Wrapping Up Day of Dialog Brooklyn

Held on September 15 to coincide with the Brooklyn Book Festival, the first-ever Day of Dialog Brooklyn was a great success, with folks coming from the tristate area (and nationwide) to hear authors like Alice McDermott and Stephanie Powell Watts and a editors introducing winter/spring 2018 titles. The Editors Picks‘ panel embraced houses large and […]

New Perspectives | Day of Dialog Brooklyn

Besides offering New Perspectives, speakers at this aptly named panel at LJ’s inaugural Day of Dialog Brooklyn asked thought-provoking questions. Obama campaign blogger Sam Graham-Felsen‘s debut novel, Green (Random, Jan. 2018), depicts the experiences of a white boy in a mostly black school. His novel is a reflection of his lived experience, “what it felt […]

From Bohjalian to Wideman | Barbara’s Fiction Picks, Mar. 2018

Bohjalian, Chris. The Flight Attendant. Doubleday. Mar. 2018. 368p. ISBN 9780385542418. $26.95; ebk. ISBN 9780385542425. lrg. prnt. CD/downloadable: Random Audio. LITERARY/THRILLER Here’s a milestone: the ever-popular Bohjalian is publishing his 20th novel, and as always it combines popular tropes with a serious examination of social issues. Binge-drinking airline stewardess Cassandra Bowden wakes up with another […]

From Africa to Alaska to Terror in Paris | New Voices in Literary Fiction, Mar. 2018

Benson, Adrienne. The Brightest Sun. Park Row: Harlequin. Mar. 2018. 336p. ISBN 9780778331278. $26.99; ebk. ISBN 9781488028090. LITERARY Harlequin’s new literary imprint is feeling radiant about this debut from the African-raised Benson, who returned to work there as a Peace Corps volunteer. Set in 1990s under Africa’s bright sun, it explores the lives of three […]

U.S. Presidents, English Merchants, & a Heroic Bee Keeper | History Previews, Mar. 2018

Bartlett, Karen. Architects of Death: The Family Who Engineered the Death Camps. St. Martin’s. Mar. 2018. 320p. ISBN 9781250117700. $27.99; ebk. ISBN 9781250117717. HISTORY It’s wasn’t ideology, just business, but it sure was hell: journalist Bartlett tells the story of Topf and Sons, the small, respected family firm of German engineers that designed and built […]