Enjoyments both physical and otherwise can wind up both a purpose of life, and a perpetual danger, suggests this warm-hearted family tale.

Mother Nature's dark side comes to the fore in Benamin Percy's tale of a woodland excursion gone wrong.

A mid-life search for meaning in an increasingly commodified world, from the author of The Hours.

A lovelorn demon makes appointments with Sigmund Freud in this novel of fin de siecle Vienna.

Paul Murray embraces tragedy and ribald comedy with a coming-of-age tale set in an Irish boys' school.

An obnoxious stepfather, a lovely burglar, and an overwhelmed young math teacher wrestle with words.

A rescue gone wrong puts a tale of crime, punishment, and forgiveness in motion.

Nobel Laureate José Saramago's playful tale takes a trip through 16^th-century Europe on a pachyderm's back.

A metafictional foray into writing and not writing, by a novelist writing what she knows.

Encryption and early 20^th-century technology provide the Pynchon-esque atmosphere for this ambitious, adventurous novel.

The author of Water for Elephants returns with a captivating novel about a "lively, witty, warm-hearted and sharp" sextet of bonobos.

In his first novel in nine years, the author of The Corrections delivers another powerfully observant American family saga.

The masterpiece of a 20th-century Swedish historical novelist who belongs in the company of Dumas, Sabatini, and Patrick O'Brian.

Two novels set in the Second World War reveal the sly yet shocking storytelling genius of Nevil Shute (1899-1960).

In the new novel from the author of Out Stealing Horses, grief and comedy share the stage.