2/1/22The Method tells the story of the 20th century’s most controversial acting practiceIsaac Butler's history chronicles the infamous Method style of acting—from Stanislavski to the devotees who…ByRien FertelPublishedFebruary 1, 2022
1/24/22Camera Man chronicles the extraordinary life and work of Buster KeatonDana Stevens’ Camera Man is not just a terrific starting place for the budding Busterphile; the biography also tells…ByRien FertelPublishedJanuary 24, 2022
12/15/21The A.V. Club’s 15 favorite books of 2021We hope you like novels, because we've got a bunch of themByLaura Adamczyk, Erin Somers, Bradley Babendir, Danette Chavez, Alex McLevy, and Rien FertelPublishedDecember 15, 2021
11/29/21All the best stories, trivia, and tidbits from Mel Brooks’ memoir, All About Me!Mel Brooks’ memoir is a film-by-film, joke-by-joke chronicle of the legendary director and producer’s life and careerByRien FertelPublishedNovember 29, 2021
9/7/21Beautiful World, Where Are You is Sally Rooney’s best novel yetRooney treads familiar ground in her third novel, but her writing—like her characters—has maturedByRien FertelPublishedSeptember 7, 2021
7/8/21The A.V. Club’s favorite books of 2021 so farTwo novels in translation and two Rachels (Cusk and Kushner) crack our top 10ByLaura Adamczyk, Danette Chavez, Rien Fertel, and Ashley NaftulePublishedJuly 8, 2021
6/21/21The Storm Is Upon Us ventures into the eye of QAnonAuthor Mike Rothschild is less interested with uncovering the identity—or identities—of Q than he is with tracing…ByRien FertelPublishedJune 21, 2021
2/22/21The South got something to say in Chronicling Stankonia“It’s like this though,” André Benjamin nervously shouted over the chorus of boos. “I’m tired of close-minded folks,…ByRien FertelPublishedFebruary 22, 2021
12/16/20The A.V. Club’s 15 favorite books of 2020A certain amount of escapism through books would have been more than understandable in 2020. (And by “a certain…ByLaura Adamczyk, Danette Chavez, Alex McLevy, Randall Colburn, Rien Fertel, Samantha Nelson, Ashley Naftule, Bradley Babendir, and Ines BellinaPublishedDecember 16, 2020
10/19/20The lights go out in Don DeLillo’s familiar yet slight The SilenceOver the past half-century, Don DeLillo has explored, in fiction that often feels presciently real, “the strangest,…ByRien FertelPublishedOctober 19, 2020
8/25/20Like H Is For Hawk before it, Helen Macdonald’s Vesper Flights soarsThere’s a scene in the first essay of Helen Macdonald’s Vesper Flights that should make any nature lover vibrate…ByRien FertelPublishedAugust 25, 2020
7/22/20“Who is Alex Trebek?” and 6 other questions asked and answered by the Jeopardy host’s memoirIn March 2019, when Alex Trebek shared his diagnosis of stage IV pancreatic cancer, it seemed the entire world…ByRien FertelPublishedJuly 22, 2020
7/7/20From infectious diseases to fake news, The Rules Of Contagion examines how things spread“If you’ve seen one pandemic,” epidemiologists like to joke, “you’ve seen... one pandemic.” Influenza strains and…ByRien FertelPublishedJuly 7, 2020
7/7/207 books from the first half of 2020 that more people should readThe coronavirus pandemic and its attendant shutdown has had a way of warping one’s sense of time—alternately making…ByLaura Adamczyk, Taylor Moore, Rien Fertel, and Samantha NelsonPublishedJuly 7, 2020
5/5/20Samanta Schweblin’s Little Eyes sees the dark side of social connectivityIn Samanta Schweblin’s new novel, Little Eyes, kentukis are the year’s must-have smart device. “Nothing more than a…ByRien FertelPublishedMay 5, 2020
4/6/20Final Draft assembles the best of David Carr, a reporter who pulled no punchesIt’s no doubt hackneyed to wish that David Carr were still around, writing us through these strange and often…ByRien FertelPublishedApril 6, 2020
3/23/20Cool Town reconstructs the musical hotbed that birthed R.E.M., The B-52s, and Neutral Milk HotelThe modern alternative music scene began, most appropriately, at a house party on Valentine’s Day, 1977. The…ByRien FertelPublishedMarch 23, 2020
2/3/20The Big Goodbye asks, “Why can’t we forget Chinatown?”“Forget it, Jake. It’s Chinatown.”ByRien FertelPublishedFebruary 3, 2020
10/31/19A Marvelous Life doesn’t sugarcoat the enthralling origin story of Stan LeeHe plays a juror in the made-for-TV film The Trial Of The Incredible Hulk (1989) and a hot dog vendor in the…ByRien FertelPublishedOctober 31, 2019
10/7/19With Grand Union, Zadie Smith proves she’s a master of short stories, tooTwo men arrive in a village by foot. Though sometimes they arrive in a car, or a tank, or by air. They arrive at…ByRien FertelPublishedOctober 7, 2019