The Wind-up Bird Chronicle by Haruki Murakami (Vintage, $16). My all-time favorite book, this 1997 novel manages to move between the ordinary and the sublime with such effortlessness that you forget which is which. Deep and funny and riveting. Also, be warned: It contains a scene that, though in no way gratuitous, is the most sadistic and disturbing in all of literature.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Look at Me by Jennifer Egan (Anchor, $14). A recent novel that’s very funny and very strange and impossible to put down. Like Pullman, Egan delves into young people’s sexuality with great sensitivity. Look at Me is also a brilliant satire of American values and a prescient look at what this narcissistic country is up against (besides itself!).
The Master and Margarita by Mikhail Bulgakov (Vintage, $13). The funniest book I’ve ever read. It is a love story and a romp and a political allegory and more enjoyable than any of those things.
His Dark Materials by Philip Pullman (Laurel-Leaf, $21). This is a trilogy, but, like The Lord of the Rings, it really functions as one book. Supposedly young adult fiction, Pullman’s books take on human sexuality and the Roman Catholic Church with a boldness I’ve never seen before. Also, they are blistering page-turners.
The Gambler
-
‘The worry is far from fanciful’Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
-
How are Americans bracing for the end of SNAP?TODAY'S BIG QUESTION Millions depend on supplemental federal food funds that are set to expire this month, as the government shutdown begins to be acutely felt
-
Book review: ‘Joyride: A Memoir’Feature A journalist’s story of how she chased and accomplished her dreams
-
Gilbert King’s 6 favorite books about the search for justiceFeature The journalist recommends works by Bryan Stevenson, David Grann, and more
-
Nathan Harris’ 6 favorite books that turn adventures into revelationsFeature The author recommends works by Kazuo Ishiguro, Ian McGuire, and more
-
Marisa Silver’s 6 favorite books that capture a lifetimeFeature The author recommends works by John Williams, Ian McEwan, and more
-
Lou Berney’s 6 favorite books with powerful storytellingFeature The award-winning author recommends works by Dorothy B. Hughes, James McBride, and more
-
Elizabeth Gilbert’s favorite books about women overcoming difficultiesFeature The author recommends works by Tove Jansson, Lauren Groff, and more
-
Fannie Flagg’s 6 favorite books that sparked her imaginationFeature The author recommends works by Johanna Spyri, John Steinbeck, and more
-
Jessica Francis Kane's 6 favorite books that prove less is moreFeature The author recommends works by Penelope Fitzgerald, Marie-Helene Bertino, and more
-
Keith McNally's 6 favorite books that have ambitious charactersFeature The London-born restaurateur recommends works by Leo Tolstoy, John le Carré, and more
