Weekend picks for book lovers
What should you read this weekend? USA TODAY’s picks for book lovers include Douglas Preston's non-fiction book about the search for an ancient lost city in Honduras.
The Lost City of the Monkey God: A True Story by Douglas Preston; Grand Central, 302 pp.; non-fiction
People are forever looking for “lost cities,” if not “the” lost city of some ancient civilization or other.
Douglas Preston accompanied a recent quest to find a mysterious metropolis long hidden in the Honduran hinterlands, where poisonous snakes, infectious insects and jaguars lurk.
Spanish conquistador Hernán Cortés started the rumor mill grinding in 1526 when he wrote to Emperor Charles V about a fabulously wealthy people, purported to be ensconced deep in the Central American wilds, whose wherewithal “will exceed Mexico in riches.”
This off-the-grid burg is so hidden in the Mosquitia rain forest that Preston terms it “scientifically untouched,” littered with valuable artifacts lying right where their creators left them some 500 years ago — when this unknown, non-Mayan people suddenly abandoned the site.
This eminently remote place was not only found, but its dimensions and various public spaces were demarcated — thanks to LIDAR, a laser-mapping, jungle-penetrating device that previously plotted the surface of Mars for NASA.
USA TODAY says *** out of four stars. “Rife with jungle derring-do…an engaging read.”
Douglas Preston's 'Lost City' is a real find
Difficult Women by Roxane Gay; Grove Press, 256 pp.; fiction
In this collection of short stories, the author of Bad Feminist creates relatable characters who could be our mothers, sisters and partners.
USA TODAY says **** stars. “Gut-wrenching …these are real stories about real experiences and women seeking, deserving happy endings.”
Roxane Gay's 'Difficult Women' make an impression
The Wars of the Roosevelts by William J. Mann; Harper, 530 pp.; non-fiction
The Roosevelt family of New York provided America with two of its greatest presidents, and for author William Mann, a vast trove of familial dysfunction.
USA TODAY says *** stars. “(The Roosevelt family’s) rivalries and collisions make for colorful reading.”
'Wars of the Roosevelts' is a gossipy history
Conclave by Robert Harris; Knopf, 286 pp.; fiction
Harris cracks open the doors of the Sistine Chapel to imagine the mysterious, secretive process of elevating one man to near godliness after the (fictional) pope dies.
USA TODAY says *** stars. “Quietly pulsates with intrigue... Harris’ clever plot machinations slowly draw you in.”
'Conclave,' thriller about electing a pope, gets our vote
The Feud by Alex Beam; Pantheon, 224 pp.; non-fiction
Explores how writer-friends Vladimir Nabokov and Edmund Wilson had a falling out over Nabokov’s English translation of Pushkin’s Eugene Onegin.
USA TODAY says ***½ stars. A “smart, agile, good-natured account of one of America’s most famous literary brawls.”
Contributing reviewers: David Holahan, Jaleesa Jones, Ray Locker, Jocelyn McClurg, Charles Finch