One of the Bravest Things a Book Can Do
Writers are uniquely able to uncover—and condemn—a country’s troubles: Your weekly guide to the best in books
Suggesting that literature hasa singular higher purpose is ludicrous; it is and can do many things. But some of the bravest, most enduring pieces of writing are those that uncover, then challenge, a nation’s troubles. These works are, of course, most effective when the proseitself is great. In his essay on the Ed Park focuses on the book’s artfulness, rather than its politics. But he also comments on the “downright brutal[ity]” of the protagonist’s life—the mistreatment and the violence he faces—as a Uyghur man
