Five new books to check out in April
The fall of Budapest, the Italian female antifascist resistance, a Gilded Age spy saga, and more.
Spring is in the air, and so are upcoming releases from my pals Mike Luo and Suzanne Cope. Also: “life and death in wartime Budapest,” a 19th Century undercover detective tale, and the riveting Titanic book I excerpted last week.
From the publisher: “A moving exploration of the origins and fate of the little-known Chinese passengers aboard the Titanic—and how they survived against all odds.” Publishers Weekly: “Schwankert, a researcher for a 2020 documentary of the same title, adapts that film’s findings for this captivating account. … His reflections on how the men’s already semi-covert lives caused them to keep mum about their harrowing experience is the most fascinating element of the book. It’s a satisfyingly fresh perspective on the tragedy.” (Pegasus Books, April 1)
From the publisher: “Using newly uncovered diaries, documents, archival material and interviews with the last survivors, Adam LeBor has brilliantly recreated life and death in wartime Budapest.” The Sunday Times: “Soldiers, scoundrels, saboteurs, femmes fatales, politicians, humanitarians and children all have a different story. … LeBor, a thriller writer and historian who wrote the superb HITLER’S SECRET BANKERS, draws the reader into the maelstrom of war.” (PublicAffairs, April 22)
From the publisher: “From New Yorker writer Michael Luo comes a masterful narrative history of the Chinese in America that traces the sorrowful theme of exclusion and documents their more than century-long struggle to belong.” Time: “Across nearly 600 pages, STRANGERS IN THE LAND traces how the welcomed arrival of Chinese immigrants to the U.S. in the mid-19th century quickly turned violent, resulting in the passing of a series of exclusionary laws in 1889.” (Doubleday, April 29)
From the publisher: “ALIAS AGNES details the story of Jane Tucker, who took a job as an undercover detective with a ten-week mission. Her target: Madeleine Pollard, former mistress of Congressman William C. P. Breckinridge, whom she had sued for breach of promise when he failed to marry her.” Matthew Goodman: “This is a stirring tale of secrecy, betrayal, ambition, jilted love, and the many barriers … faced by young women in nineteenth-century America.” (University of Kentucky Press, April 29)
From the publisher: “The gripping, true, and untold history of the Italian anti-fascist resistance during World War II, told through the stories of four spectacularly courageous women fighters” Publishers Weekly (starred): “By focusing closely on these women’s experiences, Cope is able to reflect on how their understanding of events informed their decisions. … It makes for a captivating look at how antifascist resistance operated and evolved during WWII.” (Dutton, April 29)