alanzilberman.bsky.social Book Recommendations & Book Mentions

alanzilberman.bsky.social

13. The Pursuit of William Abbey by Claire North My first dud of the year! Basically a rehash of North's better novel, The First Fifteen Lives of Harry August, except with a far less inventive premise and an annoying hero. It could have been at least 200 pages shorter. https://t.co/OzmGvTiBFm

alanzilberman.bsky.social

21. American Prometheus by Kai Bird and Martin J. Sherwin As @jhoffman observed, it's very "film bro" to read this right now. Still, it is a literate, dense, authoritative Oppenheimer biography that often reads like a thriller. https://t.co/ws4Dm4HSOr

alanzilberman.bsky.social

Armageddon Time is the rare biographical film that critiques the moral failings of its hero, almost like the anti-Green Book. I kind of loved it. My @wcp review https://t.co/4opwGN8ElD

Out of stock

alanzilberman.bsky.social

Master Gardener opens in DC Friday, and it’s Paul Schrader at his most provocative or alienating. I can’t imagine folks will make memes of it like they did with First Reformed, but that might be a good thing? In any case, I went long with my @wcp review https://t.co/Hu4NLLNAPD

alanzilberman.bsky.social

6. Parable of the Sower by Octavia Butler Written in 1993 and set in the 2020s, it can get repetitive, but its main arc - how a teenager grows from doomy fatalism toward optimistic community-building - resonates a lot with of our current challenges and shared despair. https://t.co/BTpinKwr0c

alanzilberman.bsky.social

12. Stoner by John Williams My favorite book of the year (so far) is also the saddest, an account of an assistant professor who did not realize he led a life of "quiet desperation" until it was too late. The subtle changes in his POV from youth to death are masterful. https://t.co/HR7NABuTgQ

alanzilberman.bsky.social

2. Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin. An agreeable cross between Halt and Catch Fire and A Little Life, mostly in a good way. I was on board until [REDACTED]. If I'd known about [REDACTED], I'm not sure I would have bothered. Still, I couldn't put it down. https://t.co/KL3XrENRS3

alanzilberman.bsky.social

22. Gone to the Wolves by John Wray I expected this coming-of-age novel about Florida metalheads to be dark. I did not expect it to be a total page-turner, with fictionalized cameos from Varg and Euronymous (if you don't know who they are, count yourself lucky). https://t.co/FdBpUTsFuV

alanzilberman.bsky.social

Greetings from Leith, Scotland! For my lovely wife, whose birthday we are celebrating, This Is 40 is now more than a bad Judd Apatow movie. https://t.co/1lihhSy7e7

alanzilberman.bsky.social

10. Speedboat by Renata Adler A playful, dizzying novel that oscillates quickly between humor, insight, and mundane details. Its lack of plot is kind of the point: it puts into the mindset of its detached protagonist, not unlike a more literary social media feed. https://t.co/spnD6epLdg