John Leonard

Book critic John Leonard says the memoir section of Eileen Simpson's new hybrid book, about her own experiences as an orphan, is compelling and insightful; her later meditations on the idea of orphanhood are less successful.

Book critic John Leonard says the science fiction author's newest book effectively creates an atmosphere of paranoia and suspense, but falters with its "back of the cereal box" characters and implausible plots.

Author Nien Cheng was a wealthy gentlewoman during China's Cultural Revolution. While book critic John Leonard doesn't find Cheng particularly likable, he believes her writing provides a unique and valuable perspective on that history.

Vladimir Vojnovič's first novel since his exile from Russia anticipates what communism might look like 60 years in the future. Book critic John Leonard thinks the the story contains some delightful slapstick.

Raymond Bonner's book examines the collusion between the Philippines' Marcos regime and the U.S. government. Fresh Air book critic John Leonard has a review.

Playwright Marsha Norman's first novel The Fortune Teller, about missing children and abortion, adopts a freewheeling, almost primitive approach to narrative. Critic John Leonard says unconventional structure works.

Nadine Gordimer's newest novel, A Sport of Nature, follows a white anti-apartheid worker as she traverses a complicated terrain of sex, race, and politics.

Playwright Marsha Norman's first novel The Fortune Teller, about missing children and abortion, adopts a freewheeling, almost primitive approach to narrative. Critic John Leonard says unconventional structure works.

Nadine Gordimer's newest novel, A Sport of Nature, follows a white anti-apartheid worker as she traverses a complicated terrain of sex, race, and politics.