When you make a purchase using links on our site, The Week may earn a commission. All reviews are written independently by our editorial team.
Actress Ione Skye was a teenager when her appearances in River's Edge and Say Anything... made her a star. In her best-selling new memoir, Say Everything, she details her rocky romantic history and long estrangement from her father, the folk-rock legend Donovan.
'West of Eden' by Jean Stein (2016)
After writing Edie—a portrait of Andy Warhol superstar Edie Sedgwick that was also one of the greatest oral-history books of all time—Stein explored the history of Los Angeles through intriguing and dark stories, both well-known and obscure, that took place in and around the movie industry. Buy it here.
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 Magic World' by E. Nesbit (1912)
Nesbit was a fantastic and witty writer. This is one of those brilliant children's books that grown-ups will love as well. Its stories mostly follow English kids, raised with too many rules, as they get into trouble and fabulous, magical, fairy-tale-like things happen to them. Buy it here.
'Music for Chameleons' by Truman Capote (1980)
I can reread these short stories and non-fiction pieces forever. The story "Hand-Carved Coffins" is an account of a crime, much like In Cold Blood—though some say Capote made this one up. I love his Southern, almost surreal sensibility in his early short stories, as well as the portraits, such as "A Beautiful Child," about a day spent with his friend Marilyn Monroe. Buy it here.
'Giovanni's Room' by James Baldwin (1956)
This is a marvelous novel, set in Paris, about a tempestuous gay love affair between the American narrator and an Italian bartender who is about to be executed for murder. Baldwin's emotional intelligence and insight into human behavior are absolutely stunning. Buy it here.
'Heartburn' by Nora Ephron (1983)
Ephron's novel is a brilliant and funny comfort read about the end of a marriage, inspired by the author's own split with Washington Post journalist Carl Bernstein. Ephron's stand-in is a food writer, and because I love food, I enjoy when food plays a role in books. Buy it here.
'The Complete Short Stories of W. Somerset Maugham' (1951)
Maugham was famous for his novels and plays, but I love his short stories best. He often uses a narrator drinking a nightcap at a men's club, recounting a recent scandalous tale of adultery or murder set in the morally questionable British Far Eastern colonies. Many of his stories and books became films, including The Letter, starring Bette Davis. Buy it here.
-
Political cartoons for February 16Cartoons Monday’s political cartoons include President's Day, a valentine from the Epstein files, and more
-
Regent Hong Kong: a tranquil haven with a prime waterfront spotThe Week Recommends The trendy hotel recently underwent an extensive two-year revamp
-
The problem with diagnosing profound autismThe Explainer Experts are reconsidering the idea of autism as a spectrum, which could impact diagnoses and policy making for the condition
-
A thrilling foodie city in northern JapanThe Week Recommends The food scene here is ‘unspoilt’ and ‘fun’
-
Tourangelle-style pork with prunes recipeThe Week Recommends This traditional, rustic dish is a French classic
-
Samurai: a ‘blockbuster’ display of Japan’s legendary warriorsThe Week Recommends British Museum show offers a ‘scintillating journey’ through ‘a world of gore, power and artistic beauty’
-
BMW iX3: a ‘revolution’ for the German car brandThe Week Recommends The electric SUV promises a ‘great balance between ride comfort and driving fun’
-
Arcadia: Tom Stoppard’s ‘masterpiece’ makes a ‘triumphant’ returnThe Week Recommends Carrie Cracknell’s revival at the Old Vic ‘grips like a thriller’
-
My Father’s Shadow: a ‘magically nimble’ love letter to LagosThe Week Recommends Akinola Davies Jr’s touching and ‘tender’ tale of two brothers in 1990s Nigeria
-
Send Help: Sam Raimi’s ‘compelling’ plane-crash survival thrillerThe Week Recommends Rachel McAdams stars as an office worker who gets stranded on a desert island with her boss
-
Book reviews: ‘Hated by All the Right People: Tucker Carlson and the Unraveling of the Conservative Mind’ and ‘Football’Feature A right-wing pundit’s transformations and a closer look at one of America’s favorite sports
