Looking for fresh reads? Western authors weigh in.

THE CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC may have disrupted much of what boosts new book releases — bookstores, events and author signings, attention spans — but Westerners need good reading material as much as ever. Fortunately, writers have obliged, with new works that offer education, delight and, occasionally, escape. Here, some of our favorite authors suggest books to dive into this winter. By spring, we hope this reading will help you feel both more grounded in the present, and ready to build a better future.

Subduction, Kristen Millares Young

One of the books I read this year and loved (and keep recommending!) is (fiction, Red Hen Press), set on the Makah Reservation in Neah Bay, Washington. The story follows two characters: Claudia, an anthropologist who has spent the last few years conducting fieldwork among the Makah, and Peter, the son of one of her cultural