What we're reading, what we're liking
Quidditch Through the Ages by "Kennilworthy Whisp"
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them by "Newt Scamander"
The real author of these two booklet-size volumes is J.K. Rowling, creator of Harry Potter, and both provide ample servings of Potter lore despite their brevity. Each book is designed to look like a well-worn Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry schoolbook, complete with (in the case of the Scamander tome) cheeky marginalia from Harry and his pals, and almost all of the proceeds from their sale go to the international children's charity, British Comic Relief. Naturally, any Pottermaniac will find them essential reading.
I prefer the deliciously droll bestiary myself, though I also love the mock-solemn sports history in the Quidditch book, which explains that the earliest mention of the game can be found in the diaries of a cranky old witch so ignorant she only knew the name of one day of the week so she labeled every entry "Tuesday." From the estimable Mr. Scamander (a retired official from the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures), I've learned the thorny bureaucratic saga behind the taxonomy of "beasts" and "beings" (in which category do trolls, when not being coached by goblins, belong?) and the ways of the repellent Bundimen, which "resembles a patch of greenish fungus with eyes," among other beasts of varying degrees of ferocity -- all information that will no doubt prove invaluable at some future date.
-- Laura Miller
Girl With a Pearl Earring by Tracy Chevalier
Fifteen of the 40 known paintings by Johannes Vermeer just went on display in New York at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. I haven't managed to see the exhibit yet, but I've been getting into the mood by reading "Girl With a Pearl Earring," Tracy Chevalier's novel (just out in paperback) about a 16-year-old girl named Griet who becomes a servant in Vermeer's household. Slim and sparely written, the novel matter-of-factly conveys everyday 17th century life in the Dutch city. The world Chevalier creates is harsh in some ways, but also logical and serene, and everyone has his or her place. Griet herself starts out on the lowest tier of the household hierarchy, until her acute powers of perception come to Vermeer's attention. This is one of those books that's perennially on the independent bookstore bestseller lists, and you can see why -- it's a delicious piece of arty, escapist candy.
-- Maria Russo
Recent books praised by Salon's critics
What to Read: March Fiction
Allegra Goodman's hilarious tale of promiscuous spiritual seeking, Pat Barker's tough-minded look at a child who murders, Nuala O'Faolain's searing novel of middle-aged sexuality and more.
By Salon's critics [03/15/01]
Seabiscuit, An American Legend by Laura Hillebrand
Surprise! The book everyone is reading and loving stars a stocky, funny-looking hero with four legs -- the champion racehorse Seabiscuit.
By Charles Taylor [03/14/01]
Inside Pitch by George Gmelch
Podunk towns, brutal competition, wooden bats and dirty laundry -- an anthropologist shows what the lives of pro baseball players are really like.
Reviewed by King Kaufman
[03/09/01]
Buried Alive by Jan Bondeson
Has it happened? Does it still happen? A new book tells the strangely hilarious history of the ultimate horror.
Reviewed by Gary Kamiya
[03/07/01]
Purified by Fire by Stephen Prothero
Denounced as "heathen," then touted as tasteful, cremation in America has lately taken a turn for the tacky.
By Laura Miller
[03/07/01]
Salon Book Awards
Salon's book editors pick the 10 books from 2000 we wished would never end.
By Laura Miller and Maria Russo
[12/18/00]
White-Collar Sweatshop by Jill Andresky Fraser
Bullying bosses, 24-hour on-call weeks, shrinking benefits -- and corporate workers never got their cut of the '90s boom.
Reviewed by Suzy Hansen
[03/01/01]
"Dreamcatcher" by Stephen King and "Ordinary Horror" by David Searcy
King's latest book takes a page from "The X-Files," while an elegantly literary debut tells of creeping, formless suburban terror.
By Laura Miller
[02/22/01]
Love, Etcby Julian Barnes
The eternal triangle returns in this story of a woman who has left her stolid, successful husband for a charming wastrel.
Reviewed by Amy Benfer
[02/21/01]
The Body Artistby Don DeLillo
A grieving woman, an almost empty house and a very strange visitor add up to a metaphysical puzzle by this American master. Reviewed by Maria Russo
[02/21/01]
A Spell of Winter by Helen Dunmore
In this Gothic wonder of a novel, madness, incest and even worse follow a mother's ruthless desertion.
Reviewed by Suzy Hansen
[02/21/01]
Rides of the Midway by Lee Durkee
With this full-tilt novel of youthful catastrophe and hellbent debauchery, a bartender kicks in the door of Southern literature.
Reviewed by Jonathan Miles
[02/21/01]
The Lecturer's Tale by James Hynes
In this academic satire with a supernatural twist, a beleaguered adjunct lecturer acquires the power to fulfill his dreams -- for good and evil.
Reviewed by Amy Reiter
[02/21/01]
English Passengers by Matthew Kneale
This tale of a misbegotten quest to find the Garden of Eden in Tasmania effortlessly blends the hilarious and the heartbreaking.
Reviewed by Laura Miller
[02/21/01]
Everyday People by Stewart O'Nan
In a neighborhood on the brink of exile, the author of "Prayer for the Dying" sets a family of criminals, converts, adulterers and saints.
Reviewed by Amy Benfer
[02/21/01]
The Bonesetter's Daughter by Amy Tan
The bestselling author returns to the epic, cross-generational storytelling that made "The Joy Luck Club" an international hit.
Reviewed by Maria Russo
[02/21/01]
Crooked River Burning by Mark Winegardner
This unexpected but moving fictional tribute to Cleveland teems with real-life figures like Elliot Ness and Alan Freed.
Reviewed by Amy Reiter
[02/21/01]
The crime of my life
Election and recession getting you down? Check out the mystery novels that got me through a very tough year.
By Charles Taylor
[01/03/01]
"Fast Food Nation" by Eric Schlosser
A stomach-churning critique of the health and labor practices of the burger business argues that Americans should change their dietary habits. Good luck.
Reviewed by Maria Russo
[02/08/01]
Our man in the shadows
With his romantic, complex spy novels about prewar Europe, Alan Furst is the heir to John le Carri.
By Charles Taylor
[01/24/01]
The Man Who Found the Missing Link by Pat Shipman
A new biography recounts the story of the brilliant scientist who fought priests, politicians and jungles to prove Darwin right.
Reviewed by Edward McSweegan
[01/18/01]
The Adversary by Emmanuel Carrire
A new book probes the case of the phony doctor who killed his family rather than confront a life of lies.
Reviewed by Laura Miller
[01/12/01]
The Hiding Place by Trezza Azzopardi
A disfigured girl spins out the secrets of her family's disastrous history in this Booker Prize-nominated novel by a new Welsh writer.
Reviewed by Maria Russo
[01/11/01]
The Biographer's Tale by A.S. Byatt
A disillusioned student forsakes literary theory to unearth the truth about an enigmatic writer in the latest feast for the mind by the author of "Possession."
Reviewed by Laura Miller
[01/11/01]
True History of the Kelly Gang by Peter Carey
A legendary Australian outlaw relates his adventures in this rousing tale of injustice and defiance from the prize-winning author of "Oscar and Lucinda."
Reviewed by Laura Miller
[01/11/01]
Demonology by Rick Moody
A collection of inventive and passionate stories by one of today's most acclaimed young writers.
Reviewed by Amy Benfer
[01/11/01]
The Death of Vishnu by Manil Suri
Life, death and forbidden love feed the feuds in a Bombay apartment building in this elegant, clever first novel.
Reviewed by Suzy Hansen
[01/11/01]
Gob's Grief by Chris Adrian
History and fantasy combine in this powerful story of a twin killed during the Civil War and his brother's strange scheme to bring him back to life.
Reviewed by Mary Elizabeth Williams
[01/11/01]
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