A kind of maximalist profusion of detail and incident characterizes ‘Shadow Ticket,’ though this new novel from Thomas Pynchon might also be categorized as zany neo-noir—or slapstick noir—for developing the noir tropes of the 1930s and 1940s in a less hardboiled, wackier direction.
Books
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Review: The drama of Dostoyevsky
Józef Tischner remains virtually unknown in Western classrooms, despite being one of the pre-eminent voices in 20th-century Catholic thought. The new edition of ‘The Philosophy of Drama’ in English might help change that.
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Review: Chris Hayes on the war for our attention
In his new book, Chris Hayes argues that our attention is not just the most fundamental human need; it is also our most important resource.
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Review: The moral authority of John Lewis
David Greenberg has produced a biography of John Lewis that, if not quite definitive, is still the gold standard by which all subsequent biographies will be judged.
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Review: A first look at an intriguing new pope
Christopher White’s ‘Pope Leo XIV: Inside the Conclave and the Dawn of a New Papacy’ presents readers with a substantive, engaging portrait of where things stand right now in a church, and a world, increasingly marked by polarization, authoritarianism and violence.
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Review: Catholic militants in the present day
In ‘Catholic Fundamentalism in America,’ Mark Massa, S.J., describes the birth and growth of Catholic fundamentalism over the past six decades.
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Four books we recommend this month—plus poetry for fall
New this month: Valerie Sayers on Muriel Spark, Ross Douthat on belief and Rob Weinert-Kendt on Lin-Manuel Miranda
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Review: Ross Douthat on why everyone should be religious
Ross Douthat addresses weighty topics in his new book, but his reasons for belief are often puzzling.
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Review: The mysterious Muriel Spark
The force and clarity of Frances Wilson’s arguments in ‘Electric Spark,’ however debatable, do her subject the literary justice she deserves.
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Review: Will our pets go to heaven?
In ‘A Heaven for Animals: A Catholic Case and Why It Matters,’ Christopher Steck, S.J., faces the ethical tensions within the Roman Catholic tradition that have swung between arguments for either wanting to use other animals for the sake of human convenience or showing them compassion.