by Strobe Witherspoon ‧ RELEASE DATE: April 21, 2021
A strikingly original book that astutely captures an era of division.
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In Witherspoon’s novel, a writer catalogs the outrage that met the impending publication of his latest book.
Strobe Witherspoon, who shares a name with the author of this novel, is soon to publish a new book, FLOTUS: A Memoir, a satirical account of the first lady’s journey to fame. (FLOTUS is clearly inspired by Melania Trump’s life, though neither her name nor her husband’s is ever mentioned in Witherspoon’s account.) Strobe’s book dramatizes the first lady’s rocky marriage to her presidential husband, his “deviant sexual behavior,” and a possible plot on his life in which some speculate she was involved. The response to the book—even before anyone has read it—is frenzied. Some interpret Strobe’s work as thinly disguised nonfiction and theorize that the writer, once a CIA analyst, is drawing on classified information. A boycott of the book is organized, a chapter is leaked, and journalists dig deep into Strobe’s troubled past in pursuit of information that might discredit him. Initially, his publisher, VITAL Books, vigorously defends him but then shows signs of wavering. Witherspoon’s eclectic work effectively documents the feverish public reaction as a “compendium” of the “Online Outrage Fiesta,” or “OOF,” which gives the novel its title. He tackles a broad spectrum of media, including comically scathing excerpts from tweets, podcasts, blogs, and even academic journals investigating “infodemics” and “discordant narratives,” and he also keenly exposes the ways in which Strobe, the character, is implicated in his own online assault due to his obsessive attachment to public life. However, the format, though inventive, can become repetitive and somewhat exhausting—something that even the author seems to concede toward the end of the book: “Congratulations to those who made it this far. Or should I say condolences?” Nevertheless, this is an innovative literary experiment that supplies a thoughtful commentary on the “discourse virus” of our age.
A strikingly original book that astutely captures an era of division.Pub Date: April 21, 2021
ISBN: N/A
Page Count: 282
Publisher: Marginal Books
Review Posted Online: April 9, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2021
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
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by Colleen Hoover ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 18, 2022
Through palpable tension balanced with glimmers of hope, Hoover beautifully captures the heartbreak and joy of starting over.
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New York Times Bestseller
The sequel to It Ends With Us (2016) shows the aftermath of domestic violence through the eyes of a single mother.
Lily Bloom is still running a flower shop; her abusive ex-husband, Ryle Kincaid, is still a surgeon. But now they’re co-parenting a daughter, Emerson, who's almost a year old. Lily won’t send Emerson to her father’s house overnight until she’s old enough to talk—“So she can tell me if something happens”—but she doesn’t want to fight for full custody lest it become an expensive legal drama or, worse, a physical fight. When Lily runs into Atlas Corrigan, a childhood friend who also came from an abusive family, she hopes their friendship can blossom into love. (For new readers, their history unfolds in heartfelt diary entries that Lily addresses to Finding Nemo star Ellen DeGeneres as she considers how Atlas was a calming presence during her turbulent childhood.) Atlas, who is single and running a restaurant, feels the same way. But even though she’s divorced, Lily isn’t exactly free. Behind Ryle’s veneer of civility are his jealousy and resentment. Lily has to plan her dates carefully to avoid a confrontation. Meanwhile, Atlas’ mother returns with shocking news. In between, Lily and Atlas steal away for romantic moments that are even sweeter for their authenticity as Lily struggles with child care, breastfeeding, and running a business while trying to find time for herself.
Through palpable tension balanced with glimmers of hope, Hoover beautifully captures the heartbreak and joy of starting over.Pub Date: Oct. 18, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-668-00122-6
Page Count: 352
Publisher: Atria
Review Posted Online: July 26, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2022
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SEEN & HEARD
SEEN & HEARD
by Jodi Picoult ‧ RELEASE DATE: Aug. 20, 2024
A vibrant tale of a remarkable woman.
Who was Shakespeare?
Move over, Earl of Oxford and Francis Bacon: There’s another contender for the true author of plays attributed to the bard of Stratford—Emilia Bassano, a clever, outspoken, educated woman who takes center stage in Picoult’s spirited novel. Of Italian heritage, from a family of court musicians, Emilia was a hidden Jew and the courtesan of a much older nobleman who vetted plays to be performed for Queen Elizabeth. She was well traveled—unlike Shakespeare, she visited Italy and Denmark, where, Picoult imagines, she may have met Rosencrantz and Guildenstern—and was familiar with court intrigue and English law. “Every gap in Shakespeare’s life or knowledge that has had to be explained away by scholars, she somehow fills,” Picoult writes. Encouraged by her lover, Emilia wrote plays and poetry, but 16th-century England was not ready for a female writer. Picoult interweaves Emilia’s story with that of her descendant Melina Green, an aspiring playwright, who encounters the same sexist barriers to making herself heard that Emilia faced. In alternating chapters, Picoult follows Melina’s frustrated efforts to get a play produced—a play about Emilia, who Melina is certain sold her work to Shakespeare. Melina’s play, By Any Other Name, “wasn’t meant to be a fiction; it was meant to be the resurrection of an erasure.” Picoult creates a richly detailed portrait of daily life in Elizabethan England, from sumptuous castles to seedy hovels. Melina’s story is less vivid: Where Emilia found support from the witty Christopher Marlowe, Melina has a fashion-loving gay roommate; where Emilia faces the ravages of repeated outbreaks of plague, for Melina, Covid-19 occurs largely offstage; where Emilia has a passionate affair with the adoring Earl of Southampton, Melina’s lover is an awkward New York Times theater critic. It’s Emilia’s story, and Picoult lovingly brings her to life.
A vibrant tale of a remarkable woman.Pub Date: Aug. 20, 2024
ISBN: 9780593497210
Page Count: 544
Publisher: Ballantine
Review Posted Online: June 15, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2024
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by Jodi Picoult
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by Jodi Picoult
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