2 Books Like Apocalypse

Published in 2022, this is not Harris's latest novel (that would be 2024's Precipice, which is also excellent). But it was the last one my father gave me, and the last one he read, before he died. He gave me Harris' first novel, Fatherland, when it came out in 1992, and ever since we exchanged copies and chatted about each new Harris book. Harris is a master craftsman of the historical novel, and Act of Oblivion is no exception. Both England and New England in the late-17th century are brought vividly (and terrifyingly) to life. The main character is fictional, but he is the only one who is—a very effective contrivance. So yes, this novel has some personal meaning to me, but I still think that objectively speaking this is historical fiction at its absolute best!

Although a trusted friend recommended this recent book, I picked it up with some trepidation. A memoir about piano lessons did not exactly sound thrilling. But Denk is one of America’s greatest living classical pianists, also blessed with a talent for witty and poignant prose, and his book is totally engrossing. I love books that weave together discussion of music and musicians in ways that illuminate the creative process as something very human—flawed and messy and communal, marked by moments of dramatic failure and searing inspiration. I’ve tried to write such books myself, but as a mere historian, and I've yet to come even close to the success Denk achieves here.