1. James A. Percoco’s review of Vicious and Immoral: Homosexuality, the American Revolution, and the Trials of Robert Newburgh by John Gilbert McCurdy (Johns Hopkins University Press). “Throughout the book, McCurdy, both a scholar of early American and LGBTQ+ history and a gay man, examines the issue of homosexuality within the larger tale of the war that birthed the United States. His prose is lucid, accessible, and compelling as he relates to readers the series of indignities endured by Captain Newburgh. Ultimately, it’s a history, biography, courtroom drama, and exploration of life among the Redcoats all rolled into one.”


2. Peggy Kurkowski’s review of In the Service of the Shogun: The Real Story of William Adams by Frederik Cryns (Reaktion Books). “This timely study arrives on the heels of the 2024 FX series ‘Shogun,’ whose historical accuracy Cryns supervised. In this first full biography of Adams based on original Dutch, English, Spanish, Portuguese, and Japanese sources, Cryns considers the entirety of the man’s life, both in his early years and during the perilous voyages that washed him ashore in Japan. While Clavell used six months of Adams’ life for his novel featuring the fictional John Blackthorne, Cryns makes clear that ‘the other 55 years are worth studying too.’”


3. Stephen Case’s review of Escape from Shadow Physics: The Quest to End the Dark Ages of Quantum Theory by Adam Forrest Kay (Basic Books). “Taking Einstein’s side, Kay devotes much of Escape from Shadow Physics to challenging the very notion of completeness. An uncowed disbeliever, he declares his ‘book is about dissent…damn the torpedoes, full speed ahead!’ With dual doctorates from Oxbridge, the author has the credibility to do just that. Permeating this agreeably readable work are his boundless curiosity, mastery of physics, and command of science history (the short bios of famous scientists peppering the text reveal this broad grasp).”


4. Jennifer Bort Yacovissi’s review of The Distance Between Us: A Novel by Maggie O’Farrell (Vintage). “Here’s the rub: O’Farrell has developed a full-bodied exploration of cultural and family dynamics and of how much of our relationships are filled with missed connections and gaps in understanding that reverberate through generations, but it’s wrapped in this outer layer of facile romance. Strangely, the meat of the story isn’t Jake and Stella getting together. Instead, it’s the backstory of Jake’s grandmother Mair, which leads to her daughter Caroline’s rebellion, that carries more weight. Or perhaps it’s the journey that led Stella’s grandparents from a tiny village in Italy to the outskirts of Edinburgh.”


5. William Rice’s review of Devil’s Contract: The History of the Faustian Bargain by Ed Simon (Melville House). “But Simon seeks and finds the Faustian bargain far beyond the pages of literature. He maintains Jesus withstanding temptation in the wilderness was a devilish deal that fell through. Later, he challenges the reader: ‘Tell me that there isn’t a bit of the sulfurous about artists.’ He dubs fascism ‘the politics of the Faustian bargain’ and declares the United States ‘the Faustian republic.’ According to Simon, every time we click ‘accept’ on a privacy notice, we’re signing the devil’s contract, and artificial intelligence is Satan sent here to tempt us.”

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