Black Summers: Growing Up in the Urban Outdoors, edited by Desiree Cooper (Wayne State University Press). Reviewed by Cheryl A. Head. “Sometimes, a book connects with you viscerally and you don’t know why. That isn’t the case with Black Summers: Growing Up in the Urban Outdoors, by Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and author Desiree Cooper. These 33 collected works set in and around Detroit are a contemplation of my own formative years in the city. The offerings (some by writers with decades of success, and others by those newly published) include essays, poems, comics, memoir, and short stories. What connects them is pride of place, shared memory of summer’s joys and tribulations, and an innate understanding of injustice.”

Do What You Fear Most: The History of the Velvet Underground by Richie Unterberger (Omnibus Press). Reviewed by Daniel de Visé. “Therein, perhaps, lies a limitation of rock-band biographies. A rock musician’s life plays out as a monotonous procession of shows, punctuated by the occasional recording session, album release, and rehab stay. If you purchase Do What You Fear Most expecting a well-paced narrative and a View-Master reel of the subject, be prepared to do some skimming. This is a book for hardcore fans, and we are many.”

The Daffodil Days: A Novel by Helen Bain (Scribner). Reviewed by Samantha Neugebauer. “Although no one has quite articulated the historical world around Plath before, after Clark’s magical biographical feat, it’s hard to add more to the Plath canon. And yet, Bain’s urge to do so is understandable. Ultimately, this novel is for the Plath devotee who will always want more of her, the one who is not choosing between this, the Clark biography, The Bell Jar, the journals, or the original poetry. For true fans, The Daffodil Days succeeds at keeping Plath alive in our minds for another day and from an entirely new direction.”

Shakespeare’s Margaret: The Dramatic Life of a Warrior Queen by Charles O’Malley and Scott W. Stern (W.W. Norton & Company). Reviewed by Bob Duffy. “The book charts Margaret’s progress — from teenager to wizened, exiled queen — through four of Shakespeare’s plays, reflecting both her remarkable theatrical longevity and the playwright’s fascination with her. After exploring Margaret’s treatment at Shakespeare’s hands, authors Charles O’Malley and Scott W. Stern turn to the starkly variant approaches to her portrayal taken by adapters and performers over the centuries since she first took shape in young Will’s mind. This latter excursion, in particular, is a singularly compelling survey of stage practice.”

Cool Machine: A Novel by Colson Whitehead (Doubleday). Reviewed by Ryan Davison. “Cool Machine blends literary, historical, and crime fiction fantastically. (Most chapters finish with tantalizing cliffhangers or major plot twists, so putting the book down presents its own challenges.) This final installment works as a splendid standalone but will especially satisfy those who’ve been along for the full ride. Cool Machine is as quintessentially New York as Lady Liberty’s torch penetrating the darkness from Ellis Island.”

This Past Was Waiting for Me: A Chronicle at Quarter Century by Sarah Trembath (Lazuli Literary Press). Reviewed by Michele L. Simms-Burton. “In an historical moment when facts remain contested, propaganda has become normalized, and the ills of a capitalist society are treated as a fait accompli, This Past Was Waiting for Me bears witness to the power of resistance and provides remedies for combating the behaviors that undermine democracy, self-sovereignty, survival, and cultural awareness. Add this book to your must-read list. I suspect Trembath has an act two on her hard drive.”

Carryout: Stories by Hasan Dudar (University of Iowa Press). Reviewed by Mike Maggio. “Struggle, it seems, is the major theme here, for we are confronted with a city that struggles to survive deindustrialization and a mostly white, blue-collar population that struggles to preserve its identity, one threatened by an influx of immigrants and a loss of jobs. Then there are the Idilbis and their compatriots, who struggle with the loss of their cultural identity and their inability (or unwillingness) to integrate into the strange new world they find themselves in.”

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