Books
Jill Lepore Discusses New Book ‘We the People: A History of the U.S. Constitution’ and the Future of American Democracy
On Oct. 6, First Parish Church was packed for Jill Lepore’s talk on her new book, “We the People: A History of the U.S. Constitution.”
‘The House of Beauty’ Review: A Revitalizing Revision of a Capitalist Crisis
“The House of Beauty” offers comfort and inspiration for readers between its harrowing yet necessary anecdotes and statistics.
Professor Steve Ramirez Talks Memory Manipulation, Loss, and Grief at Harvard Science Book Talk
Boston University professor Steve Ramirez promoted his new book, which dives into his experiences with grief after the death of his research partner and explores the science of memory manipulation, in the Science Center on Monday.
Author Sam Sussman Talks ‘Boy from the North Country’ and Why Art is Larger than Life at Porter Square Books
On Oct. 21, debut author Sam Sussman visited Porter Square Books to discuss his novel “Boy from the North Country.”
Steven Pinker Explains What Happens When Everyone Knows That Everyone Knows
On Sept. 29, Harvard Professor Steven Pinker sat down at the First Parish Church to discuss his most recent book on common knowledge.
‘The Museum of Unnatural Histories’ Review: A Disappointing Daze of Dissociative Tales
“The Museum of Unnatural Histories” takes readers on a confusing, 104-page journey through a disjointed collection of times and spaces.
‘The Magician of Tiger Castle’ Review: Louis Sachar’s Absurdly Intuitive Fairytale for Adults
“The Magician of Tiger Castle” is a fairytale that asks the question: When do I change for the better, even if it goes against who I’ve always been?
Bestselling Author Mary Roach Encourages Humor and Transparency In Biotech
Mary Roach encouraged the use of humor to break down barriers in medical discourse while promoting her new book “Replaceable You: Adventures in Human Anatomy” at a Harvard Science Book Talk Wednesday evening.
At Lovestruck Books’ ‘Alchemised’ Release Party, Readers Gather to Celebrate the Fanfiction-Turned-Novel
Atmospheric and enchanting, the “Alchemised” release party allowed a diverse audience to come together and celebrate.
Read with the Performative Man: A Defense of Public Reading
Performative reading embodies the double-edged nature of college life: at once private and public, intimate and staged, raw and strategic.
At Harvard Talk, World Wide Web Inventor Tim Berners-Lee Says Today’s Internet Exploits Users for Data
Tim Berners-Lee, the inventor the World Wide Web, criticized the state of the internet today for turning users into “consumable products” in a talk in Harvard Square on Wednesday evening about his recently released memoir.
Primatologist Christine Webb Criticizes ‘Human Exceptionalism’ in Science at Harvard Talk
Primatologist Christine Webb argued at a Harvard talk on Tuesday that modern science is often skewed by “human exceptionalism."
Author Profile: Sarah Aziza on Crisis Reporting and the Music of the Book
As the daughter of a Palestinian refugee father, books and oral storytelling are an important way for Sarah Aziza to hold onto her past.
‘Ruth’ Review: A Ruthless Critique of Kate Riley’s Christian Communist Novel
In "Ruth," the extensive worldbuilding is to the detriment of Riley’s main character, whose development Riley neglects as a result.
‘Shakespeare Was a Bit of a Fanboy’: The Confluence of History and Literature in Marie Rutkoski’s Fiction
Marie Rutkoski has written multiple New York Times bestselling novels that differ vastly in genre, geographic location, and time period.
‘Conscious of Language and Power’: Katie Kitamura on the Physical Life of Words
One book at a time, Katie Kitamura is devising a theory on how to articulate what is undefinable.
‘Good and Evil and Other Stories’ Review: A Sextet of Living and Losing
What the stories leave unsaid proves to be the most disturbing of all, inflicting an unnerving freedom on readers’ minds and emotions.
Harvard Authors Profile: Youmna M. Chamieh ’21-’22 on How to Look at the World Sideways
Comfortability with ambiguity bleeds into Chamieh’s writing; her empathy as she searches for reconciliation between diverging narratives is palpable.
‘Good Girl’ Review: Emotional Excess and Existentialism
“Good Girl” is an addictive immersion into the gaudy world of Berlin nightlife, weaving together a teenager’s hazy memories with keen observations on art.
‘The Dream Hotel’ Review: Deeply Philosophical But Exaggeratedly Didactic
“The Dream Hotel” offers an immersive although sometimes overly didactic exploration of what it means when all of our actions are tracked.
‘Notes on Infinity’ Review: In Search of Immortality — At Harvard
“Notes on Infinity" is a solid story of a biotech start-up cultivated in the petri dish of ambition that is Harvard.
‘Is a River Alive?’ Review: A Stilted Love Letter to the Natural World
Ecological, nonfiction work "Is A River Alive?" explores the animacy and integrity of nature, but suffers from awkward pseudo-poetic statements.
Harvard University Press Employees Say Director Drove Down Acquisitions and Morale
Since George T. Andreou ’87 became the press’s director in 2017, staff alleged — in interviews, union surveys, and letters to Harvard officials — that he belittled employees and mismanaged the publishing house.
Harvard Authors Profile: Austin E. Taylor ’21 on Her Debut Novel, Women in STEM, and Maine Roots
Austin E. Taylor ’21 — former Harvard double concentrator, Mainer, author, and future Stanford law student — is interested in empathy.
Harvard Authors Profile: Soman Chainani ’01 on Reimagining Fairy Tales for a New Generation
Soman S. Chainani ’01 is best known for the popular fantasy book series “The School for Good and Evil,” spanning eight books between 2013 and 2023.