Clara's Reviews

Biskind provides a sharp addition to the analysis of the road through popular cultural narratives to contemporary American politics that he believes primed society for extremism. Fiction reflects reality; does it also shape it? This book is a thoughtful and provocative tour through popular culture that probes the origins of our national myths about power, immigration, justice, and preservation. A fascinating read for anyone who’s ever engaged in a debate about “Magneto Was Right.” - Clara

Elementary school computer lab was for traveling the trail and stoically watching your best friends died of snakebite, exhaustion, a broken leg, and, yes, dysentery. In this fun book, comedian Lauren Reeves leans into ’90s nostalgia with quirky, snarky lessons from the beloved Oregon Trail computer game. Who knew that the dangers of the trail are the same things we face in life? - Clara

The Cemetery of Forgotten Books series is the stuff of dreams. I’ve read this book twice now (it came out in Spanish in 2016) and the character, drama, and wry humor still entrance me. Reading/remembering the earlier books is not required to enjoy this story, set amongst the political intrigues and maneuverings of Franco’s Spain. Secret agent Alicia Gris is a compelling Alice in Wonderland at the center of the plot. - Clara

The beauty, pain, and personality of Wayétu Moore’s epic trans-Atlantic story could only be expressed with magic. Moore follows her protagonists from before their births through their lives in the early days of Liberia. Combining folklore, African religions, history, and family narratives, Moore’s beautiful writing brings to life the struggles of justice, slavery, and belonging in this complex, nigh-on-miraculous novel. - Clara

Hall tackles the elusive story of Oppenheimer—a man so soft-spoken and full of foibles it is nearly impossible to reconcile his personality with his atomic work—through “testimonies” from characters on the fringes of his greatness. There is a bittersweet element to these small stories. What is it to walk into a room with someone you never loved? To ask questions you know are cruel? - Clara

B.A. Shapiro’s novels (The Art Forger, The Muralist) make me fall in love with art. In her writing the canvas is only one side of a multilayered story about art, artists, and the events that make history. In The Collector’s Apprentice, her characters are chameleons, shedding identities as they revolve around the magnetic works of post-Impressionist mavericks like Matisse and Picasso. Death, scandal, romance, and mystery drive the twists and turns of this thrilling novel that I absolutely could not put down. - Clara                                                       

Lucius, the awkward youngest son of a Polish aristocratic dynasty struggles for opportunity in the rigid and bureaucratic school for medicine—desperate to uncover the mysteries of the brain—until World War I erupts. He’s thrown from the classroom to a regimental hospital in the Carpathians drowning in both the physically and mentally wounded. There’s an underlying bleakness to this powerful and romantic work of historical fiction. - Clara

When Mary Beard writes Art History she writes a history of experiencing art. In this investigation of civilization Beard focuses on the images humans have created of themselves and the divine and how they relate to who those people were. I loved the way this book pushed me to think as creatively about ancient art and sculpture as we are taught to think about modern art. A total joy! - Clara

This book is pure, joyous fun. England’s new Sorcerer Royal is cursed and the fate of English magic is held in the hands of the capricious fairy court. Add in the strong-willed sorceress Prunella Gentleman, a coup afoot in the Thaumaturgical society, and some powerful Malaysian witches and you get this charming, romantic fantasy. - Clara

Sweet, sexy Katie is a small-town girl who was a champion rider in Kentucky and writes letters to her mama every week. Bold, handsome Cassidy has built her life around playing as hard as she works. Both are ambitious lawyers whose tension sizzles across the boardroom table and in the dark corners of a divey, neighborhood lesbian bar. This book is the perfect rom-com! - Clara