Book #146 of 2021: True or False: A CIA Analyst’s Guide to Spotting Fake News by Cindy L. Otis Despite the how-to title, this book is mostly a popular history of misinformation — and a spotty and jumbled one at that. Author Cindy L. Otis jumps from Jack the Ripper to Emperor Justinian to America’s …
Author Archives: Joe Kessler
Book Review: The Invasion by K. A. Applegate
Book #145 of 2021: The Invasion by K. A. Applegate (Animorphs #1) At the start of this long-overdue series reread, I am struck by how well the first Animorphs book holds up decades on, both from the perspective of a now-older reader and as a cultural artifact removed from its original pre-9/11 context. (The last …
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Book Review: A Desolation Called Peace by Arkady Martine
Book #144 of 2021: A Desolation Called Peace by Arkady Martine (Teixcalaan #2) This sci-fi sequel has a broader scope than its Hugo-winning predecessor, which is both a blessing and a curse. Additional viewpoint characters help flesh out the Aztec-inspired Teixcalaan culture beyond Mahit’s outsider perspective, and the court intrigue is joined by some delightful …
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Book Review: The Fire Next Time by James Baldwin
Book #143 of 2021: The Fire Next Time by James Baldwin This 1963 title has long been on my radar as a foundational text of antiracism, and you can definitely see a throughline from its essay “My Dungeon Shook: Letter to my Nephew on the One Hundredth Anniversary of the Emancipation” to Ta-Nehisi Coates writing …
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Book Review: Red Glove by Holly Black
Book #142 of 2021: Red Glove by Holly Black (The Curse Workers #2) I’m still not comfortable with the ethical implications of the memory and emotion manipulation magic in the Curse Workers setting, but I like how this sequel finds the hero himself grappling with the problematic nature of his family’s abilities as well. At …
TV Review: Killing Eve, season 3
TV #47 of 2021: Killing Eve, season 3 After a strong opening stretch that set up a compelling queer romance amid its bleak comedy, this series has really plummeted in quality, with this latest run by far its weakest yet. The open questions about character loyalties that were once intriguing have never been satisfactorily answered, …
Book Review: Riot Baby by Tochi Onyebuchi
Book #141 of 2021: Riot Baby by Tochi Onyebuchi This novella follows its protagonist from his birth during the Rodney King riots through childhood, falling in with the local gang, an eight-year prison sentence, and ultimately parole in a near-future still plagued with contemporary social problems, while also featuring periodic glances at his older sister’s …
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Book Review: The A.B.C. Murders by Agatha Christie
Book #140 of 2021: The A.B.C. Murders by Agatha Christie (Hercule Poirot #13) A delightful change of pace for the clever Belgian detective, finding him matching wits with a serial killer who sends him taunting letters before each successive murder. It’s a surprisingly modern premise from author Agatha Christie, but unlike the similarly divergent The …
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TV Review: The Americans, season 3
TV #46 of 2021: The Americans, season 3 Another strong year of the deep-cover Cold War drama, albeit without as clear a throughline in thematic material or plot. Season one was largely focused on parallels between the Jennings marriage and its accompanying spy partnership, and the next one turned to the protagonists’ role as parents, …
TV Review: Saturday Night Live, season 46
TV #45 of 2021: Saturday Night Live, season 46 I may be grading on a curve here, but the erstwhile sketch comedy series bounced back pretty strong from (or rather, during) COVID-19. Following the few “SNL at Home” episodes that closed out the past season, it was sort of a relief to see the gang …
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The Lesser Joke: book reviews and more 