By Washington Post book critic Ron Charles
As summer revs up, here are three cool new novels, and a work of history that's wilder than fiction!
Lucas Schaefer's debut novel, "The Slip," takes place in and around a boxing gym in Austin, Texas, where everybody is trying to become somebody different.
Following two White teenagers – one obsessed with his African American mentor, the other discovering their transgender identity – this sweaty, comic masterpiece jumps in the ring with our most pressing social debates, and lands a knockoutv .
Read an excerpt: "The Slip" by Lucas Schaefer
"The Slip" by Lucas Schaefer (Simon & Schuster), in Hardcover, eBook and Audio formats, available via Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Bookshop.org
At the start of Michelle Huneven's "Bug Hollow," the sweetest, smartest son any parents could ask for has just graduated from high school and headed off with his friends for a weeklong road trip.
But what starts as a domestic comedy soon becomes a tragedy, and Huneven turns her gracious eye to the way families carry on, even when shattered, and thrive.
Read an excerpt: "Bug Hollow" by Michelle Huneven
"Bug Hollow" by Michelle Huneven (Penguin Press), in Hardcover, eBook and Audio formats, available via Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Bookshop.org
In "The Satisfaction Cafe," a gently witty new novel by Kathy Wang, a woman from Taiwan makes her way in America with patience and determination.
For decades, she struggles to fit in with a complicated, wealthy family, until she can finally create a little safe space where people can find what they really want: just to be heard.
Read an excerpt: "The Satisfaction Café" by Kathy Wang
"The Satisfaction Café" by Kathy Wang (Scribner), in Hardcover, eBook and Audio formats, available via Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Bookshop.org
A century ago, Western scientists knew almost nothing about giant pandas. Now, in a thrilling work of history, Nathalia Holt follows Teddy Roosevelt's sons, Ted and Kermit, as they set out with a team to China to track down these black-and-white creatures.
How would the brothers survive this treacherous expedition? And what would the implications be for these gentle animals? Holt explores these fascinating questions and others in "The Beast in the Clouds."
Read an excerpt: "The Beast in the Clouds" by Nathalia Holt
"The Beast in the Clouds: The Roosevelt Brothers' Deadly Quest to Find the Mythical Giant Panda" by Nathalia Holt (Atria/One Signal), in Hardcover, eBook and Audio formats, available via Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Bookshop.org
That's it for the Book Report. For these and other suggestions about what to read this summer, talk with your local bookseller or librarian.
I'm Ron Charles. Until next time, read on!
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Produced by Robin Sanders. Editor: Joseph Frandino.
For more reading recommendations, check out these previous Book Report features from Ron Charles:
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