Jocelyn's Reviews

Mary Gabriel set out to illuminate the lives and legacies of five female American artists who changed history while being overlooked by it, and through these women brings viscerally to life a New York–centered world of the last century. The relationships, famous names, wars, social movements, and above all, the art in Ninth Street Women will leave you inspired, looking up paintings, and holding onto the names Lee Krasner, Elaine de Kooning, Grace Hartigan, Joan Mitchell, Helen Frankenthaler, and Mary Gabriel. - Jocelyn

Mathematics professor Dr. Hannah Fry has tackled with numbers Santa Claus and love, so it might seem a retreat to safety for her to write about algorithms…if the algorithms weren’t covering everything crucial about being a modern human, from our everyday interactions to our social justice systems. With intelligence and charm, Fry gives a tour through algorithms and lays out a better understanding of the possibilities before us. - Jocelyn

You may know Michael Lewis from his best-selling books on the insider worlds of baseball (Moneyball), football (The Blind Side), the housing market (The Big Short), and the human psyche (The Undoing Project). Now his journalistic sights are on the US government and the current administration. Shying away from personalities and conspiracies, Lewis focuses on the agencies that make the country function—and exactly how and why they are (or aren’t) working. - Jocelyn

James Mustich, professional bibliophile, has spent over a decade compiling this book for book lovers. Much more than an Internet listicle, each of its entries (which include both the expected and the surprising) is accompanied by an essay, a cover, and a categorization, and includes supplementary facts and photos, information about preferred editions, and (yet more) recommended reading. We can’t seem to get enough of lists of the things we love, but they are so much nicer when they’re done well. - Jocelyn

Cigarette smoke and shadows tie together this graphic fantasy from acclaimed novelist Saladin Ahmed and artist Sami Kavela. Journalist Elena Abbott, armed with a camera and the truth, finds herself pitted not only against the injustice and police brutality of 1970’s Detroit, but also against a dark magic that is haunting her past and home. A winning cast and a noir story with a funky backbeat. - Jocelyn

A burglary gone awry, a near-perfect life destroyed, a mind torn. Toby is caring for his dying uncle and finding himself again. When a skull is found in the wych elm, it seems that a decades-old murder may tear apart a family and Toby himself, as he tries to piece together what happened—and what he might have done. A haunting novel portrayed by a narrator unreliable to himself. - Jocelyn

It’s time to celebrate: Erika Moen and Matthew Nolan (authors of Oh Joy Sex Toy) have a sex ed book! With pink, friendly tones, an upbeat attitude, and the always positive and diverse “masturbateers,” these comics cover everything from self-exploration, consent, and protection, to practical techniques for whatever sexy times you’re drawn to. - Jocelyn

Part ghost story, part fairy tale, wholly human, Haruki Murakami’s new novel is a quiet burn of redemption and rebirth and the stories that cannot be told. An unnamed artist is asked by a faceless man to paint his portrait, a culmination of 9 months lost in art and music, loss and sex, the memories of love and empathy of men. Once you accept the impossible, you can only find yourself enthralled upon a mountain, listening for a bell, ruminating on what is left behind. - Jocelyn

From sweltering Barbados to London streets, Arctic ice to Moroccan heat, skies above to depths below, fear to love and back again, again, again. Esi Edugyan’s epic new historical novel follows the young Washington Black from the unrelenting brutality of slavery to the edges of the world as he searches for freedom, finding the complexities of the world, of the heart, and of humanity. A journey that vividly lingers long after turning the last page. - Jocelyn

As soon as I started reading this book, I wanted to send it to every community leader I know. Eric Klinenberg advocates for “social” infrastructure—physical spaces such as parks, libraries, pedestrian walkways, even bookstores and coffee shops—to create positive, practical change. Klinenberg presents tested evidence that these spaces not only create “community,” but also measurably reduce crime, fight poverty, improve education, combat climate change, help families, and increase life expectancy. Want to make a functional difference? Start here. - Jocelyn