Short List
What to read this week, including books on J. Edgar Hoover, Joe McCarthy, and Roy Cohn; the virtues of forgetting; and the life of Rob Sedgwick
Good-bye, Blake Bailey
Book-industry insiders are coming down on both sides of the Blake Bailey–Philip Roth controversy, which resulted in the pulping of Bailey’s Roth bio
Opera Pick of the Week
In Lo Schiavo, Verdi’s forgotten Brazilian disciple tackles colonialism, South American style
When David Met Carmen
An alluring new book explores the relationship between two fashion luminaries
Drama Queen
Over a decade-long career at HBO, Miranda Cowley Heller worked on The Sopranos and The Wire. Her debut novel is as fun as the best TV shows
Cinderella’s New Groove
Oscar-winning writer Emerald Fennell brings her distinctive voice to the beloved fairy-tale princess
In Hollywood, He’s in the Driver’s Seat
The stunt genius of the Fast & Furious franchise reveals secrets to creating unforgettable car chases
The Good, the Bach, and the Ugly
Playwright Nina Raine unpicks the difficult personality of the 18th-century composer
Inside Trump’s Chaotic and Crazy Final Days
Michael Wolff, best-selling author of Fire and Fury, discusses his riveting new book, Landslide
There’s Something About Serena
What is it about Serena Williams that brings the world’s best tennis players to their knees?
Songs with Atmosphere
A selection of 14 songs that defy description
Bret Easton Ellis’s Rules of Attraction
The shock jock of American letters is back with a serialized audiobook that eschews the culture wars for something closer to home
Short List
Books to read this week, including a memoir from Rachel Johnson, sister of Boris; an inside look at the Secret Service; the true story of a Montauk shipwreck; and a colorful history of spas
Love at First Letter
Inside the bizarre world of dating, sex, and marriage in America’s prisons
Jamie Lee Curtis’s Notes on (Summer) Camp
She’s got a new Audible series … and thoughts on what is scary
Building Castles in the Air
Photographs highlight the revolutionary work of today’s leading women architects
Match Made in Hell, Part II
What would you do if the man you were sleeping with turned out to be a psychopath on the U.K.’s most-wanted list?
Did a Doomed Love Inspire the Eiffel Tower?
It’s a symbol of romance, but the designer was motivated by other emotions
