Eric Alterman
A columnist for The Nation, Eric Alterman is most recently the author of It Ain’t No Sin to Be Glad You’re Alive: The Promise of Bruce Springsteen (Back Bay Books, $14).
Lost Illusions by Honoré de Balzac (Viking Press, $14). The best book ever about the contemporary mores of elite American journalism was written in the mid-19th century by a Frenchman. The more things change…
Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy (Modern Library, $10). War and Peace without the preachy metaphysics. Seriously, to read this book is to fall in love, though not happily. But if you need me to recommend Leo Tolstoy, well, I’m afraid I can’t help you.
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.
The Counterlife by Phillip Roth (Vintage Books, $14). Roth hit his stride as never before with a book—presented as a kind of postmodern afterthought to the famed Zuckerman trilogy—that looks deep into the hearts and minds of men and finds just more penises. Brilliant, funny, deep, and dirty. A perfect book, really.
Rabbit, Run by John Updike (Ballantine Books, $14). Is it possible to write the great American novel anymore? No, the country is too diverse and its culture too self-contradictory. But John Updike gets an A for effort for spending nearly 40 years trying—as well as for leaving in the dirty (racist, sexist, imperialist) parts.
High Fidelity by Nick Hornby (Riverhead Books, $13). Not everything in life that’s great has to be high-minded. I almost picked Flaubert’s Sentimental Education here, which is undoubtedly a “better” book, but nowhere near as much fun. Maybe it’s a guy thing, but I laughed, I cried, I wished it would never end.
The Path to Power: The Years of Lyndon Johnson, Volume I by Robert Caro (Knopf, $35). This is volume one of a proposed history that will likely run up to more than 4,000 pages. Yet each page is meticulously researched, beautifully written, and frequently both astounding and moving at the same time. A perfect marriage of writer to subject and an archetypal work of historical reconstruction, and written by a nonhistorian. It edges out Caro’s other masterpiece, The Power Broker, only because of its wayyy larger-than-life subject.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
5 health-conscious cartoons about anti-vaccine rhetoric
Cartoons Artists take on RFK Jr's militant methods, the viral lottery, and more
-
September 13 editorial cartoons
Cartoons Saturday's political cartoons include court-approved racial profiling and America's moral compass
-
Giorgio Armani obituary: designer revolutionised the business of fashion
In the Spotlight ‘King Giorgio’ came from humble beginnings to become a titan of the fashion industry and redefine 20th century clothing
-
Jessica Francis Kane's 6 favorite books that prove less is more
Feature The author recommends works by Penelope Fitzgerald, Marie-Helene Bertino, and more
-
Keith McNally's 6 favorite books that have ambitious characters
Feature The London-born restaurateur recommends works by Leo Tolstoy, John le Carré, and more
-
Garrett Graff's 6 favorite books that shine new light on World War II
Feature The author recommends works by James D. Hornfischer, Craig L. Symonds, and more
-
Helen Schulman's 6 favorite collections of short stories
Feature The award-winning author recommends works by Raymond Carver, James Baldwin, and more
-
Beatriz Williams' 6 timeless books about history and human relationships
Feature The best-selling author recommends works by Jane Austen, Zora Neale Hurston, and more
-
Aysegul Savas' 6 favorite books for readers who love immersive settings
Feature The Paris-based Turkish author recommends works by Hiromi Kawakami, Virginia Woolf, and more
-
Geoff Dyer's 6 favorite books about the realities of war
Feature The award-winning author recommends works by Ernie Pyle, Michael Herr, and more
-
Laura Lippman's 6 favorite books for those who crave a high-stakes adventure
Feature The Grand Master recommends works by E.L. Konigsburg, Charles Portis, and more