News on Books

Once called the "King of Bad Taste," Waters is known for his off-beat cult films Pink Flamingos and Polyester, as well as the more mainstream Hairspray. Originally broadcast in 2014 and 2019.

The annual Whiting Award for Emerging Writers comes with $50,000 to support each winner's work. It's one of the largest prizes granted to promising new authors.

Harvard professor Namwali Serpell has been teaching Morrison for nearly two decades. Her book, On Morrison is a deep dive into the Nobel winner's complete body of work — 11 novels, plays and criticism.

Critic Kevin Whitehead reviews biographies of two musicians who transcended jazz, and to whom recognition was slow in coming: James P. Johnson, born in 1894, and Alice Coltrane, born in 1937.

In her new book You've Been Pooping All Wrong, Dr. Trisha Pasricha shares habits and practices to make your relationship with your solid waste as smooth as possible

Nancy Foley's deviously-plotted novel centers on an aging artist in New Mexico. Brutally dismissive of anyone who disagrees with her, Agatha is a perfectly engaging (if unreliable) narrator.

Harrison Hill's book The Oracle's Daughter is a story about the terror of losing the self — but it's also, gratifyingly, a story about finding the way back to it.

Mary Fariba Afsari's book, Labor, is a portrait of reproductive healthcare in post-Dobbs America. Her book also is about her Iranian heritage and her grandmother's death from an illegal abortion.

Much of our image of Dylan derives from his early protest music, but Robert Polito's book makes the argument that the most recent 30 years of Dylan's career have been just as creative as the first 30.

The books we're spotlighting this month don't exactly radiate escapist good vibes — but they do offer the opportunity to step into someone else's life and get to know their view of our shared world.