An unclassifiable musician on a life spent transmuting suffering into music.

A wannabe-fashionista becomes a victim of national-security paranoia in this darkly comic novel.

"Insecurity and uncertainty rule the day" in this portrait of a love affair.

Two new books grapple with teen pregnancy, practicality, and prejudice.

Forget about the Big Bang. Why would there be anything to bang at all?

The little-known story of a bold and tragic attempt to reach the North Pole by air.

How many languages can one human mind master?

A plague of words tears ordinary life asunder in this heartrending fable.

A writer famed for his chattering crooks turns again to his close-mouthed lawman.

An unexpected inheritance meets a family's religious fervor, with calamitous results.

Essays from the novelist that explore "consciousness of many extraordinary kinds."

The globe-trotting essayist contemplates his greatest influence.

How we got to this grim pass in our political and economic system.

The true story of an artist and her model inspires a tale of obsession and its consequences.

The controversial French novelist has a little fun.

A meditation on loss from the author of Making Toast.