海角大神

These are the fiction titles our reviewers liked best this month.

Son of Nobody,听by Yann Martel

鈥淟ife of Pi鈥� author Yann Martel again flexes his extraordinary imagination in this latest novel. A Canadian classicist, stalled on his dissertation about Homer鈥檚 鈥淚liad,鈥� leaves his wife and young daughter (named Helen, of course) for a yearlong fellowship at Oxford. The scholar, Harlow Donne, becomes obsessed by fragments of Greek text on scraps of shredded parchment, which he patches together to create an inventive account of the Trojan War from the perspective not of gods or nobility but of commoners, including a 鈥渟on of nobody鈥� named Psoas. The pages of Martel鈥檚 novel are split horizontally. There鈥檚 the so-called lost epic, which Harlow dubs 鈥淭he Psoad,鈥� on the upper half, and his highly personal commentary below, which links the horror and insensibility of war with the tragic loss of his marriage and young daughter. 鈥淪on of Nobody鈥� joins other brilliant novels involving deranged scholars, including Vladimir Nabokov鈥檚 鈥淧ale Fire.鈥澨�鈥� Heller McAlpin

Python鈥檚 Kiss,听by Louise Erdrich听

Award-winning author Louise Erdrich follows up 鈥淭he Mighty Red鈥� with a new collection of short stories teeming with snakes and cats, travelers and troubadours, survivors and secrets. While the speculative fiction wobbles, most of the stories grab and hold. 鈥淭he Hollow Children,鈥� a haunting chronicle of a bus driver piloting his morning pickup of schoolchildren through a blizzard, and 鈥淎melia,鈥� about the friendship between an antsy teenage girl and the stylish customer who frequents the local KFC during her shifts, are standouts.听鈥� Erin Douglass

I Hope You Find What You鈥檙e Looking For,听by Bsrat Mezghebe

In her winning debut novel, Bsrat Mezghebe aims a compassionate eye and skilled pen on the tight-knit Eritrean community in Washington, D.C. Central to the tale are 12-year-old bookworm Lydia; her former freedom fighter mom, Elsa; their generous听injera-making neighbor Zewdi; and a newly arrived cousin with big thoughts of his own. As the storytelling shifts between Washington in 1991 and Elsa鈥檚 rebel days in Eritrea 15 years earlier, each character grapples with family, purpose, and the pursuit of ideals.听鈥� Erin Douglass

The Woman and Her Stars,听by Penny Haw听

In Georgian-era England, Caroline Herschel is rescued from a life of servitude by her devoted brother, William, and ushered into London鈥檚 music scene. Her heavenly voice gives her a sense of purpose. When William becomes the king鈥檚 astronomer, Caroline assists him, and then determinedly becomes the first woman to discover a comet. This charming historical novel, based on Herschel鈥檚 true story, shines brightly with memorable characters, and an inspiring leading lady realizing her worth.听鈥� Stefanie Milligan

How To Write a Love Story,听by Catherine Walsh

As Ciara Sheridan struggles to write the final volume of her late father鈥檚 bestselling fantasy series, Sam, her dad鈥檚 New York-based editor, travels to Ireland to lend support. So much rides on this volume. The two clash, but soon discover they share more than a love of her father鈥檚 work. Catherine Walsh writes a delightful, believable rom-com tailor-made for book lovers.听鈥� Joan Gaylord

The Shock of the Light,听by Lori Inglis Hall

This World War II novel centers on close-knit British twins,听Tessa and Theo. Recruited by the Royal Air Force, Theo returns home after the war realizing his sister, one of 39 Special听Operations Executive women spies, is still missing. Theo devotes himself to finding her. Lori Inglis Hall鈥檚 thoroughly researched,听well-plotted book channels the heartbreak and humanity of wartime, its aftermath, and love鈥檚 redeeming power.听鈥撎齋tefanie Milligan

The Star From Calcutta,听by Sujata Massey

Bombay鈥檚 sole female solicitor, Perveen Mistry, faces a new case in Sujata Massey鈥檚 latest 1920s whodunit. As monsoon season drags on, ever-curious Perveen must investigate the death of a British film censor in the wee hours of a glitzy party stuffed with stars, investors, and suspicious hangers-on. There are twists, turns, and jolts of action; still, the unrushed storytelling gives the city鈥檚 vivid landmarks 鈥� from Chowpatty Beach to Malabar Hill 鈥� time to glow.听鈥� Erin Douglass

Daughter of Egypt,听by Marie Benedict

This gorgeous, suspenseful novel celebrates two captivating women. In 1920s Egypt, Lady Evelyn Herbert; her father, Lord Carnarvon; and archaeologist Howard Carter search for boy Pharaoh Tutankhamun鈥檚 treasure-filled tomb. Three thousand years ago, Egypt鈥檚 most successful woman pharaoh, Hatshepsut, disappeared, and signs of her reign were mysteriously erased. The 20th-century tomb-seeking trio add Hatshepsut to their dangerous excavating adventures.听鈥撎齋tefanie Milligan

搁耻颈苍蝉,听by Lily Brooks-Dalton

Ember lives 3,000 years in the future, post 鈥淐risis鈥� era, working as an academic in archaeology. When the opportunity finally comes to pursue her foundering research鈥檚 central questions about pre-Crisis peoples, she jumps, dropping everything to lead the expedition into uncharted waters. Thought-provoking, exciting, and sometimes ugh-inducing (Ember is one selfish protagonist), the story captivates.听鈥� Erin Douglass

Celestial Lights,听by Cecile Pin

Cecile Pin鈥檚 beautiful and profound novel tells the story of a boy born on the day the Challenger space shuttle exploded and fell into the sea. He grows up to become a legendary astronaut sent by a visionary billionaire on a 10-year mission to the distant moon Europa. As he leaves his cherished wife and son, Ollie examines his life choices in poignant flashbacks.听鈥撎齋tefanie Milligan

搁补颈濒蝉辞苍驳,听by Rahul Bhattacharya

Rahul Bhattacharya鈥檚 generous storytelling captures the coming-of-age of Charu Chitol, a railwayman鈥檚 daughter in newly independent India. Charu dreams of escaping poverty, domesticity, and patriarchal society for modern life in Bombay, and hopes to marry for love. Amid a country undergoing change, Charu forges her future with optimism.听鈥撎齋tefanie Milligan

These are the nonfiction titles our reviewers liked best this month.听

Judy Blume: A Life,听by Mark Oppenheimer

Mark Oppenheimer鈥檚 affectionate biography traces the beloved author鈥檚 life and work in exhaustive and illuminating detail. Written with its subject鈥檚 cooperation, the book offers insight into how Judy Blume鈥檚 background and experiences provided raw material for her classic young-adult novels, including 鈥淎re You There God? It鈥檚 Me, Margaret鈥� and 鈥淪tarring Sally J. Freedman as Herself.鈥澨�鈥� Barbara Spindel

Cosmic Music,听by Andy Beta

The life of jazz virtuoso Alice Coltrane has often been overlooked in favor of her husband, the late John Coltrane, one of the most influential figures in jazz. But in Andy Beta鈥檚 comprehensive biography, readers get to know the groundbreaking musician as she finds both musical and spiritual transformation.听鈥� Mackenzie Farkus

The Westerners,听by Megan Kate Nelson

Historian Megan Kate Nelson鈥檚 compelling narrative offers an expansive and eye-opening view of the 19th-century American West. Through the stories of fascinating but little-known people in the region, she demonstrates that white women and Indigenous, Black, Mexican, and Asian women and men were as vital to the frontier experience as the white male pioneers of national myth.听鈥撎�Barbara Spindel

When the Forest Breathes,听by Suzanne Simard

Suzanne Simard is a paradigm-shifting researcher in forest ecology. Her first book, 鈥淔inding the Mother Tree,鈥� argued that trees communicate with one another, share carbon and other resources through mycorrhizal networks underground, and forge cooperative relationships with their own kind as well as with other species in their immediate environment. 鈥淲hen the Forest Breathes鈥� combines personal memoir with descriptions of her scientific investigations. It serves as an impassioned plea for preserving forests and helping them regenerate.听鈥� Richard Schiffman