A 1987 novel about the Vietnam war. A moonfaced grunt named Cacciato has sized up Vietnam and decided that, all in all, he would rather be in Paris—so he’s going to walk there, all 10,000 klicks. His former squad follows him from the hills of …
Read MoreMicro-Review #66: Alive
The true story of a Uruguayan rugby team that crash-lands in the Andes and resorts to cannibalism to survive. The movie (starring Ethan Hawke) is great entertainment, but it lacks the depth and grit of this epic book. Sixteen people—most of them teenagers—survive the crash. …
Read MoreMicro-Review #65: Innocence, or, Murder on Steep Street
This cold-war mystery by a Holocaust memoirist takes us to the repressive streets of Prague in the 1950s. In an era of strict communist repression, daily life is marked by corruption, big-brother scrutiny and near hopelessness. In the authorities’ eyes, every citizen is a suspected …
Read MoreMicro-Review #64: Double Whammy
For readers who have yet to discover the wonder and glory of Carl Hiaasen’s satirical thrillers, this one is a great place to start. The story about malfeasance and murder in the skeevy world of largemouth bass fishing tournaments is both outlandish and true to …
Read MoreMicro-Review #63: Sheila: Baby’s First Zombie Apocalypse
The title suggests a rip-roaring romp through a cityscape of the flesh-eating undead. Indeed, this novel features plenty of action, and the writing is fast and energetic (Malbon clearly loves this topic). The only problem: that’s about all there is—a lot of zombie smiting and …
Read MoreMicro-Review #62: Push
Here’s a rare novel that blends young-adult fiction with gritty urban storytelling and X-rated social realism. The result is one of the best novels of the 1990s, a shocking ride through the horror-filled life of a teenage girl in Harlem. Claireece “Precious” Jones grows up …
Read MoreMicro-Review #61: Self-Editing for Fiction Writers
One for the writers. Most how-to-write books are recycled compendia of well-worn do’s and don’ts (many are downright suckertraps). This one, first published back in 1994, is one of the briefest and the best. The advice contained herein is clear and useful, and it’s presented …
Read MoreMicro-Review #60: The Ghost
A political thriller about a ghost writer who’s authoring a book for a former British prime minister. There’s more to the job than the usual political-memoir banalities. Our ex-PM has a hidden past. He might even be a spy for the United States. Our writer …
Read MoreMicro-Review #59: Life
RIP, Charlie Watts. Despite your fame, we hardly knew you. Keith Richards, meanwhile, is engraved on our collective psyche and will outlive our children. This biography is entertaining and intelligent from start to finish. It’s jammed full of colorful stories and devoid of the self-serving …
Read MoreMicro-Review #58: A Thousand Splendid Suns
With the world’s eyes now on Afghanistan, this novel takes on renewed significance. It’s a dramatic depiction of a country in transition and of women who live and die under Taliban rule. The story is tragic, heartbreaking and as “real” as a novel can be. …
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