The speed at which a New York fall flies by will never cease to astound me. Here we are, already in the last week of October, midway through a cherished, idyllic time in the city. And by that I mean, it’s the precious six weeks where one’s leather, denim, and light wool coats finally get their use.

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It’s also an especially nice time for reading in public. In the parks as the yellow leaves fall, or sitting looking out bar windows during sunset, as the light seeps out of the sky earlier and earlier. This week, we welcome a new crop of books to help us in these bar-sitting endeavors. Zadie Smith, Helen DeWitt, and Susan Cheever are just a selection of writers who’ve written a hotly-anticipated books: Smith, with essays, DeWitt with a work described as “postmodern” and “meta”, and Cheever with a biography of her literary-celebrity father.

There’s nonfiction aplenty: a biography on Jesse Jackson, a memoir by Cameron Crowe, a survey of the crafts we’re losing to time, and more, and more. Take a look through the list, and have fun with the bountiful selection!

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Zadie Smith, Dead and Alive: Essays
(Penguin Press)

“Smith delivers original insights couched in sly, artful prose … Readers will be rewarded by this unforgettable collection.”
–Publishers Weekly

Catherine Newman, Wreck
(Harper)

“The kind of book that pulls up a chair, pours the wine, and dives deep—equal parts hilarious, sharp, and achingly sincere … A luminous, laugh-out-loud triumph by Newman.”
–Alison Espach

Helen DeWitt and Ilya Gridneff, Your Name Here
(Dalkey Archive Press)

“An audacious metafiction … Readers will be left breathless.”
–Publishers Weekly

Susan Cheever, When All the Men Wore Hats: On the Stories of John Cheever
(FSG)

“Lively, provocative memoir. Susan Cheever…moves fluidly between jaunty literary analyses and charged memories of a father.”
–Booklist

Brandon Hobson, The Devil is a Southpaw
(Ecco)

“A feast of whimsy.”
–The Boston Globe

Cameron Crowe, The Uncool: A Memoir
(Avid Reader Press)

“Cameron has written a book that feels like music, an intimate souvenir, like a song you can’t stop listening to.”
–Stevie Nicks

Vanessa Lillie, The Bone Thief
(Berkley)

“Lillie delivers a multi-layered plot that skillfully weaves history and culture into the suspenseful.”
–Sun Sentinel

Hu Anyan, trans. by Jack Hargreaves, I Deliver Parcels in Beijing
(Astra House)

“Quietly revolutionary simply because it treats the minutiae of work itself as important.”
–The Washington Post

Introduction by Qian Julie Wang, The Alien and Sedition Acts
(Modern Library)

“Author and civil rights lawyer Qian Julie Wang introduces the highly controversial Alien and Sedition Acts, which have been used to justify the curtailing of basic freedoms from the Revolutionary Era through the present day.”
–From the publisher

Anna Whitelock, The Sun Rising: King James I and the Dawn of a Global Britain, 1603-1625
(Viking)

“A very lucid, exciting and well researched narrative of a part of British history which has been relatively neglected and yet is of vital and enduring importance for the development of Britain.”
–Ronald Hutton

James Fox, Craftland: In Search of Lost Arts and Disappearing Trades
(Crown)

“A book that shimmers with love for a dwindling world of meticulous, patient labour … Deftly written and well researched.”
–The Guardian

Nicholas Thompson, The Running Ground: A Father, A Son, and the Simplest of Sports
(Random House)

“An endlessly surprising, revelatory, and heart-rending read.”
–Anna Wintour

Mark Z. Danielewski, Tom’s Crossing
(Pantheon)

“Danielewski’s prose is lush and dialect-inflected, simultaneously ornate, and folksy, reminiscent of early Cormac McCarthy. The characters are exquisitely drawn, memorable, and fully human … A resplendent journey.”
–Booklist

Anthony Bourdain, The Anthony Bourdain Reader: New, Classic, and Rediscovered Writing
(Ecco)

“A worthy scrapbook of Bourdain’s big, bold life…vivid, evocative, and ample helpings of Bourdain’s joy, sharp humor, and wonder … An endless buffet from a giant, voracious, soul-searching talent.”
–BookPage

Joseph J. Ellis, The Great Contradiction: The Tragic Side of the American Founding
(Knopf)

“Joseph Ellis has masterfully widened our lens to tell a deeper, more complex, more accurate story of our founding.”
–Ken Burns

Eric Heisserer, Simultaneous
(Flatiron)

“This adrenaline-fueled sci-fi thriller is based on a reincarnation premise that seems eminently plausible and logical. An endlessly interesting book that is impossible to put down.”
–Library Journal

Michael McFaul, Autocrats vs. Democrats: China, Russia, America, and the New Global Disorder
(Mariner)

“For those who still believe in the promise of international engagement and democratic ideals to advance American interests abroad, Michael McFaul’s book offers both clarity and hope.”
–Hillary Rodham Clinton

Irin Carmon, Unbearable: Five Women and the Perils of Pregnancy in America
(Atria)

“By turns euphoric and excruciating, above all a radical call for a brighter and more dignified future for people and their families.”
–Rebecca Traister

Scott Miller, Let My Country Awake: Indian Revolutionaries in America and the Fight to Overthrow the British Raj
(FSG)

“Miller tells a compelling and little-known story about India’s freedom struggle—one involving a brave band of students and workers in America. This is a fascinating prism through which we see the wartime machinations of Germany, Britain, and the United States.”
–Fareed Zakaria

Susan Straight, Sacrament
(Counterpoint)

“The narrative captures the heroism and sacrifice of healthcare workers during the pandemic, and is shot through with rich depictions of Southern California’s landscape … It’s a vibrant drama.”
–Publishers Weekly

Abby Phillip, A Dream Deferred: Jesse Jackson and the Fight for Black Political Power
(Flatiron)

“One of the most compelling and brilliant journalists of her generation, Abby Phillip has written a rich, complex, page-turning portrait of a man who was more influential in American politics than he’s often given credit for.”
–Jake Tapper

Anthony Vinci, The Fourth Intelligence Revolution: The Future of Espionage and the Battle to Save America
(Henry Holt)

“In this compelling book, Anthony Vinci explains the evolution of intelligence as a pillar of U.S. national security, describes an increasingly dangerous future, and identifies what we all must do to protect our nation and our way of life.”
–H. R. McMaster

Pierre Guyotat, trans. by Peter Behrman de Sinéty, Idiocy
(NYRB)

“Guyotat renders the obscene violence of colonialism with unflinching honesty. His writing is gorgeous, brutally poetic without pretense or over-aestheticization.”
–Dodie Bellamy