All Books
How cats teach their humans to be 鈥� well, more humane鈥淭he Goodbye Cat,鈥� Hiro Arikawa鈥檚 follow-up to 鈥淭he Travelling Cat Chronicles,鈥� celebrates the unbreakable 鈥� and sometimes unearthly 鈥� bonds between felines and their adoring owners.聽
Courage, justice, and fortitude: Our favorite October readsFrom Beirut to Florida, characters embroiled in quests for justice 鈥� for themselves and others 鈥� search for light and progress in this month鈥檚 10 best books.聽
Politeness or civility? Alexandra Hudson untangles the difference.What place do simply good deeds have in our society? In 鈥淭he Soul of Civility,鈥� Alexandra Hudson argues that they鈥檙e indispensable.聽
鈥楾he Heaven & Earth Grocery Store鈥� weaves a tale of love and communityIn his triumphant novel 鈥淭he Heaven & Earth Grocery Store,鈥� James McBride explores the appeal and elusiveness of the American dream.聽
Women war correspondents marched to their own drummerTwo reporters 鈥� Jane Ferguson and Dickey Chapelle 鈥� covered separate conflicts in different eras, but both were driven by the need to 鈥済o see for themselves what was happening.鈥�
Anna May Wong blazed a trail for Asian actors in HollywoodChinese American actor Anna May Wong defied racism and bias through persistence and determination. 鈥淒aughter of the Dragon鈥� tells her story.
Banning books: Protecting kids or erasing humanity?The most banned titles this school year include 鈥淭ricks鈥� by Ellen Hopkins, 鈥淭he Bluest Eye鈥� by Toni Morrison, and 鈥淟ooking For Alaska鈥� by John Green.
Amy Palanjian on feeding kids and laughing more at the dinner tableFrom planning meals to managing different tastes, feeding kids is a monumental challenge for many families. A new book, "Dinnertime SOS," tries to ease the load.聽
Going medieval: A novelist discovers her museNicola Griffith talks about writing a fictionalized account of the woman who emerged from violent, war-torn, seventh-century Britain to become St. Hilda of Whitby.聽聽
Difference MakerChildren need to see themselves in books. Enter Young, Black & Lit.What if you went to the bookstore and saw no one on the shelves who looked like you? One couple is addressing that deficit for young Black children, supporting literacy and identity.聽
CommentaryWhy do they hate us? Lehane鈥檚 latest novel helped me answer that.Often, community involves a sense of belonging. But our contributor sees in Dennis Lehane鈥檚 new novel,聽鈥淪mall Mercies,鈥� that belonging can become a trap if not tempered by openness to others.
Truth, forgiveness, and exploration: 10 best September readsIn our favorite books for this month, characters discover much about themselves through their relationships 鈥� along with quests for truth.
To explain Jerusalem鈥檚 conflicts, she wrote a young adult novelJournalist Ruth Marks Eglash talks about her debut novel, 鈥淧arallel Lines,鈥� a poignant account of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict told through the eyes of three teenage girls.聽- In two memoirs, authors of color meditate on birding and identityTwo authors, one Black and one Native American, explore the complex ways their love for birding is mediated by racial identity.
If you map it, they will come: The effort to chart the seafloorJournalist聽Laura聽Trethewey plunges into the intense race to map the oceans 鈥� and the potential for exploitation of one of the planet鈥檚 few remaining frontiers.聽
The fall of Saigon split families apart. Hers was among them.Beth Nguyen was separated from her mother when the family left Vietnam. In 鈥淥wner of a Lonely Heart,鈥� she grapples with the question: Does the pain of absence ease with time?聽
Looking for a mystery this fall? These whodunits will charm.Solving crimes, righting wrongs, and finding community are on the docket in our roundup of mystery novels this fall.聽
Hometown help: What one author discovered about racial equity in schoolsDo efforts to racially integrate cities help schools with equity as well? In 鈥淒ream Town,鈥� reporter Laura Meckler examines her Ohio hometown鈥檚 tenacious push to help students.聽
鈥楾he Fraud鈥� pokes at Victorian-era biases 鈥� and our ownA notorious 1870s legal case gives novelist Zadie Smith the perfect setting to explore the biases that make people cling to lies and half-truths.
鈥楶eanuts,鈥� Charles Schulz, and the state that started it allWhat more is there to learn about Charlie Brown鈥檚 football and Woodstock鈥檚 birdbath? An exhibit about cartoonist Charles Schulz offers a unique window into his inspiration: the Midwest.聽