catalogue of country ballads and bangers that made her a star.
Book Review: Sly Stone wants to take you higher in memoir with tales of funk, drugs and survival
While recalling his remarkable yet erratic life in music, Sly Stone admits he occasionally had to depend on the recollections of others because his own memory wasnât always reliable.
Book Review: Clever new novel uses museum wall labels to narrate life story of rich American woman
Christine Coulson worked for the Metropolitan Museum for 25 years. During that time she wrote short wall labels for works of art in the galleries.
Book Review: John Grisham brings back âThe Firmâ star Mitch McDeere in âThe Exchangeâ
Thirty-two years after âThe Firmâ launched his career as a legal novelist who churns out bestselling books that inevitably become movies, John Grisham returns with a sequel starring Mitch McDeere.
Book Review: Film historian exploits tumult, gossip in gripping account of Hollywood in the â50s
When film historian Foster Hirsch began research for his latest book about the changing and turbulent movie landscape of the 1950s, he could not have known the timeliness of his subject matter upon the release of âHollywood and the Movies of the Fifties: The Collapse of the Studio System, the Thrill
Book Review: Isa ArsĂŠn delivers an unconventional love story in debut novel âShoot the Moonâ
Looking for a new writer to read? âShoot the Moonâ by first-time novelist Isa ArsĂŠn is a â bold and unconventional love story,â writes ť¨˝ˇÖą˛Ľ Press reviewer Rob Merrill.
Book Review: âDiffer We Mustâ illustrates Abraham Lincolnâs political skills
NPR âMorning Editionâ co-host Steve Inskeep details President Abraham Lincolnâs political skills in âDiffer We Must: How Lincoln Succeeded in a Divided America.â
Book Review: Sketch-comedy star Keegan-Michael Key breaks down the art form in hilarious new book
Keegan-Michael Key, half of the famed âKey & Peeleâ comedy duo, and his wife, Elle Key, a writer, director and producer, have translated their award-winning podcast, âThe History of Sketch Comedy,â into a new book.
Book Review: âExtremely Onlineâ shows how creators and influencers have shaped social media
Washington Post technology columnist Taylor Lorenz tells the social history of social media in âExtremely Online: The Untold Story of Fame, Influence and Power on the Internet.â
Book Review: Romance strikes in âMaybe Once, Maybe Twiceâ with quirky lines and an epic soundtrack
On Maggie Vineâs 30th birthday, she makes a marriage pact with her handsome best friend. Thing is, the struggling singer-songwriter had already made a similar deal with her first boyfriend, whoâs now an extremely successful and attractive actor.
Book Review: Jo Nesbø offers a fresh twist on a coming-of-age horror novel in âThe Night Houseâ
Norwegian author Jo Nesbø, best known for his âHarry Holeâ series of crime novels, is out with a slim horror novel that is more than what it seems.
Book Review: Poet recalls stormy life growing up Rastafari in Jamaica and her struggle to break free
Safiya Sinclair is a Jamaican-born poet who has written a memoir called âHow to Say Babylon.â Itâs about surviving her upbringing in a strict Rastafari sect and finding her own voice as an independent woman.
Book Review: âCollision of Powerâ explains the journalism of the Donald Trump era
âCollision of Powerâ by former Washington Post executive editor Martin Baron is really three books in one, says ť¨˝ˇÖą˛Ľ Press reviewer Jeff Rowe.
Book Review: âSNLâ star Leslie Jones drops raw memoir mixed with life advice
Comedian Leslie Jones is out with a raw memoir recounting her difficult upbringing and the racism and sexism sheâs overcome throughout her career.