Word: kirkus
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...Catholic" (Houghton Mifflin; July 16), Garry Wills explains why he has chosen to remain a Catholic, despite his many doubts about Church doctrine. Kirkus is reverent, giving the book a starred review. "The prolific historian offers a timely confession of faith and an apology in the true sense of the term. Wills is not just any Catholic: he studied for the priesthood, has worked in Jesuit and papal archives, and has written many books on moral matters and the intersection of politics and religion. For having dared question the Church's positions on matters of doctrine great and small...
...FROM RUSSO WITH LOVE: On July 16, Knopf will publish "The Whore's Child: and Other Stories" by Richard Russo, who won a Pulitzer Prize last year for "Empire Falls." Kirkus and PW swoon, giving the book starred reviews. Says Kirkus, "Readers who loved such a roomy, generously plotted, and detailed novel as the Pulitzer-winning 'Empire Falls' won't be able to resist this first collection of seven stories by the Maine novelist...a wonderful distillation of Russo's gifts for crystal-clear narration, subtle character portrayal, and irrepressible humor... There may be more important writers around, but none...
...Petersen Kennedy, the president of Penguin Putnam: "I feel compelled to write you about Iain Pears' brilliant new novel. In the midst of everyone in the arts questioning what they're doing, every person questioning the world we live in, this book reminded me of why it all matters." Kirkus agrees, giving the book a starred review. "A brilliantly constructed historical novel...This imposingly intricate novel begins slowly, makes heavy demands on the reader, and rises to a stunningly dramatic crescendo. Pears has leapt to a new level, creating a novel of ideas even more suspenseful and revelatory than...
...HOBNOBBING WITH THE SNOBS: Kirkus is amused by "Snobbery: The American Version" by Joseph Epstein (Houghton Mifflin; July 9). "Clever, prolific Epstein turns his wit to the pernicious, universal failing previously addressed by such worthies as Edith Wharton, Tom Wolfe, Russell Lynes, and even Father Mencken, among countless others. Dissecting snobbery in all its current manifestations, Epstein (English/Northwestern) examines the ways in which people who pursue lives of invidious comparison may judge you (and surely find you wanting) in matters of employment, education, income, affiliations, intellectual interests, spouse(s), ethnicity, favored comestibles, politics, celebrity, dogs and not least progeny...
...VANITY PRESS: Toby Young details his belly flop in the New York journalism pool in "How to Lose Friends and Alienate People" (Da Capo; July 4). Kirkus enjoys the dish. "Kiss-and-tell memoir of Young's ill-fated stint as contributing editor at Vanity Fair magazine... This skewering of celebrity worship at the nation's leading 'upscale supermarket tabloid' bears a distinct resemblance to shooting fish in a barrel; nonetheless, Young's language is energetic and engaging, making one wish (along with his father, apparently) that he'd find a worthier subject. Enjoyably bitchy specifics of Cond? Nast culture...