Books Update: The Politics of Fiction

Reviews of new novels by Ayad Akhtar, Yaa Gyasi, Lawrence Osborne and others

View in browser|nytimes.com Continue reading the main story September 11, 2020 David Pearson Dear Reader, It’s hard to deny the political tension of this moment. Pervasive civic unrest — amid a pandemic, an economic crisis and nationwide protests about race and policing — makes the impending presidential election seem especially significant. In this week’s issue we consider fiction’s role in all of this. Can novels help us make sense of the political scene and better understand what lies ahead? Do fiction writers have any responsibility toward current events? Do readers turn to fiction to gain a deeper understanding of the world’s political questions? As part of the issue, we asked four writers — Margaret Atwood, Héctor Tobar, Thomas Mallon and Brenda Wineapple — to look back at works of fiction that have illuminated the politics of their moments especially well, and to suggest why those books may bear revisiting today. We also look at new political fiction in this issue, including the inventive and thought-provoking novel “Homeland Elegies,” by the Pulitzer-winning playwright and fiction writer Ayad Akhtar; “Transcendent Kingdom,” Yaa Gyasi’s follow up to her acclaimed debut novel, “Homegoing”; and Lawrence Osborne’s latest page-turner, “The Glass Kingdom,” set in a politically volatile Bangkok. Be sure to sign up for our next Book Review Live event, tied to the theme of this issue. On Wednesday, Sept. 16, at 4:30 p.m., our critic Parul Sehgal welcomes Ayad Akhtar, Marlon James and Rachel Kushner for an afternoon of readings and conversation, exploring the intersection of fiction with our current political realities. Please stay in touch and let us know what you think — whether it’s about this newsletter, our reviews, our podcast, our literary calendar, our Instagram or what you’re reading. We read and ponder all of it. I even write back, albeit belatedly. You can email me at books@nytimes.com. Pamela Paul Editor of The New York Times Book Review @PamelaPaulNYT Continue reading the main story ADVERTISEMENT Like this email? Sign-up here or forward it to your friends. Have a suggestion or two on how we can improve it? Let us know at newsletters@nytimes.com. Need help? Review our newsletter help page or contact us for assistance. THE BOOK REVIEW PODCAST Brian Stelter on Fox News and Reed Hastings on Netflix Stelter talks about “Hoax: Donald Trump, Fox News and the Dangerous Distortion of Truth” and Reed Hastings discusses “No Rules Rules: Netflix and the Culture of Reinvention.” FICTION otherworldly Power and Passage: New Science Fiction and Fantasy A story collection offers a cleareyed survey of the Black American experience, and a debut novel traverses hundreds of versions of Earth. By Amal El-Mohtar fiction ‘The Animals Are Dying. Soon We Will Be Alone Here.’ In “Migrations,” Charlotte McConaghy’s visceral reimagining of “Moby-Dick,” a young woman documents some of the world’s last surviving seabirds. By Michael Christie fiction On the Lam in Bangkok, With a Suitcase Full of Cash Lawrence Osborne’s “The Glass Kingdom” follows an American woman who is hiding out in Thailand as civil unrest grows around her. By Louise Doughty fiction In Yaa Gyasi’s New Novel, a Young Scientist Tries to Understand Her Family’s Pain “Transcendent Kingdom,” by the author of “Homegoing,” features a Stanford Ph.D. student struggling to comprehend the addiction that killed her brother. By Nell Freudenberger fiction ‘Homeland Elegies’ Sings for a Fading Dream of National Belonging The novel, by Ayad Akhtar, considers the many contradictions of being an American Muslim after 9/11. By Hari Kunzru fiction Torn Between War and Art, a Journalist Chooses Both “Out of Mesopotamia,” by Salar Abdoh, is as much a meditation on time and memory as it is a book about modern warfare. By Elliot Ackerman fiction Set in Uganda, This Coming-of-Age Story Contains Universal Themes Jennifer Nansubuga Makumbi’s new novel, “A Girl Is a Body of Water,” follows its young heroine as she grows up without a mother. By Khadija Abdalla Bajaber fiction In ‘Zo,’ Love Must Overcome Class Difference and Disaster Xander Miller’s debut novel asks how we can stay together when the world is coming apart. By Kawai Strong Washburn Continue reading the main story ADVERTISEMENT fiction A Beautiful, Urgent Novel of the Palestinian Struggle In Susan Abulhawa’s “Against the Loveless World,” a refugee belongs everywhere and nowhere. By Laleh Khadivi NONFICTION nonfiction The Trauma of the Civil War Lives On in Faulkner’s Fiction “The Saddest Words,” by the scholar Michael Gorra, argues that America’s troubled racial past is the central, if often unspoken, theme at the heart of Faulkner’s work. By Ayana Mathis the shortlist The Many Varieties of Donald Trump Three new books analyze what the Trump presidency has meant for American politics and American society. By Julian E. Zelizer CHILDREN’S BOOKS children’s books A Son’s Future, a Father’s Final Down In Jacqueline Woodson’s “Before the Ever After,” a boy struggles to move forward as his pro football star father’s memory fades. By Randal C. Archibold children’s books Two Suicidal Teens, Four Possible Paths Aaron and Tillie are strangers, until they meet on a bridge. Bill Konigsberg’s new novel explores where four different plotlines could take them. By Katy Hershberger FEATURES Stories of Then That Still Hold Up Now Margaret Atwood, Héctor Tobar, Thomas Mallon and Brenda Wineapple on older political novels they admire that have a lot to say about the world today. by the book Jane Fonda Likes to Curl Up With a Good Book, Among the Dead “I like reading in graveyards leaning against old gravestones, though I haven’t had many opportunities of late.” essay Doctor Dolittle’s Talking Animals Still Have Much to Say The children’s series is 100 years old this year. Its author, Hugh Lofting, was flawed — the original books contained racist ideas. Yet his animals continue to delight. By James Traub sketchbook When Summer Reading Could Win You a Trophy A graphic novelist remembers a ‘Battle of the Books’ in the Brooklyn elementary school of her youth. By Ebony Flowers Continue reading the main story ADVERTISEMENT New & Noteworthy, From the Rubik’s Cube to the Deep South A selection of books published this week; plus, a peek at what our colleagues around the newsroom are reading. Remembering the ‘Good War’ and Other Letters to the Editor Readers respond to recent issues of the Sunday Book Review. editors’ choice 9 New Books We Recommend This Week Suggested reading from critics and editors at The New York Times. inside the list In ‘Hoax,’ Brian Stelter Ventures Where No Author Has Gone Before He’d missed his deadline and then the pandemic arrived — so CNN’s chief media correspondent wrote about it. By Elisabeth Egan New in Paperback: ‘Nothing to See Here’ and ‘Red at the Bone’ Six new paperbacks to check out this week. By Jennifer Krauss Best Sellers Combined Print & E-Book Fiction Combined Print & E-Book Nonfiction Hardcover Fiction Hardcover Nonfiction Paperback Trade Fiction Paperback Nonfiction All Lists New International Books Illustration by Thoka Maer Your sneak preview of books coming out in 2020 from around the world. Get globetrotting. Continue reading the main story Need help? Review our newsletter help page or contact us for assistance. You received this email because you signed up for Books from The New York Times. To stop receiving these emails, unsubscribe or manage your email preferences. Subscribe to The TimesGet The New York Times app Connect with us on: Change Your EmailPrivacy PolicyContact UsCalifornia Notices The New York Times Company. 620 Eighth Avenue New York, NY 10018