Gladwell’s glad tidings
If it's cleverness you seek, Malcolm is a gift worth giving at any time of the year.
Roth’s cracked mirror
Book no. 30 is a white-knuckled detailing of self-deceit.
Some like it Vonnegut
The legendary American writer's combative lust endures in 13 unpublished works.
Reaperville
Mortality permeates the work of new young American writers.
To Kill a Mockingbird
Harper Lee's honored classic is better as a time capsule than as a literary masterpiece.
Mock nocturnes
No romantic ruminations in tricky Ishiguro's dissection of music and musicians.
Updike endgame
With "new" stories, a "second" farewell to a peerless chronicler.
Olive: A life
Elizabeth Strout's inspiring Olive Kitteridge.
Jacoby’s Hiss
Susan Jacoby's account of anti-Communist hysteria is an ace.
Where’s that tiger?
Aravind Adiga scathes the "new" India, both light and dark.
Amélie, Amélie
Amélie Nothomb gives that funny thing called "love" a workout in 1989 Japan.
Wicker chair man
John Updike's greatest accomplishment was making the ordinary vivid.