Born Equal: Remaking America’s Constitution, 1840-1920 by Akhil Reed Amar (Basic Books). Reviewed by Jonathan Sallet. “Which leads to a pressing question in today’s constitutional moment: Does Professor Amar’s Lincolnian originalism differ from the prevailing conservative approach? In an op-ed, he expressed the view that Dobbs was correct in overruling Roe v. Wade, and in an appearance before the Federalist Society, he criticized the Harvard race-based admissions policy that was ruled unconstitutional. Yet he also endorsed Justice Powell’s approach in Bakke, which held that the consideration of race as a factor in college admissions is permissible.”

John Candy: A Life in Comedy by Paul Myers (House of Anansi Press). Reviewed by Daniel de Visé. “Still, along the way, Myers captures many poignant observations about Candy from his famous friends. He had great ideas but lacked the patience to write them down, a trait he shared with Belushi. He could joke about his own weight problem, but heaven help the screenwriter or director who dropped fat jokes into his scripts. (The mud-wrestling scene from ‘Stripes’ was particularly painful for him.) And Candy apparently passed on a role in ‘Pulp Fiction,’ one of the greatest films ever made.”

Beings: A Novel by Ilana Masad (Bloomsbury Publishing). Reviewed by Mariko Hewer. “During the same decade as the Hill incident, Egerton has been finding her feet and making a living as a reporter in Boston, writing letters home to an old flame that, remaining largely unanswered, become a kind of diary archive. In it, she explores her gender identity, sexuality, and sense of belonging in ways that will feel familiar to anyone who’s had to wear any kind of mask.”

1942: When World War II Engulfed the Globe by Peter Fritzsche (Basic Books). Reviewed by Eugene L. Meyer. “Now along comes Peter Fritzsche’s 1942: When World War II Engulfed the Globe. Whereas other year-themed books focus on military campaigns, decisive battles, and larger-than-life heroes and villains, historian Fritzsche uses 1942 as a starting point. It was, he writes, when the entire planet became fully engulfed in a conflagration on a scale never before seen. In this sweeping, ambitious book, he reframes ‘the good war,’ as it was subsequently called (and almost fondly remembered), at least on these shores.”

The Literati: A Novel by Susan Coll (Harper Muse). Reviewed by Marcie Geffner. “Should Clemi upgrade Sveta, the not-yet-announced winner of WLNP’s Chestnut Prize for Prescient Fiction, to first class on her international flight to DC to attend the gala? And what about Sveta’s rumored-to-be-trouble 8-year-old son, Vlad? Should she upgrade his ticket, too? How will WLNP pay these expenses and the gala’s overdue catering bill when someone — possibly Howard himself — has emptied its bank accounts? And why, just days before the soirée, are all of WLNP’s wealthy and prestigious board members unavailable, disinterested, or shockingly ignorant of the organization’s finances? Should Clemi quit her dream job, walk away from the madness, and take the LSAT?”

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