A poignant and profoundly relevant examination of society’s safe places.
In this essay collection, Kalfopoulou explores the notion of refuge in all its varied facets.
“Embedded in the word refugee is refuge,” the author notes in the opening lines of one of this anthology’s 14 pieces, adding that refuges consist of “the familiar and tangible, until these locations are also (dis)placed.” In this genre-defying book, the author—a poet, essayist, and educator based in Athens, Greece—blends memoir, verse, literary criticism, and biting social commentary in essays that are united in their exploration of the human quest for a safe haven. This includes the safety of romantic relationships, but the collection is at its best when applying the notion to contemporary geopolitics—particularly Europe’s increasingly draconian policies toward refugees over the last decade and the humanitarian crisis in Gaza. The opening poem, “In shā Allāh,” for example, centers stories of Middle Eastern people facing the perils of Europe’s closed borders, from unscrupulous smugglers who “smell profit at the port” to unsafe boats “sunk with people who sold everything for some luck.” Many essays connect autobiographical vignettes to world events, including one that tells of how refugees have reshaped the author’s home city of Athens. She also grapples with the dichotomy of teaching the “freedom” of creative writing to students living during unprecedented global upheaval. Other essays explore aspects of Kalfopoulou’s visits to the United States, from a discussion of police brutality with a friend in Los Angeles (where the “the assumptions of white supremacy [are] still supremely assumed”) to an encounter with religion-based antigay bigotry in North Carolina. A photographic essay, “The Parts Don’t Add Up, an assemblage,” suggests that the concept of refuge doesn’t just relate to a physical home, but also to a place where one can safely cling to one’s culture. The rest of the book is also peppered with full-color photographs, mostly by the author, which interrupt the text in a manner that makes for a poignant, if sometimes-fragmented, read. Overall, it’s a distinctly literary work replete with searing indictments of the West, accompanied by multiple pages of scholarly references.
A poignant and profoundly relevant examination of society’s safe places.Pub Date: May 6, 2025
ISBN: 9781636282763
Page Count: 184
Publisher: Red Hen Press
Review Posted Online: July 31, 2025
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
A short, smart analysis of perhaps the most famous passage in American history reveals its potency and unfulfilled promise.
Words that made a nation.
Isaacson is known for expansive biographies of great thinkers (and Elon Musk), but here he pens a succinct, stimulating commentary on the Founding Fathers’ ode to “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.” His close reading of the Declaration of Independence’s second sentence, published to mark the 250th anniversary of the document’s adoption, doesn’t downplay its “moral contradiction.” Thomas Jefferson enslaved hundreds of people yet called slavery “a cruel war against human nature” in his first draft of the Declaration. All but 15 of the document’s 56 signers owned enslaved people. While the sentence in question asserted “all men are created equal” and possess “unalienable rights,” the Founders “consciously and intentionally” excluded women, Native Americans, and enslaved people. And yet the sentence is powerful, Isaacson writes, because it names a young nation’s “aspirations.” He mounts a solid defense of what ought to be shared goals, among them economic fairness, “moral compassion,” and a willingness to compromise. “Democracy depends on this,” he writes. Isaacson is excellent when explaining how Enlightenment intellectuals abroad influenced the founders. Benjamin Franklin, one of the Declaration’s “five-person drafting committee,” stayed in David Hume’s home for a month in the early 1770s, “discussing ideas of natural rights” with the Scottish philosopher. Also strong is Isaacson’s discussion of the “edits and tweaks” made to Jefferson’s draft. As recommended by Franklin and others, the changes were substantial, leaving Jefferson “distraught.” Franklin, who emerges as the book’s hero, helped establish municipal services, founded a library, and encouraged religious diversity—the kind of civic-mindedness that we could use more of today, Isaacson reminds us.
A short, smart analysis of perhaps the most famous passage in American history reveals its potency and unfulfilled promise.Pub Date: Nov. 18, 2025
ISBN: 9781982181314
Page Count: 80
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Aug. 29, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 2025
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
SEEN & HEARD
A familiar format, but a timely reminder that cities are made up of individuals, each with their own stories.
Portraits in a post-pandemic world.
After the Covid-19 lockdowns left New York City’s streets empty, many claimed that the city was “gone forever.” It was those words that inspired Stanton, whose previous collections include Humans of New York (2013), Humans of New York: Stories (2015), and Humans (2020), to return to the well once more for a new love letter to the city’s humanity and diversity. Beautifully laid out in hardcover with crisp, bright images, each portrait of a New Yorker is accompanied by sparse but potent quotes from Stanton’s interviews with his subjects. Early in the book, the author sequences three portraits—a couple laughing, then looking serious, then the woman with tears in her eyes—as they recount the arc of their relationship, transforming each emotional beat of their story into an affecting visual narrative. In another, an unhoused man sits on the street, his husky eating out of his hand. The caption: “I’m a late bloomer.” Though the pandemic isn’t mentioned often, Stanton focuses much of the book on optimistic stories of the post-pandemic era. Among the most notable profiles is Myles Smutney, founder of the Free Store Project, whose story of reclaiming boarded‑up buildings during the lockdowns speaks to the city’s resilience. In reusing the same formula from his previous books, the author confirms his thesis: New York isn’t going anywhere. As he writes in his lyrical prologue, “Just as one might dive among coral reefs to marvel at nature, one can come to New York City to marvel at humanity.” The book’s optimism paints New York as a city where diverse lives converge in moments of beauty, joy, and collective hope.
A familiar format, but a timely reminder that cities are made up of individuals, each with their own stories.Pub Date: Oct. 7, 2025
ISBN: 9781250277589
Page Count: 480
Publisher: St. Martin's
Review Posted Online: Aug. 1, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2025
© Copyright 2025 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
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