The New York Times Book Review - 30.08.2026.pdf

纽约时报

书评

2026年8月30日

2021年1月

黑与蓝 在新出版的感人回忆录《黑色之盾》中，记者威尔伯特·L·库珀探讨了他的家乡克利夫兰关于种族与警务的历史及其悖论。作者：埃利·萨斯洛 / 第 7 页

终极甜点集：来自纽约时报美食的 100 款美味曲奇

最完美的 全天候甜点 精选食谱

沃恩·弗里兰

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纽约时报美食其他作品

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10

小说

5 犯罪 评论员：莎拉·温曼

6 《马耳他版本》 作者：凯蒂·辛普森·史密斯 评论员：露西·艾夫斯

9 《查克之书》 作者：拉托亚·沃特金斯 评论员：夏曼·威尔克森

非虚构

7 《黑色之盾》 一部关于家庭与权力的美国回忆录 作者：威尔伯特·L·库珀 评论员：埃利·萨斯洛

8 《厨房之声》 纽约移民餐厅从业者的个人叙事 编辑：马克·迈耶 评论员：德怀特·加纳

18 《寻找勒妮·理查兹》 网球界跨性别先驱的开创性故事 作者：朱莉·克利格曼 评论员：亚历山德拉·雅各布斯

儿童书籍

14 《故乡》 作者：肖恩·坦 评论员：约翰·亨德里克斯

特写

4 播客精选 索菲·埃尔姆赫斯特

10 如何在曼哈顿中城度过一个书卷气的下午 作者：詹妮弗·哈兰 和 乌米·希亚姆

19 如风般阅读 文学课 作者：MJ 弗兰克林

其他

15 畅销书排行榜

15 编辑精选

16 平装书专栏

封面图片：黑色之盾总部，克利夫兰警察局为黑人警员设立的兄弟组织。

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播客精选 / 索菲·埃尔姆赫斯特

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纽约时报 书评

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记者索菲·埃尔姆赫斯特 (Sophie Elmhirst) 所著的《海上婚姻》(A Marriage at Sea) 讲述了一个真实的沉船故事。莫里斯·贝利和马拉琳·贝利在 20 世纪 70 年代的英格兰启航，他们卖掉了郊区的房子买了一艘船，准备航行前往新西兰。在旅程开始九个月后，一只抹香鲸在他们的船底破水而出，导致船只沉没，让他们被困在简陋的筏子上。埃尔姆赫斯特带领读者深入了解他们的生活，她去年参加了“书评”播客讨论《海上婚姻》，该书入选了《书评》2025 年 10 本最佳图书，并于今年夏天发行了平装本。本节选经过了压缩和编辑。

在不剧透整个故事的情况下，您如何向人们描述这本书？请告诉我们。

显然，在某种层面上，这是一个关于灾难的故事，对吧？他们身处世界另一端，被鲸鱼撞击。至于如何不剧透——我认为他们幸存下来这个事实不需要保密，因为这是一个关于他们整个生命的故事。我对他们经历之后的情况，就像对他们忍耐过程本身一样感兴趣。我想我倾向于不剧透的是他们究竟是如何被救出的。我试图保留一些悬念。

您最早是在什么时候听到这个故事的？

是很久以前了。当时我正在研究一篇关于人们试图逃离、尤其是逃离陆地的文章。我发现自己在浏览一个专门收集遇难者和沉船故事的网站。那里有很多照片，讲述着被抛在荒岛上的孤独野人们以及他们的各种冒险经历。在所有这些故事中，有一张男人和女人的小小黑白照片。她吸引了我的注意，因为在这些人群中，女性很罕见。

而且我能感觉到，他们身上有些东西显得格外熟悉。我不知道这是否只是我事后的一种投射，但一旦我发现他们是 20 世纪 70 年代的英国人，并且开始更多地了解他们作为人物的特质，我就觉得他们身上有一种非常容易产生认同感的东西。

想必您经常接触到各种故事。为什么选择这个故事作为您第一本书的重点？

我能感觉到这个故事很特别。我简直不敢相信我以前没听说过它，不敢相信它被遗忘了。它的戏剧性如此极端，他们在太平洋上漂流的时间之长，以及他们不得不采取的行为——比如砍掉海龟头，吃生鱼和鱼眼。

所有这些素材简直就是瑰宝。素材极其丰富。

但我认为我从一开始就知道，这不能是故事的全部。对于一本书来说，仅仅有极端性和戏剧性是不够的。我从一开始就希望它能成为一个关于经历此类事件的内心过程的故事，同时也是对一段婚姻在经历此类事件时的亲密审视。

我不想破坏关于他们经历的任何细节。但我想知道您是否能挑出几个令您印象深刻的细节。

我在存在主义层面上感到几乎恐怖的是那种心理过程。莫里斯很早就陷入了绝望。他正计划如何用气罐自杀。而与此同时，试图支撑他的她，对生存机会持有极大的乐观态度。而他认为她疯了。这是一场非凡的智慧与心态的较量。她采用了所有这些极具想象力的策略来维持他们的生存。我觉得其中一些细节最令人动容，也表明了他们为了生存必须触及的深度。

精彩绝伦

随着夏日阳光渐淡，来自罗恩·库里（Ron Currie）、特蕾莎·多瓦尔帕格（Teresa Dovalpage）、杰克·弗莱戴（Jack Friday）和卡罗琳·玛丽·威尔金斯（Carolyn Marie Wilkins）的这些绝佳新小说将让你欲罢不能。

如果一本书的主角不仅被写死了，而且她的死亡还出现在书名里，你该如何写续集？如果你是库里，你会将《巴布斯·迪翁那野蛮而高贵的死亡》（The Savage, Noble Death of Babs Dionne）那般犀利且令人愉悦的风格，转向一个关于你反英雄女主角的凶猛起源故事。

在《我们将见证你的流血》（WE WILL SEE YOU BLEED，Putnam出版，370 pp., $30）中，Babs Dionne, circa 1984, 是 29 岁，与里尔（Rheal）的婚姻虽然幸福但充满紧张感。由于一场造纸厂罢工，缅因州沃特维尔（Waterville）的所有人都处于精疲力竭和经济崩溃的边缘，这让她心力交瘁。她一直能够压制青少年时期经历创伤后出现的暴力本能，但阶级愤怒与经济崩溃的交汇可能让她难以承受。

库里的写作带着一种克制的狂热，像是一个知道如何打出完美且毁灭性重击的人，而那个更年轻、稍微更脆弱一些的巴布斯跃然纸上。这是一部令人心碎且血腥的作品，在这里，救赎是一个神话，但团结并非如此。

莎拉·温曼（SARAH WEINMAN）是《书评》的犯罪与推理专栏作家。

《小说侦探》（THE NOVEL DETECTIVE，Soho Crime出版，297 pp., $28.95）是一部动人的元小说推理作品，探讨了持久的女性友谊，以及时间如何让你对充满情感色彩的事件产生更清晰的认知。

在疫情前的 2020, 特蕾莎（Teresa），作者的化身，接到了儿时好友埃斯特雷拉（Estrella）的电话，邀请她前往哈瓦那：是时候调查 40 年前她们的九年级英语老师和一名高中同学之间那场看似双自杀的事件了。特蕾莎的文学直觉被唤醒了——这是一个写小说的绝佳创意——抵达古巴后，她戴上了侦探帽。这次探索是一次真正的调查，还是仅仅是一种通过共同困扰两人的过去与旧友重新建立联系的方式？

多瓦尔帕格将情节在现在与过去之间交替，女孩们的个性在此充分展现：“她的朋友是个顶级的偏执狂。她竟然有胆量指责特蕾西塔（Teresita）是对推理小说和警匪剧过度沉迷！”

认识一下彼得·西奥多·基（PETER THEODORE KEY）：“女孩们有时叫我西奥（Theo），当我让他们失望时，男人们叫我皮蒂（Petey），而我的敌人（最近我制造的敌人数量之多令人惊讶）则称我为德克萨斯州最懒的私家侦探——事实上，要达到这个地步得花不少功夫。”

彼得是弗莱戴的作品《杀手氛围》（KILLER VIBES，Minotaur出版，340 pp., $29）中的主角，他在达拉斯的生活已经一团糟，吸毒和与任何人发生关系是他的首要指令，这主要是为了分散注意力，以缓解母亲去世带来的悲痛。（“直到我的电话连续几天没响，我才意识到我多么想念母亲的唠叨。”）随后他得知一个几乎不认识的叔叔在车祸中去世，给他留下了一栋位于奥斯汀的破旧房子、堆积如山的债务，以及一群威胁他必须卖掉房子的陌生人——否则后果自负。

起初，彼得倾向于无所事事，因为那是他的自然状态。但奇怪的事情接连发生，随后他在厨房墙上的一个洞里摸索，掏出了一个塞满一百万美元的袋子。看来，29 岁的彼得即将被拖入一个他可能真正胜任的职业：私家侦探。

我花了一点时间才开始喜欢《杀手氛围》，但一旦进入状态，我就完全沉浸其中了。

威尔金斯（WILKINS）——爵士钢琴家、灵气疗法大师、通灵媒——也是一名才华横溢的作家，这一点在她设定于20世纪20年代的推理系列小说中得到了证明，该系列的主角是战争遗孀诺拉·安·杰克逊（Nola Ann Jackson），她首次出现在去年的《Wham Bam俱乐部谋杀案》（Murder at the Wham Bam Club）中。

《让凶手说阿门》（LET THE MURDERER SAY AMEN，Kensington出版，266页，$27）讲述了诺拉在适应伊利诺伊州的生活，她与拥有通灵能力的姨妈一起生活和工作，似乎正处于再次结婚的边缘。随后，“正义启示圣殿”及其反复无常且极具魅力的领导者皮乌斯·阿蒙·拉主教的到来，打破了这一切。这座圣殿实际上是一个邪教，信徒们将各种超自然力量归功于这位主教。

当教会的歌手——一名年轻白人女性——被谋杀时，怀疑指向了一名黑人保镖，因为他曾指责该女性偷窃捐款盘里的钱。诺拉对此并不确定。“如果不介意的话，我想自己做些调查，”她说。

结果是一次快节奏的旅程，触及了种族、宗教甚至浪漫爱情，期间偶尔得到了诺拉自身通灵能力的帮助，尽管这些能力可能并不可靠。在思考一名嫌疑人时，她想：“我难道不应该能在他的人格光环中看到暴力吗？”

50

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翻译中的情欲

这部小说中那些 30 多岁的人是在恋爱吗？这取决于你如何定义它。

纽约时报

[⚠ 低质量翻译，建议复核] # 塑造我们世界的事件，每日呈递。

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作者：露西·艾夫斯 (LUCY IVES)

在凯蒂·辛普森-史密斯这部充满哲学意味且坦率得令人惊讶的新小说进行到大约三分之一时，两位女主角之一的莱奥妮决定放弃一夜情。她不想为了“探索未知的快感”而“钻进”某个男人的“内心世界”。她的理由是？“爱并不等同于不了解。”

我想，这真令人耳目一新，于是折了页角。莱奥妮这个有用的格言——用双重否定来对爱进行否定定义——是我收到的第一个暗示：这部名为《马耳他版本》（The Maltese Version）的小说，其轻盈如蛋白霜般的表面下可能隐藏着意想不到的深度。在此之前，这本书表现得像是一部关于两个女性朋友试图在日渐没落的旅游指南行业中闯出名堂的轻喜剧。

史密斯是一位观察敏锐且技巧娴熟的作家。虽然书中确实对类似《艾米丽在巴黎》甚至《布里杰顿》等近期作品中那种平淡氛围进行了某种讽刺性的回收利用，但《马耳他版本》实际上是对小说形式以及该形式能揭示和不能揭示之物的刚毅探索。这本书凭借其创造力以及诸多语言上的巧妙手段，能够让我们重新相信虚构文学的趣味之乐与批判能力。

史密斯的剧情大纲如下：莱奥妮是一名 30 多岁的白人女性，被生动地描述为拥有“水獭般的身材”，她与罗达是职场好姐妹。罗达是一名 40 多岁的黑人女性，她与一名叫艾克（Ike）的商人维持了 20 年表面无瑕的婚姻，但这段婚姻现在看来像是一条死胡同。

两人在 Spinder's Guides 勤恳工作，这是一家总部位于芝加哥的出版商，其上司将西欧的旅游陷阱景点分配给莱奥妮，而将所有可行的加勒比海岛屿分配给罗达。然而，当莱奥妮那个深沉的男友、一名崭露头角的文学翻译家马克斯失踪在马耳他时，她们开始突破个人和职业上的刻板印象。

莱奥妮和马克斯的问题在于，他们无法决定是否相爱。他们的关系既平淡又典型，任何曾与美国年轻都市专业人士近距离生活过的人都会立刻产生共鸣。与其说这段关系没有爱，不如说它似乎变成了一种基于莱奥妮和马克斯对进口国际语言和体验的共同兴趣而建立的小生意。

当他们争吵时，他们争吵的是语义。马克斯刚才是不是说他不爱莱奥妮的母亲？莱奥妮刚才是不是错误地定义了“爱”这个词？马克斯搬到了戈佐岛（Gozo）一座预料之中的闷热别墅里，这座岛位于马耳他群岛，据称是宁芙仙女卡

露西·艾夫斯 (LUCY IVES) 是多部作品的作者，包括小说《生命无处不在》（Life Is Everywhere）、《宇宙起源：故事集》（Cosmogony: Stories）以及随笔集《我的名字之像进入美国》（An Image of My Name Enters America）。

《马耳他版本》（THE MALTESE VERSION） 作者：凯蒂·辛普森-史密斯 (Katy Simpson Smith) FSG Originals 出版。320 页。平装本，\$19。

利普索（Calypso）囚禁奥德修斯的地点，这引发了一场危机。

同样在预料之中，这场危机是由安娜（Ana）那雕塑般迷人的魅力所促成的。安娜是一位马耳他诗人，她关于情色、丧失和女性愤怒的诗句在网络上走红。软弱的马克斯在翻译安娜的作品时，不可避免地与她变得亲密。真正的性行为发生了。柠檬被发现了意想不到的用途。

回到芝加哥，绝望的莱奥妮说服罗达利用她作为杂志社驻地“岛屿女王”的影响力——罗达并不允许这个绰号在没有评论的情况下被提及——来争取一个去马耳他的任务。马克斯不接电话，而罗达已经厌倦了她作为10岁儿子的主要照顾者，以及作为工作狂且身材魁梧的艾克全能助手的角色。

第一个危机——一个缺乏想象力的翻译员通过出轨女友来寻求职业晋升——随着罗达的到来而变得滑稽地复杂化。罗达不仅想要揭穿马克斯，还想实现自己的叙事幻想，至于是否可信则完全不在意。

自亨利·詹姆斯以来（甚至更早），天真的美国主角们就被送到海外去解决他们的问题。如果家乡是一个像马克斯认为的“如果没有伪装的乐观就无法生存”的地方，那么马耳他就像安娜一样，充满了“内向和轻微的敌意”。

这个国家的政治历史——“腐败，少数古老家族像黑手党一样的道德观……作为封地的马耳他，作为十字路口的马耳他”——渗透进了史密斯的描述中。这座岛屿是一个“恐龙之地”，正“崩塌入海”，其特点是“监狱式”的建筑。相比之下，莱奥妮和马克斯则像是完全没有经历过历史的人。莱奥妮在芝加哥生活中的一个重大难题是穿粉色袜子还是白色袜子。

事实证明，在马耳他占据主导地位的那些原始欲望以及过去与现在的暴力回响，无法通过马克斯那种“经过净化且机械对等”的转译来表达。小说中的这位翻译员对安娜的母语感到一种危险的结合体：既是性欲的渴望，又是嫉妒，或者说他混乱地将其感知为“拥有源语言的奢侈”。但翻译永远不能是一种占有行为；它是在写一个“第二个故事”，一个更睿智、更独立的莱奥妮在小说接近尾声时将意识到这一点。

也就是说，安娜和马克斯在文学与情色上的较量，为罗达和莱奥妮自己的追求提供了一个幸运的背景。她们在寻找一种新的语言，将她们秘密的内心世界——以及她们对爱那些临时且可能不完美的定义——转化为自觉的思想，并且她们热切地希望，能转化为行动。爱可能是一个经历恐惧、安慰然后分离的三阶段过程；也可能是两个恋人“在树林间彼此呐喊”。它可能发生在文字之中，但话又说回来，最美妙的是，也许并非如此。

黑与蓝

一位记者在令人动容的新回忆录中，探讨了他家乡克利夫兰市种族与警务的历史及其悖论。

作者：埃利·萨斯洛（ELI SASLOW）

威尔伯特·库珀（WILBERT COOPER）第一次发现那件武器时还是个青少年。2000年代初，他的父母都在克利夫兰市担任警察。一次，库珀借用了父亲的无标志警车，当他伸手进驾驶座侧口袋时，摸到了一块大约香蕉大小、质地致密的金属块。它像保龄球一样沉，为了在黑暗中伪装而涂成了深色，并用胶带缠绕以便抓握。

库珀在成长过程中一直接触父母由市府配发的枪支，但这个“黑杰克”（blackjack，一种短棍武器）暗示了一种更为隐秘的暴力方式。当他询问时，父亲微笑着从库珀手中拿走武器，向他演示如何用它击碎嫌疑人的头部。

《黑色之盾》（THE BLACK SHIELD）

一部关于家庭与权力的美国回忆录 作者：威尔伯特·L·库珀（Wilbert L. Cooper）

Will & Will Jr.

Farrar, Straus & Giroux 出版。402 页。$32。

库珀没有像他家族中三代黑人那样进入克利夫兰警察局，而是成为了一名记者。在过去十年中，他为 Vice、Marshall Project 等媒体撰写的报道，帮助记录了美国刑事司法系统的失败，包括带有种族偏见的警务活动和过度使用武力。这一切最终引导库珀回到了他童年核心的矛盾之中：“对我一直以来关于父母职业及其赋予我的生活——以及它剥夺了多少其他人的生活——的所有疑问。”

其结果便是库珀这部令人动容的新回忆录《黑色之盾》。在书中，他试图理解抚养他长大的父母，以及那个让他们既成为目标又成为执行者的系统。他深入接触了“黑色之盾”（Black Shield）——克利夫兰市黑人警员的兄弟会组织，并挖掘法院记录，揭露了一个在数十年间部署黑人警员以改变其外在形象，却从未改变其实际结果的警察局。

库珀是一位文字生动且毫不妥协的记者，他愿意将同样的审视目光投向自己的亲属，即便这意味着揭露他们的共谋。他的叔祖父劳埃德（Lloyd）在市中心种族隔离的东区巡逻，既有个人魅力，又倾向于使用暴力。库珀写道：“通过将暴力用于自己的社区，他获得了自由的伪装——金钱、衣服，以及在街头不受惩罚的特权。”

他报道中最难以捉摸的目标是那些离他最近的人：他的父母，这本书也是献给他们的。他的母亲盖尔（Gayle）在 20 世纪 60 年代的克利夫兰长大，当时的警察部队将她视为“一名敌方战斗员”，库珀写道。当时该市的黑人人口约占 30%，但警察部队中白人占比近 93%。当警员在巡逻时停在盖尔的小学操场上，她被教导要逃跑。“每个人都会跳过围栏，”她告诉儿子，“我们都会全力冲刺。你得不停地跑，然后躲起来，或者跑回家。”

到 20 世纪 70 年代末，在一次“黑色之盾”的诉讼迫使该市开始使警察部队多样化之后，盖尔变成了追捕者。当时她是一个陷入虐待关系、经济拮据且有三个孩子的母亲，就在那时，警察局给了她一枚警徽；她一路晋升为风纪侦探，并成为了警察学院的教官。

到库珀进入青少年时期，盖尔已将家人搬进郊区的一栋大房子里，她在卧室衣橱里存放着数百双红色高跟鞋。她开始将警察视为功能性社会的维护者。她说：“我不希望生活在一个没有他们的世界里，因为那个世界将是混乱的。”

但库珀写道，他所寻找的是“某种救赎之恩”。他试图寻找证据，证明他的父母曾与他们在那个压迫性体制中所扮演的角色进行过斗争。然而，他最终发现的是父亲的内部警察记录。

威尔曾是一名傲慢的街头警察，每天做数百个俯卧撑练就了宽阔的肩膀，经常在拍照时将一只手扣在裆部。当他发现警察更衣室里到处都是同事留下的种族主义涂鸦时，他以自己的反白人涂鸦作为回应。但尽管他如此逞能且充满正义之怒，他依然无法超越种族主义体制的模式。他在警局的专业标准办公室工作，库珀将那里描述为“警局的焚化炉”——文件，甚至是整个案件卷宗，都会在那里丢失或消失。随后，在2001年，他开枪击中了一名黑人男子。

事件起初是一次常规的缉毒突袭，直到嫌疑人驾车逃离，威尔发现毒贩的福特远征者（Ford Expedition）在停止标志前怠速行驶。他和搭档当时在执行秘密任务，没有逮捕令。他们选择开火，击中了驾驶员侧车门和后窗。嫌疑人逃跑，威尔和搭档在后院追击，击中了他的背部和肩膀。直到后来，警员们回到车旁才发现，嫌疑人3岁的儿子正安全地系在后座的安全带上，周围满是弹孔和碎玻璃。

他最难以触及的报道目标是离他最近的人：他的父母，这本书也是献给他们的。

当库珀阅读事故报告时，他认出了自己在报道十年警暴期间见过的相同模式：矛盾的陈述、隐藏在警察术语背后的空洞辩解，以及诸如“我担心自己的生命安全”或“他当时在伸手”等熟悉的措辞。最终，这成了又一次没有后果的形式主义调查。

“我觉得自己并不认识这个男人，”库珀写道。

他的父母为了在种族主义国家生存并为他提供一个安全、舒适的童年而武装自己，但正是这层武装让《黑色之盾》保持着距离。尽管库珀进行了精美的挖掘，但书中的核心人物依然触不可及。

“在发现真相带来的亢奋之后，我被一种空虚、茫然的感觉所淹没，”库珀写道。“我想缩短这段距离。但尽管我已经了解了关于他们世界的这一切，空间依然存在。”

餐厅外带

由厨师和名人撰写的美食书籍如山一般涌现。而这本书则将目光投向了那些极少受到关注的劳动者。

作者：德怀特·加纳 (DWIGHT GARNER)

这是一本篇幅精简且低调的书，是一部类似于斯图兹·特克尔 (Studs Terkel) 的《工作》(Working, 1974) 那样的口述历史集，但每一个经常在外就餐的人都应该了解它。书名为《厨房之声：纽约移民餐厅员工的个人叙事》(Voices From the Kitchen: Personal Narratives From New York's Immigrant Restaurant Workers)。其编辑是马克·迈耶 (Marc Meyer)，他是一位厨师，也是曼哈顿餐厅 Shuka、Cookshop、Vic's、Shukette 和 Rosie's 的共同所有者。

迈耶的方法很简单。他与 27 名员工坐下来交谈，其中许多人在他的餐厅工作了数十年，他用 iPhone 记录了他们的故事。他将访谈内容转录，并在极少编辑的情况下将其转化为叙事文本。

这些男女来自全球各地——厄瓜多尔、孟加拉国、秘鲁、埃及、墨西哥、科特迪瓦、波斯尼亚、多米尼加共和国、冈比亚

德怀特·加纳 (DWIGHT GARNER) 自 2008, 年起担任《时报》的书评人，在此之前曾在书评版担任编辑十年。

——他们讲述来到这里并在纽约市艰苦生存的经历，既勇敢、凄惨，又动人，且往往非常幽默。最近，他们成了匿名的政治攻击目标，而《厨房之声》让他们重新拥有了人性化的面孔。

人们可能会对迈耶的项目持愤世嫉俗的态度，而他对此心知肚明。这里存在着明显的权力动态：没有人会向自己的雇主讲述关于生活的全部残酷真相，尤其是关于工作的真相。迈耶也意识到此类项目可能会带有某种“白人救世主”的氛围。

即便考虑到这些，人们依然可以欣赏《厨房之声》。（所有收益都将交给讲述者，且他们保留对其故事的法律所有权。）书店里的美食类书籍如山一般涌现，但很少有书籍深入挖掘那些在后厨担任洗碗工、传菜员和准备厨师，以及越来越多在前厅担任服务员和领班的移民生活。如今，其中不少人已成为主厨和经理。

像这样的故事并非完全没有被收集。南方饮食文化联盟 (Southern Foodways Alliance)、美国民间生活中心 (American Folklife Center) 和其他组织一直勤勉地编译与食物相关的口述历史，你可以在网上找到。但能将这些记录装订在硬皮书之间是一件好事。《厨房之声》

《厨房之声》（VOICES FROM THE KITCHEN）

纽约移民餐厅从业者的个人叙事 马克·迈耶（Marc Meyer）编 Beacon出版社。223页。$29.95。

《厨房之声》足够大胆且及时，足以让你乐观地认为，未来会有人编写一本更广泛的此类书籍，而不再局限于某一家餐厅集团的员工。

这里的男女从业者大多来自小城镇。许多人的父亲缺席或具有虐待倾向，且无法获得真正的教育。他们逃往美国是为了帮助支撑家乡的家人，逃离帮派暴力和腐败政府，并试图抓住那只能被称为“美国梦”的一部分。许多人已有亲戚先来到了纽约。

关于抵达的故事极其惨烈：在沙漠中度过几乎没有食物或水的日子，遭遇偷窃的“郊狼”（非法移民走私者）、随机出现的枪手，恐怖的过河经历，以及被像“饼干”一样塞进用于运输液体的重型卡车中经历的长途跋涉，车内几乎没有通风口。许多人觉得他们无法生存。有人在西瓜卡车的后斗里从洛杉矶一路前往纽约。

所有人都从最底层或接近底层开始：清理洗手间、收拾餐桌、负责衣帽寄存。他们通过勤奋、节俭和毅力逐步晋升——先是做一些准备工作，然后负责沙拉站，以此类推。在美国陷入“ICE时代”很久之前，这些就是我们过去所称的“霍拉肖·阿尔杰式”的励志故事。

阅读本书的乐趣之一，就是跟随这些男女在不同餐厅之间流动，勤奋地攀登职业阶梯。在记录这些场所的名字时，自带一种怀旧感，其中一些早已消失，一些依然屹立：Big Kahuna, Ocean Grill, Red Gravy, Le Zoo, Clyde Frazier's, Jean Georges, Mercer Kitchen, Momofuku Ssam Bar, Ernie's, Lil' Frankies, Bayamo, Poiret, Brown Betty, Avanti, Danji, Seventh Avenue Donuts, Charlie Bird, Calle Doa, Veranda, Fraunces Tavern, Sequoia, Maestro's Steakhouse, Upland, Danube, A Voce Columbus, Aqualis Grill, Bayamo。

不久前，大多数餐厅工作还被认为是卑微的体力活。在很大程度上由于安东尼·波登（Anthony Bourdain）的影响，这项工作变得令人钦佩且酷（尽管依然残酷）。人们希望看起来像厨师，也想成为厨师：不羁、有纹身、说话直率，露出前臂上的烫伤痕迹。这份工作提供了强烈的同志情谊。如果一个人愿意跨入那扇门，它就是通往各种文化的一道后门，而大多数其他蓝领职业则并非如此。

书中一个颇具代表性的故事是关于维科（Vico）的（迈耶仅使用名字，有时使用化名），他于1986年从墨西哥的一个小村庄来到美国，在餐厅担任搬运工起步。他现在已经结婚，成为美国公民已有八年。他在皇后区经营着一家备受赞誉的自己的餐厅 La Flor，并监管着 Bowery 餐厅集团的20多家餐厅。

维科的女儿毕业于阿默斯特学院。另一位受访者安赫尔（Angel）。

有人坐在西瓜卡车的后斗里，从洛杉矶一路前往纽约。

另一位受访者来自墨西哥的一个小镇（他的父亲是一名卡车司机），现在是一名主厨，他的儿子就读于菲利普斯埃克塞特学院。

书中的女性表达了在男性主导的行业中证明自己的压力。她们感觉自己在工作与家庭之间被挤压得像番茄膏管一样。有些人曾遭受过性虐待。但也有不少人登上了顶峰。卡拉（Carla）的父亲是多米尼加共和国的一名渔民，她 6 岁时来到这里。她现在是 Shuka 餐厅的主厨兼经理。

并非所有这些故事都是快乐的。一些受访者患有抑郁症或其他健康问题。“这座城市能给你经济上的稳定，但不能给你情感上的稳定，”一个人说道。有些人仅仅是想回到那些已不复存在的故乡。“我为什么没有留下？”另一个人在谈到他在墨西哥的家乡时问道，“我觉得我丢失了一些过去的东西，而且它永远消失了。我再也找不回来了。”

当讲述者打破和谐的氛围，当你感觉到有人在揭开表象地挖掘真相时，这些访谈才变得最生动。一名女性承认，端盘子时间太长会让人精疲力竭，变得易怒。另一人评论说，在简餐店工作很糟糕，因为很多店都是由庞大的希腊家族经营的。家族里的每个人都有自己的意见，所以你会被两头指责。

像这样罕见的评论提醒人们，《厨房之声》（Voices From the Kitchen）的局限性。因为这些讲述者是在面对他们的老板说话，厨房工作的阴暗面很少被展露——粗鲁的顾客、账单错误、种族主义、在洗手间里的私情与清理工作、脚上的血泡、自尊心的碰撞、不得不强行推销菜单项、绊倒和跌落、同事的崩溃、强制性的最后一刻排班、清理恶心且吃了一半的餐食、关于小费的苦恼、割伤和刺伤、应对名人与贵宾、狭窄且嘈杂的环境——所有这些发生在看似流畅的前厅编排之下的事情。

一个更诚实、更全面的口述历史项目正等待着被汇编。编辑们，准备行动吧。

我知道这本书是因为几个月前我在 Cookshop 吃午餐，接待台上有这本书的副本。这是一个不错的发现。其中一些故事如此错综复杂且引人入胜，完全可以拍成电影。

这不是一本明确的政治书籍。它没有关于移民政策的具体论述，也没有主张完全开放边境。但它使简单的叙事变得复杂，并要求我们看待人们时，不仅要看他们现在是什么样子，还要看他们可能成为什么样子。

“他们读了我的名字，看了我的脸，然后指了指那些菜肴，”布莱恩·华盛顿（Bryan Washington）的短篇小说集《Lot》（2019）中一个寻找工作的讲述者说道。这种情况肯定每天都在纽约市的餐厅里发生。《厨房之声》是一本乐观的书——它提醒你，如果许多餐饮业生涯是以这种方式开始的，它们不必就此结束。

家族诅咒

在这部充满诗意的全新小说中，预知能力是一项可怕的遗传遗产。

作者：查梅恩·威尔克森 (CHARMAINE WILKERSON)

在每一代人中，那些说出令人不安的真相的人往往会被诋毁和排斥。这种污名在拉托亚·沃特金斯 (LaToya Watkins) 的新诗意小说《查克之书》(The Book of Chuck) 中得到了充分展现。书中，一名拥有预知能力的儿童，以及多年后的她的儿子，因为能够预见一个人的死亡而遭到遗弃。

那是1936.年。小南妮 (Nannie) 还不满一岁，就咿咿呀呀地预言了父亲的 demise。事实证明这是一个准确的幻象——不久之后，她的父亲被私刑处死。这些事件让南妮的母亲如此惊恐，以至于她选择逃离，将南妮交给他人抚养。她担心南妮是“不属于这个世界的某种东西；某种邪恶且不仁的东西”。

但南妮并不是家族中第一个经历这种令人胆寒的幻象的人，也不会是最后一个。在她之后，是她的儿子沃尔特 (Walter)，绰号查克 (Chuck)，他也拥有超凡的天赋。随后，查克最终有了自己的孩子，贝比 (Baby)，同样拥有这些天赋。

尽管采用了超自然设定，《查克之书》并非恐怖故事，除非将“爱的缺失”定义为恐怖。在很大程度上，这是一个关于家庭与传承的慢节奏故事，它铺开了一张宽广的情感之网，探讨了否认、秘密和反复的拒绝如何扭曲一个人的身份及其人生发展。

这本书在时间线上来回穿梭，从20世纪30年代实行吉姆·克劳法 (Jim Crow) 的德克萨斯州一直到21世纪初，讲述了一个非裔美国人家庭的几代人如何应对其能力的负担与影响，同时面对个人、经济以及种族相关的挑战。沃特金斯的短篇小说集《大喊吧，孩子》(Holler, Child) 曾入围美国国家图书奖 (National Book Award) 长名单，她在本作中凭借对语言的敏锐捕捉和对令人难忘意象的洞察，使这部小说熠熠生辉。

小说提出的一个重大问题是：如果你看清了世界的真相，你是能改变世界，还是会改变你自己？查克在能力给他的生活带来混乱时，选择躲避这些能力。然而，贝比并不否认自己的力量——她只是向他人隐瞒，秘密地希望利用这些能力来改变她预见到的事件。

总体而言，《查克之书》读起来像是一个关于代际创伤与代际疗愈的诗意寓言。这一点在查克的故事情节中最为明显。南妮在生下他后不久就遗弃了

《查克之书》(THE BOOK OF CHUCK) 作者：拉托亚·沃特金斯 (LaToya Watkins)

Tiny Reparations Books 出版。306 pp. $30.

查克，将他交给远亲照顾。那些监护人同样排斥他。查克所经历过的唯一一个充满慈爱的长辈形象是“爸爸” (Daddy)，他是查克一名照顾者的前夫。与其他人不同，“爸爸”将查克视为一个值得被爱、被善待和被原谅的人。

“你是个好孩子，”在查克结束一段牢狱之灾回到家后，“爸爸”告诉他。“一直是个好孩子。我们有时都会在泥潭中迷失方向。”这是一个

尽管采用了超自然框架，但这本书并非恐怖故事。

这一改变人生的宣言，是在一盘炸鲶鱼和红薯面前悄悄说出的。“这让我想要尽一切努力，证明自己配得上他一直如此慷慨给予的一切，”查克回忆道。

在整个故事中，角色们表现出一种对归属感的极度渴求，有时这甚至给他们带来了巨大的损害。例如，查克本人其实是一个温柔的丈夫和父亲，但他与莱蒂婚姻中的严重失误造成了终身的影响。

最终，我们在小说的大部分篇幅中，看着这些角色学习如何在不否定自我的情况下与他们的幻象共存。这段叙事让人想起托妮·莫里森《宠儿》中的一个核心观点，作者在书中利用超自然元素来探讨一个根本的人性挑战：我们可能渴望他人的认可，却忘了给自己留足够的尊重。

查克那个充满波折的家庭故事表明，这种自我尊重仍有绽放的空间。□

如何在曼哈顿中城度过一个书卷气的下午

这次穿梭于纽约市繁华中心的步行之旅包括书店、绝佳的阅读地点以及文学主题的小吃。

作者：詹妮弗·哈兰 (JENNIFER HARLAN) 与 乌米·夏姆 (UMI SYAM) / 摄影：乔治·埃瑟里奇 (GEORGE ETHEREDGE)

预计步行时间：40 分钟，1.7 英里

曼哈顿中城以许多事物著称：拥挤的人行道、百老汇剧院，以及时代广场那商业喧嚣的嘈杂。通常情况下，除非是要看戏，或者是因为在新闻编辑部工作而拿薪水，否则我们尽量避开这个街区。

但这个位于纽约市闷热核心地带的繁忙走廊，也拥有数量惊人的优秀书店。这些文学绿洲为人们提供了远离街道喧嚣的喘息之机——在这里，你可以逃离疯狂的人群随意翻阅，或许买一份甜点补充能量，然后手握下一本精彩读物，重新投入到纷扰之中。

无论你是访问纽约的游客，还是寻找午休逃离之地的当地人，我们都为你准备了一次小型步行之旅，向你展示这个街区最具书卷气息的一面。你可以花上一整天时间，在下午逛完所有七个地点，或者将其作为一份待办清单，在今年夏天逐一完成。（如果你渴望更多文学冒险，我们有个好消息！中城仅仅是个开始：我们很快将为你提供其他纽约街区的行程指南。）

1. 麦克纳利·杰克逊书店 (洛克菲勒中心)

一家能满足所有人需求的独立书店中坚力量。

麦克纳利·杰克逊书店（McNally Jackson）成立于 2004 年，是纽约独立书店界的支柱之一。从最初位于 NoLita 的店面（现已关闭，由几个街区外的 SoHo 旗舰店取代）开始，该书店已扩展至全市五个分店，包括这家于 2022 年开业的位于洛克菲勒中心的宽敞分店。

这里涵盖了广泛的体裁——包括一个充满儿童书籍的附属区——无论您是想要最新的畅销书，还是在寻找经典之作或被忽视的瑰宝，麦克纳利·杰克逊书店都能满足全家人的需求。该书店以其独特的分类系统而闻名：小说类（位于二楼）按作者的原籍国家或地区划分，此外还为浪漫小说、奇幻小说、推理小说等爱好者设有更传统的体裁主题区域。

它坐落在曼哈顿中城顶端的交通枢纽旁，是在开启您的文学探索之旅前确定方向的绝佳首站。记得买一个帆布袋，用来装您在接下来的行程中发现的所有好书！（如果您看向收银台上方，会看到沃尔特·惠特曼、托妮·莫里森和马塞尔·普鲁斯特的纸板立牌正在为您展示可选的袋子款式。）

1 Rockefeller Plaza, 212-925-2134, mcnallyjackson.com 每日 10 a.m. 至 9 p.m. 营业 无洗手间

2. Bookoff

在他们庞大的二手书区开启一场寻宝之旅。

一个憨态可掬的卡通人物 YomuYomu 纸板立牌欢迎您光临 Bookoff。这是日本知名二手书店连锁店在美国的分店（该吉祥物的名字源自日语动词“yomu”，意为“阅读”）。这家商品琳琅满目的转售商场涵盖了从收藏级手办到游戏机，从 CD 和 DVD 到磁带和黑胶唱片的所有物品。但大多数文学作品都位于二楼巨大的二手书区。

您可以在 Bookoff 的书架间轻松地消磨几个小时。价格低至 $1，您可以发现一些绝佳的宝藏，尤其是在那些（遗憾地已停产的）大众市场平装书架上。

而且当您阅读完毕后，随时可以回来！Bookoff 同样收购二手书和其他媒介产品。

49 West 45th Street, 212-685-1410, bookoffusa.com 每日 10 a.m. 至 8 p.m. 营业 无洗手间

对面页照片（从左至右）：一名顾客在麦克纳利·杰克逊中城店浏览；沃尔特·惠特曼、托妮·莫里森和马塞尔·普鲁斯特为待售的麦克纳利·杰克逊周边产品“代言”；Bookoff 的两个场景。

3. 纪伊国屋书店 (Kinokuniya)

可以俯瞰布莱恩特公园 (Bryant Park) 的日系书籍与零食店。

这是另一家日本书商在美开设的门店，店内拥有三层楼的书籍和书迷周边（此外还有我们见过最可爱的迷你购物篮）。

一楼提供广泛的小说、非小说、儿童书和食谱选择，特别（但并非唯一）侧重于日本文化和作家，例如推理小说作家绫辻行人，以及深受喜爱的东亚“治愈系小说”亚类型提供者川口俊和。在地下室，你可以找到日语书籍、纸艺手工用品和海量的周边商品；吉卜力工作室 (Studio Ghibli) 拥有自己的专属区域，由一个巨大的龙猫毛绒玩具守护着。而二楼则主要用于陈列漫画。

在离开之前，请务必查看位于一楼的员工推荐专栏，它体现了该店的使命宣言：“阅读书籍。结识他人。”

1073 Sixth Avenue, 212-869-1700,

周一至周六 10 a.m. 至 8 p.m. 营业，周日 11 a.m. 至 7:30 p.m. 营业。 一楼设有洗手间。

上方照片（从左起顺时针方向）：纪伊国屋书店的书架；中城漫画店 (Midtown Comics) 的漫画、图形小说及大量新书；戏剧书店 (Drama Book Shop) 为爱书之人设立的雕塑。

在 TOMIZ CAFE 快速进食补充能量。

纪伊国屋书店最棒的部分其实不是丰富的书籍选择，而是位于二楼的店内咖啡馆，那里提供一系列美味的日式点心。买一个饭团或水果三明治，再配一杯冰奶茶，在俯瞰布莱恩特公园的美景中享用。

1073 Sixth Avenue, second floor, 212-764-6785, tomiznyc.com 周一至周六 11 a.m. 至 7 p.m. 营业，周日 11 a.m. 至 6 p.m. 营业。

4. 中城漫画店 (Midtown Comics)

隐藏在眼皮底下的极客天堂。

稍不留神你可能会错过这个粉丝圣地，它的紫色遮阳篷被夹在一家恩潘那达 (empanada) 柜台和一家三明治店之间。但沿着装饰有蜘蛛侠的楼梯走上去，便是一个拥有两层楼的漫画和图形小说宝库。

一楼有大量的新书，以及精选的杂志、儿童书和小说（主要是奇幻、科幻和恐怖类，符合极客主题）。超人伫立在楼梯旁守护着，楼梯通往过刊区以及一个色彩缤纷的服装和动作玩偶区。

200 West 40th Street, 212-302-8192,

周一和周二 11 a.m. 至 7 p.m. 营业；周三 8 a.m. 至 9 p.m. 营业；周四至周六 11 a.m. 至 9 p.m. 营业；周日 noon 至 7 p.m. 营业。 无洗手间。

5. 戏剧书店 (The Drama Book Shop)

一家距离百老汇仅几步之遥的卓越戏剧瑰宝。

这家拥有 109 年历史的戏剧书店在 2019 年几乎被迫“谢幕”，因为它接连遭受了水管爆裂和租金大幅上涨的双重打击。幸运的是，四位男性（均与热门音乐剧《汉密尔顿》有关）出手相助，为这家书店开启了“第二幕”：该剧的作曲家林-曼努埃尔·米兰达 (Lin-Manuel Miranda)、导演托马斯·凯尔 (Thomas Kail)、首席制作人杰弗里·塞勒 (Jeffrey Seller)，以及其百老汇剧院的所有者詹姆斯·L·内德兰德 (James L. Nederlander)。

书店的新版本由《汉密尔顿》的场景设计师大卫·科林斯 (David Korins) 设计，于 2021 年在原址南边一个街区开业。这个灯光温暖、铺有木墙的空间里摆满了考究的皮革长椅和舒适的角落，人们可能会在这里潜心创作下一部伟大的美国音乐剧。由于紧邻百老汇，整家店是对演艺事业的致敬，不仅提供丰富的剧本和歌剧剧本，还有关于工艺与设计的书籍，以及包含潜在素材的传记专区。（它也是本名单中唯一一家获得过托尼奖的店铺。）

最引人注目的特征是从前台一直延伸到房梁的蜿蜒书本雕塑；在收银台旁的展示柜里，还有一个迷人的微缩钩编版本。如果你需要提神，咖啡吧提供糕点和饮品，其中一些是以百老汇为主题的（例如：Carolee Carmello，一款海盐焦糖烤棉花糖拿铁，像这位女演员本人一样充满活力）。

266 West 39th Street, 212-944-0595, dramabookshop.com 周一至周六 10 a.m. 至 7 p.m. 营业，周日 noon 至 7 p.m. 营业。设有洗手间。

上方照片（从左至右）：布莱恩特公园的户外阅读；纽约公共图书馆的罗斯阅览室 (Rose Reading Room)；在 Bookmarks Lounge 享用一杯沉浸式鸡尾酒，为一天的购书之旅收尾。

6. 布莱恩特公园户外阅览室 (Bryant Park Outdoor Reading Room)

在树荫下蜷缩着读一本好书。

你已经穿梭于街道之间，购入了充足的书籍。现在你只需要一个绝佳的阅读场所。如果天气允许，你的最佳选择就是布莱恩特公园，你可以在伦敦悬铃木的阴凉处拉一把金属椅，让在逛书店时疲惫的双脚得到休息。

公园中甚至有一个专门致力于文字的区域：前往 42 街一侧即可找到布莱恩特公园阅览室。从 4 月到 10 月，这里提供充足的遮阳伞、座位和阅读材料，以防你忘记携带——或者单纯不想读——自己的书。他们的书架上有适合所有年龄段的书籍，以及报纸和杂志，在指定区域内你可以随意借阅。

阅览室在整个夏季直到初秋期间，还会举办故事时间、写作工作坊、拼图聚会和其他文学交流活动。

42nd Street between Fifth and Sixth Avenues, 212-768-4242, bryantpark.org 每日 11 a.m. 至 7 p.m. 营业。 设有洗手间（它们是全市最好的公共洗手间之一！）。

7. 纽约公共图书馆 (The New York Public Library)

避暑之选，提前完成假期购物。

天气太热、多雨或潮湿得令人压抑，无法在户外阅读？那么你运气不错：纽约公共图书馆的总馆就在隔壁。当你拾级而上时，可以向那两尊狮形守护神——“耐心”（Patience）和“坚韧”（Fortitude）打个招呼。

进入馆内后，你可以浏览展览；今年夏天，在全美庆祝建国250周年之际，展品包括塞缪尔·亚当斯和亚历山大·汉密尔顿的信件，以及一份印制于1776年的《独立宣言》副本。你可以在阅读室中找个位置，其中许多阅读室向公众开放，包括罗斯主阅读室（Rose Main Reading Room）——那是纽约市最令人惊叹的、适合拿着一本书消磨一小时的地方之一。

如果你的书店之瘾还没有完全得到满足，可以前往一楼巨大的商店，那里摆满了书籍（其中许多恰如其分地以纽约为主题）和文学小玩意。这里是为挚爱之人或为自己挑选礼物的绝佳场所，同时还能为纽约公共图书馆（N.Y.P.L.）提供支持。

476 Fifth Avenue, 917-275-6975, nypl.org 周一中午12点至下午6点开放，周二和周三上午10点至晚上8点开放，周四至周六上午10点至下午6点开放。周日闭馆。设有洗手间。

前往 BOOKMARKS LOUNGE，品尝带有文学色彩的饮品。

如果你结束这次漫游时正值欢乐时光（happy hour），请前往图书馆酒店（Library Hotel）的14层，为这充实的一天举杯庆祝。除了高端的酒吧美食，这家屋顶酒吧的菜单还包含许多恰到好处的谐音鸡尾酒，包括注入哈瓦那辣椒的“辛辣浪漫”（Spicy Romance）、地狱之火色的“但丁地狱”（Dante's Inferno），以及将玛格丽特调制成姜味版本的“龙舌兰嘲讽鸟”（Tequila Mockingbird）。

299 Madison Avenue, 14th floor, 212-204-5498, bookmarkslounge.com 每日下午1点至晚上11点开放（厨房于晚上9:30关闭）。设有洗手间。

人类能在非人类的世界中获得幸福吗？

通过怪物和月球人，肖恩·坦引导我们思考真实的身份究竟源自何处。

作者：约翰·亨德里克斯 (JOHN HENDRIX)

G.K. 切斯特顿曾写道，童话故事“让河流流淌着美酒，仅仅是为了让我们在某个狂野的瞬间想起，河流其实流淌的是清水”。这是一个简单的真理，但却很容易被遗忘：我们的世界浸润在奇迹之中。伟大的神话通过用幻想为熟悉之物镀金，赋予我们重新审视自身生活的眼睛。

距离肖恩·坦（插画师、作家、艺术家、电影制作人）出版他那部令人惊叹的无字图形小说《抵达》（The Arrival）已经过去了 20 年。这本书既是一部充满氛围感的移民寓言，又像是一场在明暗对比的旋转木马上的超现实之旅，瞬间成为了经典。它无畏且奇异，闪烁着一种新型神话的光芒——这种神话的主要语言不是文字，而是视觉。

肖恩·坦在《故乡》中的作品样本。

HOMETOWN 作者：肖恩·坦 Levine Querido. 136 pp. $24.99. (10 岁及以上)

当现代思维读到“神话”这个词时，可能会倾向于用“谎言”一词来替代。遗憾的是，这是我们启蒙运动后遗症的一部分。在我们看来，理解一朵玫瑰的最佳方式似乎是将其放在显微镜下，而不是通过写（或读）一首十四行诗。但正如坦在他的新作品《故乡》（Hometown）中提醒我们的那样，有些真理如此宏大、如此美丽且如此难以捉摸，以至于只能通过神话来讲述。

在《故乡》中，坦并没有要求图片承担所有的叙事工作。他用简洁而巧妙的散文，提出了与《抵达》中相同的一些跨文化问题，但视角却相反。

这个第一人称故事讲述了一个女孩的生活，在她眼中，她生活在一个在我们看来奇异且不寻常的土地上，但她却感到宾至如归。她是一个人类，但读者立即能看出她的世界在尺寸、颜色、类型或形状上都不是人类的；这里的风景是幻想且怪诞的。在书中最令人愉悦的段落中，她质朴的措辞与读者在旁边看到的画面形成了俏皮的对比（称呼“小妹”和“大姐”简直是极大的轻描淡写！）。

尽管景观诡异，女孩依然带着目标、爱和归属感过着日常生活。虽然她与周围环境截然不同，但这对她的幸福几乎没有影响。

约翰·亨德里克斯 (JOHN HENDRIX) 是图形小说《神话制造者》（The Mythmakers）的作者和插画师，也是圣路易斯华盛顿大学插画与视觉文化艺术硕士（M.F.A.）项目的创始主席。

她正处于她应该在的地方。

我们不知道她是如何到达那里的，但当一个巨大的访客从天空中打开的“大洞”中掉下来时，她那非凡的拟制家庭的天堂被打破了。在接下来的几页中，这个巨大的机器人宇航员踩在建筑物上，而且似乎相当天真地把一切都搞乱了。居民们对这个巨无霸的失误表现出惊人的理解：当入侵者被一只鲸鱼和巨型乌贼的混合体吞掉时，他们反而觉得这个“愚蠢的天空生物”很可怜。

在女孩讲了一个她所知道的“最粗鲁的笑话”以阻止鲸乌怪的消化之后，情况变得明朗了：这个访客实际上是一艘人形飞船，从中走出了一名较小的人形宇航员

有些真理如此宏大，如此美丽，如此难以捉摸，以至于只能通过神话来讲述。

走出来——滑稽的是，他的形状与那艘太空船完全一样，但尺寸却与我们的小女主角相当。（这是书中最令人捧腹的几个视觉瞬间之一。）

当宇航员摘下头盔时，故事发生了转折，我们的叙述者被他与自己在外貌上的相似之处所震撼。或许她从未意识到，自己与她所热爱这个世界之间究竟有多么不同？在与另一个人类面对面时，她开始提出疑问：我真正的家人是谁？家的意义是什么？她似乎在思考，正如我们许多人一样，是否只有一种方式（以及一个地方）能过上美好的生活。就像一颗外星卫星，“故乡”（Hometown）围绕着这些问题一次又一次地运行。每一次经过，都为我们提供了审视下方地貌的新视角。

在某种层面上，这本书是一个关于跨文化交流的经典叙事。我们都懂得，将自己世界角落里热爱的事物分享给从未体验过它们的人时，那种兴奋感。

然而，即便出于最好的意图，我们仍可能产生误解。当我们热爱的事物无法转化为另一颗心灵的语言时，我们该怎么办？《故乡》远不止于号召我们拥抱自信的多元主义。通过怪物和月球人，它要求我们思考真正的身份认同源自何处。它是像外貌那样我们无法选择的东西，还是真正的亲缘关系源于塑造我们的社区？这个故事的魅力在于，它将这些普世问题置于一个新的、万花筒般的镜头下，让我们以此审视答案。

在视觉上同样令人惊叹，《故乡》是一部形式上的杰作，展现了一位处于巅峰时期的艺术家的功力。就像那艘人形太空船一样，坦在景观中大步跨越，随心所欲地安置怪物、小生物和迷人的植物。他的作品是对线条和色调的巧妙推拉。每一幅图像都因符号化的绘画而颤动——但在关键时刻，这些线条又被没入纯色的浓郁晕染之中。想象一下，如果漫画艺术家莫比乌斯（Moebius）是由卡拉瓦乔（Caravaggio）教授绘画会是怎样的景象。

作为一名数十年来一直钦佩肖恩·坦作品的艺术家，我一直希望他能尝试用与处理图像同样奢华的世界构建方式，来对待书中的排版空间。虽然他在这里没有这样做，但他标志性的图像、故事与寥寥数语的整体构筑，依然使这本书成为了最高形式的艺术。

《故乡》将我们共同经历的平凡事物包裹在一种奇异而奇妙的外壳之中。在前景中，它让读者沉浸在神秘的物体、景观和生物之中；然而，就像一个异域的营火，一种熟悉的隐痛在背景中噼啪作响。

“重力将我留在原地，”我们的主角在故事结束时宣布，“或者是爱，这两者其实差不多。”

在这个有如此多绘本帮助年轻读者思考身份认同的时代，《故乡》极其出色地将双脚踏在了坚实的土地上。

这个新的神话提醒我们，通过选择爱——一种既古老又平凡的技术——我们可以为自己创造归属感。□

纸质书与电子书综合畅销榜

本周< / td><>上周< / ><>小说< / ><>在榜周数< / >< / tr><><>1< / ><> $^{2}$ < / ><>《黄金之西奥》（THEO OF GOLDEN），艾伦·列维（Allen Levi）著。（Atria出版社）一名男子前往美国南部的一个小镇，在那里购买当地居民的铅笔画，并用这些画换取他们的故事。< / ><>37< / >< / ><><>2< / ><> $^{3}$ < / ><>《灾难俱乐部》（THE CALAMITY CLUB），凯瑟琳·斯托基特（Kathryn Stockett）著。（Spiegel & Grau出版社）在大萧条时期，随着生活变得愈发艰难，几位女性寻找改善自身境遇的方法。< / ><>15< / >< / ><><>3< / ><> $^{4}$ < / ><>《往昔》（YESTERYEAR），卡罗·克莱尔·伯克（Caro Claire Burke）著。（Knopf出版社）娜塔莉·海勒·米尔斯是一名特权阶层的“传统妻子”社交媒体影响力者，她在醒来后发现自己生活在相对艰苦的1855年。< / ><>19< / >< / ><><>4< / ><> $^{7}$ < / ><>《地牢爬行者卡尔》（DUNGEON CRAWLER CARL），马特·丁尼曼（Matt Dinniman）著。（Ace出版社）一名叫卡尔的海岸警卫队退伍军人和他前女友的猫——甜甜圈公主，被困在一个奇幻地牢中。< / ><>32< / >< / ><><>5< / ><>< / ><>《我们隐藏的秘密》（THE SECRETS WE HIDE），卡琳·斯劳特（Karin Slaughter）著。（Morrow出版社）“北瀑”惊悚系列第二部。警长艾米·克利夫顿调查一起母亲被谋杀、女儿被弃之等死的案件。< / ><>1< / >< / ><><>6< / ><> $^{6}$ < / ><>《惠斯勒》（WHISTLER），安·帕切特（Ann Patchett）著。（Harper出版社）在共同生活数十年之后，一名女性与她的继父重新取得联系，两人共同回顾各自生活轨迹的走向。< / ><>11< / >< / ><><>7< / ><> $^{9}$ < / ><>《项目海妖》（PROJECT HAIL MARY），安迪·威尔（Andy Weir）著。（Ballantine出版社）人类的命运落在赖兰·格雷斯的肩上；该书为电影原著。< / ><>62< / >< / ><><>8< / ><>< / ><>《爱的真谛》（THE TRUE MEANING OF LOVE），丹妮尔·史蒂尔（Danielle Steel）著。（Delacorte出版社）当俄罗斯攻击他们的国家时，乌克兰公民在寻找战斗方法的同时，其他人则必须逃离。< / ><>1< / >< / ><><>9< / ><> $^{8}$ < / ><>《卡尔的末日剧本》（CARL'S DOOMSDAY SCENARIO），马特·丁尼曼（Matt Dinniman）著。（Ace出版社）“地牢爬行者卡尔”系列第二部。卡尔和甜甜圈面对一个古老的咒语和升级的危险。< / ><>3< / >< / ><><>10< / ><>< / ><>《屠夫遗产》（THE BUTCHER LEGACY），阿拉娜·厄奎哈特（Alaina Urquhart）著。（Zando出版社）温伦·穆勒医生系列第三部。随着两座城市的年轻女孩相继失踪，温伦和勒鲁重新投入工作。< / ><>1< / >< / table>

<><>本周< / ><>上周< / ><>非小说< / ><>在榜周数< / >< / ><><>1< / ><> $^{1}$ < / ><>《政权更迭》（REGIME CHANGE），玛吉·哈伯曼（Maggie Haberman）与乔纳森·斯旺（Jonathan Swan）著。（Simon & Schuster出版社）两位《纽约时报》白宫记者深入探讨特朗普总统第二任期的第一年。< / ><>8< / >< / ><><>2< / ><>< / ><>《之后之日》（THE DAY AFTER），布莱恩·泰勒·科恩（Brian Tyler Cohen）著。（Harper出版社）《厚颜无耻》（Shameless）的作者探讨了共和党人和民主党人与权力的关系，并为唐纳德·特朗普总统任期后的权力使用开出药方。< / ><>3< / >< / ><><>3< / ><> $^{2}$ < / ><>《陌生人》（STRANGERS），贝尔·伯登（Belle Burden）著。（Dial出版社）伯登回顾了她20年的婚姻，寻找有助于她理解婚姻破裂的线索，并寻找前行之路。< / ><>31< / >< / ><><>4< / ><> $^{7}$ < / ><>《身体记得一切》（THE BODY KEEPS THE SCORE），< / >< / table>

Bessel van der Kolk 著。(企鹅出版社) 探讨创伤如何影响身体与心灵，以及用于康复的创新疗法。< / td><>308< / >< / tr> <>5< / ><> $^{5}$ < / ><>《伦敦之陨》(LONDON FALLING)，Patrick Radden Keefe 著。(Doubleday) 《不要说》(Say Nothing) 的作者详细讲述了一对父母如何努力揭开其 19 岁伦敦儿子神秘死亡及其秘密生活的真相。< / ><>19< / >< / ><><>6< / ><> $^{3}$ < / ><>《生物战争》(BIOLOGICAL WAR)，Annie Jacobsen 著。(Dutton) 《核战争》(Nuclear War) 的作者描述了生物战的潜在后果，包括大规模死亡和社会崩溃。< / ><>3< / >< / ><><>7< / ><> $^{14}$ < / ><>《狗、男孩以及其他让我流泪的事》(DOGS, BOYS, AND OTHER THINGS I'VE CRIED ABOUT)，Isabel Klee 著。(Morrow) Klee 在帮助寄养犬克服挑战的同时，也面对着自己的困境。< / ><>8< / >< / ><><>8< / ><> $^{12}$ < / ><>《天生罪人》(BORN A CRIME)，Trevor Noah 著。(One World) 这本回忆录由《每日秀》(The Daily Show) 前主持人撰写，讲述了他在南非种族隔离时期作为混血儿成长的经历。< / ><>102< / >< / ><><>9< / ><> $^{9}$ < / ><>《所有不可见之物》(ALL THAT'S UNSEEN)，Emilee Hackney 著。(Penguin Press) Hackney 讲述了她离开在阿巴拉契亚山脉的五旬节派成长环境前往哈佛大学就读的经历。< / ><>3< / >< / ><><>10< / ><> $^{10}$ < / ><>《圣餐》(COMMUNION)，JD Vance 著。(Harper) 这位副总统兼《乡下人的悲歌》(Hillbilly Elegy) 作者描述了他认为自己的信仰在公共生活工作中发挥了怎样的作用。< / ><>9< / >< / table>

《纽约时报》畅销书榜单由《纽约时报》新闻部门的畅销书编辑组编译并存档，独立于《纽约时报》公司的评论、文化、广告和商业部门。排名反映了由在美国出版的广泛通用类书籍供应商以机密形式报告的单位销量。在线查询：欲获取完整名单及关于我们统计方法的详细说明，请访问 www.nytimes.com / books / best-sellers。

编辑精选 / 书评编辑推荐

《生物战：一种情景》（BIOLOGICAL WAR: A Scenario），作者：安妮·雅各布森（Annie Jacobsen）。（Dutton 出版社，406 pp. $33.）

正如她在前作《核战》中所做的那样，雅各布森在此进行了一场令人恐惧的思想实验：如果世界上某些致命的武器化病原体从存储它们的军事研究实验室中泄露，会发生什么？答案（文明终结）扣人心弦且极其凄凉。

《愤怒的紫色》（FURIOUS VIOLET），作者：萨莱·沃克（Sarai Walker）。（Harper 出版社，340 pp. $30.）

在这部发人深省的文学侦探故事中，一名研究连环杀手的真实犯罪作家在挡风玻璃上发现了一张匿名的威胁便条：“你好，母亲。”韦斯特没有孩子，但她显然有“母亲情结”——她的母亲是一位著名的诗人，死于自杀——因此，她的通信者要么是精神失常，要么是极其可怕的操纵者。或者，两者兼而有之。

奇迹与 惊叹之日

保罗·西蒙与 《格雷斯兰》的 磨难与辉煌 艾希莉·卡恩

《奇迹与惊叹之日：保罗·西蒙与〈格雷斯兰〉的磨难与辉煌》（DAYS OF MIRACLE AND WONDER: Paul Simon and the Trials and Triumphs of "Graceland"），作者：艾希莉·卡恩（Ashley Kahn）。（Atria 出版社，310 pp. $30.）

读到这位音乐历史学家对保罗·西蒙 1986 年杰作《格雷斯兰》的细致剖析，是一个令人惊喜的收获：卡恩将这张专辑的美丽之处及其丑陋的一面都揭示出来，这非但没有破坏专辑那奇异的魔力，反而让读者能更加欣赏其复杂性与矛盾之处。

印刷版 / 精装书畅销榜

大卫·艾尔的煎饼

帕梅拉·谢里德的夏季意面

[...OMITTED...]

meets

Samin Nosrat's Sabzi Polo

Todd Richards's Fried Catfish with Hot Sauce

J. Kenji López-Alt's Cheesy Hasselback Potato Gratin

“一份来自上天的礼物。” ——伊娜·加滕

“在这个不断追逐潮流的世界里，请在赞美美味的书籍中寻找慰藉。” — 约塔姆·奥托伦吉

W. W. NORTON & COMPANY 自 1923 年起独立出版

本周< / td><>上周< / ><>小说< / ><>在榜周数< / >< / tr><><>1< / ><>2< / ><>《灾难俱乐部》（THE CALAMITY CLUB），凯瑟琳·斯托克特 著。(Spiegel & Grau) 随着大萧条时期的生活变得愈发艰难，几位女性在寻找改善境遇的方法。< / ><>15< / >< / ><><>2< / ><>3< / ><>《往昔》（YESTERYEAR），卡罗·克莱尔·伯克 著。(Knopf) 娜塔莉·海勒·米尔斯是一位特权阶层的传统妻子社交媒体影响力者，醒来后发现自己生活在相对艰苦的 1855 年。< / ><>19< / >< / ><><>3< / ><>< / ><>《屠夫遗产》（THE BUTCHER LEGACY），阿拉娜·厄奎哈特 著。(Zando) “伦·穆勒医生”系列的第三本书。随着两座城市的年轻女孩相继失踪，伦和勒鲁重新投入工作。< / ><>1< / >< / ><><>4< / ><>4< / ><>《惠斯勒》（WHISTLER），安·帕切特 著。(Harper) 在共同生活数十年之后，一名女性与她的继父重新取得联系，他们回顾了各自生活所走向的方向。< / ><>11< / >< / ><><>5< / ><>< / ><>《我们隐藏的秘密》（THE SECRETS WE HIDE），卡琳·斯劳特 著。(Morrow) “北瀑”惊悚系列的第二本书。警长艾米·克利夫顿调查一起母亲被谋杀、女儿被弃之等死的案件。< / ><>1< / >< / ><><>6< / ><>< / ><>《爱的真谛》（THE TRUE MEANING OF LOVE），丹妮尔·史蒂尔 著。(Delacorte) 当俄罗斯攻击他们的国家时，乌克兰公民在寻找战斗的方法，而其他人则必须逃离。< / ><>1< / >< / ><><>7< / ><>1< / ><>《未知》（THE UNKNOWN），赖利·塞格 著。(Dutton) 在一些灵媒从佛蒙特州一个偏远岛屿失踪一个世纪后，一次电影研究之旅让旧麻烦重新浮现。< / ><>2< / >< / ><><>8< / ><>7< / ><>《通讯员》（THE CORRESPONDENT），弗吉尼亚·埃文斯 著。(Crown) 来自一个旧相识的信件促使西比尔·范·安特卫普重新审视她的过去并寻找原谅的方法。< / ><>42< / >< / ><><>9< / ><>8< / ><>《地牢无政府主义者的食谱》（THE DUNGEON ANARCHIST'S COOKBOOK），马特·丁尼曼 著。(Ace) “地牢爬行者卡尔”系列的第三本书。卡尔和甜甜圈面对的是一个充满怪物的地铁系统。< / ><>24< / >< / ><><>10< / ><>6< / ><>《匕首之口》（DAGGERMOUTH），H.M. 沃尔夫 著。(Scarlett) 在一座被特权与贫困撕裂的城市里，一名雇佣兵被迫嫁给总统的儿子，而她曾试图杀死对方。< / ><>3< / >< / table>

星号 (*) 表示该书的销量与上方书籍几乎无异。剑号 (†) 表示部分书店报告收到大宗订单。

平装书街 / 作者：劳拉·汤普森 (LAURA THOMPSON)

THE WAYFINDER，作者：亚当·约翰逊 (Adam Johnson)。（Picador出版社。736 pp. $20.）

这部来自普利策奖得主（曾著有《孤儿大师之子》）的史诗巨作，让读者沉浸在两个古波利尼西亚社区交织的命运之中——一个是苦苦挣扎的马努莫图 (Manumotu) 居民，另一个是以汤加塔普 (Tongatapu) 岛为基地的残酷汤加帝国。我们的评论员伊恩·麦奎尔 (Ian McGuire) 将其描述为“一部将神话、诗歌和魔幻现实主义融合在一起，形成巨大的、翻滚的海洋之作的宏大小说”。

TONIGHT IN JUNGLELAND: The Making of "Born to Run," 作者：彼得·艾姆斯·卡林 (Peter Ames Carlin)。（Vintage出版社。256 pp. $19.）

在出版布鲁斯·斯普林斯汀 (Bruce Springsteen) 传记十多年后，卡林带着某种形式的“导演剪辑版”回归，重点关注斯普林斯汀成名的第三张专辑以及塑造该专辑的绝望环境。我们的评论员乔恩·帕雷莱斯 (Jon Pareles) 写道，该书结合了“粉丝的热忱和记者的细节关注”，“《Tonight in Jungleland》生动地唤起了这张专辑的挣扎及其精神”。

RUTH，作者：凯特·赖利 (Kate Riley)。（Riverhead出版社。256 pp. $20.）

这部处女作讲述了一位女性在天生的好奇心与她所居住的封闭基督教公社的僵化之间终其一生的挣扎。正如我们的评论家德怀特·加纳 (Dwight Garner) 所言，这部作品“倔强地古怪”，并点缀着“伟大的萌芽”。加纳在评论中写道：“我怀疑它将成为美国民间智慧的地下经典，而这部作品恰好是关于在一个宗教邪教中成长的故事。”

本周< / td><>上周< / ><>平装贸易小说< / ><>在榜周数< / >< / tr><><>1< / ><>2< / ><>THEO OF GOLDEN，作者：艾伦·列维 (Allen Levi)。（Atria出版社）一名男子前往南方的一个小镇，在那里购买当地居民的铅笔画，并用它们交换故事。< / ><>38< / >< / ><><>2< / ><>4< / ><>DUNGEON CRAWLER CARL，作者：马特·丁尼曼 (Matt Dinniman)。（Ace出版社）一名叫卡尔的海岸警卫队退伍军人和他前女友的猫——甜甜圈公主，被困在一个幻想地牢中。< / ><>33< / >< / ><><>3< / ><>3< / ><>PROJECT HAIL MARY，作者：安迪·威尔 (Andy Weir)。（Ballantine出版社）人类的命运落在赖兰·格雷斯 (Ryland Grace) 的肩上。< / ><>60< / >< / ><><>4< / ><>6< / ><>THE WEDDING PEOPLE，作者：艾莉森·埃斯帕奇 (Alison Espach)。（Holt出版社）一名运气不佳的女性在罗德岛的一场婚礼上与新娘建立了意想不到的联系。< / ><>3< / >< / ><><>5< / ><>5< / ><>CARL'S DOOMSDAY SCENARIO，作者：马特·丁尼曼 (Matt Dinniman)。（Ace出版社）“Dungeon Crawler Carl”系列的第二本书。< / ><>2< / >< / ><><>6< / ><>1< / ><>ADVERSARY TO THE VILLAIN，作者：汉娜·尼科尔·梅尔勒 (Hannah Nicole Maehrer)。（Red Tower出版社）“Assistant and the Villain”系列的第四本书。< / ><>2< / >< / ><><>7< / ><>< / ><>VERITY，作者：科琳·胡佛 (Colleen Hoover)。（Grand Central出版社）洛温·阿什利 (Lowen Ashleigh) 被一名受伤作家的丈夫雇佣，以完成其热门系列作品，并揭开了一个恐怖的真相。< / ><>157< / >< / ><><>8< / ><>< / ><>INSATIABLE，作者：利·里弗斯 (Leigh Rivers)。（ZPN出版社）凯德·米切尔 (Kade Mitchell) 回到家乡，面对他对斯泰西·罗兹 (Stacey Rhodes) 的痴迷，后者在多年前伤了他的心。< / ><>1< / >< / ><><>9< / ><>9< / ><>THE DIVORCE，作者：弗里达·麦克法登 (Freida McFadden)。（Poisoned Pen出版社）在丈夫结束他们的婚姻后，娜奥米 (Naomi) 怀疑她

可能处于危险之中。< / td> 12< / >< / tr> <>10< / ><>12< / ><>《红色崛起》(RED RISING)，皮尔斯·布朗 著。(Del Rey) 达罗是火星社会最底层的一员，他混入人类的统治者之中，希望能将他们推翻。< / ><>9< / >< / ><><>11< / ><>8< / ><>《死囚》(DEATH ROW)，弗里达·麦克法登 著。(Poisoned Pen) 随着塔莉亚·肯珀的执行日期临近，她认为自己在探视区看到了被她指控杀害的丈夫。< / ><>2< / >< / ><><>12< / ><>11< / ><>《喀耳刻》(CIRCE)，玛德琳·米勒 著。(Back Bay) 宙斯将赫利俄斯的女儿放逐到一座岛上，在那里她必须在与神灵或凡人生活之间做出选择。< / ><>85< / >< / ><><>13< / ><>< / ><>《篝火与极乐书店》(BONFIRE & BLISS BOOKSTORE)，布里塔妮·尼科尔 著。(Putnam) “希望港”系列的第二本书。佩妮·达林与一位老友达成了一项协议，这可能会改变他们的关系。< / ><>1< / >< / ><><>14< / ><>10< / ><>《协议》(THE DEAL)，艾尔·肯尼迪 著。(Bloom) 汉娜·威尔斯与大学冰球队队长达成一项协议，以辅导他作为交换，这可能会使他们的关系变得复杂。< / ><>14< / >< / ><><>15< / ><>14< / ><>《寡妇》(THE WIDOW)，约翰·格里舍姆 著。(Vintage) 当弗吉尼亚州农村的一名律师西蒙·拉奇被指控谋杀时，他开始寻找真正的凶手。< / ><>2< / >< / table>

销量定义为在书籍正式出版日期当天或之后，供应商与个人最终用户之间完成的交易。书籍销量经过统计加权，以按比例代表并准确反映全国所有销售渠道的情况。报告零售商面板具有全面性，反映了美国境内所有规模和人口统计特征的数万家门店的销售情况。在线详情：有关我们方法论的完整说明，请访问 www.nytimes.com / books / best-sellers。

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高压截击

关于跨性别网球运动员勒妮·理查兹的传记，因其在性别与体育问题上立场地转变而变得极其复杂。

作者：亚历山德拉·雅各布斯（ALEXANDRA JACOBS）

勒妮·理查兹参加1977年美国网球公开赛。

在《寻找勒妮·理查兹》（Finding Renée Richards）这部关于跨性别网球运动员兼眼科医生的传记中，作者以真挚且纠结的笔触进行探讨，而播报员基思·奥尔伯曼（Keith Olbermann）则为书中的氛围带来了一些喜剧色彩。

根据朱莉·克利格曼（Julie Kliegman）的这本书，1980年，时年21岁的奥尔伯曼在谢伊体育场（Shea Stadium）不小心将前额撞在了7号列车的侧面（就像许多之前的以及之后的纽约大都会队球迷一样）。两年后，他在观看一场美国网球公开赛时，视力开始出现异常。

《寻找勒妮·理查兹》 网球界跨性别先驱的开创性故事 作者：朱莉·克利格曼 HarperOne出版社。272 pp. $28.99.

一名医生带着明显的兴奋告诉他，纽约市顶尖的眼肌专家恰好就是理查兹。当时，理查兹因1977年的一项州最高法院裁决而成为好奇的对象，该裁决允许她获得参加女子组公开赛的资格。

“我不在乎对方是不是一只抽着雪茄、屁股上插着小蜡烛的黑猩猩……我没说屁股，”奥尔伯曼回忆起自己的回答。理查兹用一支$1.98笔灯在五分钟内解决了他的问题。

理查兹的一生并非未经审视。现年近92,岁的理查兹写过三本回忆录：《第二次发球》（Second Serve，1983年，后被改编为由凡妮莎·雷德格雷夫主演的电视电影）、《绝无可能，勒妮》（No Way Renée，2007年）以及《间谍之夜及其他回忆》（Spy Night and Other Memories，2014年）。（此外，她还在1991年出版了一本关于斜视手术的教科书。）

但在当前关于跨性别运动员参与体育运动的激烈争论中，理查兹并未站在前沿。这可能是因为，令人尴尬的是，她后悔起诉美国网球协会（该诉讼是在罗伊·科恩的帮助下提出的），并且认为经历过男性青春期的人不应被允许在女子队伍中比赛。

这种立场上的大反转让克利格曼——其身份认同为无性恋、非二元性别且为跨性别者，使用 they-them 代词——感到“不知所措”、“慌乱”且“震惊”。在采访理查兹的朋友马蒂娜·纳夫拉蒂洛娃（Martina Navratilova）时，这位传记作者感到“惊愕”和“震惊”，因为纳夫拉蒂洛娃也曾公开反对生物学男性参加女子体育赛事。

克利格曼的第一本书《心理游戏》（Mind Game）探讨的是运动员与心理健康，他们曾为包括《体育画报》和《纽约时报》在内的多家出版物撰稿。他们的研究细致且详尽，并得到了女权主义活动家埃莉诺·福亚·迪恩斯塔格（Eleanor Foa Dienstag）在70年代末收集的记录和信件的补充。

亚历山德拉·雅各布斯是《纽约时报》的书评人，偶尔撰写特写报道。她于2010年加入《纽约时报》。

书中有很多新鲜的对话和揭秘；理查兹承认自己玩了“一点小把戏”，在成为其法庭案件关键的染色体检测中，偷偷换成了朋友的口腔黏膜抹片。

但有时，克利格曼似乎与其说是在“寻找勒妮·理查兹”，不如说是在与她争论。令人分心的是，他们难以接受理查兹希望使用其原名理查德·拉斯金德（Richard Raskind）以及男性代词来描述其过渡前生活的愿望。

在理查兹2015,接受《GQ》采访并谴责中性风，称“上帝为我们设计的二元系统……是生活的调味剂”时，克利格曼写道：“同意持有不同意见”。

克利格曼对理查兹保持尊重，但

克利格曼对理查兹持有尊重态度，但显然也对她作为该事业的倡导者感到沮丧。

同时也显然对她作为该事业的倡导者感到沮丧。“她希望自己的专业知识能以某种方式被重视，但又从未被要求发声，”他们在评价她缺席当今辩论时总结道，“她想身处时代精神之中，却不愿发出一丁点声音。”

在作者焦虑的间隙，一个生命故事被讲述了出来，且讲述得十分出色。理查德出生于1934年8月19日，他有一个姐姐约瑟芬，是个假小子，在情感和身体上都欺负他，包括把他的阴茎塞进去并叫他“小女孩”。（克利格曼写道，约瑟芬患有认知障碍，无法就本书接受采访。）

他们在皇后区长大，母亲萨迪是一名弗洛伊德派精神分析学家，父亲大卫是一名骨科医生。父亲避而不谈那个显而易见的医学难题，但保留了小儿子在两种性别身份下取得成就的剪贴簿。除了他，还有谁能同时获得犹太体育名人堂和海伦·凯勒盲人服务中心的认可？

在布朗克斯的私立学校霍勒斯·曼学校，理查德打棒球，并声称曾被洋基队的球探招募。（一名同学回忆起“尤其是拉斯金曲球的杀伤力：”）在耶鲁大学，他成为了网球队的队长。在罗切斯特大学医学院，他犹豫不决该选择什么专业；克利格曼不带讽刺地指出，“妇产科是被绝对排除在外的”。

回到曼哈顿进行眼科住院医师培训期间，他与一名绰号为“花生酱萨莉”的女友同居。拉斯金接受了广泛的分析治疗，试图摆脱一种持久的穿着女装的欲望。他曾在海军服役，称之为“一次伟大的经历”。

克利格曼细致地重构了拉斯金与前模特芭芭拉·莫尔结婚后那段光鲜但艰难的时光，两人之间似乎除了对朗姆葡萄干冰淇淋的热爱之外，几乎没有共同点。（他们有一个儿子尼古拉斯，于2019年在47岁时自杀身亡。）

在这本篇幅较短的书中，在他们的婚姻结束之后，叙事出现了明显的升华。经过长时间的寻找（包括穿着一件来自Bergdorf Goodman的貂皮外套和连衣裙前往芝加哥），理查德找到了一位愿意为其进行下半身手术的医生。他成为了勒妮（Renée，在法语中意为“重生”），并搬到了加利福尼亚州——那个开启新生活的原点。

理查兹将接替克里斯汀·乔根森成为美国最著名的跨性别者，随后又被凯特琳·詹纳所取代。

“她的遗产如何在短短几十年间消失得如此之快？”克利格曼好奇地问。也许是因为尽管关于理查兹参加女子网球赛的争议如此之大，但她在四大满贯赛事中走得最远也只是那场'77年公开赛的双打决赛。两年后，她的巡回赛排名最高仅为第20位。

在47岁从这项运动退役后，她重新成为一名优秀的眼科医生，回归到诺曼·梅勒、苏珊·桑塔格、诺拉·艾芙隆——以及，瞧，奥尔伯曼又出现了！

他告诉克利格曼，她的参赛“并没有摧毁女子网球，也没有导致后来出现一代在NBA混不下去的家伙突然转而以女性身份参赛”。“天哪，（人们）把一件其实能自行解决的事情闹得太大了。”

亲爱的读者：

在我年轻的时候，有时会对某个电视节目或电子游戏感到如此兴奋，以至于会坐在离屏幕仅几英寸的地方。“往后挪挪，否则会伤眼的，”我妈妈过去常这样警告。

这个建议对阅读书籍同样适用。当你成为一名恒久的阅读者，在经典与经典、在热门新书之间愉快地穿梭时，可能会开始觉得自己的鼻子紧贴着屏幕，以至于失去了对大局的感知：这些作品单独或共同是如何运作的？它们又是如何融入文学的宏大织锦之中的？

寻找答案的一种方式是通过一种我认为可以被称为“文学讲座”的体裁——即那些关于创作技巧的书籍、评论研究，或是真实的讲座集，它们能帮助我们后退一步，更全面地审视阅读与写作。以下是我最喜欢的两本。

《小说面面观》，E.M. 福斯特 著，非虚构类，1927年

大多数读者将福斯特视为一位小说大师，创作了包括《霍华兹端》和《莫里斯》在内的传世英国经典。然而，他同时也是一位散文家和学者。1927年，他在剑桥大学三一学院进行了一系列讲座，旨在识别并探讨他认为的小说作为一种形式的核心组成部分。这些讲座被汇编于此，展现出他是一位风格优雅、观点鲜明且极具权威的引导者。

什么才算是一个好的情节？“神秘感对情节至关重要，且不能在缺乏理性的情况下被欣赏……要欣赏一种神秘感，大脑的一部分必须留在原地沉思，而另一部分则继续前行。”

什么能塑造一个引人入胜且可信的角色？一个答案是：“小说是一件艺术品，拥有其自身的法则，而这些法则并非日常生活中的法则……当小说中的角色按照这些法则生活时，他就是真实的……他们之所以真实，并非因为他们像我们（尽管他们可能像我们），而是因为他们具有说服力。”

这些仅仅是一本充满洞见的书籍中的寥寥数语。福斯特概述的许多元素，是我们阅读时直觉上能感受到，但或许缺乏语言来表达的东西。而这正是本书的威力所在。阅读它就像在黑暗的房间里打开灯——也许之前我们能摸索着前行，但多亏了福斯特的启发，我们现在能更好地欣赏周围的一切。

推荐人群：喜欢拆解汽车引擎盖的人；詹姆斯·伍德的《小说如何运作》（事实上，我正是通过那本书发现了《小说面面观》）。

《论莫里森》，纳姆瓦利·塞佩尔 著，非虚构类，2026年

塞佩尔的这部随笔集源于她在哈佛大学开设的关于托妮·莫里森的课程。每篇随笔探讨莫里森的一本书，定位一个关键主题，并探索该主题对于塞佩尔、对于莫里森、对于作品本身以及对于读者而言意味着什么。

如果你是一个热爱“让我们来拆解一下”这类措辞的极客，那么这本书就是为你准备的。阅读《论莫里森》就像在观看一场顶尖高手之间的奥运摔跤比赛——通过见证他们的交锋，观众对双方都会产生新的认识。

当塞佩尔的随笔集在今年早些时候出版时，她走访全国，与文学名流探讨她的书以及莫里森那些宏大且深邃的小说。随后在五月，她开始将这些讨论以播客的形式发布，名为《片段：论莫里森》（Passages: On Morrison），我强烈建议将其作为本书的配套阅读。

最近一集与《纽约客》评论家文森·坎宁安的对话，捕捉到了我热爱这个节目的原因。

在拆解《宠儿》结尾的一段文字时，塞佩尔坦言：“这一行字一直让我感到困惑”，随后她向坎宁安提出了她对这个句子的理论。

这是一个迷人且令人卸下防备的时刻。我们有多少次能听到人们解释他们不知道什么、不完全理解什么？能看到一个人将这种困惑呈现在另一个人面前，并试图通过讨论来理解它？

在这里，这位学者没有在说教，没有在教导，也没有在指引，而是在交谈、即兴发挥、共同研讨。你可以为了学术研究而来，但请为了这种严谨且极具人性化的阅读实践典范而留下。与书籍一样，这个播客是对莫里森作品的一次精彩深潜，它帮助我更好地理解了这位标志性作家想要表达什么——但它同样是一个令人惊叹的展示，向我们揭示了不仅是阅读文本，而且是退后一步并分享文本意味着什么。

推荐人群：喜欢与朋友一起解谜的人；乔治·桑德斯的《雨中池塘游泳》；当然，还有托妮·莫里森。

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Black and Blue In "The Black Shield," an evocative new memoir, the journalist Wilbert L. Cooper explores the history, and paradoxes, of race and policing in Cleveland, his hometown. BY ELI SASLOW | PAGE 7

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6 THE MALTESE VERSION By Katy Simpson Smith Reviewed by Lucy Ives

9 THE BOOK OF CHUCK By LaToya Watkins Reviewed by Charmaine Wilkerson

Nonfiction

7 THE BLACK SHIELD An American Memoir of Family and Power By Wilbert L. Cooper Reviewed by Eli Saslow

8 VOICES FROM THE KITCHEN Personal Narratives From New York's Immigrant Restaurant Workers Edited by Marc Meyer Reviewed by Dwight Garner

18 FINDING RENÉE RICHARDS The Groundbreaking Story of Tennis's Trans Pioneer By Julie Kliegman Reviewed by Alexandra Jacobs

Children's Books

14 HOMETOWN By Shaun Tan Reviewed by John Hendrix

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19 Read Like the Wind Lit Class By MJ Franklin

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"A Marriage at Sea," by the journalist Sophie Elmhirst, tells a true story of shipwreck. Maurice and Maralyn Bailey took to the seas from 1970s England, selling their suburban home to buy a boat and sail to New Zealand. Nine months into the trip, a sperm whale breached under their boat and it sank, leaving them stranded on a crude raft. Elmhirst, who brings readers deep into their lives, appeared on the "Book Review" podcast last year to discuss "A Marriage at Sea," which was one of the Book Review's 10 Best Books of 2025 and came out in paperback this summer. This excerpt has been condensed and edited.

How do you describe this book to people without giving away the entire story? Tell us about it.

It's obviously, on one level, a story of a catastrophe, right? There they are, halfway around the world, and they're hit by a whale. And in terms of how not to give away the whole thing — I don't think there needs to be a secret about the fact that they survived, because it's a story of their whole lives. I was just as interested in the aftermath of what they went through as I was in the endurance of it in itself. I guess what I tend not to give away is how exactly they're rescued. I try to hold something back.

When did you first hear about this story?

It was a while ago. I was researching a piece about people trying to escape, especially escape the land. And I found myself trawling around on a website devoted to castaway stories and shipwreck stories. There were lots of photographs and tales of lone wild men who were pitched up on desert islands and had various escapades. And in among all of these was a tiny little black-and-white picture of a man and a woman. And she caught my eye because she was rare in this crowd.

I could tell, also, that something about them seemed oddly familiar. I don't know whether that's just me projecting in hindsight, but once I discovered they were English in the 1970s, and once I started learning more about them as characters, there was just something very identifiable about them.

You come across stories all the time, presumably. Why was this the one to focus your first book on?

I could tell the story was special. I couldn't believe I hadn't heard it before, couldn't believe it had been forgotten. It's so extreme in its drama, the sheer length of time they're drifting in the Pacific, the behaviors they have to resort to, the beheading of turtles, and eating of raw fish and eyeballs.

And all of this stuff is just — it's gold. The material is incredibly rich.

But I think I knew from the start that couldn't be the whole story. It wouldn't be enough for a book just to have the extremity, just to have the drama. I knew from the beginning that I wanted it to be a story of the interior process of going through something like this, but also quite a sort of intimate examination of a marriage going through something like this.

I don't want to ruin any of the details about what their experience was like. But I was wondering if you could pick out a few that stood out.

What I found almost horrifying on an existential level was the psychological process. Maurice hits despair very early. He's plotting how to kill himself with a gas canister. And she, meanwhile, trying to keep him afloat, is wildly optimistic about their chances of survival. And he thinks she's crazy. It's this extraordinary battle of wits and attitude. She has all these incredibly imaginative tactics to keep them going. And I found some of those the most moving, and indicative of the depths they had to reach in order to keep going.

Bloody Brilliant

These terrific new novels from Ron Currie, Teresa Dovalpage, Jack Friday and Carolyn Marie Wilkins will keep you turning the pages as the summer sun fades.

HOW DO YOU write a sequel to a book where the main character is not only killed off, but her death is in the title? If you are Currie, you follow up the razor-sharp delight that was "The Savage, Noble Death of Babs Dionne" by pivoting to a ferocious creation story about your antiheroine.

In WE WILL SEE YOU BLEED (Putnam, 370 pp., \$30), Babs Dionne, circa 1984, is 29, happily but tensely married to Rheal, and at her wits' end, thanks to a paper mill strike that has left everyone in Waterville, Maine, on a knife's edge of exhaustion and financial devastation. She's been able to suppress the violent instincts that emerged after a teenage traumatic incident, but the confluence of class rage and economic implosion may be too much for her.

Currie writes with the controlled fervor of someone who knows how to land a perfect, devastating punch, and the younger, slightly more vulnera-

SARAH WEINMAN is the Book Review's Crime & Mystery columnist.

ble Babs leaps off the page. Here is a bruising, bloody read where redemption is a myth, but solidarity is not.

THE NOVEL DETECTIVE (Soho Crime, 297 pp., \$28.95) is an affecting metafictional mystery about enduring female friendship and the ways that time gives you greater clarity on emotionally charged events.

In prepandemic 2020, Teresa, the author's avatar, gets a call from her childhood bestie, Estrella, calling her to Havana: It's time to investigate the apparent double suicides, 40 years earlier, of their ninth-grade English teacher and a fellow high school student. Teresa's literary spidey senses awaken — it is a great idea for a novel — and after arriving in Cuba, she dons her detective hat. Is this quest a true investigation or merely a way to reconnect with an old friend over a past that still haunts them both?

Dovalpage splits the action between the present and the past, where the girls' personalities are on full display: "Her friend was a first-rate paranoid. And she had the nerve to accuse Teresita of overdosing on mystery novels and cop shows!"

MEET PETER THEODORE KEY: "Girls sometimes call me Theo, guys call me Petey when I've disappointed them, and my enemies (of whom I've made a surprising number lately) call me the laziest private investigator in Texas, which actually took quite a bit of work."

Peter, the star of Friday's KILLER VIBES (Minotaur, 340 pp., \$29), already has a hot mess of a life in Dallas, where getting high and sleeping with anyone was his prime directive, mostly to distract himself from grief over the death of his mother. ("I had never realized how badly I would miss my mother's nagging until my phone started going silent for days at a time.") Then he gets word that an uncle he barely knew has died in a car crash, leaving him a ram-shackle house in Austin, mountains of debt and a parade of menacing strangers who want him to sell the place — or else.

At first Peter is inclined to do nothing, since that's his natural state. But strange things keep happening, and then he fishes around in a hole in the kitchen wall and pulls out a sack stuffed with a million dollars. It seems like Peter, at 29, is about to be dragged into a profession that might actually take: private investigation.

It took me a beat to warm to "Killer Vibes," but once I did, I was all in.

WILKINS — JAZZ PIANIST, Reiki master, spiritual medium — is also a talented writer, as demonstrated by her mystery series set in the 1920s that features the war widow Nola Ann Jackson, first introduced in last year's "Murder at the Wham Bam Club."

LET THE MURDERER SAY AMEN (Kensington, 266 pp., \$27) finds Nola acclimating to life in Illinois, living and working with her psychic aunt and seemingly on the precipice of marrying again. Then the arrival of the Temple of Righteous Revelation and its mercurial, charismatic leader, Bishop Pius Amun Ra, unsettles everything. The Temple is really a cult, and the congregants ascribe all manner of unearthly powers to the bishop.

When the church's singer, a young white woman, is murdered, suspicion falls on a Black bodyguard who accused her of stealing from the collection plate. Nola isn't so sure. "I'd like to do some investigating on my own, if you don't mind," she says.

The result is a fast-paced jaunt that touches on race, religion and even romance, aided occasionally by Nola's own psychic powers, unreliable as they can be. Pondering one suspect, she thinks, "Shouldn't I have been able to see violence in his aura?"

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Lust in Translation

Are the 30-somethings in this novel in love? That depends on how you define it.

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By LUCY IVES

ABOUT A THIRD of the way through Katy Simpson Smith's philosophical and disarmingly dishy new novel, one of its two heroines, Leonie, decides against having a one-night stand. She's not going to "burrow" into some guy's "psyche for the pleasure of the unknown." Her reason? "Love wasn't the same as not-knowing."

Well, that's refreshing, I thought, dog-ear-ing the page. Leonie's useful aphorism, a negative definition of love employing a double negative, was my first hint that the mer-ingue-light surface of "The Maltese Version," which had thus far presented itself as a caper about two female friends trying to make it in the dying travel-guide industry, might conceal unforeseen depths.

Smith is an observant and dexterous writer. Although there is certainly some satirical recycling of anodyne vibes à la recent artifacts like “Emily in Paris” and even “Bridgerton,” “The Maltese Version” is in fact a steely exploration of novelistic form and what said form can and cannot reveal. It’s a book that — for both its inventiveness and its many linguistic sleights of hand — can renew our faith in the playful joys and critical capacity of fiction.

The outlines of Smith's plot are as follows: Leonie, a white woman in her 30s memorably described as possessing an "otter body," is work wives with Rhoda, a Black woman in her 40s whose outwardly impeccable 20-year marriage to a businessman named Ike has begun to seem like a dead end.

The women toil diligently at Spinder's Guides, a Chicago-based publisher whose overlords assign Western European tourist traps to Leonie, and to Rhoda all viable Caribbean islands. However, they begin to break out of their personal and professional typecasting when Leonie's cagey boyfriend, Max, an up-and-coming literary translator, disappears to Malta.

The problem with Leonie and Max is that they can't decide if they love each other. Their relationship is at once so tepid and so typical that anyone who has ever lived in proximity to young urban professionals in America will experience instant recognition. It's not so much that the partnership is loveless, but that it seems to have become a sort of small business based on Leonie and Max's shared interest in importing international languages and experiences.

When they fight, they fight about semantics. Did Max just say that he didn't love Leonie's mom? Did Leonie just define the word "love" incorrectly? Max's relocation to a predictably sultry villa on Gozo, an island in the Maltese archipelago purported to be the site where the nymph Ca

LUCY IVES is the author of several works, including the novel "Life Is Everywhere," "Cosmogony: Stories" and the essay collection "An Image of My Name Enters America."

THE MALTESE VERSION By Katy Simpson Smith FSG Originals. 320 pp. Paperback, \$19.

lypso trapped Odysseus, provokes a crisis.

Also predictably, this crisis is precipitated by the statuesque charms of Ana, a Maltese poet whose verses on eroticism, loss and female rage have gone viral. Milquetoast Max can't translate Ana without getting pretty intimate. Real sex transpires. Unforeseen uses are found for a lemon.

Back in Chicago, a desperate Leonie persuades Rhoda to use her pull as the magazine's resident "island queen" — an epithet Rhoda does not allow to pass without comment — to land an assignment in Malta. Max isn't picking up his phone, and Rhoda is tired of her role as primary caregiver for her 10-year-old son and all-purpose assistant to the work-addicted if hunky Ike.

The first crisis, of an unimaginative translator cheating on his girlfriend as a way of getting ahead professionally, is amusingly compounded by the arrival of Rhoda, who wants not only to skewer Max but also to live out her own narrative fantasies, believability be damned.

Since Henry James if not before, naïve American protagonists have been sent overseas to work out their issues. If back home is a place “where you can’t get by without mimicking good cheer,” as Max thinks, then Malta is, like Ana, all “introversion and mild hostility.”

The country's political history — the "corruption, the Mob-like morality of this handful of ancient families . . . Malta as fiefdom, Malta as crossroads" — seeps into Smith's descriptions. The island is a "dinosaur land" that is "crumbling into the sea," characterized by "carceral" architecture. By contrast, Leonie and Max are people who seem not to have experienced history at all. A major quandary in Leonie's life in Chicago is whether to wear pink socks or white.

The atavistic desire, and the reverberations of violence past and present, that appear to hold sway in Malta cannot, it turns out, be expressed via Max's "sanitized this-is-that" transposition. The novel's resident translator feels a dangerous combination of sexual longing for and jealousy of Ana's native tongue, or what he confusedly perceives as "the luxury of possessing the source language." But translation can never be an act of ownership; it's the writing of a "second story," as a wiser and more independent Leonie will come to realize near the novel's close.

That is to say that Ana and Max's literary and erotic jousting provides a fortuitous backdrop for Rhoda and Leonie's own quests, for a new language with which to translate their secret inner lives — and their provisional, possibly imperfect definitions of love — into conscious thought and, they fervently hope, action. Love might be a three-stage process of terror, comfort, then separation; it might be two lovers "shouting to each other through the trees." It might happen in words, but then again, and most deliciously, maybe not.

Black and Blue

A journalist's evocative new memoir explores the history, and paradoxes, of race and policing in Cleveland, his hometown.

By ELI SASLOW

WILBERT COOPER WAS a teenager the first time he found the weapon. His parents both worked as police officers for the city of Cleveland in the early 2000s, and Cooper was borrowing his father's unmarked car when he reached into the driver's side pocket and felt a dense piece of metal about the size of a banana. It was as heavy as a bowling ball, camouflaged for darkness and wrapped in duct tape for easy gripping.

Cooper had grown up around his parents' city-issued handguns, but the blackjack suggested a more clandestine style of violence. When he asked about it, his father took the weapon out of Cooper's hands with a smile and showed him how he might use it to crack a suspect over the head.

THE BLACK SHIELD

An American Memoir of Family and Power By Wilbert L. Cooper

Will & Will Jr.

Farrar, Straus & Giroux. 402 pp. \$32.

Instead of following three generations of his own Black family into the Cleveland Police Department, Cooper became a journalist. His reporting over the last decade for Vice and the Marshall Project, among other outlets, has helped document the failures of America's criminal justice system, including racially biased policing and excessive use of force. All of it eventually led Cooper back to the contradictions at the heart of his own childhood: "to all the questions I've been having about Mom and Dad's profession and the life it has afforded me — and the life it has denied so many others."

The result is Cooper's evocative new memoir, "The Black Shield," in which he tries to make sense of the parents who raised him and the system that made them both targets and enforcers. He embeds with the Black Shield, Cleveland's fraternal organization for Black officers, and digs through court records to reveal a Police Department that spent decades deploying Black officers in order to change its look but without changing its outcomes.

Cooper is a vivid writer and an unsparing reporter, willing to turn the same scrutiny on his relatives, even when it means exposing them as complicit. His great-uncle Lloyd patrolled the city's segregated East Side with both charisma and a penchant for violence. "By using it against his own community, he was granted the patina of freedom — money, clothes, impunity on the streets," Cooper writes.

His most elusive reporting targets are the ones closest to home: his parents, to whom the book is dedicated. His mother, Gayle, grew up in Cleveland in the 1960s with a police force that saw her as “an ene-

ELI SASLOW is a writer at large for The Times.

Will Cooper and his father.

my combatant," Cooper writes. The city was about 30 percent Black, but its police force was nearly 93 percent white. When officers pulled up at Gayle's elementary school playground on patrols, she was taught to run. "Everybody would jump fences," she told her son. "We'd all break out in full sprints. You'd run and run and hide or run and get home."

By the late 1970s, after a Black Shield lawsuit forced the city to begin diversifying its police force, Gayle was the one giving chase. She was a broke mother of three stuck in an abusive relationship when the Police Department offered her a badge; she worked her way up to vice detective and became an instructor at the police academy.

By the time Cooper was in his teens, Gayle had moved their family into a big house in the suburbs where she kept hundreds of pairs of red pumps in the bedroom closet. She had come to see police officers as the caretakers of a functional society. "I wouldn't want to live in a world without them, because that world would be chaos," she said.

But what Cooper is searching for, he writes, is "some kind of redemptive grace." He hunts for evidence that his parents wrestled with their roles in an oppressive system. Instead, he eventually uncovers his father's internal police record.

Will was a cocky street cop with shoulders built by hundreds of daily push-ups who often posed for photos with a hand cupped around his crotch. When he discovered his colleagues' racist graffiti all over the police locker room, he responded with anti-white graffiti of his own. But for all his bravado and righteous anger, he couldn't transcend the patterns of a racist system. He worked for the department's Office of Professional Standards, a place Cooper describes as "the department's incinerator" — where documents, even entire case files, would go missing or disappear. And then, in 2001, he shot another Black man.

The incident began as a routine drug raid, until the suspect drove off and Will spotted the dealer's Ford Expedition idling at a stop sign. He and his partner were working undercover with no arrest warrant. They chose to open fire, hitting the driver's side door and the rear window. The suspect fled as Will and his partner chased him through backyards, shooting him in the back and shoulder. Only later did the officers return to the car and discover the suspect's 3-year-old son safely buckled into the back seat, amid bullet holes and broken glass.

His most elusive reporting targets are the ones closest to home: his parents, to whom the book is dedicated.

When Cooper reads the incident report, he recognizes the same patterns he's seen while reporting on a decade of police violence: contradictory statements, hollow justifications hidden behind police jargon, familiar phrases like "I feared for my life" or "he was reaching." Ultimately, it's part of another pro forma investigation without consequences.

"I feel as though I don't know the man," Cooper writes.

His parents armored themselves to survive a racist country and provide him with a safe, comfortable childhood, but that same armor is what holds “The Black Shield” at a distance. Despite Cooper’s beautiful excavation, the people at the heart of the book stay just beyond reach.

"After the contact high of the discoveries, I was overcome with a hollow, empty, feeling," Cooper writes. "I wanted to close the distance. But despite all I'd already learned about their world, the space remained."

Restaurant Takeaway

Food books by chefs and celebrities arrive by the landslide. This one highlights workers who get far less attention.

By DWIGHT GARNER

THIS IS A SLIM AND modest book, a volume of oral histories in the vein of Studs Terkel's "Working" (1974), but everyone who eats out regularly should know about it. Its title is "Voices From the Kitchen: Personal Narratives From New York's Immigrant Restaurant Workers." Its editor is Marc Meyer, a chef and a co-owner of the Manhattan restaurants Shuka, Cookshop, Vic's, Shukette and Rosie's.

Meyer's methodology is straightforward. He sat down with 27 of his employees, many of whom have worked in his restaurants for decades, and recorded their stories on his iPhone. He transcribed the interviews and poured them with minimal editing into narratives.

These men and women came from all over the globe — Ecuador, Bangladesh, Peru, Egypt, Mexico, the Ivory Coast, Bosnia, the Dominican Republic, Gambia

DWIGHT GARNER has been a book critic for The Times since 2008, and before that was an editor at the Book Review for a decade.

— and their accounts of getting here, and scratching out lives in New York City, are plucky, harrowing, moving and often very funny. They've lately become anonymous political targets, and “Voices From the Kitchen” gives them back their human faces.

It's possible to be cynical about Meyer's project, and he's aware of that. An obvious power dynamic is at play: No one is going to tell the entire gnarly truth about their lives, and especially about their jobs, to their employer. And Meyer is aware of whatever "white savior" vibe might cling to such a project.

It's possible to hold those things in mind and admire "Voices From the Kitchen." (All proceeds go to the narrators, and they've retained legal ownership over their stories.) Food titles arrive by the landslide in bookstores, yet so few dig into the lives of the immigrants who work in the back of the house as dishwashers, bussers and prep cooks, and increasingly in the front as servers and captains. More than a few by now are head chefs and managers.

Stories like these haven't gone entirely uncollected. The Southern Foodways Alliance, the American Folklife Center and other organizations have assiduously compiled food-related oral histories you can find online. But it's good to have these accounts between hard covers. "Voices From

VOICES FROM THE KITCHEN Personal Narratives From New York's Immigrant Restaurant Workers Edited by Marc Meyer Beacon. 223 pp. \$29.95.

the Kitchen" is intrepid and timely enough to make you optimistic that someone will compile a more expansive book in this vein, not limited to the workers in one restaurant group.

Most of the men and women here came from small towns. Many had absent or abusive fathers, and no access to real educations. They fled to America to help support their families back home, to escape gang violence and corrupt governments, and to attempt to seize a part of what can only be called the American dream. Many had relatives who'd already come to New York.

The arrival stories are intense: days in the desert with little food or water, thieving coyotes (human smugglers), random gunmen, terrifying river crossings and long trips while packed “like cookies” into heavy trucks meant for hauling liquids, with few air vents. Many felt they would not survive. One rode to New York from Los Angeles in the back of a watermelon truck.

All started at, or near, the very bottom: cleaning bathrooms, bussing tables, working coat checks. All rose — first to a bit of prep work, then to a salad station, and so on — through hard work, thrift and perseverance. These are what we used to call, long before America's descent into the ICE age, Horatio Alger stories.

Part of the pleasure of this book is following these men and women as they move between restaurants, assiduously climbing the ladder. There's a built-in nostalgia factor in clocking the names of these places, some long gone and some standing: Big Kahuna, Ocean Grill, Red Gravy, Le Zoo, Clyde Frazier's, Jean Georges, Mercer Kitchen, Momofuku Ssam Bar, Ernie's, Lil' Frankies, Bayamo, Poiret, Brown Betty, Avanti, Danji, Seventh Avenue Do nuts, Charlie Bird, Calle Doa, Veranda, Fraunces Tavern, Sequoia, Maestro's Steakhouse, Upland, Danube, A Voce Columbus, Aqualis Grill, Bayamo.

Not so long ago, most restaurant work was considered menial labor. Thanks in large part to Anthony Bourdain, it has become admired and cool (if still brutal) work. People want to look and be like chefs: raffish, tattooed, blunt, forearm scorch marks on display. The job offers intense camaraderie. It is a backdoor gateway to all manner of culture, in a way that most other blue-collar professions are not, should one wish to step through that gate.

A not-untypical story here is that of Vico (Meyer uses first names only, and sometimes pseudonyms), who arrived from a small village in Mexico in 1986 and started in restaurants as a porter. He's now married and has been a United States citizen for eight years. He runs his own well-regarded restaurant, La Flor, in Queens, and oversees more than 20 restaurants in the Bowery restaurant group.

Vico's daughter graduated from Amherst College. Another interviewee, Angel,

One rode to New York from Los Angeles in the back of a watermelon truck.

also from a small town in Mexico (his father was a truck driver), is now a chef who has a son at Phillips Exeter Academy.

The women in this book express feeling pressure to prove themselves in a male-dominated profession. They feel as squeezed as tubes of tomato paste between work and family. Some have been sexually abused. But more than a few have risen to the top. Carla, whose father was a fisherman in the Dominican Republic, came here at age 6. She's a chef and manager at Shuka.

Not all of these stories are happy. Some interviewees are depressed or have other health problems. “This city can give you economic stability, but it cannot give you emotional stability,” one says. Some merely want to go home to places that don’t quite exist any longer. “Why didn’t I stay?” another asks, about his hometown in Mexico. "I think I lost something from the past, and it's gone forever. I can't get it back."

These interviews come most alive when narrators break the harmonious aura, when you sense someone scraping away at the pith. One woman admits that waiting tables too long can burn you out and make you snippy. Another remarks that working in diners sucks because so many are owned by big Greek families. Everyone in the family has an opinion, so you get it coming and going.

Rare comments like these remind you of the limitations of “Voices From the Kitchen.” Because these narrators are speaking to their boss, the underside of kitchen work is rarely on display — the rude customers, billing mistakes, racism, restroom hookups and cleanups, blood blisters on your feet, ego collisions, having to “push” menu items, trips and falls, the flameouts of co-workers, mandatory last-minute shifts, clearing away gross, half-eaten meals, tipping agonistes, cuts and punctures, dealing with celebrities and V.I.P's, cramped and noisy environments — everything that goes on below the deceptively smooth front-of-house choreography.

There is a more honest and encompassing oral history project out there, waiting to be compiled. Editors, start your engines.

I know about this book because I had lunch at Cookshop a few months ago, and copies were on the host's table. It was a good find. Some of these stories are so tangled and involving they could be made into films.

This is not an explicitly political book. It has nothing concrete to say about immigration policy. It does not argue for wide-open borders. But it complicates easy narratives and asks that we see people not merely for what they are but for what they might become.

“They read my name and saw my face and pointed to the dishes,” says the job-seeking narrator of one of the stories in Bryan Washington’s collection, “Lot” (2019). This is surely happening daily in New York City restaurants. “Voices From the Kitchen” is an optimistic book — it reminds you that if many restaurant careers begin that way, they don’t have to end there.

Family Curse

In this lyrical new novel, clairvoyance is a terrible genetic inheritance.

By CHARMAINE WILKERSON

IN EVERY GENERATION, those who speak uncomfortable truths are often maligned and ostracized. That stigma is on full display in LaToya Watkins's lyrical new novel, "The Book of Chuck," where a clairvoyant child, then her son years later, are abandoned for their ability to see a person's death before it occurs.

It's 1936. Little Nannie is barely a year old when she babbles a premonition foretelling her father's demise. It turns out to be an accurate vision — shortly thereafter, her father is lynched. The events spook Nannie's mother so much that she flees, leaving Nannie to be raised by others. She fears Nannie is “something not of her world; something wicked and unkind.”

But Nannie is not the first in her family to experience a chilling vision, and she will not be the last. After her, there's her son, Walter, nicknamed Chuck, who has other-worldly talents. Then Chuck eventually has a child of his own, Baby, who also has these gifts.

Despite its supernatural framing, "The

Book of Chuck" is no horror story, unless the horror is the withholding of love. Mostly, this is a slow burn of a tale about family and legacy that casts a wide emotional net, exploring how denials, secrets and repeated rejection can distort a person's identity and development in life.

The book goes back and forth in time, from 1930s Jim Crow Texas to the 2000s, following multiple generations of an African American family grappling with the burdens and effects of their abilities while also confronting personal, economic and race-related challenges. Watkins, whose story collection, “Holler, Child,” was longlisted for the National Book Award, makes the novel shine with her ear for language and eye for memorable imagery.

One big question the novel asks is: If you see the world for what it is, can you change it, or do you change yourself? Chuck hides from his abilities, even as they wreak havoc in his life. Baby, however, does not deny her powers — she merely conceals her abilities from others, secretly hoping to use them to alter the events she foresees.

Overall, “The Book of Chuck” feels like a poetic allegory for both generational trauma and generational healing. This is most evident in Chuck’s story line. Shortly after giving birth to him, Nannie abandons

THE BOOK OF CHUCK By LaToya Watkins

Tiny Reparations Books. 306 pp. \$30.

Chuck, leaving him in the care of distant relatives. Those guardians also reject him. The only compassionate parental figure Chuck has ever known is Daddy, the former husband of one of his caretakers. Daddy, unlike everyone else, treats Chuck as someone who deserves love, kindness and forgiveness.

“You a good boy,” Daddy tells Chuck after Chuck returns home from a stint in prison. “Always been a good boy. We all lose our way in the muck sometimes.” It is a

Despite its supernatural framing, the book is no horror story.

life-changing declaration, made quietly over a plate of fried catfish and sweet potatoes. "It made me want to do whatever I needed to do to prove myself worthy of what he'd always given so freely," Chuck recalls.

Throughout the story, characters display a desperate need for a sense of belonging, sometimes to their great detriment. Chuck, for instance, turns out to be a tenderhearted husband and father himself, but grave missteps in his marriage to Lettie have lifelong consequences.

Ultimately, we spend much of the novel watching these characters learn to live with their visions without negating themselves. The narrative calls to mind a core idea of Toni Morrison's “Beloved,” in which the author uses supernatural elements to explore a fundamentally human challenge: We may yearn for the acceptance of others while neglecting to spare enough respect for ourselves.

The story of Chuck's troubled family suggests there is room for that self-regard to blossom. □

How to Spend A Bookish Afternoon in Midtown Manhattan

This walking tour through the bustling heart of New York City includes bookstores, great reading spots and literary-themed snacks.

By JENNIFER HARLAN and UMI SYAM PHOTOGRAPHS by GEORGE ETHEREDGE

Estimated walking time: 40 minutes, 1.7 miles

Midtown Manhattan is known for many things: packed sidewalks, Broadway theaters, the commercial cacophony that is Times Square. It is, as a rule, a neighborhood we try to steer clear of unless we are seeing a show, or being paid to be in our newsroom.

But this bustling corridor at the sweaty heart of New York City is also home to a surprising number of great bookstores. These literary oases offer a respite from the clamor of the streets — places to escape the madding crowds for a browse, maybe pick up a sweet treat and recharge before you plunge back into the fray, with your next great read in hand.

Whether you're a tourist visiting New York or a local looking for a lunch-break escape, we've put together a mini walking tour that shows off the neighborhood at its bookish best. You could make a day of it and visit all seven spots in an afternoon, or keep this as a running to-do list to check off this summer. (And if you're craving more literary adventures, we've got good news! Midtown is just the beginning: We have itineraries for other New York neighborhoods coming your way soon.)

1. McNally Jackson (Rockefeller Center)

An independent stalwart with something for everyone.

Founded in 2004, McNally Jackson is one of the pillars of New York's independent bookstore scene. From its original storefront in NoLita (now shuttered, and replaced by a SoHo flagship a few blocks away), the store has expanded across the boroughs to its current five locations, including this roomy outpost at Rockefeller Center, which opened in 2022.

With a wide selection of genres — including an annex full of children's books — McNally Jackson has something for the whole family, whether you want the latest best seller or are on the hunt for a classic or an overlooked gem. The stores are known for their unusual filing system: Fiction (on the second floor) is divided by the authors' country or region of origin, with additional, more traditional genre-themed sections for fans of ro-

mance, fantasy, mysteries and more.

Sitting by a transit hub at the top of Midtown, it's a great first port of call to get your bearings before embarking on your literary quest. Pick up a tote bag to hold all the great finds you'll uncover on the stops to come! (If you take a peek above the register, you'll see cardboard cutouts of Walt Whitman, Toni Morrison and Marcel Proust modeling your options.)

1 Rockefeller Plaza, 212-925-2134, mcnallyjackson.com
Open daily from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m.
No restroom available

2. Bookoff

Go treasure-hunting in their extensive used book section.

A cardboard cutout of the cheerily bulbous cartoon figure YomuYomu welcomes you to Bookoff, an American outpost of a popular Japanese used bookstore chain (the mascot's name comes from the verb "yomu," which means "to read"). This jam-packed resale emporium holds everything from collectible figurines to gaming consoles, CDs and DVDs to cassette tapes and vinyl. But most of the literary offerings are up on the second floor, in the huge used book section.

You could easily while away several hours digging through Bookoff's shelves. Prices are as low as \$1, and you can find some great treasures, especially on the racks of (now sadly discontinued) mass-market paperbacks.

And when you're done reading, you can always come back! Bookoff buys used books and other media, too.

49 West 45th Street, 212-685-1410, bookoffusa.com Open daily from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. No restroom available

Photographs from left on opposite page: A customer browses McNally Jackson's Midtown store; Walt Whitman, Toni Morrison and Marcel Proust "model" the available McNally Jackson merch for sale; two scenes from Bookoff.

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 11

3. Kinokuniya

Japanese books and snacks with a view of Bryant Park.

Another American location of a Japanese bookseller, this store boasts three stories of books and bookish goodies (plus the most adorable tiny shopping baskets we've ever seen).

The first floor has a wide selection of fiction, nonfiction, children's books and cookbooks, with a particular (but not exclusive) emphasis on Japanese culture and writers, such as the mystery author Yukito Ayatsuji and Toshikazu Kawaguchi, a beloved purveyor of the comforting East Asian subgenre known as "healing fiction." In the basement, you'll find Japanese language books, paper craft supplies and oodles of merch; Studio Ghibli gets

Photographs above, clockwise from left: The shelves at Kinokuniya; comics, graphic novels and plenty of new releases at Midtown Comics; a sculpture for bibliophiles at the Drama Book Shop.

its own section, guarded by a giant stuffed Totoro. And the second floor is largely devoted to manga.

Before you leave, make sure you check out the column of staff favorites, located on the first floor, which embody the store's mission statement: "Read books. Meet people."

1073 Sixth Avenue, 212-869-1700, usa.kinokuniya.com Open Monday to Saturday from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. and Sunday from 11 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. Restroom available on the first floor

REFUEL WITH A QUICK BITE AT TOMIZ CAFE.

The best part of Kinokuniya is actually not the great selection of books: It's the in-store cafe, located on the second floor, which offers a delicious array of Japanese goodies. Grab an onigiri or a fruit sandwich and an iced milk tea and enjoy them with a view of Bryant Park.

1073 Sixth Avenue, second floor, 212-764-6785, tomiznyc.com Open Monday to Saturday from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. and Sunday from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.

4. Midtown Comics

A nerd's paradise hidden in plain sight.

Blink and you might miss this mecca of fandom, whose purple awning is wedged between an empanada counter and a sandwich shop. But up the Spider-Man-bedecked stairs lies a two-story treasure trove of comics and graphic novels.

The first floor has a wide array of new releases, as well as a selection of magazines, children's books and novels (mainly fantasy, sci-fi and horror, in keeping with the nerdy theme). Superman stands guard by the stairs, which lead to back issues and a colorful apparel and action figure section.

200 West 40th Street, 212-302-8192, midtowncomics.com Open Monday and Tuesday from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m.; Wednesday from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m.; Thursday to Saturday from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.; and Sunday from noon to 7 p.m. No restroom available

5. The Drama Book Shop

A distinguished theatrical gem steps from Broadway.

The 109-year-old Drama Book Shop nearly had to leave the stage in 2019 after being hit with the horrible one-two punch of a burst pipe and a steep rent increase. Luckily, four men (all associated with the hit musical “Hamilton”) stepped in to give the store a second act: the show’s composer, Lin-Manuel Miranda; its director, Thomas Kail; its lead producer, Jeffrey Seller; and the owner of its Broadway home, James L. Nederlander.

The store's new iteration — designed by David Korins, the “Hamilton” set designer — opened in 2021, one block south of the previous location. The warmly lit, wood-paneled space is full of handsome leather banquettes and cozy corners where someone might be scribbling the next great American musical. Just steps from Broadway, the whole store is a homage to that business we call show, with a wide selection of plays and librettos as well as books on craft and design and a biography section with potential source material. (It is also the only store on this list to have been honored with a Tony Award.)

The most striking feature is the serpentine book sculpture that winds from the front table into the rafters; there's also a charming, miniature crochet version in a display case by the register. And if you're in need of a pick-me-up, the coffee bar offers pastries and drinks, some of which are Broadway-themed (see: the Carolee Carmello, a salted caramel and toasted marshmallow latte as brassy as the broad herself).

266 West 39th Street, 212-944-0595, dramabookshop.com Open Monday to Saturday from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. and Sunday from noon to 7 p.m. Restroom available

Photographs above, from left: Outdoor reading at Bryant Park; the Rose Reading Room at New York Public Library; an immersive cocktail at Bookmarks Lounge to wind up the day's book-shopping adventure.

6. Bryant Park Outdoor Reading Room

Curl up with a book under the trees.

You've wound your way through the streets. You've stocked up on books. Now all you need is somewhere great to read them. If the weather is accommodating, your best option is Bryant Park, where you can pull up a metal chair in the shade of the London Plane trees and rest your feet from all that browsing.

There's even a section of the park specifically dedicated to the written word: Head to the 42nd Street side to find the Bryant Park Reading Room, which from April to October offers plenty of umbrellas, seating and reading material in case you forgot — or just aren't in the mood for — your own. Their racks have books for all ages, along with newspapers and magazines, all of which you're free to borrow while in the designated area.

The Reading Room also hosts story hours, writing workshops, puzzle meet-ups and other literary confabs throughout the summer and into early fall.

42nd Street between Fifth and Sixth Avenues, 212-768-4242, bryantpark.org Open daily from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Restroom available (They're some of the best public ones in the city!)

7. The New York Public Library

Escape the heat, and get your holiday shopping done early.

Too hot, rainy or oppressively humid to read outside? You're in luck: The flagship branch of the New York Public Library is right next door. Say hello to its leonine guards, Patience and Fortitude, as you head up the stone steps.

Once inside, you can browse the exhibits; this summer, as America celebrates its 250th birthday, they include letters by Samuel Adams and Alexander Hamilton and a copy of the Declaration of Independence printed in 1776. You can snag a spot in one of the reading rooms, many of which — including the Rose Main Reading Room, one of the most stunning places in New York City to find yourself with a book and an hour to kill — are open to the public.

And if your bookstore itch hasn't been fully scratched, head to the huge shop on the first floor, which is full of books (many of them, appropriately, New York-themed) and literary trinkets. It's a great spot to pick up some gifts for your loved ones, or for yourself, while supporting the N.Y.P.L.

476 Fifth Avenue, 917-275-6975, nypl.org Open Monday from noon to 6 p.m., Tuesday and Wednesday from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m., and Thursday to Saturday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Closed on Sunday. Restroom available

POP UP TO BOOKMARKS LOUNGE FOR LIBATIONS WITH A LITERARY TWIST.

If it's happy hour by the time you end your crawl, head to the 14th floor of the Library Hotel to toast a bookish day well spent. Alongside upscale pub fare, the rooftop bar's menu includes many appropriately punny cocktails, including the habanero-infused Spicy Romance, a hellfire-colored Dante's Inferno and Tequila Mockingbird, a ginger-spiked spin on a margarita.

299 Madison Avenue, 14th floor, 212-204-5498, bookmarkslounge.com Open daily from 1 p.m. to 11 p.m. (kitchen closes at 9:30 p.m.) Restroom available

Can Humans Be Happy in a Nonhuman World?

With monsters and moon men, Shaun Tan asks us to consider where our real identity comes from.

By JOHN HENDRIX

G.K. CHESTERTON WROTE that fairy tales "make rivers run with wine only to make us remember, for one wild moment, that they run with water." It is a simple truth, but easy to forget: Our world is dipped in wonder. The great myths give us eyes to see our own lives anew, by gilding the familiar with the fantastic.

It has been 20 years since Shaun Tan — illustrator, author, artist, filmmaker — published his astonishing wordless graphic novel “The Arrival.” Equal parts atmos-

A sample of Shaun Tan's artwork from "Hometown."

HOMETOWN By Shaun Tan Levine Querido. 136 pp. \$24.99. (Ages 10 and up)

pheric immigration allegory and surreal ride on a chiaroscuro carousel, the book instantly became a classic. Dauntless and strange, it shimmered like a new kind of myth — one whose primary language was not textual but visual.

When a modern mind reads the word “myth,” it might be tempted to substitute the word “falsehood.” Sadly, this is part of our hangover from the Enlightenment. It seems natural to us to assume that the best way to understand a rose is by putting it under a microscope — rather than by writing (or reading) a sonnet. But as Tan reminds us with his new opus, “Hometown,” some truths are so enormous, so beautiful, so elusive they can be told only through myth.

In “Hometown,” Tan doesn’t ask the pictures to do all the storytelling. With spare and clever prose, he poses some of the same transcultural questions he did in “The Arrival,” but from an inverted point of view.

The first-person story follows a girl who lives in, to our eyes, a bizarre and unusual land yet feels right at home. She is a human being, but the reader immediately sees that her world is not human in size, color, type or shape; its scenery is fantastical and monstrous. In the book's most delightful passages, her down-to-earth words playfully contrast with what the reader sees alongside them. ("Little Sister" and "Big Sister" are quite the understatement!)

Despite the weird landscape, the girl goes about her day-to-day life with purpose, love and a sense of belonging. While she is quite different from her surroundings, that matters little to her happiness.

JOHN HENDRIX is the author and illustrator of the graphic novel "The Mythmakers" and the founding chair of the illustration and visual culture M.F.A. program at Washington University in St. Louis.

She is just where she needs to be.

We don't know how she got there, but the paradise of her extraordinary found family is disrupted when a colossal visitor falls through a "big hole" that opens up in the sky. For a few pages, this gargantuan robotic astronaut is stepping on buildings and, it seems rather innocently, messing everything up. The residents are surprisingly understanding of the megalodon's blunders: When the intruder is swallowed by a cross between a whale and a giant squid, they feel sorry for the "stupid sky thing."

After the girl tells the "rudest joke" she knows in order to abort the whale-squid's digestion, it becomes clear that the visitor is actually a humanoid-shaped spacecraft, from which a smaller humanoid astronaut

Some truths are so enormous, so beautiful, so elusive they can be told only through myth.

steps out — comically, in the exact same shape as the spacecraft but at the scale of our young heroine. (This is one of several hilarious visual moments in the book.)

The story turns when the astronaut takes off his helmet and our narrator is struck by his physical similarity to her. Perhaps she never noticed just how different she was from the world she loved? Face to face with another human being, she begins to ask questions: Who is my actual family? What is the meaning of home? She seems to wonder, as many of us do, if there is only one way (and one place) to live a good life. Like an alien satellite, “Hometown” orbits these questions over and over again. Each pass gives us a new perspective on the terrain below.

On one level, this book is a well-worn narrative of cross-cultural exchange. We all know the excitement of sharing the things we love in our corner of the world with someone who has never experienced them before.

Yet, even with the best intentions, we can misunderstand one another. What do we do when these things we love don't translate into the language of another heart? "Hometown" goes far beyond calling us to a confident pluralism. With monsters and moon men, it asks us to consider where our real identity comes from. Is it something we can't choose, like what we look like, or does true kinship come from the community that made us? The lure of this tale is that it takes these universal questions and gives us a new, kaleidoscopic lens with which to view the answers.

Visually stunning as well, “Hometown” is a formal masterpiece, showcasing an artist at the height of his powers. Like the humanoid-shaped spacecraft, Tan strides across the landscape, placing monsters, critters and enchanted flora wherever he wishes. His work is a deft push and pull of line and tone. Each image vibrates with glyphic drawing — yet at key moments those lines are submerged in lush washes of pure color. Imagine if the comic artist Moebius had been taught to paint by Caravaggio.

As an artist who has admired the work of Shaun Tan for many decades, I have always wanted him to take a swing at treating the typographical spaces in his books with the same lavish world-building as he does the imagery. While he doesn't do that here, his signature gestalt of pictures, story and sparse words still makes this book the highest form of art.

"Hometown" wraps the mundane things we all experience in a strange and wondrous veneer. In the foreground, it immerses its readers in mysterious objects, landscapes and creatures; yet, as with an exotic campfire, a familiar ache crackles in the background.

"Gravity keeps me here," our protagonist declares as the story closes. "Or love, which is kind of the same thing."

In an age when there are so many picture books helping young readers think about identity, "Hometown" brilliantly plants its feet on solid ground.

This new myth reminds us that with the choice of love — a technology both ancient and ordinary — we can create belonging for ourselves. □

COMBINED PRINT AND E-BOOK BEST SELLERS

THIS WEEK	LAST WEEK	Fiction	WEEKS ON LIST
1	$^{2}$	THEO OF GOLDEN, by Allen Levi. (Atria) A man travels to a small Southern town, where he purchases pencil drawings of local residents and exchanges them for stories.	37
2	$^{3}$	THE CALAMITY CLUB, by Kathryn Stockett. (Spiegel & Grau) As things get tougher during the Depression, several women look for ways to improve their circumstances.	15
3	$^{4}$	YESTERYEAR, by Caro Claire Burke. (Knopf) Natalie Heller Mills, a privileged tradwife social media influencer, wakes up to find she is living in the comparatively difficult reality of 1855.	19
4	$^{7}$	DUNGEON CRAWLER CARL, by Matt Dinniman. (Ace) A Coast Guard vet named Carl and his ex-girlfriend's cat, Princess Donut, are trapped in a fantasy dungeon.	32
5		THE SECRETS WE HIDE, by Karin Slaughter. (Morrow) The second book in the North Falls thriller series. Sheriff Emmy Clifton investigates a crime in which a mother was murdered and her daughter left for dead.	1
6	$^{6}$	WHISTLER, by Ann Patchett. (Harper) Decades after their time together, a woman reconnects with her stepfather and they look back at the directions their lives have taken.	11
7	$^{9}$	PROJECT HAIL MARY, by Andy Weir. (Ballantine) The fate of humanity rests on Ryland Grace's shoulders; the basis of the movie.	62
8		THE TRUE MEANING OF LOVE, by Danielle Steel. (Delacorte) When Russia attacks their country, Ukrainian citizens find ways to fight while others must flee.	1
9	$^{8}$	CARL'S DOOMSDAY SCENARIO, by Matt Dinniman. (Ace) The second book in the “Dungeon Crawler Carl” series. Carl and Donut confront an ancient spell and heightened dangers.	3
10		THE BUTCHER LEGACY, by Alaina Urquhart. (Zando) The third book in the Dr. Wren Muller series. Wren and Leroux get back to work as young girls vanish in two cities.	1

THIS WEEK	LAST WEEK	Nonfiction	WEEKS ON LIST
1	$^{1}$	REGIME CHANGE, by Maggie Haberman and Jonathan Swan. (Simon & Schuster) Two White House correspondents for The New York Times delve into the first year of President Trump's second term.	8
2		THE DAY AFTER, by Brian Tyler Cohen. (Harper) The author of "Shameless" looks at the relationship Republicans and Democrats have to power and prescribes ways for it to be used after Donald Trump's presidency.	3
3	$^{2}$	STRANGERS, by Belle Burden. (Dial) Burden retraces her marriage of 20 years in search of clues to help shape her understanding about its demise and to find a way forward.	31
4	$^{7}$	THE BODY KEEPS THE SCORE, by Bessel van der Kolk. (Penguin) How trauma affects the body and mind, and innovative treatments for recovery.	308
5	$^{5}$	LONDON FALLING, by Patrick Radden Keefe. (Doubleday) The author of "Say Nothing" details the efforts by the parents of a 19-year-old Londoner to uncover the truth about his mysterious death and secret life.	19
6	$^{3}$	BIOLOGICAL WAR, by Annie Jacobsen. (Dutton) The author of "Nuclear War" describes potential outcomes of biological warfare, including mass death and societal breakdown.	3
7	$^{14}$	DOGS, BOYS, AND OTHER THINGS I'VE CRIED ABOUT, by Isabel Klee. (Morrow) Klee helps foster dogs overcome challenges while she faces her own complications.	8
8	$^{12}$	BORN A CRIME, by Trevor Noah. (One World) A memoir about growing up biracial in apartheid South Africa by the former host of "The Daily Show."	102
9	$^{9}$	ALL THAT'S UNSEEN, by Emilee Hackney. (Penguin Press) Hackney recounts moving away from her Pentecostal upbringing in the Appalachian Mountains to attend Harvard.	3
10	$^{10}$	COMMUNION, by JD Vance. (Harper) The vice president and author of "Hillbilly Elegy" describes how he perceives his faith played a part in his work in public life.	9

The New York Times best sellers are compiled and archived by the best-sellers desk of the New York Times news department, and are separate from the opinion, culture, advertising and business sides of The New York Times Company. Rankings reflect unit sales reported on a confidential basis by vendors offering a wide range of general interest titles published in the United States. ONLINE: For complete lists and a full explanation of our methodology, visit www.nytimes.com/books/best-sellers.

Editors' Choice / Staff Picks From the Book Review

BIOLOGICAL WAR: A Scenario, by Annie Jacobsen. (Dutton. 406 pp. \$33.)

As she did in her previous book, "Nuclear War," Jacobsen here stages a sort of terrifying thought experiment: What would happen if some of the world's deadly weaponized pathogens were to escape from the military research labs where they are stored? The answer (goodbye, civilization) is gripping, and bleak.

FURIOUS VIOLET, by Sarai Walker. (Harper. 340 pp. \$30.)

In this thought-provoking literary detective story, a true-crime writer researching a serial killer finds an anonymous, threatening note on her windshield: "Hello Mother." West has no children but she decidedly has mommy issues — her own mother, a celebrated poet, died by suicide — so her correspondent is either unhinged or frighteningly manipulative. Or, possibly, both.

DAYS·OF MIRACLE·AND WONDER

PAUL SIMON AND THE TRIALS AND TRIUMPHS OF GRACELAND ASHLEY KAHN
DAYS OF MIRACLE AND WONDER: Paul Simon and the Trials and Triumphs of "Graceland," by Ashley Kahn. (Atria. 310 pp. \$30.)

It's a welcome surprise to read this careful look by a music historian at "Graceland," Paul Simon's 1986 masterpiece: By bringing both its beauty and its uglier aspects into the light, Kahn, far from ruining the album's strange magic, lets readers appreciate its intricacies and paradoxes all the more.

PRINT / HARDCOVER BEST SELLERS

David Eyre's Pancake

Pamela Sherrid's Summer Pasta

meets

Samin Nosrat's Sabzi Polo

Todd Richards's Fried Catfish with Hot Sauce

J. Kenji López-Alt's Cheesy Hasselback Potato Gratin

"A gift from heaven." —INA GARTEN

"In a world constantly searching for the trendy, find comfort in a book celebrating the delicious." —YOTAM OTTOLENGHI

W. W. NORTON & COMPANY Independent Publishers Since 1923 wwnorton.com

THIS WEEK	LAST WEEK	Fiction	WEEKS ON LIST
1	2	THE CALAMITY CLUB, by Kathryn Stockett. (Spiegel & Grau) As things get tougher during the Depression, several women look for ways to improve their circumstances.	15
2	3	YESTERYEAR, by Caro Claire Burke. (Knopf) Natalie Heller Mills, a privileged tradwife social media influencer, wakes up to find she is living in the comparatively difficult reality of 1855.	19
3		THE BUTCHER LEGACY, by Alaina Urquhart. (Zando) The third book in the Dr. Wren Muller series. Wren and Leroux get back to work as young girls vanish in two cities.	1
4	4	WHISTLER, by Ann Patchett. (Harper) Decades after their time together, a woman reconnects with her stepfather and they look back at the directions their lives have taken.	11
5		THE SECRETS WE HIDE, by Karin Slaughter. (Morrow) The second book in the North Falls thriller series. Sheriff Emmy Clifton investigates a crime in which a mother was murdered and her daughter left for dead.	1
6		THE TRUE MEANING OF LOVE, by Danielle Steel. (Delacorte) When Russia attacks their country, Ukrainian citizens find ways to fight while others must flee.	1
7	1	THE UNKNOWN, by Riley Sager. (Dutton) A century after some spiritual mediums disappeared from a remote Vermont island, a research trip for a film starts old troubles anew.	2
8	7	THE CORRESPONDENT, by Virginia Evans. (Crown) Letters from someone she used to know push Sybil Van Antwerp toward revisiting her past and finding a way to forgive.	42
9	8	THE DUNGEON ANARCHIST'S COOKBOOK, by Matt Dinniman. (Ace) The third book in the "Dungeon Crawler Carl" series. Carl and Donut are up against a subway system filled with monsters.	24
10	6	DAGGERMOUTH, by H.M. Wolfe. (Scarlett) In a city divided by privilege and poverty, a mercenary is forced to marry the president's son, whom she attempted to kill.	3

An asterisk (*) indicates that a book's sales are barely distinguishable from those of the book above. A dagger (†) indicates that some bookstores report receiving bulk orders.

Paperback Row / BY LAURA THOMPSON

THE WAYFINDER, by Adam Johnson. (Picador. 736 pp. \$20.)

This epic from the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of “The Orphan Master’s Son” immerses readers in the intertwined fates of two ancient Polynesian communities — the

struggling inhabitants of Manumotu and the ruthless Tongan empire based on the island of Tongatapu. Our reviewer Ian McGuire described it as “a sprawling novel that combines myth, poetry and magical realism into a great roiling, oceanic mass.”

TONIGHT IN JUNGLELAND: The Making of "Born to Run," by Peter Ames Carlin. (Vintage. 256 pp. \$19.)

More than a decade after publishing his biography of Bruce Springsteen, Carlin returns with a director's cut of sorts,

homing in on Springsteen's breakout third album and the desperate circumstances that shaped it. Combining "a fan's fervor and a journalist's attention to detail," wrote our reviewer Jon Pareles, "Tonight in Jungleland' vividly summons the album's struggle and its spirit."

RUTH, by Kate Riley. (Riverhead. 256 pp. \$20.)

This debut novel — about a woman's lifelong struggle between her natural curiosity and the rigidity of the insular Christian communes she resides in — is "defiantly strange,"

as our critic Dwight Garner put it, and punctuated with “inklings of greatness.” “I suspect it will become an underground classic of American folk wit,” Garner wrote in his review, “one that happens to be about growing up in a religious cult.”

THIS WEEK	LAST WEEK	Paperback Trade Fiction	WEEKS ON LIST
1	2	THEO OF GOLDEN, by Allen Levi. (Atria) A man travels to a small Southern town, where he purchases pencil drawings of local residents and exchanges them for stories.	38
2	4	DUNGEON CRAWLER CARL, by Matt Dinniman. (Ace) A Coast Guard vet named Carl and his ex-girlfriend's cat, Princess Donut, are trapped in a fantasy dungeon.	33
3	3	PROJECT HAIL MARY, by Andy Weir. (Ballantine) The fate of humanity rests on Ryland Grace's shoulders.	60
4	6	THE WEDDING PEOPLE, by Alison Espach. (Holt) A woman who is down on her luck forms an unexpected bond with the bride at a wedding in Rhode Island.	3
5	5	CARL'S DOOMSDAY SCENARIO, by Matt Dinniman. (Ace) The second book in the "Dungeon Crawler Carl" series.	2
6	1	ADVERSARY TO THE VILLAIN, by Hannah Nicole Maehrer. (Red Tower) The fourth book in the Assistant and the Villain series.	2
7		VERITY, by Colleen Hoover. (Grand Central) Lowen Ashleigh is hired by the husband of an injured writer to complete her popular series and uncovers a horrifying truth.	157
8		INSATIABLE, by Leigh Rivers. (ZPN) Kade Mitchell returns home and confronts his obsession with Stacey Rhodes, who broke his heart years ago.	1
9	9	THE DIVORCE, by Freida McFadden. (Poisoned Pen) After her husband ends their marriage, Naomi suspects she might be in danger.	12
10	12	RED RISING, by Pierce Brown. (Del Rey) Darrow, a member of the lowest rung of a society on Mars, mixes in with humanity's overlords in the hopes of taking them down.	9
11	8	DEATH ROW, by Freida McFadden. (Poisoned Pen) As Talia Kemper's execution draws nearer, she thinks she sees her husband, whom she is accused of killing, in the visiting area.	2
12	11	CIRCE, by Madeline Miller. (Back Bay) Zeus banishes Helios' daughter to an island, where she must choose between living with gods or mortals.	85
13		BONFIRE & BLISS BOOKSTORE, by Brittanée Nicole. (Putnam) The second book in the Hope Harbor series. Penny Darling makes a deal with an old friend that may change their relationship.	1
14	10	THE DEAL, by Elle Kennedy. (Bloom) Hannah Wells makes a deal with the captain of the college hockey team in exchange for tutoring him that may complicate their relationship.	14
15	14	THE WIDOW, by John Grisham. (Vintage) When Simon Latch, a lawyer in rural Virginia, is accused of murder, he goes in search of the real killer.	2

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Backhand Volley

A biography of the transgender tennis player Renée Richards is fascinatingly complicated by her changed stance on gender and sports.

By ALEXANDRA JACOBS

Renée Richards competing at the 1977 U.S. Open.

IN "Finding Renée Richards," an earnest, grappling new biography of the transgender tennis player and ophthalmologist, the broadcaster Keith Olbermann provides some comic relief.

According to Julie Kliegman's book, in 1980 a 21-year-old Olbermann accidentally smacked his forehead on the side of the No. 7 train at Shea Stadium (like many a Mets fan before and since). Two years later his vision started going wonky in the stands of a U.S. Open match.

FINDING RENÉE RICHARDS The Groundbreaking Story of Tennis's Trans Pioneer By Julie Kliegman HarperOne. 272 pp. \$28.99.

A doctor told him with obvious titillation that the top eye-muscle specialist in New York City happened to be Richards, then a figure of curiosity for a 1977 State Supreme Court ruling that had allowed her to qualify for the Open on the women's circuit.

"I don't care if it's a chimpanzee smoking a cigar with a little candle out of its . . . I did not say backside," Olbermann remembers replying. Richards fixed his problem in five minutes with a \$1.98 pen light.

Hers is not an unexamined life. Now almost 92, Richards has written three memoirs, "Second Serve" (1983), which was made into a TV movie starring Vanessa Redgrave; "No Way Renée" (2007); and "Spy Night and Other Memories" (2014). (Also a 1991 textbook on strabismus surgery.)

But Richards hasn't been forecourt in the heated current exchanges about trans athletes in sports. This might be because, inconveniently, she regrets her lawsuit against the United States Tennis Association (filed with the help of Roy Cohn), and believes people who have gone through male puberty should not be allowed to play on women's teams.

This volte-face leaves Kliegman — who identifies as asexual, nonbinary and transgender, and uses they-them pronouns — “floored,” “flustered” and “gobsmacked.” Interviewing Richards’s friend Martina Navratilova, who has spoken against biological men participating in women’s athletics, has the biographer “startled” and “shocked.”

Kliegman's first book, "Mind Game," was about athletes and mental health, and they have written for many publications, including Sports Illustrated and The New York Times. Their research is careful and thorough, enriched by transcripts and correspondence collected by the feminist ac-

ALEXANDRA JACOBS is a Times book critic and occasional features writer. She joined The Times in 2010.

tivist Eleanor Foa Dienstag in the late '70s.

There are plenty of fresh conversations and revelations here; Richards admits to "a little sleight of hand," switching in a friend's buccal smear on the chromosome test that became the crux of her court case.

But sometimes it seems Kliegman is not so much “Finding Renée Richards” as fighting with her. Distractingly, they struggle with Richards’s wish to have her given name, Richard Raskind, and masculine pronouns used to describe her pre-transition life.

“Agree to disagree,” they write of Richards’s denunciation of androgyny to GQ in 2015, when she called “the binary system that God designed for us … the spice of life.”

Kliegman is respectful of Richards, but

Kliegman is respectful of Richards, but also visibly frustrated with her as a champion for the cause.

also visibly frustrated with her as a champion for the cause. "She wants to have her expertise heeded somehow without ever being called on," they conclude of her absence from present-day debates. "She wants to be in the zeitgeist without making a peep."

In between bouts of authorial angst, a life story gets told, and told well. Richard was born on Aug. 19, 1934, joining an older sister, Josephine, a tomboy who bullied him emotionally and physically, including tucking in his penis and calling him “a little girl." (Josephine has dementia, Kliegman writes, and could not be interviewed for this book.)

They were raised in Queens by their mother, Sadie, a Freudian psychiatrist, and father, David, an orthopedic surgeon who avoided discussing the medical elephant in the room but kept scrapbooks of his younger child's accomplishments as both genders. Who else has been recognized by both the Jewish Sports Hall of Fame and Helen Keller Services for the Blind?

At Horace Mann, a private school in the Bronx, Richard played baseball and claims to have been recruited by a scout for the Yankees. (A classmate recalls “the lethality of Raskind’s curveball, in particular:”) At Yale, he became captain of the tennis team. At the University of Rochester’s medical school, he dithered over what specialty to choose; “gynecology and obstetrics were hard noes,” Kliegman notes without irony.

Back in Manhattan for his ophthalmological residency and living with a girlfriend nicknamed Sally Peanutbutter, Raskind underwent extensive analysis trying to rid himself of a persistent desire to dress in women's clothing. He served in the Navy, calling it "a great experience."

Kliegman painstakingly reconstructs the glamorous but difficult interval after Raskind was wed to a former model, Barbara Mole, with whom he seemed to have little in common but a love of rum-raisin ice cream. (They had a son, Nicholas, who died by suicide at 47 in 2019.)

There is palpable liftoff in this fairly short book after their marriage ends. After a long search that includes a trip to Chicago in a mink jacket and dress from Bergdorf Goodman, Richard found a doctor who would perform bottom surgery. He became Renée, French for reborn, and moved to California, ground zero for fresh starts.

Richards would succeed Christine Jorgensen as the most famous transgender person in America, and in turn be succeeded by Caitlyn Jenner.

"How did her legacy vanish so quickly, in the span of just a few decades?" Kliegman wonders. Maybe because for all the tumult about Richards's participation in women's tennis, the farthest she got in the majors was the doubles final of that '77 Open. Her tour ranking peaked at No. 20 two years later.

After retiring from the sport at 47, she went back to being an excellent eye doctor, to Norman Mailer, Susan Sontag, Nora Ephron — and, well, heeere's Olbermann again!

Her playing “didn’t destroy women’s tennis and it didn’t lead to a generation of guys at a later time who couldn’t quite make it in the N.B.A. suddenly playing as women,” he tells Kliegman. “Boy, [people] made an awful big deal out of something that really did take care of itself.”

Dear readers,

When I was young, I sometimes got so excited about a TV show or video game that I would sit just inches from the screen. "Scoot back or you'll hurt your eyes," my mom used to warn.

It's good advice for books, too. When you're a constant reader, moving happily from classic to classic to hot new release, it can start to feel as if your nose is pressed so close to the screen that you lose any sense of the big picture: How do these things work, individually or together? How do they fit into the vast tapestry of literature?

One way to find out is via a genre I think of as “the literary lecture” — craft books or critical studies or collections of actual, literal lectures that help us scoot back to view reading and writing more holistically. Here are two favorites.

Aspects of the Novel, by E.M. Forster Nonfiction, 1927

Most readers know Forster as a master novelist who wrote enduring British classics, including "Howards End" and "Maurice." He was also, however, an essayist and scholar, and in 1927 he delivered a series of lectures at Trinity College, Cambridge, that identified and examined what he saw as the essential components of the novel as a form. Gathered here, those lectures show him to be a stylish, opinionated and authoritative guide.

What makes a good plot? “Mystery is essential to a plot, and cannot be appreciated without intelligence.... To appreciate a mystery, part of the mind must be left behind, brooding, while the other part goes marching on.”

What makes a compelling, believable character? One answer: "A novel is a work of art, with its own laws, which are not those of daily life.... A character in a novel is real when it lives in accordance with such laws.... They are real not because they are like ourselves (though they may be like us) but because they are convincing."

Those are just a few insights from a book packed with them. A lot of what Forster outlines are elements we intuitively sense when we read but perhaps don't have the language to express. And that's the power of the book. Reading it is like turning on a light in a dark room — maybe we could feel our way around before, but thanks to Forster's illumination we can now better appreciate what's around us.

READ IF YOU LIKE: Popping open the hood of a car; "How Fiction Works," by James Wood (which is in fact where I discovered "Aspects of the Novel").

On Morrison, by Namwali Serpell Nonfiction, 2026

Serpell's essay collection grew out of her Harvard course on Toni Morrison. Each essay tackles one of Morrison's books, locating a key theme and exploring what it means for Serpell, for Morrison, for the work at hand and for the reader.

If you are a nerd who loves the phrase “let’s unpack this,” then this book is for you. Reading “On Morrison” is like watching an Olympic wrestling match between two people at the top of their game — through witnessing their engagement, the audience gains new appreciation for both.

When Serpell's collection came out earlier this year, she toured the country talking with literary luminaries about both her book and Morrison's magnificently dense novels. Then, in May, she began releasing those discussions as a podcast called "Passages: On Morrison," which I avidly recommend to accompany her book.

A recent episode with the New Yorker critic Vinson Cunningham captures why I love this show.

While unpacking a passage from the end of “Beloved,” Serpell confesses: “This line, it’s always puzzled me” and then she offers her theory of the sentence to Cunningham.

It's a charming and disarming moment. How often do we get to hear people explain what they don't know, what they don't fully understand? To watch someone present this confusion to someone else and talk through it in an attempt to understand?

Here, then, is a scholar not lecturing, not schooling, not directing, but talking, riffing, work-shopping. Come for the scholarship but stay for the excellent model of a rigorous but deeply human reading practice. Like the book, the podcast is a wonderful dive into Morrison's work, one that helped me better understand what the iconic author was up to — but it is also an incredible showcase of what it means not just to read a text but to step back and share it.

READ IF YOU LIKE: Solving puzzles with friends; "A Swim in the Pond in the Rain," by George Saunders; Toni Morrison, obviously.

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QA Report - The New York Times Book Review - 30.08.2026.pdf

Pipeline

• Extraction route: mineru-vlm
• extraction_route=mineru-vlm
• Translation chunks: 31
• Extraction warnings:
• [MINERU-VLM] Successfully extracted via MinerU VLM (batch: 899785e5-da2e-4f48-89ca-2e11f1578e66)

Non-model Checks

• WARNING: Missing proper nouns in translation: Ace The, African American, Alexander Hamilton, Alexandra Jacobs

Children, Amherst College, An American Memoir, And Meyer, Another American, Appalachian Mountains, At Horace Mann

Model QA

经过严格审核，本次翻译质量较高，但在个别细节上存在需要修正的问题。以下是审核报告：

═══ 审核报告 ═══

1. [WARNING] 术语翻译不统一/不准确 - 原文：The New York Times Games - 译文：纽约时报游戏 (The New York Times Games) $\rightarrow$ 随后在正文中出现 纽约时报游戏 App。 - 问题：建议统一为“纽约时报游戏”或保留英文品牌名。此外，The Morning 译为 The Morning（未翻译），建议译为《早报》或保持一致性。

2. [WARNING] 译文生硬/不自然 - 原文：The events shaping our world, delivered daily. - 译文：塑造我们世界的事件，每日呈递。 - 问题：典型的翻译腔。在报纸广告语境下，建议改为“每日呈递，洞察塑造世界的事件”或“每日为您呈报塑造世界的重大事件”。（译文中已标注 [⚠ 低质量翻译]，审核确认该标注正确）。

3. [WARNING] 细节漏译/误译 - 原文：The 109-year-old Drama Book Shop nearly had to leave the stage in 2019 after being hit with the horrible one-two punch of a burst pipe and a massive rent hike. - 译文：这家拥有 109 年历史的戏剧书店在 2019 年几乎被迫“谢幕”，因为它接连遭受了水管爆裂和租金大幅上涨的双重打击。 - 核查：翻译准确，但原文 one-two punch（组合拳）的意象在译文中被弱化为“双重打击”，虽不影响理解，但建议保留其力度。

4. [SOURCE_OCR] 数字/符号异常 - 原文：![](images / de579f780ecce9542dd640℃81cd477cac5cfdbce636bdf4ddc2d0dd2f445a9b5.jpg) - 译文：![](images / de579f780ecce9542dd640℃81cd477cac5cfdbce636bdf4ddc2d0dd2f445a9b5.jpg) - 问题：图片路径中出现了 ℃ 符号，这显然是 OCR 识别错误（将字母或数字误认为摄氏度符号）。此问题根源在源文，不计入翻译错误。

5. [FALSE_POSITIVE] 幻觉核查 - 核查项：译文中提到的 《巴布斯·迪翁那野野而高贵的死亡》 以及 《我们将见证你的流血》。 - 核查步骤：在“抽样原文”中搜索 $\rightarrow$ 匹配到 The Savage, Noble Death of Babs Dionne 和 WE WILL SEE YOU BLEED。 - 结论：内容真实，非幻觉。

---

═══ 最终结论 ═══

未发现阻塞性问题（No Blocking Issue Found）。 译文完整，数字量级准确，无交付标签残留，且正确过滤了非新闻版面内容。上述 [WARNING] 仅为润色建议，不影响整体交付。