On the trail of America's first serial killer
Kerri Miller's Must-Read
Edited by James Lenfestey
I have a book table at MPR that is so weighed down with literary bounty it may be destabilizing the entire building. Novels, biographies, memoirs and more. The lucky few find their way to the air — there's no time for them all!
You’d think these towers of books would be enough for me, but every now and then I wander over to Thread writer Tracy Mumford’s desk to paw through the books she’s considering. And I found a little gem there this week.
“If Bees Are Few" collects the bee-inspired and luminous ruminations of notable poets. Maurice Thompson’s “Wild Honey” is lush and lovely: “He is a poet strong and true / Who loves wild thyme and honey-dew.” “Ode to the Bee” by Pablo Neruda celebrates the kaleidoscope of colors in a bee’s world.
And there are two lovely poems by Mary Oliver, one of them about a “she-bear” who gets drunk one summer afternoon on a cache of honey.
Entomologist Marla Spivak has contributed an afterword to the collection, and she writes: “Reading these poems, written across the ages, reinforces to me the power of bees to connect us to nature and to our hearts.”
-K.M.
 |
A metaphysical thriller with a dash of dangerous politics"Sweet Lamb of Heaven" by Lydia Millet
Buy this book
Lydia Millet's new novel follows a woman fleeing her husband, who has his eye on a state legislative seat. With her daughter in tow, she crosses North America from Alaska to Maine and holes up in a remote hotel.
More
The "Rotten Tomatoes for books" is hereLitHub has launched a new book review aggregation site, which pulls together reviews from 70 sources and gives books an average grade: A, B, C, D or F.
More
The case for 1971 as rock's greatest year"Never a Dull Moment" by David Hepworth
Buy this book
That year, music journalist David Hepworth argues, offered an explosion of talent from David Bowie, Led Zeppelin, Al Green, John Lennon and more.
More
On the trail of America's first serial killer"The Midnight Assassin" by Skip Hollandsworth
Buy this book
When a series of gruesome murders struck Austin, Texas, in the late 1800s, the term "serial killer" didn't exist yet.
More
Revisiting past loves, rediscovering yourself"I Almost Forgot About You" by Terry McMillan
Buy this book
In her new novel, McMillan's heroine confronts midlife malaise by reconnecting with men from her past.
More
An atmospheric, gut-twisting descent"Disappearance at Devil's Rock" by Paul Tremblay
Buy this book
Things are not what they seem in Paul Tremblay's new novel: A simple search for a missing child becomes a dizzying emotional vortex as ominous new details and old tragedies surface.
More
Think "Pride and Prejudice," with reality TV, in Cincinnati"Eligible" by Curtis Sittenfeld
Buy this book
Curtis Sittenfeld's re-imagining of Jane Austen's beloved classic adds a decidedly modern twist to the romance.
More
A twist on "The Taming of the Shrew" sparkles"Vinegar Girl" by Anne Tyler
Buy this book
Anne Tyler's latest is part of a series of Shakespeare plays-turned-novels; she's turned "The Taming of the Shrew" into a modern screwball comedy about an absent-minded scientist and his daughters.
More
Fish have feelings, too: The inner lives of our "underwater cousins""What A Fish Knows" by Jonathan Balcombe
Buy this book
Jonathan Balcombe says that fish have a conscious awareness — or "sentience" — that allows them to experience pain, recognize individual humans and have memory.
More
Robert Stephens wants to know moreScott Frank has written screenplays for years, including for blockbusters like "Minority Report." But when it came to writing his first novel, he felt like a beginner.
More
