A.J. Jacobs on the Joy of Playing With Words. Read more
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Category: New Books
The Man Who Invented Motion Pictures: A True Tale of Obsession, Murder, and the Movies
With a spellbinding, thriller-like presentation supported by painstaking research, Fischer puts forth evidence to try to unravel the mystery of Le Prince’s life and death. Deftly organized facts, coupled with the technical minutiae of filmmaking, reveal fascinating details of Le Prince’s life and the challenges faced in his work, while also exposing the mysterious circumstances surrounding his disappearance. Fischer’s stellar, suspenseful narrative is a work of art unto itself that finally gives Le Prince–and the impact of his often overlooked, cut-short creative genius–his due. Read more
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Inspired: Understanding Creativity by Matt Richtel
Richtel, a science reporter for the New York Times, explores the origins and outcomes of creativity in this remarkable guide … At once conversational and intellectual, Richtel’s lucid writing and intensive research showcase the many facets and manifestations of creativity. This profound and at times whimsical volume informs and inspires. Read more
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The High Sierra: A Love Story by Kim Stanley Robinson
Novelist Robinson (the Mars trilogy) vividly conveys his passion for the Sierra mountains in this enthralling blend of memoir, history, and science. Robinson first hiked in the Sierras on LSD in 1973 as a college student, an experience that sparked decades of return visits with friends and family members. Read more
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The Forever Prisoner: The Full and Searing Account of the CIA’s Most Controversial Covert Program
Using extensive interviews with interrogators, testimony from secret hearings, and classified documents made public through FOIA lawsuits, the authors chart the downward spiral of the first legally authorized torture program in American history and persuasively dispute CIA claims that enhanced interrogation was “tough but necessary.” Though the excruciatingly detailed interrogations of Abu Zubaydah and other prisoners, some of whom died while being questioned, become nearly indistinguishable, this is a crucial record of how the U.S. government betrayed its ideals to wage the war on terror. Read more
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Let’s Not Do That Again by Grant Ginder
Ginder aces the small stuff: sparkling dialogue, hilarious supporting characters (Greta’s roommates!), whimsically named establishments—a doggy day care is BowHaus … He also aces the big stuff, characteristically insightful on sibling and parent-child relationships and politically on message. Read more
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Junk Science and the American Criminal Justice System
“No one in America will ever know the number of innocent people convicted, sent to prison, and even executed because of the flood of rotten forensics and bogus scientific opinions presented to juries. In this intriguing and beautifully crafted book, Innocence Project lawyer M. Chris Fabricant illustrates how wrongful convictions occur, and he makes it obvious how they could be prevented.” — John Grisham, author of A Time for Mercy
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The Listeners: A History of Wiretapping in the United States
Georgetown University English professor Hochman (Savage Preservation) explores in this fascinating history how wiretapping by U.S. law enforcement agencies went from a “dirty business” to a “standard investigative tactic.” … Contending that today’s “regime of ubiquitous backdoor surveillance” wasn’t inevitable, Hochman notes a major shift in the late 1960s when civil rights protests and racial uprisings in the Watts neighborhood of L.A.; Newark, N.J.; and other U.S. cities sparked a conservative backlash that led to the implementation of “repressive law enforcement policies,” including wiretapping, aimed largely at communities of color … This is an essential and immersive look at “what happens when we sideline privacy concerns in the interest of profit motives and police imperatives.” Read more
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Tell Me Everything: The Story of a Private Investigation by Erika Krouse
Novelist Krouse (Contenders) chronicles a benchmark sexual assault investigation in this enthralling blend of true crime and memoir. …what began as a fight for one woman’s justice becomes a battle Krouse fights against her own inner demons that eloquently contends with systemic issues still plaguing American institutions today. The emotional catharsis delivered by the book’s end turns this sensational tale into a stunning story of redemption and hope. Read more
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‘Sandy Hook’ Is Vital Reading in the Post-Truth Age
“Sandy Hook: An American Tragedy and the Battle for the Truth” is exactly what it purports to be, though the title couldn’t have prepared me for the level of schooling I was about to get … Filled with the most impeccable details — the ones that rarely make it into tight news reports — Williamson draws on documented facts to paint pertinent portraits of the families and victims of the Dec. 14, 2012, shooting in Newtown, Connecticut … Expert organization keeps the narrative momentum up, never stagnating on any one person or topic … The thick web of connections explored within reaches from the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing to QAnon and everything in between … Somehow, despite the depressing nature of the subject matter, Sandy Hook remains hopeful … Conspiracies and our post-truth reality are topics that have become evergreen, making Sandy Hook one of the most important books of 2022. Read more
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