National Book Critics Circle
@bookcritics.bsky.social
Honoring outstanding writing and fostering a national conversation about reading, criticism, and literature since 1974.
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NBCC member Chris Barsanti reviewed W. David Marx's "Blank Space: A Cultural History of the 21st Century" for The Minnesota Star Tribune:
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November 27, 2025 at 7:06 PM
NBCC member Chris Barsanti reviewed W. David Marx's "Blank Space: A Cultural History of the 21st Century" for The Minnesota Star Tribune:
NBCC member DW McKinney spoke with independent publishers about how they're supporting marginalized authors and their work in our current political climate for Publishers Weekly:
Indie Publishers Support Marginalized Authors
Amid challenges, imprints that champion inclusivity stay on track.
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November 27, 2025 at 6:02 PM
NBCC member DW McKinney spoke with independent publishers about how they're supporting marginalized authors and their work in our current political climate for Publishers Weekly:
NBCC member Jack Rockwell wrote about "On the Calculation of Volume (Book III)," written by Solvej Balle and translated from the Danish by Sophia Hersi Smith and Jennifer Russell, for Words Without Borders:
“Stranded in Time”: Memory and Repetition in Solvej Balle’s On the Calculation of Volume (Book III) - Words Without Borders
One of the basic tricks of narrative writing is assigning multiple functions to details. Under the guise of plot, we get characterization. Apparent description begets foreshadowing. Readers, by now well...
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November 27, 2025 at 5:03 PM
NBCC member Jack Rockwell wrote about "On the Calculation of Volume (Book III)," written by Solvej Balle and translated from the Danish by Sophia Hersi Smith and Jennifer Russell, for Words Without Borders:
NBCC member Linda Hitchcock reviewed James R. Benn’s "A Bitter Wind" for BookTrib:
James R. Benn Delivers a WWII Mystery Rooted in Hidden History | BookTrib.
A Bitter Wind is author and former librarian James R. Benn’s 20th WWII based action-packed mystery novel in his grippingly realistic Billy Boyle series. This quote from Arthur Conan Doyle’s 1917 short...
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November 27, 2025 at 4:03 PM
NBCC member Linda Hitchcock reviewed James R. Benn’s "A Bitter Wind" for BookTrib:
NBCC member Elaine Szewczyk profiled Julian Barnes for Publishers Weekly:
Julian Barnes’s Mortal Dilemma
The Booker Prize–winning author is turning 80 and releasing his final book—about love, death, and a comically flawed marriage.
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November 27, 2025 at 3:03 PM
NBCC member Elaine Szewczyk profiled Julian Barnes for Publishers Weekly:
Former NBCC President Laurie Hertzel reviewed Brian Buckbee's "We Should All Be Birds" for The Washington Post:
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November 27, 2025 at 2:02 PM
Former NBCC President Laurie Hertzel reviewed Brian Buckbee's "We Should All Be Birds" for The Washington Post:
NBCC member Craig Teicher wrote about three new books of poetry for NPR:
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November 26, 2025 at 7:01 PM
NBCC member Craig Teicher wrote about three new books of poetry for NPR:
NBCC member Britta Stromeyer reviewed "Coming. Apart.," written by Edy Poppy and translated from the Norwegian by May-Brit Akerholt, for Tupelo Quarterly:
Britta Stromeyer on Coming. Apart. by Edy Poppy, translated by May-Brit Akerholt.
“Now I want to write until I blush. Because I believe that’s where the most interesting writing, the most challenging formulations, are hiding: in the total degradation” writes Edy Poppy in “The Last…
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November 26, 2025 at 6:04 PM
NBCC member Britta Stromeyer reviewed "Coming. Apart.," written by Edy Poppy and translated from the Norwegian by May-Brit Akerholt, for Tupelo Quarterly:
NBCC member Marcie Geffner reviewed Ayana Gray's novel "I, Medusa" for her Substack, Mostly Books:
Book Review: I, Medusa: A Novel by Ayana Gray
Retelling of classic Greek myth checks the boxes for YA Romantasy
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November 26, 2025 at 5:02 PM
NBCC member Marcie Geffner reviewed Ayana Gray's novel "I, Medusa" for her Substack, Mostly Books:
NBCC member Chris Barsanti reviewed several books for The Minnesota Star Tribune:
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November 26, 2025 at 4:01 PM
NBCC member Chris Barsanti reviewed several books for The Minnesota Star Tribune:
NBCC Vice President/Online Michael Schaub interviewed Elaine Hsieh Chou for The Orange County Register:
Elaine Hsieh Chou aimed to write Asian American characters she hadn’t seen before
Born in Anaheim Hills, the UC Irvine-educated author discusses her new collection, ‘Where Are You Really From.’
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November 26, 2025 at 3:01 PM
NBCC Vice President/Online Michael Schaub interviewed Elaine Hsieh Chou for The Orange County Register:
Former NBCC President Laurie Hertzel reviewed Susan Orlean's "Joyride" for The Boston Globe:
Prolific profile writer Susan Orlean turns a sharp gaze onto her own exhilarating career - The Boston Globe
This is not a craft book but a memoir, yet 'Joyride' might contain some of the best writing advice you'll ever read.
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November 26, 2025 at 2:02 PM
Former NBCC President Laurie Hertzel reviewed Susan Orlean's "Joyride" for The Boston Globe:
NBCC member Susan Bernofsky reviewed Morten Høi Jensen’s "The Master of Contradictions: Thomas Mann and the Making of The Magic Mountain" for The Nation:
Thomas Mann’s Pessimistic Humanism
What can we still learn from the The Magic Mountain?
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November 25, 2025 at 7:02 PM
NBCC member Susan Bernofsky reviewed Morten Høi Jensen’s "The Master of Contradictions: Thomas Mann and the Making of The Magic Mountain" for The Nation:
NBCC member Ricardo Santiago Soto reviewed Charlotte Shane's "An Honest Woman" for Raevue:
An Honest Woman - Book Review
An Honest Woman - Book Review
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November 25, 2025 at 6:03 PM
NBCC member Ricardo Santiago Soto reviewed Charlotte Shane's "An Honest Woman" for Raevue:
NBCC member Robert Allen Papinchak reviewed Damion Searls’ "Analog Days" for Shelf Awareness: buff.ly/i8NUi9u
November 25, 2025 at 5:01 PM
NBCC member Robert Allen Papinchak reviewed Damion Searls’ "Analog Days" for Shelf Awareness: buff.ly/i8NUi9u
Former NBCC President Tom Beer interviewed Stephen Greenblatt about his new book, "Dark Renaissance: The Dangerous Times and Fatal Genius of Shakespeare's Greatest Rival," for Kirkus Reviews:
Best Nonfiction of 2025: Stephen Greenblatt | Kirkus Reviews
The author of ‘Dark Renaissance’ answers our questions.
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November 25, 2025 at 4:02 PM
Former NBCC President Tom Beer interviewed Stephen Greenblatt about his new book, "Dark Renaissance: The Dangerous Times and Fatal Genius of Shakespeare's Greatest Rival," for Kirkus Reviews:
NBCC member Jake Cline reviewed Joy Williams’ "The Pelican Child" for The Washington Post:
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November 25, 2025 at 3:00 PM
NBCC member Jake Cline reviewed Joy Williams’ "The Pelican Child" for The Washington Post:
NBCC member Marcie Geffner reviewed Maria Dahvana Headley's "Beowulf: A New Translation" for her Substack, Six Forty-Five:
REVIEW: Beowulf: A New Translation by Maria Dahvana Headley
Contemporary language makes this Old English epic poem fun to read
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November 25, 2025 at 2:03 PM
NBCC member Marcie Geffner reviewed Maria Dahvana Headley's "Beowulf: A New Translation" for her Substack, Six Forty-Five:
NBCC member Brian Tanguay reviewed "The World After Gaza: A History" by Pankaj Mishra for the California Review of Books:
The World After Gaza: A History by Pankaj Mishra
Penguin Press Review by Brian Tanguay Pankaj Mishra is a writer of capacious erudition which he has demonstrated in eight books of non-fiction, two works of fiction, and dozens of articles in the…
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November 25, 2025 at 1:00 PM
NBCC member Brian Tanguay reviewed "The World After Gaza: A History" by Pankaj Mishra for the California Review of Books:
NBCC board member Tobias Carroll wrote about Delaney Nolan's "Happy Bad" for On the Seawall:
on Happy Bad, a novel by Delaney Nolan – On the Seawall
Post navigation
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November 21, 2025 at 10:01 PM
NBCC board member Tobias Carroll wrote about Delaney Nolan's "Happy Bad" for On the Seawall:
NBCC member Michael Quinn reviewed "The Director," written by Daniel Kehlmann and translated from the German by Ross Benjamin, for The Village Star-Revue:
Quinn on Books: Pabst Blue Ribbon, by Michael Quinn - The Village Star-Revue
A director has an idea for a screenplay: wealthy passengers aboard a luxury cruise ship find their peace of mind poisoned by rumors of an impending war. Trust
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November 21, 2025 at 9:01 PM
NBCC member Michael Quinn reviewed "The Director," written by Daniel Kehlmann and translated from the German by Ross Benjamin, for The Village Star-Revue:
NBCC member Nell Beram reviewed "Love Johnny Carson: One Obsessive Fan's Journey to Find the Genius Behind the Legend" by Mark Malkoff:
Shelf Awareness for Readers for Friday, November 7, 2025
I'm nostalgic for muzak, a liminal sound lost since we started carrying handheld entertainment everywhere. I seek it out to soothe my streaming-age decision fatigue. Because silence is harsh and…
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November 21, 2025 at 8:00 PM
NBCC member Nell Beram reviewed "Love Johnny Carson: One Obsessive Fan's Journey to Find the Genius Behind the Legend" by Mark Malkoff:
NBCC member Bill Marx is the president of the nonprofit Viva la Book Review, a new and innovative organization dedicated to growing and publicizing the publication of book reviews in local media across America:
Viva la Book Review - Viva la Book Review
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November 21, 2025 at 7:03 PM
NBCC member Bill Marx is the president of the nonprofit Viva la Book Review, a new and innovative organization dedicated to growing and publicizing the publication of book reviews in local media across America:
NBCC member Cory Oldweiler reviewed Joy Williams’ "The Pelican Child" for The Minnesota Star Tribune:
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November 21, 2025 at 6:02 PM
NBCC member Cory Oldweiler reviewed Joy Williams’ "The Pelican Child" for The Minnesota Star Tribune:
NBCC member Noelle McManus wrote about Ada Limón’s "Startlement" for Alta:
The Rule of Names
Ada Limón’s poetry in Startlement explores the world by calling things what they are.
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November 21, 2025 at 5:03 PM
NBCC member Noelle McManus wrote about Ada Limón’s "Startlement" for Alta: