Members and friends, we’re happy to announce that applications for the NBCC Emerging Critics Fellowships are now open! These fellowships seek to identify, nurture, and support the development of the next generation of book critics, and are open to critics of all experience levels who seek to review and write about books for print and digital outlets. Learn more about the fellowships and find a link to apply here!
Member Reviews/Essays
Celia McGee wrote about Maira Kalman at the Shaker Museum and the exhibition Under the Cork Tree: The Story of Ferdinand at the Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art for Air Mail.
Linda Hitchcock reviewed Ed Lin’s The Dead Can’t Make a Living for BookTrib.
For The Red Hook Star-Revue, Michael Quinn reviewed Abigail Savitch-Lew’s debut novel, Livonia Chow Mein.
Sean Carlson’s review of Providence gothic-folk/grunge band Vudu Sister’s new album, Adynata, was published in Rhode Island’s alt-monthly Motif magazine.
Daegam Miller wrote about Roy Scranton’s Impasse: Climate Change and the Limits of Progress for Literary Hub.
McKenzie Watson-Fore wrote an essay for The Revealer about the appearance of late Focus on the Family founder James Dobson in the Epstein files.
Brian Tanguay reviewed The Story of Capital by David Harvey, The Art of Becoming a Citizen by Gail Godwin, and I Hear A New World by Alan Moore for the California Review of Books.
Morgan Leigh Davies wrote about Leonie Swann’s mystery novel Three Bags Full, the source material for The Sheep Detectives, for the new website Fansplaining.
Kate Preziosi reviewed Paige Lewis’ debut novel, Canon, for The Brooklyn Rail.
David Starkey reviewed Into the Weeds by Lydia Davis for the California Review of Books.
Anne Charles reviewed Rabih Alameddine’s The True True Story of Raja the Gullible (and His Mother) for The Gay & Lesbian Review.
Deborah Copperud reviewed The Goats of Goodwin Hill by Halé Sophia Schatz and Danny Overton for The Lexington Observer.
For the Los Angeles Review of Books, Cory Oldweiler wrote about The Minister, written by Stefan Bošković and translated from the Montenegrin by Will Firth.
Bruce Krajewski reviewed James Wolff’s Spies and Other Gods for the Washington Independent Review of Books.
Jenny Shank reviewed Canticle by Janet Rich Edwards for America.
Member Interviews
Former NBCC President and current advisory board member Jane Ciabattari’s Literary Hub conversation with Hannah Thurman covers the complexities of setting a family drama in a mental hospital in her first novel, Mercy Hill.
Sullivan Summer interviewed historian Dr. Jason Young about his book The Mask of Memory: White Racial Fantasy After the Civil War on the Additions to the Archive podcast.
Amy Y.Q. Lin interviewed Sarah Wang for the Los Angeles Review of Books and M Lin for The Creative Independent.
Morgan Leigh Davies interviewed Miriam Toews for The Sewanee Review.
Elaine Szewczyk profiled Irvine Welsh for Publishers Weekly.
Member News
Five of Catherine Parnell’s microfictions appeared in Arrowsmith Journal‘s Featured Fiction.
Bill Marx will host the fourth Viva la Book Review workshop, “Avoiding Clichés,” on May 27 at 5:20 p.m. Eastern. The session will focus on crafting professional book reviews that emphasize your individual voice while steering clear of clichés and marketing language. Register here.
Grace Schulman has several poems in new or current publications: “Thebes, Revisited” in Pushcart Prize L: Best of Small Presses; “Because,” in Pushcart Book of 21st Century Poems and Prose; “Gods in New York,” “Felled,” and “Going Back to Rapallo,” in Lily Poetry Review; “Notes from Underground: W.H. Auden on the IRT” in A Century of Poetry in The New Yorker, 1925-2025; and ”Invitation” in Commonweal.
Tamara MC’s poem “Twin: Muslim Prayer” appeared in Rattle.
Joan Silverman recently launched a newsletter, Away from it all: Essays from near and far, that promises a bit of respite from the news and information that assaults us daily. The newsletter features “essays by leading writers on any and everything, but the news.” Contributors include Sven Birkerts, Nicole Walker, Andre Dubus III, and Darien Gee. For more information, visit awayfromitall.substack.com.
Jenny Bartoy’s anthology No Contact: Writers on Estrangement was published by Catapult on April 28. It features essays and a few poems by 32 authors, including NBCC member Nicole Graev Lipson.
“seattle library shelves” by Jessica Opalinski is licensed under CC0 1.0.