How, exactly, did we get to May already? Normally, we’d make a joke here about the collapse of time and space or something similarly esoteric, but the hour is at hand when we should get to the recommending of books. And so here are some book recommendations for the month we’re in — and, if you’re behind on your reading, these books aren’t going anywhere.
In our afternoon reading: thoughts on Adrian Matejka’s new book, revisiting the works of Kathy Acker, and more.
In our morning reading: Daphne A. Brooks and Hanif Abdurraqib in conversation, exploring the music of Claire Rousay, and more.
In our afternoon reading: an interview with Diane Cook, new writing by Katharine Coldiron, and more.
In our morning reading: interviews with Donna Hemans and Katherine Hill, thoughts on the new anthology “Lockdown,” and more.
In our morning reading: new writing by Jeffrey Renard Allen and Kamil Ahsan, an interview with Leland Cheuk, and more.
In our morning reading: when gloriously noisy bands collaborate, thoughts on Yuri Herrera’s fiction, and more.
Some novels take their cues from history; others, from the author’s own life. For her new novel Ceremonials, Katharine Coldiron opted for a very different muse: in this case, the Florence and the Machine album with the same title. The resulting work is an expansive and constantly-shifting piece of fiction, one in which desire and identity blur together in a world that feels both archetypal and realistic. I spoke with Coldiron about the genesis of her new book and the process of translating music into words.