In our afternoon reading: a chat with Perfume Genius, thoughts on AI and aesthetics.
Books of the Month: April 2025
Greetings, friends. It’s April and we’re reading books. Sharply written fiction, incisive nonfiction, and a 70s-style photo novel are all on our list; there are debut books here and new work by old favorites. Here’s a look at 10 of the books we’re most excited to check out this month.
Morning Bites: Stephen Graham Jones’s New Novel, Interviewing Neko Case, Folkloric Fiction, and More
In our morning reading: thoughts on Stephen Graham Jones’s new novel, an interview with Neko Case, and more.
Daryl Gregory on Short Books, Big Ideas, and the History of “Revelator”
Daryl Gregory is not a writer who likes to repeat himself. The paperback edition of his novel Revelator was published earlier this year, and tells a story that involves familial secrets, violent clashes between bootleggers, and a godlike being that lives in isolation. It’s a compelling read, and it’s also a huge stylistic shift from his earlier novel Spoonbenders, about a family of psychics. That, in turn, was wildly different from the horror-tinged We Are All Completely Fine; what they have in common are compelling characters, complex themes, and a haunting quality that’s hard to shake. I spoke with Gregory about his latest book, his thoughts on genre, and what’s next for him.
Afternoon Bites: Daryl Gregory on Southern Gothic, Marie-Helene Bertino on Surrealism, Stephen Graham Jones Revisited, and More
In our afternoon reading: Daryl Gregory on the Southern Gothic, Marie-Helene Bertino on writing the surreal, and more.
Morning Bites: Daryl Gregory’s Latest, Chris Campanioni Interviewed, Matt Bell on Research, and More
In our morning reading: thoughts on Daryl Gregory’s new novel, an interview with Matt Bell, and more.
Morning Bites: Carmen Maria Machado Nonfiction, Yaa Gyasi, Saïd Sayrafiezadeh’s New Collection, De La Soul, and More
In our morning reading: new nonfiction by Carmen Maria Machado, revisiting hip-hop’s history, and more.
Morning Bites: Yelena Moskovich Interviewed, Daryl Gregory’s Latest, Remembering Lauren Berlant, and More
In our morning reading: interviews with Yelena Moskovich and David Leo Rice, thoughts on Daryl Gregory’s new novel, and more.