demonstrated his belief that “violence is the most elemental truth of life.” Every Friday, be the first to see reviews, news and features in The New York Times Book Review.

For the novelist Rebecca Makkai, writing blurbs had become nearly a full-time job. She explains why blurbs matter — and why ...

Jon Kalman Stefansson’s novel “Heaven and Hell” recounts a 19th-century fishing trip and its aftermath. John Self is a book ...

Other books we recommend this week include Dorian Lynskey’s study of the role the apocalypse plays in the cultural ...

A new biography of Charles W. Chesnutt, by Tess Chakkalakal, explains the friendships and tensions he had with his white ...

A new book by the British cultural journalist Dorian Lynskey chronicles our centuries-old obsession with doomsday scenarios.

During the past 50 years, the work of the Argentine writer Antonio Di Benedetto has found its way to readers like water ...

Our columnist on three spicy new releases. By Olivia Waite 7 New Books We Recommend This Week Suggested reading from critics and editors at The New York Times.

The book, the third in a series ... By Alexandra Jacobs Suggested reading from critics and editors at The New York Times. A novelist and short-story writer, she devoted years to a nonfiction ...

The book, the third in a series ... By Alexandra Alter Suggested reading from critics and editors at The New York Times. Bill Gates’s first memoir; new novels by Ali Smith, Anne Tyler and ...

The book, the third in a series ... By Alexandra Alter Suggested reading from critics and editors at The New York Times. Bill Gates’s first memoir; new novels by Ali Smith, Anne Tyler and ...