Heller McAlpin
Heller McAlpin is a New York-based critic who reviews books regularly for NPR.org, The Los Angeles Times, The Washington Post, The Christian Science Monitor, The San Francisco Chronicle and other publications.
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Like much of Rachel Cusk's work, Life of M is driven by her concern with conditions that impede self-definition -- for writers, artists, and women in particular. -
In Jem Calder's debut novel, the characters have boarded a plane, baggage first -- with no idea where it will land. Will it lead to an actual relationship, nevermind happiness? -
In 'My Year in Paris with Gertrude Stein,' the narrator, a writer, actually spends one month trying to understand Stein's genius, how she invented herself, and her relationship with Alice B. Toklas. -
The author restores balance in the homophones with her latest novel; both stories are thought-provoking, although somewhat less beguiling than her usual fare. -
In Five Weeks in the Country, author Francine Prose imagines a distressing, ill-timed visit to Charles Dickens' home in 1857 — offering a memorable twist on the classic English country house drama. -
Departure(s) explores several of Barnes' lifelong obsessions — mortality, memory, and time. It's slim but weighty, digressive yet incisive. Barnes, who just turned 80, says it will be his last. -
America's literary highways may be plenty crowded with middle-aged runaways fleeing lives that increasingly feel like a bad fit. But Ben Markovits adds a moving tale to the collection. -
The punk rock star has produced several books that braid thoughts on her newest endeavors with memories and photographs of her lost lovers and friends. Bread of Angels is her most autobiographical. -
In this follow-up to her hit novel, Catherine Newman reprises her beloved Rocky, a sharp-witted, neurotically doting mother. -
This novel stands apart from other tales of mothers stretched too thin. Jessica Stanley weaves family frustrations with British politics and global events because our life and our times are connected.
