Evoking masculine, dangerously intimate, polished surfaces, "Straight Razor" reveals libidinous encounters, elegies, and satires on careerism in poetry. San Francisco-based Randall Mann, author of Complaint in the Garden and Breakfast... Read More

"Conjuring My Leafy Muse" is an intensely moving collection of poetry by a writer whose voice is fresh. "Conjuring My Leafy Muse" is, in numerous ways, a marvel of incantation and lyricism, a weaving of the supernatural, horrific,... Read More

The edgy subject matter and skillful use of poetic techniques provoke both laughter and deep thought. Post-modern humanist poetry is a mouthful, and Stephen Perry’s sprawling poems, which tackle poetry, God, death, and memory, are no... Read More

The definition of love itself is an underlying social issue explored in depth, though not addressed in a typically overt manner, throughout this touching story. The exciting world of competitive ballroom dance sets the backdrop for this... Read More

Dualities of hot and cold, zealous and level-headed, distinguish characters and their flaws in this hilarious sci-fi work. Set in a universe where all work is academic, "Brittle Star" follows the journey of a shipload of prisoner... Read More

Popkin brings alive the individuals who engineered a culture for the new world. Any history of visual art in America should include a review of Nathaniel Popkin’s "Lion and Leopard", a fictionalized account of early-American painters... Read More

"Caribbee" is a melding of good fiction and historical fact enlivened with colorful, well-drawn characters. A plot rich in sailing lore, pirate raids, vengeful spies, and shipboard discontent enlivens Julian Stockwin’s fourteenth book... Read More

The Gold Rush is over, and San Francisco teems with entrepreneurs of all stripes—shady and otherwise. Set in 1851, after the height of the Gold Rush, Ken Salter’s novel on French emigrants portrays entrepreneurialism‎ in San... Read More