The Innocents Abroad by Mark Twain (Signet, $8). Twain’s novel about Americans traveling through Europe and the Holy Land mocks Americans’ penchant for tacky tourism: “We find a piece of the true cross in every old church we go into... And as for the bones of St. Denis, I feel certain we have seen enough of them to duplicate him if necessary.” What would he make of the Twain-land erected in his hometown of Hannibal, Mo.?
Leaves of Grass by Walt Whitman (Bantam, $6). “If you want me again look for me under your boot-soles,” Whitman writes. At his house museum in Camden, N.J., visitors go to see Whitman’s boot soles, to see his stuff. Whitman’s poetry tries to bridge the divide between the material and spiritual worlds. Writers’ houses, monuments to the imagination, do the same.
The Sport of the Gods by Paul Laurence Dunbar (Modern Library, $23). Dunbar’s verses still resonate: He wrote the line “I know why the caged bird sings.” This wonderful recent edition of his works may help restore his reputation. That would be good news for the Paul Laurence Dunbar house, an evocative yet undervisited museum in Dayton, Ohio.
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Eden’s Outcasts: The Story of Louisa May Alcott and Her Father by John Matteson (Norton, $18). We have created a myth around the author of Little Women. Matteson’s masterful biography rectifies the historical record. A must-read before visiting the Alcott house in Concord, Mass.
The Decoration of Houses by Edith Wharton (Norton, $25). Wharton’s first book was an influential treatise on architecture and design. She built her gorgeous estate in Lenox, Mass., the Mount, around her theories of interiors and gardens.
Martin Eden by Jack London (Penguin, $16). At the end of his life, London, a best-selling author, was sick of writing, but he kept at it to pay bills. In Sonoma County, Calif., he bought a ranch and built a glorious house that burned to the ground the day he was to move in. Martin Eden is about a young writer who becomes disillusioned once famous. Both the novel and the burned remains of London’s house display the folly of foresight.
Anne Trubek's new book, A Skeptic’s Guide to Writers' Houses, explores the sometimes-makeshift museums housed in the former abodes of famous authors
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Jaguar Land Rover’s cyber bailoutTalking Point Should the government do more to protect business from the ‘cyber shockwave’?
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Russia: already at war with Europe?Talking Point As Kremlin begins ‘cranking up attacks’ on Ukraine’s European allies, questions about future action remain unanswered
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Sudoku hard: October 5, 2025The Week's daily hard sudoku puzzle
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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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Garrett Graff's 6 favorite books that shine new light on World War IIFeature The author recommends works by James D. Hornfischer, Craig L. Symonds, and more
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Helen Schulman's 6 favorite collections of short storiesFeature The award-winning author recommends works by Raymond Carver, James Baldwin, and more
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Beatriz Williams' 6 timeless books about history and human relationshipsFeature The best-selling author recommends works by Jane Austen, Zora Neale Hurston, and more
