Mark Stevens's Blog, page 45
February 8, 2014
The Best American Non-Required Reading 2013
Go straight to “Black Box” and understand why Jennifer Egan is considered one of the freshest literary voices around. This is a dynamite short-story-in-Tweets, a spy caper somewhere between James Bond and semi-nut job Carrie Mathison from “Homeland.” The journal-cum-commentary … Continue reading →
January 26, 2014
“The Yellow Birds” – Kevin Powers
Tim O’Brien: “And in the end, of course, a true war story is never about war. It’s about sunlight. It’s about the special way that dawn spreads out on a river when you know you must cross the river and … Continue reading →
January 11, 2014
“Lost Girls” – Robert Kolker
“Lost Girls” is a grim trip to the underbelly of prostitution and drugs and desperation. And serial killers. Robert Kolker draws intimate portraits of women on the economic edge of society—Maureen, Melissa, Shannon, Megan and Amber. He gives them identities, … Continue reading →
December 31, 2013
2013: Top Books
Favorite reads from 2013. Five of 11 titles in fiction are short stories or (in the case of Andre Dubus III) novellas. (Can’t do just 10. Good year.) FICTION Alex – Pierre LeMaitre A Serpent’s Tooth – Craig Johnson Benediction … Continue reading →
December 28, 2013
Andre Dubus III – “Dirty Love”
Andre Dubus III on the Bookworm podcast with the inimitable Michael Silverblatt: “I’ll hear someone describe my characters as flawed or outsiders or people who fall between the cracks and I just haven’t met anyone who is not that. Lately … Continue reading →
December 7, 2013
Q & A with Steve Weddle – “Country Hardball”
Is Moby Dick crime fiction? Great question—posed by Steve Weddle. As you’ll see in the Q & A below, Weddle is a likable, engaging thinker. That spirit comes through loud and clear in Country Hardball, a gritty series of unflinching, … Continue reading →
November 24, 2013
“Alex” – Pierre LeMaitre
I want to type the words “spoiler alert” so I can tell you everything. But I won’t. Well, maybe I will. I’d put “Alex” right up there with the best mystery-thrillers I’ve ever read. I would argue it is both … Continue reading →
November 12, 2013
Q & A With Susan Spann – “Claws of the Cat”
She’s got a favorite word—defenestrate. (You’ll find out why in the Q & A.) We’ll have to find out if she finds a way to use it in an upcoming Shinobi mystery. There are likely to be quite a few. … Continue reading →
November 6, 2013
Timothy Egan – “The Worst Hard Time”
In case there was any question, we are not always in charge. Katrina. Sandy. And just in the last few years: tornados in Oklahoma, floods here in Colorado, the 2011 Tohoku Earthquake off Japan (and resulting tsunami) and the forest … Continue reading →
October 25, 2013
Q & A with Charlie Quimby – “Monument Road”
A starred review from Booklist. Praise from Indie Next Great Reads. And Shelf Awareness has taken notice, too, among many others. Monument Road is climbing. Its official publication date is still a few weeks away (Nov. 14) but I was … Continue reading →
