All opinions expressed in this department,
as throughout the magazine, are those of SALON.
F I C T I O N Maribou Stork Nightmares by Irvine Welsh
A startling and surreal tour through the mind of a Scottish football thug.
Behind the Scenes at the Museum
by Kate Atkinson
Dad's a philanderer, Mum's grouchy, sisters are befuddled -- but the young protagonist of this unusual first novel, set in the U.K., thrives anyway.
In the Beauty of the Lilies by John Updike
The author's seventeenth novel, which traces four generations of a single family, is an interrogation of faith, the movies, and the American century.
Wild Meat and the Bully Burgers
by Lois-Ann Yamanaka
Set in Hawaii, this bumptious first novel, narrated by the daughter of poor agricultural workers, delves into language and identity.
The Law of Enclosures by Dale Peck
Domestic entanglements and tragedies, from the author of last year's critically acclaimed "Martin and John."
N O N F I C T I O N The Double Legacy: Reflections on a Pair of Deaths by Rachel Hadas
After the author, a renowned poet, loses her mother and a dear friend in the same year, she seeks an honest, idiosyncratic form of solace.
But Beautiful: A Book About Jazz by Geoff Dyer
A young British novelist riffs on the lives of jazz greats such as Duke Ellington and Thelonious Monk, with often surprising results.
The Same River Twice by Alice Walker
A look back at the multiple controversies that surrounded Steven Spielberg's film version of the author's Pulitzer Prize-winning novel, "The Color Purple."
Peace and Its Discontents by Edward Said
Essays on the Middle East peace process, from the noted Palestinian literary critic and scholar.
Time on Fire by Evan Handler
Adapted from the author's acclaimed off-Broadway performance piece, this biting memoir recounts his five-year battle with leukemia.
