Autumnal Reads

Book recommendations for the voracious, or at least sporadic, reader.

Labor icon Joe Hill gets a full write-up in William Adler's new biography.

Image credit: Courtesy Bloomsbury Publishing

Recommended by the Editor

A Case for Books

Authors Out Loud

By: Morgan Halaska

If there was ever a season for reading, it would be fall. Unlike summer, staying inside on a “nice” day isn’t something to be ashamed of—at least if you have the windows open.

So here’s our suggestion: close your doors and open one of these books:

+ The Man Who Never Died: The Life, Times, and Legacy of Joe Hill, American Labor Icon is the first full-scale biography of the legendary songwriter and labor martyr. The book, by William M. Adler, presents never-before-published documentary evidence that suggests Hill was innocent of a crime for which he was executed and points to the guilt of another man. (Bonus: Adler will be joined by singer and storyteller John Berquist at Magers and Quinn on Thursday, Sept. 29 at 7:30 p.m. to discuss the book; the event is Literary Punch Card-worthy).  

+ Larry Watson’s latest novel, American Boy, comes out in late October. A staple to Milkweed Editions, Watson gives Montana 1948 a run for its money with his latest tale of unsettling events set in Minnesota 1962.

+ For instant literary gratification, read Haruki Murakami’s latest short story, “Town of Cats,” which was published in The New Yorker earlier this month. The story goes hand-in-hand with Murakami’s upcoming novel 1Q84—a dystopia to rival George Orwell’s—which Knopf will publish in late October.

+ One of Coffee House Press’ latest releases, Glass, by Sam Savage, tells the stream-of-consciousness tale of a widowed woman who serves as an unreliable narrator. The Star Tribune called it “Remarkably, strangely, readable” in their recent review.

+ Not all good writing comes after a chapter heading. Coffee House Press’ latest poetry book, Whorled, by Ed Bok Lee, comes highly recommended. According to Coffe House’s description, the book asks what it means “to be a Global Citizen in an era of constant war, rampant industrialization, and ever-advancing technology?” Good question.

+ The fascination with the Kennedy family curse remains strong nearly 50 years after JFK’s assassination. Stephen King’s book, 11/22/63, due out on Nov. 8, tells a sci-fi tale of a time traveler who goes back to this fated day in history. Jackie O, similarly, has a reserved seat in our nation’s history. Interviews from 1964 with the first lady also surfaced earlier this year and are now documented in the Jacqueline Kennedy: Historic Conversations on Life with John F. Kennedy, released in September.

+ Chuck Palahniuk tells the twisted story of an abandoned 11-year-old girl who takes a trip to hell after overdosing on marijuana in his new book, Damned, due out on Oct. 18. Read it by Nov. 17, when Palahniuk appears as the last author to grace the Fitzgerald Theater in the author series Talking Volumes.

+ Photographer Mark Seeley’s new book, Voyageur Skies: Weather and the Wilderness in Minnesota's National Park, is particularly apropos given the recent fires that have ravaged the Boundary Waters Canoe Area. The book looks at how climate and weather have shaped Voyageurs National Park.