Life As No One Knows It: The Physics of Life’s Emergence by Sara Imari Walker

Riverhead Review by Walter Cummins Before I attempt to say something about a book that theorizes life’s emergence from the perspective of the science of physics, I should admit that…

The Art of Dying: Writings, 2019-2022 by Peter Schjeldahl

Abrams Review by Walter Cummins Peter Schjeldahl ends his essay “The Art of Dying”—written when he was well aware of his terminal lung cancer—with a recognition that “Dying is my…

The God of the Woods by Liz Moore

Riverhead Review by Walter Cummins It’s no surprise that Liz Moore’s The God of the Woods is a bestseller in the thriller & suspense and—not as obvious to me—literary fiction…

Ghost Dogs: On Killers and Kin by Andre Dubus III

Norton Review by Walter Cummins Andre Dubus III explores his vulnerabilities throughout the essays in this collection. Despite his literary regard and economic success as a writer and university teacher…

The Same Bright Stars by Ethan Joella

Scribner Review by Walter Cummins As he demonstrated in his first two novels, Ethan Joella possesses a special ability to create a community of interrelated characters, each of whom is…

American Outrage: A Testamentary by H. L. Hix

BlazeVOX Review by Walter Cummins With every page of American Outrage—with every listing of the name of a person killed by gun violence, with every accumulating fact about guns in…

Soul, Ghost, My Absolute by Rosalind Palermo Stevenson

Rain Mountain Review by Walter Cummins In her piece “The Foghorn,” Rosalind Palermo Stevenson includes several of her own translations of Antonin Artaud, including, “The dream is true. All dreams…

The Work of Art: How Something Comes from Nothing by Adam Moss

Penguin Review by Walter Cummins In his quest to explain the creative process behind works of fiction, poetry, drama, art, dance, and music, Adam Moss interviewed forty-plus creators for their…

The Light Eaters: How the Unseen World of Plant Intelligence Offers a New Understanding of Life on Earth by Zoë Schlanger

Harper Review by Walter Cummins My approach to The Light Eaters differs from those who have praised the book for its presentation of the latest findings about plant behavior, including…

The Morningside by Téa Obreht

Random House Review by Walter Cummins The pleasure of reading The Morningside is engaging with the inventive creations of Téa Obreht’s impressive imagination. The frustration is not getting a developed…