In her new memoir, Handbook for an Unpredictable Life, New York City native Rosie Perez details how she overcame a turbulent upbringing to become a dancer, choreographer, and Oscar-nominated actress.
The Known World by Edward P. Jones (Amistad, $15). An amazing novel about a horrific truth: In pre–Civil War America, there were free black Americans who actually owned black slaves. Jones develops his characters without judgment, though, and so adeptly that I felt for all of them. The slaves’ suffering made me want to put this book down many times, but I couldn’t. It’s too good.
The Black Lights by Thomas Hauser (Univ. of Arkansas, $22.50). A boxing promoter told me that this 1986 book was going to blow my mind, and it did. It’s an unapologetic tour of the good, bad, and ugly business of the sport I love most.
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Game Change by John Heilemann and Mark Halperin (Harper Perennial, $17). Though most of us are tired of the volatile opinions and malicious gossip that pass as news on cable these days, we still have an appetite for juicy details about our would-be leaders. This inside look at the 2008 presidential campaign tells on everyone, confirming our suspicions that politics is a mucky business.
The Princess Bride by William Goldman (Harcourt, $9). The movie is really good, but it pales in comparison with Goldman’s 1973 novel. I have loved this story forever. So adventurous. So utterly romantic. And so witty it still makes me laugh.
The Power Broker by Robert A. Caro (Vintage, $26). You want to know how real political power works? This biography of New York’s Robert Moses, an unelected public-works kingpin, offers that and more. As I read, I came to both despise and admire the man. He did create Lincoln Center, but even that project was pushed through with little regard for the people it -displaced.
50 Years of Happiness by Derrick Bang (out of print). If you were a Peanuts fan as a child and want to revisit that time and place, this is how. Almost everything is in here—the comic strips, the history. I first read this book at a dinner party, tucking myself into a corner with it after I found it on a shelf. It was completely rude of me but worth it.
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Gilbert King’s 6 favorite books about the search for justiceFeature The journalist recommends works by Bryan Stevenson, David Grann, and more
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Nathan Harris’ 6 favorite books that turn adventures into revelationsFeature The author recommends works by Kazuo Ishiguro, Ian McGuire, and more
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Marisa Silver’s 6 favorite books that capture a lifetimeFeature The author recommends works by John Williams, Ian McEwan, and more
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Lou Berney’s 6 favorite books with powerful storytellingFeature The award-winning author recommends works by Dorothy B. Hughes, James McBride, and more
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Elizabeth Gilbert’s favorite books about women overcoming difficultiesFeature The author recommends works by Tove Jansson, Lauren Groff, and more
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Fannie Flagg’s 6 favorite books that sparked her imaginationFeature The author recommends works by Johanna Spyri, John Steinbeck, and more
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Jessica Francis Kane's 6 favorite books that prove less is moreFeature The author recommends works by Penelope Fitzgerald, Marie-Helene Bertino, and more
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Keith McNally's 6 favorite books that have ambitious charactersFeature The London-born restaurateur recommends works by Leo Tolstoy, John le Carré, and more
