A Farewell to Arms by Ernest Hemingway (Scribner, $13). Set on the Italian front during World War I, this is simply one of the best novels ever written about innocence, love, and loss. The first five paragraphs comprise a perfect miniature war story, full of grim foreboding about the beating that both the troops and Hemingway’s characters would take.
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A Death in the Family by James Agee (Vintage, $13). An American classic about a summons home that takes a tragic turn, and a hymn to small country towns, porch rockers, screen doors, and dewy summer nights. Because I spent part of my childhood abroad, I always missed having that sense of belonging, and Agee’s rootedness, his powerful sense of place, is mesmerizing.
Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy (Modern Library, $10). The first epic Russian novel I read, and the one that showed me there was much to learn in the pages of literature about a woman’s place in the world, the pitfalls of living life according to society’s mores, and the price of defiance.
Burger’s Daughter by Nadine Gordimer (Penguin, $14). Gordimer is South Africa’s Tolstoy, and in this book she movingly chronicles a young woman’s coming of age against the background of turbulent social change, masterfully demonstrating how the political inexorably becomes personal.
Devices and Desires
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Poland downs Russian drones in NATO airspaceSpeed Read Polish airspace was “violated by a huge number of Russian drones,” Prime Minister Donald Tusk said
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Judge lets Cook stay at Fed while appealing ousterSpeed Read Trump had attempted to fire Cook over allegations of mortgage fraud
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Israel targets Hamas leaders in Qatar airstrikeSpeed Read Hamas said five low-level leaders were killed in the attack
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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
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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
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Aysegul Savas' 6 favorite books for readers who love immersive settingsFeature The Paris-based Turkish author recommends works by Hiromi Kawakami, Virginia Woolf, and more
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Geoff Dyer's 6 favorite books about the realities of warFeature The award-winning author recommends works by Ernie Pyle, Michael Herr, and more
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Laura Lippman's 6 favorite books for those who crave a high-stakes adventureFeature The Grand Master recommends works by E.L. Konigsburg, Charles Portis, and more
