A collection of 205 posts
Quillette editor Jonathan Kay reviews three newly published history books about the Assyrian Empire, the fall of the Romanovs, and the travels of Marco Polo.
South Korean Nobel laureate Han Kang’s literary experimentation thwarts rather than advances her professed concern for the suffering of everyone, everywhere, all the time.
George R.R. Martin, the Strauss-Howe theory of history, and the failure of the Baby Boomers.
Jodi Picoult’s latest novel is a ham-fisted expression of cultural rage, embodying the most anodyne values of corporate human-resources departments.
Jay McInerney’s debut novel was the first work of fiction to explore yuppie culture, and its success changed American publishing.
Lale Gül’s autobiographical novel about a young Muslim woman living in the Netherlands has led to death threats and ostracism. But it is a work of admirable intelligence and courage.
The journey of two novels from mind to page to silver screen.
In a new book, David Alff traces the origins of the railway line that joined Boston to Washington, D.C., transforming a young nation in the process.
In anticipation of the Democrats’ Convention in Chicago, a look back at Joe Klein’s splendid 1996 novel ‘Primary Colors’—a fascinating snapshot of Democratic Party politics at the end of the 20th century.
Richard Matheson, George R. Stewart, and the birth of the Calipocalypse.
In a new book, Justine Firnhaber-Baker tells the story of the Capetian dynasty (987–1328), whose rulers stitched a set of medieval duchies and counties into a single kingdom.
Fifty years of Robert Cormier’s “classic” young-adult novel is more than enough.
Had he lived long enough to witness the fruits of liberal capitalism, perhaps Orwell would finally have accepted the failure of socialism.
Salman Rushdie’s new memoir, ‘Knife,’ describes the assassination attempt its author survived and offers a moving contemplation of mortality.
One of US television’s most experienced and talented writers has made a mess of Tom Wolfe’s second novel.