Susan Edsall
Old God’s Time by Sebastian Barry
Well, the Irish. As writers, they don’t disappoint. Last week I was at one of those moments in life when I simply needed the comfort of...
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Reads
I’m always on the hunt for books that grab me by the heart and won’t let go.
Here are some of my recommendations. Most of what I love is dark, taking me on a journey deep inside desire, shame, failure, and making me face our collective need for compassion. They are stories about what it means to be human. Stories about how to survive.
Susan Edsall
- May 26
- 6 min
If You Kept A Record Of Sins, a novel by Andrea Bajani
Nothing much happens in Andrea Bajani’s book If You Kept a Record of Sins—and in that inconsequential story lies everything. It’s a...
Susan Edsall
- Apr 13
- 5 min
Breakfast On Pluto by Patrick McCabe
Years ago I was sitting in the bar of a Holiday Inn right off the freeway in Boston. It wasn’t exactly a dive, but it was a chain hotel...
Susan Edsall
- Mar 11
- 4 min
Doomi Golo: The Hidden Notebooks
Doomi Golo: The Hidden Notebooks by Boubacar Boris Diop is the first novel to be translated from Wolof, the most widely spoken language...
Susan Edsall
- Feb 23
- 4 min
The Book of Goose by Yiyun Li
The Book of Goose by Yiyun Li shook me up. It affected me like a slow poison. By the time I figured out what was going on, my heart was...
Susan Edsall
- Jan 31
- 4 min
Philadelphia Fire by John Edgar Wideman
What hole have I been living in that I have never read the work of John Edgar Wideman until now? I stayed up half the night to finish his...
Susan Edsall
- May 20, 2022
- 5 min
The Butcher Boy by Patrick McCabe
I was having rather a dry spell of reading—kept putting book after book aside. So I figured it was time to turn, again, to the Irish....
Susan Edsall
- Apr 9, 2022
- 5 min
This Is Happiness by Niall Williams
It’s no secret that I like depressing books—well written depressing books. I like books that get to the heart of the human matter—how we...
Susan Edsall
- Mar 17, 2022
- 6 min
Wolf In White Van by John Darnielle
I came to Wolf In White Van by John Darnielle reluctantly. Probably because it’s heavy on pop culture and involves a role-playing game...
Susan Edsall
- Mar 8, 2022
- 6 min
Lampedusa by Steven Price
Lampedusa by Steven Price, published in 2019, is the fictional account of Giuseppe di Lampedusa, the author of the acclaimed novel The...
Craig Hausman
- Feb 21, 2022
- 6 min
Mrs. Palfrey at the Claremont by Elizabeth Taylor
Mrs. Palfrey at the Claremont by Elizabeth Taylor (no, not that Elizabeth Taylor) was first published in 1971. It might be the saddest...
Susan Edsall
- Jan 30, 2022
- 5 min
The Lost Thoughts of Soldiers by Delia Falconer
The Lost Thoughts of Soldiers by the Australian writer Delia Falconer is an unusual book. It’s narrated by Captain Frederick Benteen, a...
Susan Edsall
- Jan 12, 2022
- 7 min
Hurricane Season by Fernanda Melchor
I search like a madwoman for book recommendations that I would not otherwise come across. It’s why I subscribe to four book services...
Susan Edsall
- Dec 29, 2021
- 7 min
Solar Bones by Mike McCormack
There are a few things I am glad I didn’t know before I picked up this book, the foremost being that it is one sentence long (and 217...
Susan Edsall
- Dec 21, 2021
- 5 min
Daddy’s Gone A-Hunting by Penelope Mortimer
I am so devoted to my hunt for good books, that I have enlisted the help of quite a few book services in the last couple of years—people...
Susan Edsall
- Dec 15, 2021
- 6 min
The Outward Room by Millen Brand
I dig and dig to find book recommendations. Every morning I go to lithub.com and dig through there. I follow all kinds of rabbit trails...
Susan Edsall
- Dec 3, 2021
- 6 min
The Wild Laughter by Caoilinn Hughes
The Wild Laughter is one of the best books I’ve ever read. I read it in two sittings and cried at the end. I couldn’t go to sleep for...
Susan Edsall
- Nov 22, 2021
- 5 min
Ghost Wall by Sarah Moss
I read Ghost Wall by Sarah Moss in one sitting. It's only 132 pages so the length wasn't a hurdle. It was so well-written it would have...
Susan Edsall
- Oct 4, 2021
- 4 min
History of Wolves by Emily Fridlund
I came across a note on my desk that said “History Of Wolves—BRILLIANT!” It was a book I’d read four years ago and, although I evidently...
Susan Edsall
- Sep 11, 2021
- 4 min
During the Reign of the Queen of Persia by Joan Chase
During the Reign of the Queen of Persia by Joan Chase was published in 1983. I had no idea. That's probably just as well because I am far...
Susan Edsall
- Aug 18, 2021
- 4 min
The Seas by Samantha Hunt
I am pretty much done with falling for books with reviews boasting “Magnificent!” “Dazzling!” “Brilliant!” only to find them “Meh!”...
Susan Edsall
- Jul 18, 2021
- 3 min
Independent People by Halldór Laxness
Independent People by Halldór Laxness It took me 100 pages to commit to Independent People by Icelandic author Halldór Laxness--and then...
Susan Edsall
- Jun 28, 2021
- 4 min
The End by Salvatore Scibona
The End by Salvatore Scibona I just finished The End by Salvatore Scibona and am having the same experience I had when I finished...
Susan Edsall
- May 17, 2021
- 3 min
The Opposites Game by Brendan Constantine
My friend Stephen sent me this link to this amazing animated poem by his friend Brendan Constantine: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KO65...
Susan Edsall
- Apr 12, 2021
- 3 min
Schroder by Amity Gaige
Schroder by Amity Gaige Several weeks ago I posted an article by Amity Gaige about the research she did for her book Sea Wife. The...
Susan Edsall
- Mar 8, 2021
- 3 min
The Innocents by Michael Crummey
The Innocents by Michael Crummey It is both thrilling and disconcerting to come across an author whose writing and imagination are so...
Susan Edsall
- Feb 7, 2021
- 4 min
Telephone by Percival Everett
Telephone by Percival Everett Telephone by Percival Everett is the third book by Everett that I've read. I can't believe I hadn't heard...
Susan Edsall
- Dec 28, 2020
- 3 min
Lighthousekeeping by Jeanette Winterson
Lighthousekeeping by Jeanette Winterson I have read Jeanette Winterson's Lighthousekeeping many, many times. Every time I come to it...
Susan Edsall
- Nov 15, 2020
- 3 min
The Sparrow by Mary Doria Russell
The Sparrow by Mary Doria Russell This book is on my Sacred Texts shelf. The basic plot: In 2019, humanity finally finds proof of...
Susan Edsall
- Sep 28, 2020
- 4 min
Erasure by Percival Everett
Erasure by Percival Everett When I lived in Vermont the bulb catalogues would arrive in the mail when you were at your weakest—in the...
Susan Edsall
- Aug 17, 2020
- 4 min
The Things They Carried by Tim O'Brien
The Things They Carried by Tim O'Brien by Tim O'Brien I just finished reading The Things They Carried by Tim O'Brien. I think it's the...
Susan Edsall
- Jul 19, 2020
- 3 min
A Prayer for the Dying by Stewart O'Nan
A Prayer for the Dying by Stewart O'Nan A Prayer for the Dying by Stewart O'Nan is on my Sacred Texts shelf. Wow what a book. Set just...
Susan Edsall
- Jun 23, 2020
- 2 min
Fire Sermon by Jamie Quatro
Fire Sermon by Jamie Quatro I am not sure what to say about this book except: it possessed me. And it landed directly on my Sacred Texts...
Susan Edsall
- May 6, 2020
- 3 min
Leaning Towards Infinity by Sue Woolfe
Leaning Towards Infinity Sue Woolfe Sometimes, just to be able to manage the wealth of good writing in a bookstore, I limit myself to a...
Susan Edsall
- Apr 15, 2020
- 3 min
A Complicated Kindness by Miriam Toews
A Complicated Kindness Miriam Toews Miriam Toews is a brilliant writer. She's getting well-deserved press for her latest book Women...
Susan Edsall
- Mar 22, 2020
- 2 min
Weather by Jenny Offill
Weather Jenny Offill Weather is as good as Jenny Offill's previous book Dept. of Speculation. She has mastered an unusual story structure...
Susan Edsall
- Mar 9, 2020
- 2 min
All The News I Need by Joan Frank
All I Need Is The News Joan Frank I have no idea how I managed not to know about this book the minute it came out. I finished it a few...
Susan Edsall
- Feb 8, 2020
- 2 min
Subtle Bodies by Norman Rush
Subtle Bodies Norman Rush I love this book. It's about friendship, love, idealism, disappointment, and longing. It's gorgeously written...
Susan Edsall
- Feb 1, 2020
- 2 min
The Collected Stories of Amy Hempel by Amy Hempel
The Collected Stories of Amy Hempel Amy Hempel Amy Hempel's way of seeing inspires me. She conveys all that is going on inside someone's...
Susan Edsall
- Dec 27, 2019
- 2 min
Recommendation: Grief Is The Thing With Feathers by Max Porter
Grief Is The Thing With Feathers Max Porter | Read by Jot Davies I would gladly read through a hundred books—a thousand--if only to...
Susan Edsall
- Dec 3, 2019
- 1 min
Recommendation: The Passion - by Jeanette Winterson
The Passion - by Jeanette Winterson Another book on my Sacred Texts Shelf. Running throughout the book is this phrase: “You play you win....
Susan Edsall
- Dec 3, 2019
- 2 min
Recommendation: Florida - by Christine Schutt
Florida - by Christine Schutt I have a tiny shelf of books I've named my Sacred Texts Shelf. These are books that are so exquisite that I...
Susan Edsall
- Dec 3, 2019
- 1 min
Recommendation: This Won't Take But A Minute Honey - by Steve Almond.
This Won't Take But A Minute Honey - by Steve Almond. If you want a fantastic tiny book about writing (it measures 6 1/2” x 4 1/2” x...
Susan Edsall
- Dec 3, 2019
- 1 min
Recommendation: Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neal Hurston (read by Ruby Dee)
Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neal Hurston (read by Ruby Dee) Nothing short of exquisite. The story is magnificent and Ruby Dee's...
Susan Edsall
- Dec 3, 2019
- 2 min
Recommendation: Angels - a novel by Denis Johnson
Angels - a novel by Denis Johnson After I read Angels I thought If I could write this well after having written 50 books I'd be thrilled....
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