Forrester doesn’t gloss over the difficult parts of her life, but rather tells stories of how that adversity formed a stronger individual. In "Narrow River, Wide Sky", Jenny Forrester traces her journey from growing up in a trailer in... Read More

Intricate details make this heist-centered crime story literary and memorable. Leonard Chang’s novel "The Lockpicker" is a bit of a hybrid—a pulp crime novel that also becomes a story about the effects of a violent upbringing on an... Read More

This is a nuanced and well-documented exploration of the controversies around the early Veterans Bureau. In 1921, with soldiers back from the Great War in need of medical care, the Harding administration introduced the Veterans Bureau... Read More

This is a memoir about transitions, told in a way that makes the seemingly simple feel truly meaningful. Jose Antonio Rodriguez’s "House Built on Ashes" is labeled a memoir, but could just as easily be considered a collection of... Read More

Theoretical discourse meets real life accounts of dignity in context—a juxtaposition the philosopher would have approved of. Rousseau and Dignity: Art Serving Humanity commemorates the 2012 University of Notre Dame lecture series... Read More

This isn’t a character trying to overcome his demons, but one fully in league with them. In "The Mask of Sanity", Jacob Appel delves into the mind of a murderer as he plots his version of the perfect crime. Upon learning that his wife... Read More

This well-thought-out story collection enjoys a rich setting and tone, fitting together to form a full picture of a town. With "Cadillac, Oklahoma", Louise Farmer Smith has created a literary portrait of a fictional small town, featuring... Read More

This is a gripping story of a man’s struggle to survive AIDS, and a touching memoir about a relationship that ended too soon. In the early 1980s, when AIDS was still a new and misunderstood threat, Michael Ward’s partner, Mark... Read More