The Mother’s Day Weekend Update

And before turning to the Sunday papers, the requisite BSP: My newest LA Times Book Review column, focusing on noir fiction’s depiction of artists on the skids, is now up, as is a short review of Sara Paretsky’s slim memoir/manifesto, WRITING IN THE AGE OF SILENCE. At the Baltimore Sun, my newest column is a literary tour of Italy thanks to so many books set in the country that are out this month.

NYTBR: Okay, so on the one hand, I guess the Book Review wanted to get someone genre-friendly to review THE YIDDISH POLICEMEN’S UNION, but Terence Rafferty? The horror columnist? I guess getting a crime writer on board would have been too much to ask. Otherwise, Jerome Groopman prescribes required reading to his patients and others; Andrew Sean Greer tries to make sense of Arthur Phillips’ ghost-like intentions; and Rebecca Stott’s GHOSTWALK gets a good notice from scholar Christopher Benfey.

WaPo Book World: Elizabeth McCracken has much to say on the new Chabon, riding high at #2 on the New York Times bestseller list; Yardley on DeLillo, enough said; and Maureen Corrigan and Kevin Allman collaborate to review new crime fiction by Ken Bruen, Tami Hoag, Lisa Scottoline, Tom Straw, Michele Martinez, Lev Raphael and Reginald Hill.

LATBR: Josh Getlin frames the litblog vs. print review contretemps in greater context; Ed Champion is especially enthusiastic about the latest Murakami novel; Denise Hamilton has her say on Charles McCarry’s newest espionage effort; and Jess Walter explains why Antoine Wilson’s THE INTERLOPER is a must-read (a judgment I wholeheartedly agree with.)

G&M: Simon Houpt finds out why Miriam Toews switched gears from author to actress; Adrian Michael Kelly is not exactly a fan of another triple named author’s debut; and Melissa Fay Greene looks at several accounts of the AIDS crisis here and elsewhere.

Guardian Review: Colm Toibin went in search of the secrets of Aram island; Ursula LeGuin marvels at Donna Leon’s consistent excellence; Kamilla Shamsie finds Helen Oyeyemi has beaten back the sophomore jinx; and Carrie O’Grady’s review of THE POST-BIRTHDAY WORLD illustrates the cross-Atlantic divide; love it here, hate it over there.

Observer: Robin McKie asks what makes a good science book; Viv Groskop finds much to like about Charlotte Mendelson’s new madcap novel; and Adam Mars-Jones is puzzled with Don Delillo’s “masterly polyphonic fizzling”.

The Times: Helen Oyeyemi, I suspect, may grow up to regret this interview;  Laura Simms explains how she got Ishmael Beah a green card – with the rest now history; Marcel Berlins wishes Colin Bateman’s publisher hadn’t dropped the author’s first name from book covers; Penny Perrick almost salivated while reading Joanne Harris’s new food-drenched novel; John Connolly talks at length about his last published novel, THE BOOK OF LOST THINGS; and the UK discovers the Zodiac – and its most obsessed author, Robert Graysmith.

The Scotsman: Anita Amirrezvani prepares for the mega-publication of her debut novel, THE BLOOD OF FLOWERS; Tom Adair tries to get to know Joseph O’Connor as he follows up STAR OF THE SEA with another audacious historical novel; Mark McNay reveals what matters to him most; and insert obligatory Rebus and Ian Rankin piece here.

The Rest:

Maria Alvarez strikes a passionate note for Patricia Highsmith’s novels in the Telegraph. In the same paper, Susanna Yager reviews new thrillers by John Connolly and Sophie Hannah.

Speaking of Connolly, the Independent catches up with him to talk about his new Charlie Parker novel, THE UNQUIET.

The WSJ’s Jeff Trachtenberg engages in a Q&A with Elmore Leonard about his writing longevity, disillusionment with Hollywood and what he’ll do next. And at Newsday, Charles Taylor reviews Leonard’s latest offering, UP IN HONEY’S ROOM.

Oline Cogdill reviews new lighter-fare mysteries by Elaine Viets and Rhonda Pollerto.

David Montgomery reviews the latest in big thrillers by Harlan Coben, Lee Child, David Baldacci, David Ignatius and John Sandford.

The Sydney Morning Herald’s Jason Steger chats with Shane Maloney about the intersection of politics and fiction.

The Arizona Republic’s Kerry Lengel talks to Charlaine Harris on why vampires sell in a big, big way.

Edgar PBO winner Naomi Hirahara gets a very nice writeup in the Rafu Shimpo.

And finally, you aren’t going to see a political campaign like this over here, that’s for sure. (via.)