One strong, one strange, and three duds for this month’s round-up of new and forthcoming books.
REVIEW: Bibliophobia
Believe it not, bibliophobia is a real thing. The fear of books, or the fear of words and reading, is a psychological condition that disrupts people’s ability to enjoy a book or even a visit to the library. Author Sarah Chihaya recounts her bout with it as well as exploring how we absorb and tell stories.
REVIEW: Her Lotus Year
It’s hard to find anyone who doesn’t have an opinion about Wallis Simpson — even harder to find someone with a good opinion of her. This is a new look at a famous figure, set against a very specific time and place. It brings new perspective to both Wallis Simpson and 1920s legation Peking.
Books for December
A little heat in the iron radiator, / the dog breathing at the foot of the bed, / and the windows shut tight, / encrusted with hexagons of frost.
REVIEW: The Heads of Ceberus
Francis Stevens published her first story in 1904. She was just 17 years old. Like the teenage Mary Shelley and Frankenstein before her, she changed how speculative fiction would be written afterwards, but for some reason Stevens is not a household name. Hopefully, that is about to change.