Any written work implicitly attempts to address the age-old question: Whose story is remembered? This is true for the six books listed below as well as for almost everything written since people in what is now Iraq started documenting life experiences with this very new-fangled writing technique in the first place.
From a coming-of-age story in war-torn Ukraine to a dispatch from a wildfire country and a glimpse of the recovery-industrial complex, this week’s publishing calendar offers a wealth of stories that have been written down in stone (or on somewhat newer technology). It even goes as far as the lives of the people who wrote the first symbols many millennia ago. Additionally, they respond to a more straightforward query that you could encounter at your neighborhood library’s lending desk: What books might be enjoyable to read this week, then?
Between Two Rivers: Ancient Mesopotamia and the Birth of History
, by Moudhy Al-Rashid
Our human ancestors didn’t actually give us, their descendants, many hints about what they were up to over the great bulk of their time on Earth. Then, with the aid of the world’s earliest known writing systems, the people who lived between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers turned on a light. Oxford University’s Al-Rashid takes readers on a journey of this most remote period of human history in an effort to shed more light on the everyday lives that took place beneath the dusty artifacts they left behind.
Hotshot: A Life on Fire
, by River Selby
One can only image how hard it must be for many authors to come up with adequate stuff for their debut book’s bio blurb, particularly if they are still in school like Selby. Nevertheless, Selby, who fought wildfires in the American west for more than ten years prior to pursuing their further degrees, probably didn’t have much trouble because of the back cover of Hotshot. In addition to chronicling those events, this hybrid nonfiction work contains a personal memoir of gender dynamics and trauma as well as a well-researched history of wildfires and the people who battle them.
Loved One
, by Aisha Muharrar
Since Loved One is a first novel, it’s likely that you haven’t heard of it. You probably already know Muharrar’s work, even if you haven’t. The Emmy-winning writer and producer of Parks and Recreation, The Good Place, and Hacks has a track record of balancing humor and high-concept narratives with a serious undertone. That’s on exhibit here, with a concept that seems like it would make for interesting television as well: Grieving over the sudden death of her best friend Gabe, Julia goes on an embarrassing gumshoe hunt to locate and return his missing belongings to his mother.
Rehab: An American Scandal
, by Shoshana Walter
Rehab is Walter’s beat. Of course, that’s oversimplifying things, but it’s safe to say that the investigative writer has spent the greater part of ten years examining the maze of regulations, medical facilities, and treatment initiatives that make up the American response to addiction. Walter received a nomination for a Pulitzer Prize finalist for his reporting on concerning practices, which lasted for a full podcast miniseries. Her harsh portrayal of the profitable drug-treatment industry as seen from the viewpoints of a few common individuals caught in its web is now supported by all of that study.
The Sunflower Boys
, by Sam Wachman
Wachman’s debut novel’s Ukrainian narrator, Artem, is approaching puberty, a time of overwhelming complexity in any boy’s life that is made even more difficult by Russia’s 2022 invasion of that nation.In the midst of the growing shadow of war, Artem must discover who he is, struggle with his love for his closest friend, and watch out for his younger brother in The Sunflower Boys, a coming-of-age story set in almost unthinkably awful conditions.
We Are All Guilty Here
, by Karin Slaughter
“I’m very interested in damaged people,” Slaughter said in a 2012 interview with NPRbacked. Evidently, the fascination hasn’t diminished. The case at the center of the book—two disappearances that occurred more than ten years apart—is made more difficult by the abundance of damaged and shady persons in her most recent mystery. Set in the little town of North Falls, Georgia, the book is anticipated to launch a new series for the renowned thriller author.
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