Natan Last, Sven Beckert, Juhea Kim, and more: 16 new books out today!

It’s a quiet week over here in literary world, and hopefully quiet for you, reader, in whichever industry you work. The cities get quieter, the exoduses take place, and the publishing output slows to an almost complete halt. It’s a smaller list this week, for this very reason, but still mighty with rich and interesting content.

There’s a republished novella by Yoko Tawada that the New York Times doesn’t hesitate to call “her masterpiece”. Theres a global history of capitalism (in case you’re in that sort of spirit this Thanksgiving week). As well as some fiction to absorb you and deliver you to unique, created worlds: a new collection by by Juhea Kim, a debut novel about the insidious world of real estate by Marisa Kashino, and recently discovered, posthumous stories by Ruth Prawer Jhabvala. And if none of the above strikes your fancy, I hope that you will find a great Thanksgiving read below. Happy Tuesday, and happy reading.

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Yoko Tawada, trans. by Margaret Mitsutani, The Bridegroom Was a Dog
(New Directions)

“Her masterpiece.”
–The New York Times

Sven Beckert, Capitalism: A Global History
(Penguin Press)

“Epic … An unparalleled work of scholarship that is also a joy to read, this is a monumental achievement.”
–Publishers Weekly

Juhea Kim, A Love Story From the End of the World: Stories
(Ecco)

“Well-drawn and compelling stories that span continents, encouraging the essential acts of saying or doing something to protect what we hold dear.”
–Library Journal

Christine Kuehn, Family of Spies: A World War II Story of Nazi Espionage, Betrayal, and the Secret History Behind Pearl Harbor
(Celadon)

“An ordinary woman in suburban Maryland unearths the horrifying secret of her family’s impact on the events of WWII in this page-turning debut memoir … It’s a propulsive and disturbing tale.”
–Publishers Weekly

Clifton Crais, The Killing Age: How Violence Made the Modern World
(University of Chicago Press)

“This is the most urgently important book I have read this year or in many years … The Killing Age will provoke, enrage, and inform its readers.”
–Sunil Amrith

A. S. Hamrah, Last Week in End Times Cinema
(Semiotext(e))

“An almanac of every bad thing that happened in the film industry from March 2024 to March 2025.”
–From the publisher

Natan Last, Across the Universe: The Past, Present, and Future of the Crossword Puzzle
(Pantheon)

“A rich and magnificent artifact of crossword culture.”
–BookPage

Meryem El Mehdati, trans. by Julia Sanches, Supersaurio
(Hanover Square Press)

“So biting and refreshingly honest that the real world feels just a little more ridiculous by comparison. I tore through this book.”
–Jinwoo Chong

Hazel V. Carby, Racial Fictions
(Verso)

“Carby interrogates our racial fictions, which have been constructed, maintained, and weaponized across centuries to justify systems of domination and exploitation.”
–From the publisher

Carla Kaplan, Troublemaker: The Fierce, Unruly Life of Jessica Mitford
(Harper)

“Kaplan’s compassionate, enthralling, and aptly titled Troublemaker is a fitting celebration of this extraordinary woman.”
–Amanda Vaill

Natasha Siegel, As Many Souls As Stars
(William Morrow)

“This novel will bend and twist your notion of what love is, while leaving you utterly bewitched.”
–Kirkus

Barry Hertz, Welcome to the Family: The Explosive Story Behind Fast & Furious, the Blockbusters That Supercharged the World
(Grand Central)

“Hertz’s prose is muscular … Readers who can’t get enough of speed and steel will find this a ride worth taking.”
–Kirkus

Ruth Prawer Jhabvala, Disinheritance: The Rediscovered Stories
(Counterpoint)

“The acuity of Jhabvala’s observations and the clarity of her prose make this collection exhilarating … Brilliant, unsparing examinations of the human condition in all its variety.”
–Kirkus

D. Vance Smith, Atlas’s Bones: The African Foundations of Europe
(University of Chicago Press)

“Smith expertly guides us through this tangled web of mutual indebtedness and pseudo-feudal mystification. A landmark achievement.”
–David Wallace

Gabriella Zalapì, trans. by Adriana Hunter, Ilaria, or The Conquest of Disobedience
(Other Press)

“Zalapì sketches a clear and sensitive portrait of her young narrator … This leaves a mark.”
–Publishers Weekly

Marisa Kashino, Best Offer Wins
(Celadon)

“A darkly funny thriller, whose protagonist grows more unhinged as the novel progresses.”
–Real Simple