Open Letters Review
@olreview.bsky.social
An arts & literature review. Peppery commentary on the arts & letters of the day.
Find us here: https://linktr.ee/openlettersreview
Find us here: https://linktr.ee/openlettersreview
Steve Donoghue reviews a new history of ancient Rome’s great enemy, Carthage: A New History by Eve MacDonald, out from @wwnorton.com:
openlettersreview.com/posts/cartha...
openlettersreview.com/posts/cartha...
Carthage: A New History by Eve MacDonald — Open Letters Review
A new history of ancient Rome’s great enemy
openlettersreview.com
January 14, 2026 at 6:24 PM
Steve Donoghue reviews a new history of ancient Rome’s great enemy, Carthage: A New History by Eve MacDonald, out from @wwnorton.com:
openlettersreview.com/posts/cartha...
openlettersreview.com/posts/cartha...
Steve Donoghue reviews a new translation of the classic of Stoicism, The Meditations of Marcus Aurelius, translated by Aaron Poochigian, out from @liveright.bsky.social:
openlettersreview.com/posts/the-me...
openlettersreview.com/posts/the-me...
The Meditations of Marcus Aurelius, translated by Aaron Poochigian — Open Letters Review
A new translation of the classic of Stoicism
openlettersreview.com
January 5, 2026 at 2:29 PM
Steve Donoghue reviews a new translation of the classic of Stoicism, The Meditations of Marcus Aurelius, translated by Aaron Poochigian, out from @liveright.bsky.social:
openlettersreview.com/posts/the-me...
openlettersreview.com/posts/the-me...
Open Letters Review editor Steve Donoghue continues his Best Books of 2025 with this year's Nonfiction - see them now at his Substack, Stevereads:
stevedonoghue.substack.com/p/the-best-b...
stevedonoghue.substack.com/p/the-best-b...
The Best Books of 2025: Nonfiction
In 2025, as in most other years, I offered up prayers of thanksgiving to whatever gods may be that general-interest nonfiction titles of all kinds continue to appear from mainstream publishers, easing...
stevedonoghue.substack.com
December 12, 2025 at 9:37 PM
Open Letters Review editor Steve Donoghue continues his Best Books of 2025 with this year's Nonfiction - see them now at his Substack, Stevereads:
stevedonoghue.substack.com/p/the-best-b...
stevedonoghue.substack.com/p/the-best-b...
Open Letters Review editor Steve Donoghue continues his Best Books of 2025 with this year's Fiction - see them now at his Substack, Stevereads:
stevedonoghue.substack.com/p/the-best-b...
stevedonoghue.substack.com/p/the-best-b...
The Best Books of 2025: Fiction
As mentioned, 2025 wasn’t a particularly good year for fiction.
stevedonoghue.substack.com
December 12, 2025 at 5:16 PM
Open Letters Review editor Steve Donoghue continues his Best Books of 2025 with this year's Fiction - see them now at his Substack, Stevereads:
stevedonoghue.substack.com/p/the-best-b...
stevedonoghue.substack.com/p/the-best-b...
Open Letters Review editor Steve Donoghue continues his Worst Books of 2025 with this year's Worst Nonfiction - see them now at his Substack, Stevereads:
stevedonoghue.substack.com/p/the-worst-...
stevedonoghue.substack.com/p/the-worst-...
The Worst Books of 2025: Nonfiction
There are layers to every year’s Worst Books lists, of course.
stevedonoghue.substack.com
December 11, 2025 at 3:42 PM
Open Letters Review editor Steve Donoghue continues his Worst Books of 2025 with this year's Worst Nonfiction - see them now at his Substack, Stevereads:
stevedonoghue.substack.com/p/the-worst-...
stevedonoghue.substack.com/p/the-worst-...
Open Letters Review editor Steve Donoghue kicks off his Worst Books of 2025 with this year's Worst Fiction - see them now at his Substack, Stevereads:
stevedonoghue.substack.com/p/the-worst-...
stevedonoghue.substack.com/p/the-worst-...
The Worst Books of 2025: Fiction
As mentioned, 2025 was a rough year for fiction.
stevedonoghue.substack.com
December 10, 2025 at 12:58 AM
Open Letters Review editor Steve Donoghue kicks off his Worst Books of 2025 with this year's Worst Fiction - see them now at his Substack, Stevereads:
stevedonoghue.substack.com/p/the-worst-...
stevedonoghue.substack.com/p/the-worst-...
Open Letters Review editor Steve Donoghue continues his Best Books of 2025 with this year's Biography - see them now at his Substack, Stevereads:
stevedonoghue.substack.com/p/the-best-b...
stevedonoghue.substack.com/p/the-best-b...
The Best Books of 2025: Biography
2025 was an excellent year for biographies despite all the cultural currents wanting to push things in the opposite direction.
stevedonoghue.substack.com
December 9, 2025 at 2:40 AM
Open Letters Review editor Steve Donoghue continues his Best Books of 2025 with this year's Biography - see them now at his Substack, Stevereads:
stevedonoghue.substack.com/p/the-best-b...
stevedonoghue.substack.com/p/the-best-b...
Open Letters Review editor Steve Donoghue continues his Best Books of 2025 with this year's History - see them now at his Substack, Stevereads:
stevedonoghue.substack.com/p/the-best-b...
stevedonoghue.substack.com/p/the-best-b...
The Best Books of 2025: History
It feels extraordinarily odd and ironic to be reading history, let alone recommending outstanding works in the field, at a time when the US government historical locations and websites are actively fa...
stevedonoghue.substack.com
December 8, 2025 at 3:17 AM
Open Letters Review editor Steve Donoghue continues his Best Books of 2025 with this year's History - see them now at his Substack, Stevereads:
stevedonoghue.substack.com/p/the-best-b...
stevedonoghue.substack.com/p/the-best-b...
Open Letters Review editor Steve Donoghue continues his Best Books of 2025 with this year's Thrillers - see them now at his Substack, Stevereads:
stevedonoghue.substack.com/p/the-best-b...
stevedonoghue.substack.com/p/the-best-b...
The Best Books of 2025: Thrillers
Another oasis of relief in the desert of 2025 fiction was another reliable genre, thrillers.
stevedonoghue.substack.com
December 7, 2025 at 6:35 PM
Open Letters Review editor Steve Donoghue continues his Best Books of 2025 with this year's Thrillers - see them now at his Substack, Stevereads:
stevedonoghue.substack.com/p/the-best-b...
stevedonoghue.substack.com/p/the-best-b...
Open Letters editor Steve Donoghue continues his Best Books of 2025 with this year's Romance - see them now at his Substack, Stevereads:
stevedonoghue.substack.com/p/the-best-b...
stevedonoghue.substack.com/p/the-best-b...
The Best Books of 2025: Romance
2025 was, as noted, a weak year for fiction, and this weakness even made inroads into the place where such weakness usually never goes: genre fiction.
stevedonoghue.substack.com
December 6, 2025 at 10:21 AM
Open Letters editor Steve Donoghue continues his Best Books of 2025 with this year's Romance - see them now at his Substack, Stevereads:
stevedonoghue.substack.com/p/the-best-b...
stevedonoghue.substack.com/p/the-best-b...
Open Letters editor Steve Donoghue continues his Best Books of 2025 with this year's Debut Fiction - see them now at his Substack, Stevereads:
stevedonoghue.substack.com/p/the-best-b...
stevedonoghue.substack.com/p/the-best-b...
The Best Books of 2025: Debut Fiction
2025 was a very nearly disastrous year for fiction in the US mainstream market, with publishers pumping out gallons of garbage in frantic pursuit of the steadily-shrinking fraction of the public that ...
stevedonoghue.substack.com
December 4, 2025 at 3:35 PM
Open Letters editor Steve Donoghue continues his Best Books of 2025 with this year's Debut Fiction - see them now at his Substack, Stevereads:
stevedonoghue.substack.com/p/the-best-b...
stevedonoghue.substack.com/p/the-best-b...
Open Letters editor Steve Donoghue continues his Best Books of 2025 with this year's Literature in Translation - see them now at his Substack, Stevereads:
stevedonoghue.substack.com/p/the-best-b...
stevedonoghue.substack.com/p/the-best-b...
The Best Books of 2025: Literature in Translation
Another book culture indicator I tend to use when looking back at the year in books is to look at how interesting and energetic was the year’s literature in translation.
stevedonoghue.substack.com
December 2, 2025 at 11:23 PM
Open Letters editor Steve Donoghue continues his Best Books of 2025 with this year's Literature in Translation - see them now at his Substack, Stevereads:
stevedonoghue.substack.com/p/the-best-b...
stevedonoghue.substack.com/p/the-best-b...
Open Letters editor Steve Donoghue kicks off his Best Books of 2025 with this year's reprints - see them now at his Substack, Stevereads:
stevedonoghue.substack.com/p/the-best-b...
stevedonoghue.substack.com/p/the-best-b...
The Best Books of 2025: Reprints
Stevereads is a reader-supported publication.
stevedonoghue.substack.com
December 1, 2025 at 6:11 PM
Open Letters editor Steve Donoghue kicks off his Best Books of 2025 with this year's reprints - see them now at his Substack, Stevereads:
stevedonoghue.substack.com/p/the-best-b...
stevedonoghue.substack.com/p/the-best-b...
Steve Donoghue reviews a biographical deep dive into the three key players at Gettysburg, Three Roads to Gettysburg by Tim McGrath, out from Caliber:
openlettersreview.com/posts/three-...
openlettersreview.com/posts/three-...
Three Roads to Gettysburg by Tim McGrath — Open Letters Review
A biographical deep dive into the three key players at Gettysburg
openlettersreview.com
November 25, 2025 at 3:34 PM
Steve Donoghue reviews a biographical deep dive into the three key players at Gettysburg, Three Roads to Gettysburg by Tim McGrath, out from Caliber:
openlettersreview.com/posts/three-...
openlettersreview.com/posts/three-...
Gabrielle Stetcher Woodward reviews memoir from the author Susan Orlean, Joyride, out from Avid Reader Press:
openlettersreview.com/posts/joyrid...
openlettersreview.com/posts/joyrid...
Joyride by Susan Orlean — Open Letters Review
A memoir from the author Susan Orlean
openlettersreview.com
November 22, 2025 at 1:48 AM
Gabrielle Stetcher Woodward reviews memoir from the author Susan Orlean, Joyride, out from Avid Reader Press:
openlettersreview.com/posts/joyrid...
openlettersreview.com/posts/joyrid...
Steve Donoghue reviews a new one-volume history of Rome, from Romulus and Remus to the fall of Constantinople, The Romans by Edward Watts, out from Basic Books:
openlettersreview.com/posts/the-ro...
openlettersreview.com/posts/the-ro...
The Romans by Edward Watts — Open Letters Review
A new one-volume history of Rome, from Romulus and Remus to the fall of Constantinople
openlettersreview.com
November 22, 2025 at 1:46 AM
Steve Donoghue reviews a new one-volume history of Rome, from Romulus and Remus to the fall of Constantinople, The Romans by Edward Watts, out from Basic Books:
openlettersreview.com/posts/the-ro...
openlettersreview.com/posts/the-ro...
Jim Abbiati reviews King Sorrow by Joe Hill, out from William Morrow:
openlettersreview.com/posts/king-s...
openlettersreview.com/posts/king-s...
King Sorrow by Joe Hill — Open Letters Review
An overlong and predictable suspense/thriller/horror novel riddled with political proselytizing.
openlettersreview.com
November 22, 2025 at 1:44 AM
Jim Abbiati reviews King Sorrow by Joe Hill, out from William Morrow:
openlettersreview.com/posts/king-s...
openlettersreview.com/posts/king-s...
Janet Wertman reviews The Stolen Crown by Tracy Borman, out from Atlantic Monthly Press:
openlettersreview.com/posts/the-st...
openlettersreview.com/posts/the-st...
The Stolen Crown by Tracy Borman — Open Letters Review
The story behind the legendary change of dynasties
openlettersreview.com
November 22, 2025 at 1:43 AM
Janet Wertman reviews The Stolen Crown by Tracy Borman, out from Atlantic Monthly Press:
openlettersreview.com/posts/the-st...
openlettersreview.com/posts/the-st...
Hannah Joyner reviews previously unpublished stories that illuminate the literary development of the author of an American classic, The Land of Sweet Forever by Harper Lee, out from Random House:
openlettersreview.com/posts/the-la...
openlettersreview.com/posts/the-la...
The Land of Sweet Forever by Harper Lee — Open Letters Review
Previously unpublished stories illuminate the literary development of the author of an American classic.
openlettersreview.com
November 22, 2025 at 1:43 AM
Hannah Joyner reviews previously unpublished stories that illuminate the literary development of the author of an American classic, The Land of Sweet Forever by Harper Lee, out from Random House:
openlettersreview.com/posts/the-la...
openlettersreview.com/posts/the-la...
Steve Donoghue reviews a new look at the ambitions of a newborn British empire, The Sun Rising by Anna Whitelock, out from Viking:
openlettersreview.com/posts/the-su...
openlettersreview.com/posts/the-su...
The Sun Rising by Anna Whitelock — Open Letters Review
A new look at the ambitions of a newborn British empire
openlettersreview.com
November 22, 2025 at 1:41 AM
Steve Donoghue reviews a new look at the ambitions of a newborn British empire, The Sun Rising by Anna Whitelock, out from Viking:
openlettersreview.com/posts/the-su...
openlettersreview.com/posts/the-su...
Katherine Harper reviews Anne Fadiman’s new collection of essays, Frog and Other Essays, out from @fsgbooks.bsky.social:
openlettersreview.com/posts/frog-a...
openlettersreview.com/posts/frog-a...
Frog and Other Essays by Anne Fadiman — Open Letters Review
A review of Anne Fadiman’s new collection of essays
openlettersreview.com
November 13, 2025 at 2:02 PM
Katherine Harper reviews Anne Fadiman’s new collection of essays, Frog and Other Essays, out from @fsgbooks.bsky.social:
openlettersreview.com/posts/frog-a...
openlettersreview.com/posts/frog-a...
Vincent McGean reviews a biographical reconstruction of the ancient Greek philosopher, Diogenes by Inger N. I. Kuin, out from Basic Books:
openlettersreview.com/posts/diogen...
openlettersreview.com/posts/diogen...
Diogenes by Inger N. I. Kuin — Open Letters Review
A biographical reconstruction of the ancient Greek philosopher
openlettersreview.com
November 12, 2025 at 1:28 PM
Vincent McGean reviews a biographical reconstruction of the ancient Greek philosopher, Diogenes by Inger N. I. Kuin, out from Basic Books:
openlettersreview.com/posts/diogen...
openlettersreview.com/posts/diogen...
Aaron Kyereh-Mireku reviews a new intellectual biography of the great philosopher, Kant: A Revolution in Thinking by Marcus Willaschek, out from @harvardpress.bsky.social:
openlettersreview.com/posts/kant-a...
openlettersreview.com/posts/kant-a...
Kant: A Revolution in Thinking by Marcus Willaschek — Open Letters Review
A new intellectual biography of the great philosopher
openlettersreview.com
November 12, 2025 at 1:28 PM
Aaron Kyereh-Mireku reviews a new intellectual biography of the great philosopher, Kant: A Revolution in Thinking by Marcus Willaschek, out from @harvardpress.bsky.social:
openlettersreview.com/posts/kant-a...
openlettersreview.com/posts/kant-a...
Jim Abbiati reviews a visually creepy novel perfect for the Halloween season, The Possession of Alba Diaz by Isabel Canas, out from Berkley:
openlettersreview.com/posts/the-po...
openlettersreview.com/posts/the-po...
The Possession of Alba Diaz by Isabel Canas — Open Letters Review
A visually creepy novel perfect for the Halloween season.
openlettersreview.com
November 12, 2025 at 1:27 PM
Jim Abbiati reviews a visually creepy novel perfect for the Halloween season, The Possession of Alba Diaz by Isabel Canas, out from Berkley:
openlettersreview.com/posts/the-po...
openlettersreview.com/posts/the-po...
Tom LeClair reviews a debut novel about table tennis,
Underspin by E. Y. Zhao, out from Astra:
openlettersreview.com/posts/unders...
Underspin by E. Y. Zhao, out from Astra:
openlettersreview.com/posts/unders...
Underspin by E. Y. Zhao — Open Letters Review
A debut novel about table tennis
openlettersreview.com
November 7, 2025 at 4:36 PM
Tom LeClair reviews a debut novel about table tennis,
Underspin by E. Y. Zhao, out from Astra:
openlettersreview.com/posts/unders...
Underspin by E. Y. Zhao, out from Astra:
openlettersreview.com/posts/unders...