BOOKS . . . THE TORTILLA CURTAIN
"T. Coraghessan Boyle is an overpraised novelist with an unpleasant habit of sneering at his own cardboard characters," writes criticJohn Skow. Some writers can carry this off; Boyle definitely can't. His new novel (Viking; 355 pages; $23.95) has possibilities in its discussion of the shuddering distaste of California's Anglos for the Mexican illegals who perform the state's stoop labor. But the author mistrusts his skill and the reader's acuteness. "This is weak, obvious stuff," says Skow, "worth a raised eyebrow and a shrug."
Most Popular »
- E.T. Turns 30: 10 Things You Didn't Know About Our Favorite Extra-Terrestrial
- Nevada Ghosts: Rare Photos From an A-Bomb Test
- Temple of Doom: Scientists Discover Peruvian Tomb Filled with Mummies, Infants
- 15-Year-Old Creates Test for Pancreatic Cancer
- Before and After D-Day: Rare Color Photos
- A Diamond Jubilee
- Marilyn Monroe: Early Unpublished Photos
- 10 Dangerous Products You Might Have in Your Home
- Obama Stumbles? Why the President's Right to Talk About Bain
- Etan Patz: After 33 Years, an Arrest in the Disappearance of the 'Milk-Carton Boy'
- Researchers Probe the Potential Health Benefits of Palm Oil
- A Visit with Turkey's Controversial Religious Movement
- Feeding the Planet Without Destroying It
- Bubble on the Potomac
- Falcon's Liftoff: How a Private Firm Could Change Space Exploration
- The Fatal Flight of the Superjet 100: Why Did It Slam Into a Mountain?
- Learning That Works
- The Man Who Remade Motherhood
- Bibi's Choice
- Seoul: 10 Things to Do
More News from Our Partners
Top Stories on TIME.com
Quotes of the Day »
RAY KELLY, New York City Police Commissioner, on the arrest of a New Jersey man in one of the nation's most baffling missing-children cases, the disappearance more than three decades ago of 6-year-old Etan Patz.
