If God hadn’t put a halt to the proceedings, would Abraham have actually sacrificed Isaac? If Portia hadn’t told Shylock that his pound of flesh couldn’t include even one drop of blood, would he have really killed Antonio?　I’ve never thought to ask those questions. But Howard Jacobson does, in his stimulating -- if uneven -- novel “Shylock is My Name,” a retelling of Shakespeare’s “The Merchant of Venice.” It joins Jeanette Winterson’s take on “The Winter’s Tale,” becoming the second published n

It is just possible that despite or maybe because of buffoonish plots, outlandish characters and slapstick comedy, Tim Dorsey’s novels may be masquerading for carefully researched history lessons about Florida."Coconut Cowboy" by Tim Dorsey (Morrow)　Make no mistake, “Coconut Cowboy” is just as weird and funny and silly as Dorsey’s other 19 novels about Serge A. Storms, the serial killer who is the ultimate defender of Florida and scourge of bad behavior. But Serge’s love for Florida has him cons

By Molly Born　Pittsburgh Post-GazetteAt first Bryan Stevenson was conflicted about whether writing a book on his life’s work was the best use of his time.Since 1989 the lawyer and activist has led the Equal Justice Initiative, the Alabama legal practice he founded, which represents death row prisoners, juvenile offenders sent to adult prisons and the wrongfully convicted.“I felt like if more people saw what I see on a regular basis, they would think differently about those issues, and that is ul

By Sasha Frere-Jones　Los Angeles TimesM.I.A.‘s single, “Borders,” isn’t the official theme song for journalist Atossa Araxia Abrahamian‘s nonfiction debut, “The Cosmopolites” (Columbia Global Reports), but we can pretend it is. In the first verse, M.I.A. asks, “Borders -- what’s up with that?” “The Cosmopolites” is one answer.Both the book and the song are reactions to the movement of populations, the increasingly permeable divisions among states. This condition bridges classes and countries: It

Unbridled power and relentless revenge converge in the exciting, tightly plotted “The Short Drop,” which launches a new series about former computer hacker Gibson Vaughn.　Matthew FitzSimmons delivers an assured, action-packed debut that features strong shades of the political thriller. Fans of Lee Child, Gregg Hurwitz and Harlan Coben will find much to like in “The Short Drop.”"The Short Drop" By Matthew FitzSimmons(Thomas & Mercer)　On the surface, Gibson appears to be the quintessential thrille

For legions of Catholics, and not a few church bureaucrats, the supernatural is as real and present as it was for their medieval forebears.　In “The Vatican Prophecies: Investigating Supernatural Signs, Apparitions and Miracles in the Modern Age,” veteran Catholic journalist John Thavis explores their world of Marian apparitions, relics, exorcisms, doomsday visions and other purported encounters with the supernatural."The Vatican Prophecies: Investigating Supernatural Signs, Apparitions and Mirac

“The Pirate,” the second installment of Jon Gnarr‘s childhood memoir trilogy, is essentially an Icelandic-punk version of “Catcher in the Rye.” Rather than Holden Caulfield wandering the streets of New York looking for someone who is not a phony, Gnarr narrates in pseudo-stream-of-consciousness style through his never-ending search for real punks in Iceland."The Pirate" By Jon Gnarr, Translated by Lytton Smith (Deep Vellum)　Gnarr was diagnosed at a young age with an intellectual disability cause

SALEM, Mass. (AP) --  A psalm book once owned by a judge in the Salem witch trials is being sold.The previously unknown seventh edition of "The Bay Psalm Book" that once belonged to Jonathan Corwin could sell for $40,000 when it is auctioned on Thursday by Swann Auction Galleries. This 2015 photo provided by Swann Auction Galleries shows a page of the seventh edition of “The Bay Psalm Book” that once belonged to Jonathan Corwin. Corwin was a judge during the 1692 Salem witch trials. (Yonhap)Corw

An attorney represents a man accused of committing multiple homicides and who also happens to be her ex-fiance in Alafair Burke’s latest page-turner, “The Ex.”　Olivia Randall, a criminal defense attorney in New York, receives an urgent phone call from a teenage girl who says she needs her help. She‘s the daughter of Olivia’s ex-fiance, Jack Harris.   "The Ex" By Alafair Burke (Harper)　Harris is an acclaimed writer who lost his wife in a public shooting three years earlier and is now raising his

Gus Murphy was looking forward to retirement after a distinguished career as a Long Island policeman, but when his son dropped dead of an undiagnosed heart defect during a pickup basketball game, Gus’s life all but ended, too.　That‘s when Tommy Delcamino, a small-time crook Gus used to arrest, shows up looking for help. Tommy’s son is dead, too, gunned down in a mysterious murder the Suffolk County police show little interest in solving. "Where It Hurts" By Reed Farrel Coleman (G.P. Putnam‘s Son

China is the world’s second largest economy. It has the potential to catch up and speed past the U.S., the world’s largest economy, in the near future.　China has world-class information technology brands such as Alibaba, Huawei and Xiaomi that have stung the nerves of Google and Samsung. But Kim Man-gi asks, “Do people really know China?” and gives an in-depth and comprehensive view of the country in his new book “Why I Study China.” "Why I Study China" By Kim Man-gi (Dasan Books)　Dubbed the “Ch

NEW YORK (AP) - Marie Kondo is back.　Author of the international best-seller "The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up" (Ten Speed Press, 2014), Kondo became famous for advising readers how to transform their lives by sifting through their belongings one by one, embracing those that "spark joy" and bidding a fond but hasty farewell to the rest.　Her new book, "Spark Joy: an Illustrated Master Class on the Art of Organizing and Tidying Up" (Ten Speed), provides illustrations and more detail. Marie Ko

LONDON (AFP) - Britain‘s Frances Hardinge became the first children’s author since Philip Pullman 14 years ago to win the prestigious Costa Book of the Year award in London Tuesday.　Hardinge‘s “The Lie Tree” is a 19th century detective novel in which teenager Faith tries to uncover the truth about her father’s mysterious death. Frances Hardinge poses for photographs with her book ”The Lie Tree“ at the Costa Book Awards in London, Tuesday. (AP-Yonhap)　She saw off competition from rivals including

Bookstores are evolving to rekindle interest in books in the digital age