Among the outstanding titles reviewed in this week's issue are Final Cut by comics legend Charles Burns, whose surreal and astute new graphic novel depicts teens' creative experimentations with storytelling through film; and Rift in Time by lawyer and human rights activist Raja Shehadeh, who poignantly blends family history with hope for the future of Palestine; as well as The Elements of Marie Curie by Dava Sobel, who "paints a human portrait not of an isolated genius, but of a woman who existed in and built scientific community." Meanwhile, Nose to Nose by Thyra Heder is a "smart, funny, and playful picture book" about "a massive canine misunderstanding" when a new pooch tries to break the ice with his neighbors.
In The Writer's Life, acclaimed translator and novelist Anton Hur discusses his work on Korean author Sung-il Kim's epic high fantasy, a genre Hur had never worked in previously but quickly grew to adore as he "focused on creating the right author's voice in English."