https://www.csmonitor.comBook reviews and books articles from The Christian Science Monitor.https://images.csmonitor.com/csm/2024/04/1172291_2_csmlogo_feed_250x30_standard.pnghttps://www.csmonitor.comChristian Science Monitor. All rights reserved.300en-usTue, 14 Jul 2026 16:59:49 EDThttps://www.csmonitor.com/Arts-Culture/Books/2026/0713/sigrid-nunez-short-story-collection?icid=rssbca4266ecee9d92768197eb7d2074b74The author of the novel “The Friend” felt a burst of energy that culminated in a short story collection. Her prose is warm, powerful, precise, and shattering.Mon, 13 Jul 2026 12:09:14 EDTSky Davishttps://www.csmonitor.com/Arts-Culture/Books/2026/0713/yahoo-boys-carlos-barragan-romance-scams?icid=rss8c8f964b9bcb8b70faffee92aefe489bCarlos Barragán wrote “The Yahoo Boys” after investigating a fraud perpetrated on his mother.Mon, 13 Jul 2026 03:00:10 EDTMackenzie Farkushttps://www.csmonitor.com/Arts-Culture/Books/2026/0707/daniel-mason-country-people-novel?icid=rssff20f6ad44d9e8123f2f66c9bf253ef7“Country People” charmingly sends up the urban-rural divide as a pair of academics from the West Coast move to a quirky Vermont town.Tue, 07 Jul 2026 16:02:11 EDTHeller McAlpinhttps://www.csmonitor.com/Arts-Culture/Books/2026/0706/wreck-of-the-mentor-eric-jay-dolin?icid=rssd74890c86ecf5dac86867f5d46c07f5a“The Wreck of the Mentor” follows the strange story of a shipwrecked crew on a South Pacific island, and the mixed response from the inhabitants.Mon, 06 Jul 2026 06:00:10 EDTTerry W. Hartlehttps://www.csmonitor.com/Arts-Culture/Books/2026/0701/250th-anniversary-history-books-jefferson-adams-schuyler-sisters?icid=rssf1330b7fb70b726c15068f03dab98eb4The 250th anniversary of the founding of the United States brings a bounty of books assessing the period’s ideals and figures.Wed, 01 Jul 2026 13:35:41 EDTBarbara Spindelhttps://www.csmonitor.com/Arts-Culture/Books/2026/0701/lightning-beneath-the-sea-james-tabor-cyrus-field?icid=rss1a64ba915e09b04eb8de2a3ed748ebb3Cyrus Field’s determination to speed up communications between the United States and Europe galvanized a project that would have daunted others.Wed, 01 Jul 2026 11:22:02 EDTDanny Heitmanhttps://www.csmonitor.com/Arts-Culture/Books/2026/0622/june-2026-best-books?icid=rss85547740dfb3ee79e8cd01d67148af0aMysteries, histories, and romances blossom just in time for the summer reading season. Mon, 22 Jun 2026 16:07:04 EDTMonitor reviewershttps://www.csmonitor.com/Arts-Culture/Books/2026/0616/stalins-apostles-antonia-senior?icid=rssc65dc571c83c21bab97588392bafb8ffScions of wealthy families in Britain, the men known as the “Cambridge Five” wreaked havoc on U.S.-British intelligence missions, agent networks, and lives.Tue, 16 Jun 2026 12:35:13 EDTBryn Stolehttps://www.csmonitor.com/Arts-Culture/Books/2026/0610/death-of-the-soccer-god-dimitry-elias-leger?icid=rss2b8f88d8cdad363c0b93d2bb39380519The novel “Death of the Soccer God” by Dimitry Elias Léger mixes the beautiful game with family dynamics and the political climate of 1960s Haiti.Wed, 10 Jun 2026 15:04:00 EDTJoan Gaylordhttps://www.csmonitor.com/Arts-Culture/Books/2026/0609/book-of-birds-robert-macfarlane-jackie-morris?icid=rss8cd8baac1947151c5fdc8fcbe9bd9ea5With swooping, poetic prose and vivid watercolors, “The Book of Birds” conveys not only wonder but also concern over the plight of many species.Tue, 09 Jun 2026 17:05:51 EDTHeller McAlpinhttps://www.csmonitor.com/World/Europe/2026/0605/ukraine-war-volunteer-bravery-european-values?icid=rssde820c5db24eb6e0a8e9dc2906b9b38cAnastasia Fomitchova left her life in Paris to join the fight for her native Ukraine. She was inspired to write a book about the bravery and unflinching humanity of those she served alongside as a medic. Her message to Europeans: It’s their war, too.Fri, 05 Jun 2026 16:17:27 EDTHoward LaFranchihttps://www.csmonitor.com/Arts-Culture/Books/2026/0602/maggie-ofarrell-land?icid=rss9eabfa86fca307542ef22d84e046fe3b“Land,” Maggie O’Farrell’s 10th novel, burrows into her family’s past, and into the history of their patch of Ireland, with sensitivity and grace.Tue, 02 Jun 2026 15:17:37 EDTHeller McAlpinhttps://www.csmonitor.com/Arts-Culture/Books/2026/0601/shaun-ossei-owusu-law-on-trial?icid=rss3a8aa21e9bb7380af77490b6c7dd4a5eLaw professor Shaun Ossei-Owusu dissects the shortcomings of the American legal system and holds it to a fairer, more humane standard.Mon, 01 Jun 2026 06:00:09 EDTTerry W. Hartlehttps://www.csmonitor.com/Arts-Culture/Books/2026/0528/torched-jonathan-vigliotti?icid=rss71d0c5084bb755a39e299348679a20b0“Torched” offers a reporter’s keen take on an evolving story, analyzing breakdowns in public safety systems and placing the Pacific Palisades blaze into larger context.Thu, 28 May 2026 12:02:34 EDTApril Austinhttps://www.csmonitor.com/World/Middle-East/2026/0522/phoenix-library-gaza-war-rebuilding-omar-hamad?icid=rssaaa250ffee4529425f148cbf5175c665Opened April 2026, the Phoenix Library in Gaza City is rebuilding a culture of reading with books salvaged from more than two years of destruction.Fri, 22 May 2026 10:56:15 EDTGhada Abdulfattahhttps://www.csmonitor.com/Arts-Culture/Books/2026/0521/victor-mallet-far-right-france-bardella?icid=rssdf2a5807313bec1a4dc8e5ce623d8158In a Q&A, Victor Mallet, author of “Far-Right France,” talks about changes in French politics, and voter embrace of a party long considered outside the mainstream.Thu, 21 May 2026 14:12:24 EDTColette Davidsonhttps://www.csmonitor.com/Arts-Culture/Books/2026/0515/best-may-books-fiction-nonfiction?icid=rssfff1ec9c360e87723f4bc9a9008bad13Historical anniversaries share space with satisfying mysteries and far-flung, imagination-stretching novels in our roundup of May’s best reads.Fri, 15 May 2026 13:14:39 EDTMonitor reviewershttps://www.csmonitor.com/Arts-Culture/Books/2026/0512/transcription-ben-lerner-memory-authenticity-tech?icid=rsse8c759e87cbd0287d98400ae3c3339a7Ben Lerner’s noteworthy novel explores tech’s impositions on memory, history, and relationships.Tue, 12 May 2026 12:24:17 EDTJoan Gaylordhttps://www.csmonitor.com/Arts-Culture/Books/2026/0504/declaration-of-independence-news-emily-sneff?icid=rss3d9f104b8819faf1e89264bef2f77bd3How did the American colonists separate fact from fiction? It wasn’t easy, explains Emily Sneff in “When the Declaration of Independence Was News.”Mon, 04 May 2026 11:22:58 EDTScott Baldaufhttps://www.csmonitor.com/Arts-Culture/Books/2026/0428/the-westerners-megan-kate-nelson?icid=rss86fe674781f2aff94106822b5fc98204Men like Kit Carson captured fame, but the West was also shaped by Black men, Chinese and Hispanic women, and a Cheyenne chief.Tue, 28 Apr 2026 16:13:12 EDTBarbara Spindel