Category: Micro-Reviews

A recent Broadway revival inspired me to reread one of my favorite plays from the undergrad days. Sidney Brustein is a lefty intellectual in 1960s New York. He’s sharp and idealistic, but also fatally cynical. For Sidney, all crusades are lost causes, because the country …

This psychological thriller focuses on actors trying to make it in Hollywood. When one performer disappears after an audition, another’s life is turned upside down. What happened to Emily? Why is Mia now in danger? Mia’s story unfolds at a fast, voicy clip that’s easy …

Here’s a domestic thriller that will keep you happily turning the pages—an easy, rewarding read from a British author who knows how to make the most of the genre. The story isn’t earthshattering. A girl goes missing, lives are affected, whodunit? The characters don’t have …

In the near future, zombies roam the American landscape. Society has learned to live with them, keeping them largely at bay through smart science and government-mandated caution. The world has changed in other ways, too. In the information sphere, the country is ruled by bloggers …

This heart-warmer of a novel is one of the most emotionally rewarding things I’ve read in a long time. Ove is a grumpy old man who literally just wants to die. An idiot has driven over his mailbox, a pregnant immigrant has infiltrated the neighborhood, …

Here’s a traditional mystery with a lot of elements that make for an entertaining read. A half dozen people are trapped by a storm at an artists’ colony in Vermont. The group includes actors, a sculptor, a photographer, a ballerina and a few others. The …

As winter sets in at a first nations reserve in northern Ontario, the power goes out. Something dire is happening down south. Civilization is dying. Society is unravelling. The Anishinaabe survivors are left alone to endure the winter and plan for the future. Public order …

This play, by the man who gave us The Banshees of Inisherin, has all the subtlety of a steel-toed kick to the groin. “Mad” Padraic is an Irish National Liberation Army psychopath who will kill any man who so much as looks sideways at his …

My first visit to the James Patterson thriller mill is likely to be my last. This novel about a gruff female cop in Australia who has to catch a serial killer and save her unjustly imprisoned brother contains no positive surprises for anyone who has …

On first glance, this is a play about rich kids who refuse to grow up. On closer inspection, it’s a moving and shrewdly humorous tale about two friends in 1980s New York who are terrified of life and loss in the big, cold world. Dennis …