Rental House, by Weike Wang (Riverhead). Filled with both the comedy and the bitterness of miscommunication, this pointed, deadpan novel examines an intercultural couple’s marriage. Keru is a first-generation Chinese American; Nate is the product of working-class Appalachia. After meeting at Yale, the two moved to Manhattan and pursued jobs in management consulting and academia, respectively. Though the couple are now ostensibly upwardly mobile urbanites, the differences between them come into high relief during two vacations, when their in-laws make separate visits. Wang wryly examines the nuances of class and culture, while also showing that, in the messy terrain of a family with wildly varied values and assumptions, surprising—and profound—moments of unity can still be found.
The Prisoner of Ankara, by Suat Derviş, translated from the Turkish by Maureen Freely (Other Press). This slim, stark novel, first published in 1957 and only now translated into English, follows Vasfi, a Turkish man newly released from prison after serving a twelve-year murder sentence. Vasfi wanders the streets, unable to find either work or peace, as Derviş unfolds the circumstances behind his arrest. As a young man, he falls in love with Zeynep, a local beauty, who goes on to marry his rich great-uncle. As Vasfi’s love grows into an obsession, Derviş lightly hints at the character’s more juvenile qualities—he claims to love Zeynep but knows little of her, and is surprised to learn that she has been divorced. Derviş delivers a bleak story with an inkling of hope at its end—though her protagonist does not entirely earn his redemption.
