The summer book season tends to be associated with leisure reads and lighter fare, while fall is all about substance. There were certainly some literary gems strewn across June, July and August, but when appraising the quality and quantity of 2015 releases, the clichés are true: Fall is an embarrassment of riches, with new novels by Margaret Atwood and Salman Rushdie, poignant memoirs by Sandra Cisneros and Patti Smith, modern-day ghost stories, timely history lessons and more.
Of course, any attempt to round up every “must-read” fall book is a futile exercise. Treat the following as a point of departure — a starter curriculum, if you will, where each “course” represents a new category to explore (and luckily, not for a grade).
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Honors Lit: Fiction in the Near-Future
Fantastical stories by acclaimed authors
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Two Years Eight Months and Twenty-Eight Nights by Salman Rushdie, Sept. 8, Random House, 304 pages, $28
A storm strikes New York City, setting off a series of strange events. The title of Rushdie’s new novel is equal to “The Thousand and One Nights,” which is also the title of a Middle-Eastern folk tale collection (more commonly known as “Arabian Nights”). Blending together Eastern “wonder tales,” comics culture, sci-fi/adventure stories and more, the acclaimed author of “Midnight’s Children” and “The Satanic Verses” crafts a multilayered story set in a near-future about a battle between two worlds.
The Heart Goes Last by Margaret Atwood, Sept. 29, Nan A. Talese, 320 pages, $26.95
In this dystopian satire, acclaimed Canadian author Atwood returns to the same near-future of her Positron short story series (released only as e-books, the last one in 2013). “The Heart Goes Last” follows Stan and Charmaine, a down-and-out married couple who take shelter in a community where housing, food and work is provided — as long as they show up for a bimonthly stint in prison.
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Family Psychology 101
Fiction about complicated relationships
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Marvel and a Wonder by Joe Meno, out now, Akashic, 336 pages, $29.95
Chicago author Meno (“Hairstyles of the Damned,” “The Boy Detective Fails”) returns with a Faulkernian novel, set in the mid-1990s, about a Korean War vet and his teenage grandson who are mysteriously gifted a quarter horse. When the beautiful animal is stolen by two meth-dealing brothers, grandfather and grandson set out on a horse-reclaiming mission across the American heartland. September is a big month for Meno, who also edited Akashic’s new noir collection, “Chicago Noir: The Classics.”
Fates and Furies by Lauren Groff, Sept. 15, Riverhead, 400 pages, $27.95
The acclaimed author of “The Monsters of Templeton” and “Arcadia” returns with a multilayered novel exploring two sides of a 24-year-old marriage — two very different sides. (Insert obligatory “Gone Girl” reference here.)
This Is Your Life, Harriet Chance! by Jonathan Evison, Sept. 8, Algonquin, 304 pages, $25.95
In Jonathan Evison’s tragicomic new novel, “Chance” is a proper noun — the surname of his 78-year-old protagonist, Harriet, whose husband of 55 years has died — and a verb, describing Harriet’s decision to set sail alone on an Alaskan cruise arranged by her late husband. As the title suggests (a reference to the 1950s proto-reality show, “This Is Your Life”), the cruise is apparently not all buffets and tribute bands but a revelatory voyage into Harriet’s own past.
Avenue of Mysteries by John Irving, Nov. 3, Simon & Schuster, 480 pages, $28
The 14th novel by the best-selling author Irving, — famous for “A Prayer for Owen Meany” “The World According to Garp,” “The Hotel New Hampshire” and more — stars 14-year-old Juan Diego, who grew up in Mexico and has a mind-reading sister named Lupe. As an older man he travels to the Philippines, where his Mexican childhood collides with current events. It’s a novel that uniquely grapples with fate and memory.
A Strangeness in My Mind by Orhan Pamuk, translated by Ekin Oklap, Oct. 20, Knopf, 624 pages, $28.95
In this story of love and longing in Istanbul, 12-year-old Mevlut Karatas moves to the city and takes up his father’s trade of selling a slightly boozy Turkish drink called boza on the streets. But he thirsts after other dreams. As friends and family go on to make their own fortunes, Karatas always seems to come up short. A meditative, coming-of-age story told from a variety of perspectives, “A Strangeness in My Mind” promises to be as engrossing as Pamuk’s previous novels, “Snow” and “My Name Is Red.”
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Boo-ology
Ghost stories for grown-ups
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Slade House by David Mitchell, Oct. 27, Random House, 256 pages, $26
The author of “Cloud Atlas” and “The Bone Clocks” returns with a very creepy, very Mitchellian spin on the haunted-house story, one that spans decades and dabbles in various genres. Slade House is a secret dwelling located down the road from a British pub, behind a small black iron door along the brick wall of an alley. Once inside, it’s impossible to leave.
Numero Zero by Umberto Eco, translated by Richard Dixon, Nov. 3, Houghton Mifflin, 208 pages, $24
Set in Milan in 1992, the latest novel from the author of “The Name of the Rose” and “Foucault’s Pendulum” follows a struggling ghostwriter named Colonna who’s hired to write the memoir of a corrupt newspaper editor. The task leads him into a tangled web of media politics, murder plots, conspiracy theories and the corpse of Mussolini’s body double.
Ghostly: A Collection of Ghost Stories by Audrey Niffenegger, Oct. 6, Scribner, 464 pages, $28
Perfectly timed for fall, this collection of spine-tingling tales by authors both classic (Edgar Allan Poe, M.R. James) and contemporary (Neil Gaiman, Kelly Link), was edited by acclaimed Chicago-based artist and author Niffenegger (“The Time Traveler’s Wife”) and paired with her original illustrations. Included is one of Niffenegger’s own spectral stories, “A Secret Life With Cats.”
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Art of the Memoir
Personal narratives from the pros
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The Lost Landscape by Joyce Carol Oates, Sept. 8, Ecco, 368 pages, $27.99
Hard to believe, but Oates hasn’t always been churning out a book or three per year as the world’s most prolific author (or at least the author most cited for that trait). She was once a young girl in rural western New York State who lived on a farm, made friends with a red hen and fell in love with “Alice in Wonderland,” among other books. Her new memoir renders the landscape of childhood in vivid detail.
The Art of Memoir by Mary Karr, Sept. 15, Harper, 256 pages, $24.99
In the tradition of Stephen King’s “On Writing,” Annie Dillard’s “The Writing Life” and Anne Lamott’s “Bird by Bird,” the acclaimed author of “The Liars’ Club” mines her writing and teaching experience to deliver tips on writing literary memoir. “The Art of Memoir” is interspersed with excerpts from some of her favorite memoirs, as well as instructive stories from other writers.
Chelsea Girls by Eileen Myles, Sept. 29, Ecco, 288 pages, $16.99
While in obvious ways it resembles a memoir, “Chelsea Girls” is actually a gritty autobiographical novel by acclaimed American poet Eileen Myles, recounting everything from her Catholic upbringing in the 1960s to her passionate pursuit of poetry (and survival) in 1970s New York City. It was originally published in 1994 and is now available for a new generation of readers.
A House of My Own: Stories from My Life by Sandra Cisneros, Knopf, Oct. 6, 400 pages, $28.95
Tributes, essays and illustrated stories lifted from real life comprise Sandra Cisneros’ intimate, decades-spanning autobiography. The author of “The House on Mango Street” reflects on the Chicago neighborhoods of her youth and ancestral home in Mexico, her parents’ marriage, politics, literary inspirations and more.
My Life on the Road by Gloria Steinem, Oct. 27, Random House, 304 pages, $28
“When people ask me why I still have hope and energy after all these years, I always say: Because I travel,” Gloria Steinem declares in her new memoir, “My Life on the Road.” The itinerant writer, organizer and feminist activist looks back on many journeys around the world, her work for equality and how the two have informed each other.
M Train by Patti Smith, Oct. 6, Knopf, 272 pages, $25
A collection of writings from the National Book Award-winning author of “Just Kids,” “M Train” begins in a Greenwich Village coffee shop, where Smith stations herself every morning to ruminate and write in her notebook, then roves around her adventuresome past and present: to Frida Kahlo’s Casa Azul; Smith’s bungalow on Far Rockaway; the graves of famous writers and filmmakers; travels with her husband, Fred “Sonic” Smith (who died in 1994), and more. Scattered throughout are Smith’s signature Polaroids and various insights regarding books, art and life.
Hunger Makes Me a Modern Girl by Carrie Brownstein, Oct. 27, Riverhead, 256 pages, $27.95
Fall features a bounty of autobiographies by female artists and musicians. In addition to Patti Smith’s “M Train,” new memoirs hitting shelves include “Reckless” by Chrissie Hynde of The Pretenders, “Boys in the Trees” by ’70s folk-pop singer Carly Simon, “I’ll Never Write My Memoirs” by musician/model/icon Grace Jones and “Why Not Me?” by Mindy Kaling, among several others. Meanwhile, Carrie Brownstein, of Sleater-Kinney and “Portlandia” fame, recalls her experiences growing up in the Olympia, Wash., Riot Grrrl scene, finding success with her own band and taking a punk-rock approach to life.
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Forgotten Histories, Unknown Futures
Enlightening nonfiction
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The Devil’s Chessboard: Allen Dulles, the CIA, and the Rise of America’s Secret Government by David Talbot, Oct. 13, Harper, 704 pages, $29.99
The founder of Salon.com and author of “Brothers” pens a provocative portrait of Allen Dulles, the longest-serving director of the CIA who became one of the United States’ most powerful and manipulative behind-the-scenes figures.
Lafayette in the Somewhat United States by Sarah Vowell, Oct. 20, Riverhead, 288 pages, $27.95
Writer and “This American Life” contributing editor Sarah Vowell has an infectious excitement for history, especially the weirder corners of Americana. In books such as “Assassination Vacation” and “The Partly Cloudy Patriot,” she has explored unlikely heroes and hypocrisies, political fiascos and pop culture. In her latest droll history lesson, Vowell homes in on the Revolutionary War and George Washington’s right-hand man, the idealist French teen aristocrat the Marquis de Lafayette.
The Death of Cancer by Vincent T. DeVita Jr. and Elizabeth DeVita-Raeburn, Nov. 3, Sarah Crichton, 336 pages, $28
The long-winded subtitle says it all: “After Fifty Years on the Front Lines of Medicine, a Pioneering Oncologist Reveals Why the War on Cancer is Winnable — and How We Can Get There.” “The Death of Cancer” is both a history and a call to action.
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American Lit: Adventure Stories
Inventive fiction blazing its own trail
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Undermajordomo Minor by Patrick deWitt, Sept. 15, Ecco, 336 pages, $26.99
The latest by Patrick deWitt, beloved author of “The Sisters Brothers,” is a rollicking novel with a folk tale veneer: castles, giants, aristocrats and more. Peel away the layers, though, and underneath all the mischief is a deeper narrative about madness, longing and love.
The Clasp by Sloane Crosley, Oct. 6, Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 384 pages, $26
In her debut novel, the author of memoirs “I Was Told There’d Be Cake” and “How Did You Get This Number” crafts an adventure story about three 20-somethings, barely holding on to their own lives and responsibilities, who embark on a journey around the world in search of a lost necklace. Will they find something even more valuable?
Bats of the Republic by Zachary Thomas Dodson, Oct. 6, Doubleday, $27.95
A fantastical “illuminated novel” featuring hand-drawn maps, natural history illustrations, sci-fi diagrams and more, “Bats of the Republic” contains two overlapping tales: that of Zadock Thomas, a 19th-century naturalist tasked with delivering a secret letter from Chicago to Texas, where war over the republic wages; and the plight of Zeke Thomas, a blood relative who lives in a dystopian future and stumbles upon the mysterious letter, still sealed. It’s an interactive read from the co-founder of Chicago’s Featherproof Books.
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African-American Studies
Stories about race and identity
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Negroland: A Memoir by Margo Jefferson, Sept. 8, Pantheon, 256 pages, $25
Pulitzer Prize-winning cultural critic Jefferson, who has written for The New York Times and Newsweek, recalls her Chicago upbringing among the black bourgeoisie and the delicate dance of her rarefied privilege. “(We) had to be impeccable but not arrogant; confident yet obliging; dignified, not intrusive.” More than a memoir, “Negroland” promises to be a thoughtful analysis of race and class.
Grant Park by Leonard Pitts Jr., Oct. 13, Agate Bolden, 400 pages, $24.95
The searing new novel by Pulitzer Prize-winning Miami Herald columnist Leonard Pitts Jr. (author of the novels “Freeman” and “Before I Forget”) examines U.S. race relations through the eyes of two Chicago journalists. The narrative jumps from 1968 and Martin Luther King Jr.’s final days in Memphis, to 2008, on the eve of the Presidential election.
Laura Pearson is a freelance cultural critic and reporter.
Twitter @tislaurapearson
