Having recently moved to Stockhold to begin her university education, the narrator of Jenny Mustard’s latest novel What a Time to be Alive is confronted with the many challenges of expanding one’s worldview. Sickan is from the countryside, with an accent that she is in the process of shedding—along with many of the more provincial… Continue reading What a Time to be Alive by Jenny Mustard
Tag: bookblog
Flesh by David Szalay
Flesh, David Szalay’s most recent novel, was described by the Booker Prize committee as a “propulsive, hypnotic novel about a man who is unravelled by a series of events beyond his grasp”, who awarded it the top prize at 2025’s awards ceremony. The novel is a sparse and chilling narrative that traces the life of… Continue reading Flesh by David Szalay
Minor Black Figures by Brandon Taylor
Brandon Taylor’s third novel, Minor Black Figures, departs from his familiar territory of the midwest to settle in contemporary New York, where Wyeth, a 31 year old painter, is suffering from a blockage of creativity, stemming from the complex artistic landscape around him. Wyeth is a black painter who features black characters in his work,… Continue reading Minor Black Figures by Brandon Taylor
Loved One by Aisha Muharrar
While grief is a subject that’s been explored by writers and artists throughout time, the experience has rarely been translated to compulsively readable fiction. Aisha Muharrar’s debut novel, Loved One, is the rare grief novel that maintains a sense of humor and wit throughout its telling. It’s crucial to note that Muharrar has spent her… Continue reading Loved One by Aisha Muharrar
The Four Spent the Day Together by Chris Kraus
Chris Kraus’ latest is a continuation of her longtime autofiction project, that blends elements of memoir and true crime in a three part narrative that spans decades. The book begins with Catt, a young girl who moves to Milford Connecticut with her family, growing up in a working class community where she never fit in… Continue reading The Four Spent the Day Together by Chris Kraus
Dwelling by Emily Hunt Kivel
Emily Hunt Kivel’s debut novel, Dwelling, is a formally inventive and singular exploration of one woman’s quest for home. Set in a not particularly difficult to imagine future, the novel begins as Evie, a 29 year old graphic designer is evicted from her apartment. New York City’s mayor has struck a deal with a vacation… Continue reading Dwelling by Emily Hunt Kivel
The Mobius Book by Catherine Lacey
Catherine Lacey’s newest book, The Mobius Book, is part memoir and part fiction. The novel’s curious format, structured as two separate but connected stories that begin at each end (reader’s choice on where to begin), is inspired by the mathematical concept of a Mobius Strip. A Mobius Strip is a surface with only one side… Continue reading The Mobius Book by Catherine Lacey
Fulfillment by Lee Cole
Lee Cole’s sophomore effort is in many ways a companion to his debut novel, Groundskeeping, which explored the class divisions that came to a head in 2016, especially in the American South. His second novel, Fulfillment, also finds its footing in Kentucky—with two brothers on very different paths. Joel is an academic living in New… Continue reading Fulfillment by Lee Cole
What You Make of Me by Sophie Madeline Dess
Sophie Madeline Dess’ debut novel, What You Make of Me, explores a fraught and complex sibling dynamic. Ava, a talented painter, and her brother, the sharp but mercurial Demetri, are forced to raise each other after their mother takes her own life and their father unravels. The two develop a dependency on each other, Ava… Continue reading What You Make of Me by Sophie Madeline Dess
Audition by Katie Kitamura
Katie Kitamura’s most recent novel, Audition, feels like the culmination of the themes of her earlier work surrounding identity and uncertainty. The novel begins with a middle-aged actress meeting a young man in a nameless FiDi restaurant: at first the reader is unsure of the nature of their relationship, but it soon becomes clear that… Continue reading Audition by Katie Kitamura