in which the author discusses five books he'd read, if time permitted.

1. They Live, by Jonathan Lethem, edited by Sean Howe.
In sum: Because I love books by well-regarded novelists about John Carpenter movies starring Rowdy Roddy Piper, I'ma run to the bookstore to buy this sh*t. If the bookstore's not open, I'ma break the glass [...]

Jonathan Lethem's Chronic City is one of the best books of the year. So sayeth me; so sayeth the sage critterpoos at the New York Times, who include Lethem's eighth novel in their holiday gift guide. (Speaking of guides, check out ours!) While a good friend of mine alleges that Chronic City, which is about [...]

Michael Wolff goes to town on the book publishing industry, namely HarperCollins, for pushing "vanity books" instead of "real books." Front and center is Sarah Palin's Inuit romance novel, Pantsuits with Wolves:

Reading Jonah Weiner's Creed encomium yesterday reminded me that when "Higher" hit the airwaves in 1999 as the first single from Creed's Human Clay, I knew on first listen that I had to learn that song.

In which the author briefly discusses five new books he’d read, if time permitted.

1. The Wild Things (Fur-Covered Edition), by Dave Eggers.
Another in adventure in meta by postmodernist Dave Eggers, this novelization of high modernist Maurice Sendak's ubiquitous children's book is also based on a screenplay for the recent film that Eggers wrote with postmodernist [...]

On his most recent visit to Busboys and Poets, George Pelecanos wasn't just selling his own books—he was also hawking a slim New York Review of Books reissue of a 1966 novel whose out-of-focus Ken Light cover photo (above right) exemplifies the undeserved obscurity of its author: Don Carpenter (below right). The novel in question [...]