Outstanding Debuts of 2011

by Jo Ann Beard

This could be an instruction book for a perceptive teenager. For an adult, it resonates as a bittersweet remembrance of a... Full review >

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by Marcia Clark

A 15-year-old girl is raped. The Latino boy she’d been tutoring is the sole suspect. She’s rich, the daughter of Frank... Full review >

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by Steve Earle

Already well-respected for both his music and his acting, Earle can now add novelist to an impressive résumé. Full review >

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by Belinda McKeon

An engrossing, highly rewarding read that marks McKeon as a writer to watch. Full review >

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by Rainbow Rowell

A certain light charm pervades the novel—a Spring Break kind of book. Full review >

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by Louisa Young

A literate, moving wartime tale in which love triumphs over despair. Full review >

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by Johanna Adorján translated by Anthea Bell

In the process of assimilating disparate facts into a poignant and elegant story, Adorján exposes her own hopes and fears,... Full review >

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by Margaux Fragoso

A gripping, tragic and unforgettable chronicle of lost innocence and abuse. Full review >

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by Gabrielle Hamilton

After initially disdaining a career in food as one devoid of “meaning and purpose,” she finds both here. Full review >

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by Donovan Hohn

There are no easy answers, but it’s the hunt that counts, and Hohn makes it a gladdening, artful journey of discovery. Full review >

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by Will Potter

A shocking exposé of judicial overreach. Full review >

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by Nina Sankovitch

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