Dragonfly migrations, bioluminescent plankton and “hardcore mammal spotters”: In his refreshing, playful Nature at Night, naturalist Charles Hood shows that nighttime is almost like an undiscovered country. ... Read full Story
Dana A. Williams’ affectionate, vibrant biography of Toni Morrison illuminates how the Nobel Prize-winning author championed other writers as an editor at Random House. ... Read full Story
Edgar Award-winner Gillian French’s adult debut is a riveting, thrilling and wild mystery starring a hard-edged yet nurturing fingerprint analyst. ... Read full Story
If these rugs could talk, they’d keep you up late with their life stories. In Threads of Empire, historian Dorothy Armstrong is a passionate interpreter of history as seen through 12 carpets. ... Read full Story
You’ve Awoken Her is the perfect beach read for daring sorts who enjoy gothic Lovecraftian fiction along with their sunshine, sand and unknowably deep waters. ... Read full Story
Catherine Lacey’s novella-memoir hybrid invites readers to consider life as a Mobius strip, in which fiction and autobiography echo each other across pages and time. ... Read full Story
Inspired by the characters of Jane Austen, The Rushworth Family Plot may be a cozy mystery, but its central love story is alive with yearning. ... Read full Story
The acclaimed author of the Tess Monaghan series and Lady in the Lake takes a walk on the less wild side with Murder Takes a Vacation ... Read full Story
Erica Peplin brings a knack for character and an incisive wit to this slice-of-life story about a jaded New York City queer woman and an unexpected love triangle. ... Read full Story
The Salmon Cannon and the Levitating Frog playfully and pointedly advocates for increased understanding of “silly science”—and the ways curiosity-driven discoveries have immeasurably improved our lives. ... Read full Story
Michelle Huneven’s engaging and supremely satisfying fifth novel, Bug Hollow, explores a family’s attempts to rebuild their shattered world after a shocking loss. ... Read full Story
These Heathens is a whirlwind exploration of the myriad changes that characterized the early 1960s, told through the humorous and deeply personal voice of a small-town teenager. ... Read full Story
The Salmon Cannon and the Levitating Frog explores how duck penises explain evolution, rats in vests save lives and cockroaches are (basically) engineers—and why these scientific discoveries matter. ... Read full Story
Heather Clark’s phenomenal debut novel, The Scrapbook, is worthy of reading and rereading, serving up romance, history and political philosophy in ways that could hardly be more relevant. ... Read full Story
Readers of nonfiction know that histories and biographies provide plenty of thrills. Reading them can feel like excavating a lost civilization. This year, outstanding books by Imani Perry, Ron Chernow, Barbara Demick and more changed the way we see the world. ... Read full Story
Tiffany Francis-Baker’s delightful Microseasons invites readers to slow down and appreciate nature by observing the traditional 72 Japanese microseasons. ... Read full Story
With the irresistible pacing of a thriller, Rich Cohen’s Murder in the Dollhouse chronicles the relationship of Connecticut mother Jennifer Dulos and her estranged husband—who was accused of her murder. ... Read full Story
"For Chrissy Metz, whose childhood upbringing was modest, she says, this house signifies more than just its aesthetic beauty. 'To have a home that I can invite people to and entertain is so important to me,' the actor confides, adding that she always invites people over when she's in town. ... The front sitting room, for example, which doubles as a game room, is the scene of many convivial game nights." — Ariel Foxman, Architectural Digest, 9 Sept. 2024
Did you know?
Convivial is a cheerful word that typically suggests a mood of full-bellied delight in good food, good drink, and good company, which Charles Dickens aptly captures in his novel David Copperfield: "We had a beautiful little dinner. Quite an elegant dish of fish; the kidney-end of a loin of veal, roasted; fried sausage-meat; a partridge, and a pudding. There was wine, and there was strong ale. ... Mr. Micawber was uncommonly convivial. I never saw him such good company. He made his face shine with the punch, so that it looked as if it had been varnished all over. He got cheerfully sentimental about the town, and proposed success to it." Convivial traces back to the Latin word convivium, meaning "banquet," which in turn comes from the verb vivere, meaning "to live." The word is in good company, as vivere has breathed plenty of life into the English language; other common descendants include survive, revive, vivid, and vivacious.