The Sellout, by Paul Betty
Outlandish, utterly outrageous and as of yet the funniest book I’ll ever read. This novel is completely deserving of its Man-Booker Prize and, if there is a a single award bestowed on all the books written over a year - an accolade to rule them all - this book deserves that, too. Beatty’s tour of black-Americans offers a glimpse of sentiments still lingering in the minds of people who experience stereotypes and those who perpetuate them.
Trust Exercise, by Susan Choi
The takeaway isn’t so much Choi’s capacity to tell a story as it is her ability to compose sentences and paragraphs that are nothing short of brilliant. Choi’s reveals an uncanny ability for selection, every word appears perfect for the context. Her writing should exceed the expectations of even the most discriminating readers. Keep in mind, however, that the writing is the news here.
The Nickel Boys, by Colson Whitehead
An important and necessary unveiling of another embarrassing segment of southern history. While it lacks the menace that pervaded his previous work (The Underground Railroad) - and as a result is less deserving of its National Book Award - The Nickel Boys ought to be required reading for students of history. With its liberal deployment of compact, taut sentences, it should also serve as a guide to aspiring writers.