Reviews
1187 results
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A Century of Music Under the Stars: A History of the Mann Center of the Performing Arts and Robin Hood Dell, by Jack McCarthy
A comprehensive history of one of Philly’s best music venues
The Robin Hood Dell, opened in 1930, was the start of the institution we know today as the Highmark Mann Center for the Performing Arts. A new book by Jack McCarthy charts the notable Philly venue’s history. Stephen Silver reviews.
Reviews
4 minute read
Hidden River, by Sara Lippmann
The silent traumas that determine the flow of our lives
A new novel from Sara Lippman follows a young woman who grows up in the Philly burbs, and then faces the secrets of her teenage years 20 years later. Emma Riverso reviews.
Reviews
2 minute read
Funeral of Lies, by A.E.S. O’Neill
In Philly politics, everyone gets their hands dirty
Philly novelist A.E.S. O’Neill’s latest thriller dives into the world of Philly politics. A bitter New York PR executive with a loose relationship to the truth comes home to manage his naïve and charismatic uncle’s mayoral run. Rob Laymon reviews.
Reviews
4 minute read
And the Ancestors Sing, by Radha Lin Chaddah
A Philly physician-turned-author explores the HIV/AIDS epidemic in China
In her debut novel And the Ancestors Sing, Philly author Radha Lin Chaddah tackles a sweeping multigenerational tale set in China after the Cultural Revolution, including the plasma economy and its role in an HIV epidemic. Krista Mar reviews.
Reviews
4 minute read
The Purity Culture Recovery Guide: The Shame-Free Sex Education You Deserve, by Erica Smith
Reassuring support for a sex-positive pledge
Philly-based sex educator Erica Smith brings her passion for shame-free knowledge to her new book, The Purity Culture Recovery Guide, building on her popular platform for those recovering from high-control religion. Anndee Hochman reviews.
Reviews
6 minute read
Mother Tongue: A Memoir, by Sara Nović
“Language is love code”
Philly author Sara Nović, whose 2024 novel True Biz was a One Book, One Philadelphia pick, is back with a singular memoir exploring the world of deafness, parenting, adoption, disability, and more. Anndee Hochman reviews.
Reviews
6 minute read
Werewolf Movie, by Stephen St. Francis Decky
An engaging horror novella set in South Jersey and Philadelphia
Local author Stephen S. Francis Decky combines hallucinatory haunting with a fable about Philly-area musicians who meet a supernatural monster disguised as a smooth record-label exec. Kiran Pandey reviews.
Reviews
3 minute read
Parent Trip: Unexpected Roads to Form a Family, by Anndee Hochman
The beloved Inquirer column about Philly families is now a book
For nine years, writer Anndee Hochman told unexpected stories about how families came to be in her popular Inquirer column, The Parent Trip. Now many of those pieces are collected in a new book. Jill Brooke reviews.
Reviews
4 minute read
Philadelphia Quakers and the American Revolution, by Jeffrey A. Denman
Exploring the courage of pacifists and their complex Philadelphia legacy
Revolutionary-era Quakers, spurned by both loyalists and patriots, had to find their own way in 18th-century Philadelphia. A new book dives into their legacy. Rob Laymon reviews.
Reviews
5 minute read
Three Times a Mourner: Personal Essays on Grief and Healing, by Fredricka R. Maister
The transformations of mourning
As she explores three losses at different times in her life, memoirist Fredricka R. Maister reflects on the messy yet transformative power of facing grief in Three Times a Mourner: Personal Essays on Grief and Healing. Olivia J. Baxter reviews.
Reviews
4 minute read