There was a lot going on this September. Luckily, the good folks over at The Literary Hub have provided us with this helpful list of five of the best new books September had to offer. A personal favorite includes Emily Donoghue’s The Wonder, in which the protagonist appears to be subsisting on nothing but water.
Slow Down, September!
McGregor Adapting American Pastoral
This week in book-to-film adaptation news: Ewan McGregor will direct and star in an upcoming version of American Pastoral.
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Mere Electronic Wallpaper
Remember that time that sci-fi master J.G. Ballard predicted the rise of social media all the way back in 1977? Neither did we. Bonus: here's a Millions review of Ballard's Kingdom Come.
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Back for More
Last week, I mentioned Look Who’s Back by Timur Vermes, which caused a stir in Germany with its tale of a time-hopping Hitler. Now, Daniel Torday reviews the book for the Times, judging it both for its historical research and its merits as a work of fiction. Sample quote: “The German public’s acceptance of the artist they think they’re watching provides a critique of pop culture. But it feels like bringing the Luftwaffe to a knife fight.”
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…And If You Still Want More on The Pale King
I can't recommend John Jeremiah Sullivan's 7,000-word article on The Pale King highly enough - not because he gets everything right, but because it's what long-form writing about books should look like: passionate, lucid, wide-ranging, and awfully fun to read. I salute GQ for running it, and hope to see more literary coverage there in the future.
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The Freedom of Limits
“Limits stop you from living a life without limits,” writes Augusten Burroughs. “Of course, this is only an illusion. What limits really do is give you an acceptable excuse to avoid doing something.” (He’s talking about life, not Oulipo.) The piece is excerpted from his recent book, This Is How.