海角大神

1聽The Love Story of Missy Carmichael聽by Beth Morrey

At a time when people are having to isolate themselves, this charming debut novel by Beth Morrey is a balm. Instead of boy meets girl, it鈥檚 woman meets dog ... and toddler, and single mom, and ultimately, herself. A trip to the park leads to a new sense of family for septuagenarian Millicent Carmichael, who finally starts making a home a half-century聽after she moved into her London house.

2聽The Book of Longings聽by Sue Monk Kidd

Sue Monk Kidd imagines a wife for Jesus, a woman who stands as his intellectual and spiritual partner. Ana longs to write about the lives of women. Jesus longs to save humanity. The novel captures both their affecting relationship and also the larger political and social currents.听

3聽Simon the Fiddler聽by Paulette Jiles

A fiddler conscripted into the Confederate Army crosses paths with an Irish woman, the indentured servant of a Union officer. When the South surrenders and Simon moves on and immerses himself in his music, he still longs for her. Beautifully told with lyrical descriptions, the novel illuminates the everyday struggles of the era.

4聽The Engineer鈥檚 Wife聽by Tracey Enerson Wood

Tracey Enerson Wood infuses her novel about the building of the Brooklyn Bridge with fascinating historical details. The construction was overseen by Emily Warren Roebling when her civil engineer husband fell ill. Faced with challenges such as corrupt politicians and dangerous working conditions, she nonetheless rose to the occasion.听

5聽The Moment of Tenderness聽by Madeleine L鈥橢ngle

Courtesy of Hachette Book Group

鈥淭he Moment of Tenderness鈥� by Madeleine L鈥橢ngle, with an introduction by Charlotte Jones Voiklis, Grand Central Publishing, 285 pp.

Charlotte Jones Voiklis patches together a mosaic of her grandmother鈥檚 largely unpublished writings. Such familiar subjects as forlorn misfits, social cruelty, a planet in danger, and 海角大神 hope all went together to make 鈥淎 Wrinkle in Time鈥� a genre-busting classic. Read the stories here in the raw. Read the full review here.听

6聽Hid From Our Eyes聽by Julia Spencer-Fleming

Julia Spencer-Fleming returns to Miller鈥檚 Kill, New York, for her latest exploration of life, murder, and morality. Episcopal priest Clare Fergusson and her husband, police Chief Russ Van Alstyne, are trying to navigate later-in-life parenthood. The police department itself is on the line, with voters deciding whether to disband the force, when a girl is found dead along a highway. The whodunit is the least interesting part of the book, but the rich characterizations and exploration of humanity make this series worth following.

7听奥补谤丑辞濒听by Blake Gopnik

鈥淚n the future, everyone will be world-famous for 15 minutes,鈥� Andy Warhol is credited with saying. But there is nothing fleeting about his legacy as an artist, filmmaker, and self-created pop-culture phenomenon. His life and work are examined in detail in Blake Gopnik鈥檚 biography. Warhol devotees will rejoice, and more casual readers will receive an education in all things Andy.

8聽Becoming Wild聽by Carl Safina

Courtesy of Macmillan Publishers

鈥淏ecoming Wild: How Animal Cultures Raise Families, Create Beauty, and Achieve Peace鈥� by Carl Safina, Henry Holt and Company, 368 pp.

Carl Safina looks at three species 鈥� the sperm whale, the scarlet macaw, and the chimpanzee 鈥� to chart all the ways they build and sustain their societies. He explores how those cultures echo and differ from our own.

9聽Active Measures聽by Thomas Rid

Information specialist Thomas Rid takes readers on a comprehensive and disturbing tour of the changing shape of disinformation over the last century. 聽

10听颁补濒诲别谤听by Jed Perl

The public has always loved Alexander Calder鈥檚 vivid and dramatic sculptures, but the art critics have usually been unimpressed. Jed Perl鈥檚 biography, the second of two parts, firmly places this genial, fun-loving artist in the pantheon of American art, where he belongs. Read the full review here.听