Month: December 2015

  • A fresh perspective: The exotic and the universal

    Reviewed by Nikita Mathur DON’T LET HIM KNOW. By Sandip Roy. Bloomsbury. 244 pages. $25. While the shell of Sandip Roy’s novel Don’t Let Him Know may tackle issues such as the silent taboo of homosexuality in Indian society or the conflicts faced by Indian expatriates in the U.S, the book explores far more deeply…

  • A fresh perspective: Nerd fiction

    Reviewed by Jessica Coates WELCOME TO NIGHT VALE .By Joseph Fink and Jeffrey Cranor. Harper Perennial. 401 pages. $19.99 Welcome to Night Vale is probably the most highly anticipated piece of 2015 nerd fiction you’ve never heard of. It debuted at No. 4 on The New York Times bestseller list, just below J.K. Rowling’s Career…

  • A fresh perspective: Bold gambit

    Here’s another of our interesting and well-done reviews by students in the opinion-writing class at the University of North Carolina’s School of Media and Journalism. Reviewed by Nick Niedzwiadek DISCLAIMER. By Renée Knight. Harper. 336 pages. $25.99.  Starting a story by introducing a book-within-a-book — and having it be central to the plot— is a…

  • A fresh perspective: Not just formula

    Reviewed by Brianna Crane SEE ME. By Nicholas Sparks.  Grand Central. PAGES? $27.00  An unlikely couple looks out across the Atlantic, letting their thoughts drift gently with the tide; all is well.  As the waves begin crashing, however, the couple is consumed by a wave of fear.  The early plot of See Me is similar…

  • A fresh perspective: Not in control

    Here’s another in our series of reviews by students in the opinion writing class at UNC Chapel Hill’s School of Media and Journalism. Reviewed by Bradley Saacks GOLDEN STATE.  By Stephanie Kegan. Simon & Schuster. 288 pages. $24.99. The fragility of life is a much more subtle universal fear than the always-present worry that we…

  • A fresh perspective: Grisham’s lawyer pushes the limits

    Here’s another review by a student in the opinion writing class at UNC Chapel Hill’s School of Media and Journalism. Reviewed by John Thomas ROGUE LAWYER.  By John Grisham. Doubleday. 344 pages. $28.95, hardcover. John Grisham’s latest legal thriller, Rogue Lawyer, follows the story of defense lawyer Sebastian Rudd, a self-described “lone gunman” who loves…

  • A fresh perspective: Horrors from David Mitchell

    Here’s another in a series of book reviews written by students in the opinion writing class in the School of Media and Journalism at UNC Chapel Hill. Reviewed by Josiah H. Graham SLADE HOUSE. By David Mitchell. Random House. 238 pages. $26 In Slade House, every corner and crevice is a trap; do not wander,…

  • A fresh perspective: Stephen King’s latest

    Reviewed by Victor James Lewis