| Alexander the Great: His Life and His Mysterious Death by Anthony EverittWhat it is: a riveting, richly contextualized biography of the Macedonian conqueror's life that de-mythologizes history's prior depictions of him.
Chapters include: "First Blood;" "The Empire Strikes Back;" "Show Me the Way to Go Home."
Book buzz: In a starred review, Kirkus Reviews says Alexander the Great is "a story for everyone" that "reads as easily as a novel." |
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| Sontag: Her Life and Work by Benjamin MoserWhat it is: an admiring biography of "America's last great literary star" and provocative multi-hyphenate intellectual Susan Sontag.
Why you might like it: With insights gleaned from private archival materials and more than 300 interviews, Sontag has been touted as the definitive portrait of a complicated figure.
Topics include: Sontag's struggles with her sexuality and later happiness with long-term partner Annie Leibovitz; her private insecurities in the face of celebrity; her battles with cancer (to which she succumbed in 2004). |
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| The Ungrateful Refugee: What Immigrants Never Tell You by Dina NayeriWhat it's about: In 1988, eight-year-old Dina Nayeri and her family fled Iran, eventually finding asylum in the United States. Now an award-winning novelist, Nayeri grapples with living as an immigrant in a world that often diminishes her humanity.
Don't miss: "Camp," a chapter of eye-opening interviews Nayeri conducted with refugees from Afghanistan, Iran, and Syria at a camp in Greece. |
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| And How Are You, Dr. Sacks?: A Biographical Memoir of Oliver Sacks by Lawrence WeschlerThen: In the early 1980s, journalist Lawrence Weschler met with Oliver Sacks to write a New Yorker profile on the renowned neurologist, though the project was eventually scrapped due to the then-closeted Sacks' concerns about his privacy.
Now: In this immersive blend of biography and memoir, Weschler revisits that period and discusses his friendship with Sacks, who in his final years of life urged Weschler to publish the profile. |
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| Prince Albert: The Man Who Saved the Monarchy by A.N. WilsonWhat it is: a lively and accessible portrait of Queen Victoria's German-born Prince Consort, published to commemorate his 200th birthday.
Read it for: Albert's successful efforts to define his role and influence in his adopted homeland (such as spearheading the Great Exhibition of 1851), despite facing significant prejudice.
Book buzz: Prince Albert is the companion biography to A.N. Wilson's award-winning Victoria: A Life, the basis for the PBS series Victoria. |
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| Passing for Human by Liana FinckWhat it is: a "meta-memoir" of New Yorker cartoonist Liana Finck's attempts to write this memoir; a contemplative journey of self-discovery from a woman who grapples with feeling at odds with the world.
Art alert: Delicate and disjointed black, white, and yellow illustrations complement Finck's whimsical yet introspective narrative.
Reviewers say: "In its ambition, framing, and multiple layers, this raises the bar for graphic narrative" (Kirkus Reviews). |
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| Super Late Bloomer: My Early Days in Transition: An Up and Out Collection by Julia KayeWhat it's about: transgender cartoonist Julia Kaye's fraught first year undergoing hormone replacement therapy.
Art alert: This collection of black and white strips from Kaye's candid webcomic Up and Out features simple yet expressive snapshot-style illustrations that will endear her to readers. |
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| Something New: Tales From a Makeshift Bride by Lucy KnisleyWhat it is: a breezy account of Lucy Knisley's DIY-wedding planning, featuring tips and how-tos for crafty nuptials-bound readers.
Art alert: Knisley's bright and charming full-color illustrations underscore her conflicted feelings about weddings and her desire to shake up tradition for her own ceremony.
For fans of: Adrian Tomine's Scenes from an Impending Marriage. |
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| Belonging: A German Reckons with History and Home by Nora KrugWhat it's about: German artist Nora Krug's affecting journey to learn the truth about her family's Nazi ties.
Art alert: Krug intimately conveys her fractured relationship to her homeland by combining mixed-media illustrations, letters, and photographs in fragmented or superimposed arrangements.
Book buzz: Belonging is the winner of the National Book Critics Circle Award and was named a Best Book of the Year by the New York Times. |
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| The Arab of the Future 3: A Childhood in the Middle East, 1985-1987 by Riad SattoufWhat it's about: Young Riad Sattouf grapples with life during Hafez al-Assad's regime and the dueling cultural expectations placed upon him by his Syrian father and French mother.
Art alert: Cartoony, minimally colored graphics starkly complement the disturbing and darkly humorous narrative.
Series alert: The 4th installment of Sattouf's acclaimed series, spanning the years 1987-1992, is out next month. |
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Contact your librarian for more great books!
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