The novels and nonfiction that offered unique robotproof perspectives.
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10.Colored Television, by Danzy Senna (Riverhead)
10.
Selling out isnt as easy as it looks.
Yet the TV world isnt as welcoming as shed bargained for.
Read Madeline Leung Colemansreview ofColored Television.
9.The Coin, by Yasmin Zaher (Catapult)
9.
8.The Freaks Came Out to Write, by Tricia Romano (PublicAffairs/Hachette)
8.
7.Martyr!,by Kaveh Akbar (Knopf/PRH)
7.
), then his dazzling prose is what keeps it grounded.
Bonus tip: The audiobook version, narrated bySuccessions Arian Moayed, is exquisite.
6.The Light Eaters, by Zoe Schlanger (Harper)
6.
Woe to an environmental reporter in the 21st century with new climate-change-related catastrophes seeming to arise daily.
Cant communicate with one another?
Hard green buds were poking through.
5.Say Hello to My Little Friend, by Jennine Capo Crucet (Simon & Schuester)
5.
3.The Book of Love,by Kelly Link (Random House)
3.
The escapist masterpiece of the year.
2.An Image of My Name Enters America, by Lucy Ives (Graywolf)
2.
1.The Anthropologists,by Aysegul Savas (Bloomsbury)
1.
Here is an antidote.
Its a joy to be on this journey with them.
It is a disorienting and thrilling revelation, one that reshapes the entire book that precedes it.
Despite the subject matter, not every story is serious.
Elena, captivated, and Sam, terrified, must now contend with the new presence.
Formally frenetic and sharp line by line,Paradedoesnt mimic decades-old experimental modes.
(Renata AdlersSpeedboatcomes to mind at times, though.)
Instead, Cusk has written something genuinely new again.
When out dancing with friends, Elise learns from her younger sister that their mother has disappeared.
No matter how kill the two friends may have been, there remains an unbridgeable class divide.
Burnham is a skilled observer of the hypocrisies coursing beneath our desire to do good and be good.
Jasmine Vojdani
Read Christine Smallwoodsreview ofAll Fours.
Throughout the collection, the past invades the present, in the form of unwanted lineages and regretted decisions.
A woman who cannot produce milk for her newborn blames herself for this ailment.
Her characters, unable to change the past, are forced to confront futures they find terrifying and dangerous.
This is a smart, playful, and compassionate collection worthy of repeated reads.
As Julienne struggles to find herself working odd jobs, Gaspar flits around the world until tragedy befalls him.
I dont know why this book isnt getting more attention.
This book will linger with you.
Tolly Wright
Read James Yehsreview ofJames.
In recent years, she has become a literary voice of consciousness about the ongoing climate crisis.
This is scintillating work, an essential primer for our times.
Their book is ambitious and comprehensive.
Emily Gould
Read Emily Gouldsinterview withHelp Wantedauthor Adelle Waldman on the Cut.
Stranger, by Emily Hunt
Emily Hunts second book of poems considers real intimacy mediated by apps.
These moments are sensorily rich, slotted into 15-minute assembly-line shifts, and short lines.
Throughout, she refrains from including the graphic details that have historically plagued books about the subject.
Too many people I love have misread a memoir as a manual, she writes.
This is a moving, brilliant, and important book.
Read Emma Alperns fullreview ofWandering Stars.
TikToks favorite Marxist small-business owner wrote a book on financial literacy, and it delivers on its promise.
Pendletons personal story brings pathos and relatability to her finance guidance.
But for every setback, she notes a resource for resilience.
Bethy Squires
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