Book Reviews
When The Forest Finds You by Lonnie Stabile
This poetry collection uses horror movie references and tropes to disect sexual violence and its aftermath.
Bear by Julia Phillips
In this fable-like novel, two sisters struggle to break free of their circumstances – but it doesn't quite deliver on its promising premise.
City Under One Roof by Iris Yamashita
All the residents of this isolated Alaskan city live in one high rise apartment building. When a gruesome murder takes place, everyone becomes a suspect.
Romantic Comedy by Curtis Sittenfeld
Romantic Comedy is both a love letter to the genre, and a tongue-in-cheek exploration of some of the stereotypical tropes that define it.
Kill For Love by Laura Picklesimer
Hailed as the ‘female American Psycho’, this novel that will delight fans of the genre while adding a fresh twist to an old narrative.
I Am Homeless If This is Not My Home by Lorrie Moore
Lorrie Moore’s fourth novel is an ornate, interwoven meditation on mortality, where death is “kind of a spectrum.”
Sontag: Her Life and Work by Benjamin Moser
An experimental personal essay which riffs on Moser’s biography, quantum mechanics and Joan Didion.
I Fear My Pain Interests You by Stephanie LaCava
A ‘chic sad girl’ novel that dives into female suffering and objectification, with a protagonist who cannot feel pain.
Now Is Not the Time to Panic by Kevin Wilson
A coming of age story for two teenagers over a fateful summer, set against a backdrop of secrecy and a national pop culture moment.
Bliss Montage by Ling Ma
Ma’s short story collection ventures into the surreal, the unknown and the unexpected.
Red Low Fog / Transcript [Documentary in Poems] by Melissa E. Jordan
Telling the story of a ski lodge bombing in upstate New York, Jordan weaves an intricate tale of love, gossip, urban myth and story-telling.
Dirtbag, Massachusetts: A Confessional by Isaac Fitzgerald
This collection of confessional stories explore the many facets of one man’s identity with warmth and honesty.
Shit Cassandra Saw by Gwen E. Kirby
Kirby’s debut collection is a bold, madcap adventure through the lives and voices of historical women.
Girls They Write Songs About by Carlene Bauer
This witty, smart and thrumming novel explores the hunger and heartache of female friendship over two decades.
Ghost Lover by Lisa Taddeo
In this collection of raw and real short stories, Taddeo brings us another ferocious does of female desire and competition.
Milk Fed by Melissa Broder
A wildly erotic, bitingly witty and outlandish novel of many appetites.
Fetal Position by Holly Melgard
This experimental poetry collection brings labour, in all its iterations, to the forefront.
Today a Woman Went Mad in the Supermarket by Hilma Wolitzer
Wolitzer's short stories explore the course of an ordinary marriage with wit, candor and grace.
An American Marriage by Tayari Jones
This tale of homecoming, marriage, obligation and love draws a nuanced picture of racial differences.