What happens when a writer and artist, both passionate about architecture, come together? You get a stunning book that creatively depicts some of the most amazing Art Deco high-rises across the United States — including six iconic structures in Michigan.   Highrises Art Deco: 100 Spectacular Skyscrapers from the Roaring ’20s to the Great Depression is…

Spiritual reading is an integral part of the fully formed Catholic life. This includes reading the Bible, the Catechism of the Catholic Church, commentaries on faith and prayer, and about the lives of the saints. But what about great works of fiction? Might novels have a unique capacity to illuminate the Catholic experience? The Catholic…

Molly Gray, the heroine of “The Mystery Guest,” has inherited a trove of chipper maxims from her late grandmother, known as Gran, but the one she repeats most often is this gem about making hasty assumptions: “When you assume, you make an A-S-S out of U and ME.” I thought of that wisdom after I…

Anna Pitoniak, The Helsinki Affair(Simon and Schuster) “Atmospheric, well-researched and packed with tradecraft, conspiracies, murder and, best of all, two fascinating women … Pitoniak has something unexpected up her sleeve. For Amanda and Kath, the novel’s conclusion also feels — hopefully — more like a beginning than an end. That’s because of how Pitoniak constructed…

HOUSTON – The state of Texas has, by far, the highest number of incarcerations in the United States. Currently, in the Lone Star State, there are a total of 133,772 prisoners behind bars. Within that large number lives juveniles who are imprisoned. Despite statistics showing that the number of juveniles in prison has decreased over…

Unwrap a spectrum of literary wonders with our Queer Book 2023 Holiday Gift Guide. Introduce your loved ones to Andrew Holleran’s timeless fiction or immerse yourself in Barbra Streisand’s epic memoir. Dance through the pop music landscape with Lil Nas X and Madonna, or embark on a magical journey with Susan Ottaviano. Discover the legend…

Iowa’s largest teachers union, the largest publisher in America and four bestselling authors are suing the state over its new education law that bans books that depict sex acts from schools. The Iowa State Education Association, Penguin Random House and four authors — Laurie Halse Anderson; John Green; Malinda Lo; and Jodi Picoult — filed…

John Nichols, who launched his literary career in his mid-20s with a pair of tragicomic novels but became best known for evoking New Mexico’s small towns and rural landscapes in books including “The Milagro Beanfield War,” was found dead Nov. 27 at his home in Taos, N.M. He was 83. His daughter, Tania Harris, said…

How could I resist a suspense novel in which a critic becomes an amateur detective in order to avoid becoming a murder suspect or even a victim? I inhaled Alexis Soloski’s debut thriller, Here in the Dark; but, even readers who don’t feel a professional kinship with Soloski’s main character should be drawn to this…

Thirty per cent of children’s books published last year featured racially minoritised characters, according to new research. The sixth report on racial representation in children’s literature by the Centre for Literacy in Primary Education (CLPE), titled Reflecting Realities, found a 26-point rise in the percentage of titles featuring racially minoritised characters since the survey was…