Sex, Lies, and Strawberries: On Hanan al-Shaykh’s ‘The Occasional Virgin’
The notion that a woman’s virtue derives from virginity enjoys a good deal less currency than it once did. How to deal with those for whom it retains value?
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Everyday Splendor: David Grossman’s To the End of the Land
When fully explored, as it is by Grossman in this novel, the drama of the human condition enthralls more than the most gripping action sequence.
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Äppärät-chic: Gary Shteyngart’s Super Sad True Love Story
Make no mistake. Super Sad True Love Story boasts two tormented but appealing protagonists locked in a deliciously tortuous love affair. It is indeed super sad, though thankfully untrue and difficult to imagine as prescient. The novel's excesses are also its weaknesses.
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