The Ascent

By Allison Buccola, JD’11; Random House, 2025

The Fifteen disappeared without a trace 20 years ago. But one member of this cult remained—a 12-year-old child, Ophelia. Allison Buccola introduces readers to Ophelia, now Lee, as an adult: Fighting others’ suspicions and her own paranoia, she has built a new life with a good job, a successful and caring husband, a historic row house, and a new baby. But when a stranger promises information about Lee’s past, this fragile balance is threatened. Lee thinks the stranger might help her heal from the cult’s disappearance, but should she be so quick to trust?

Wildflowers, Vol. 3

By Kurt Elling, AM’17, and Christian Sands; Big Shoulders Records, 2025

Released by jazz vocalist Kurt Elling’s new record label, Big Shoulders Records, Wildflowers, Vol. 3 is Elling’s first collaboration with pianist Christian Sands. The five tracks represent an eclectic range, from the jaunty harmonies of “Glow Worm”—a tune from a 1920s German operetta popularized by the Mills Brothers in the 1950s—to frank, clear vocals on a Christian Sands original, “Song of the Rainbow People.” A song from Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio (2022), a Bee Gees ballad, and a Thelonious Monk cover round out the album, bringing unexpected material into dialogue through jazz.

The Right of the People: Democracy and the Case for a New American Founding

Osita Nwanevu, AB’15, MPP’16; Random House, 2025

The Democratic Party made much of the battle for “our democracy” during the 2024 presidential election, but many Americans have expressed ambivalence about how well the US democratic system represents average people—and the meaning of the term democracy itself is murky, particularly because of its usage in nonpolitical contexts. Osita Nwanevu argues that there is still much democracy can do for us if we are bolder in the possibilities we imagine. America is not currently a democracy, he writes, but it can become one through a transformation of our political institutions and economy.

The Wireless Operator: The Untold Story of the British Sailor Who Invented the Modern Drug Trade

By David Tuch, AB’96; Icon Books, 2025

While researching his family history, David Tuch came across a cousin with a surprising story. Harold Derber grew up in Manchester, England, his adolescence defined by the devastation of the Blitz. Looking for a way out, he became a wireless operator in the British Merchant Navy. After the war, his thirst for adventure launched him into a series of illegal schemes: smuggling weapons into Israel during the 1948 Arab-Israeli War, mining for gemstones in South America, running gambling cruises out of Miami, ferrying refugees out of Cuba, and smuggling drugs into the United States. The book explores the highs and lows of an almost unbelievable life.

The Body Digital: A Brief History of Humans and Machines from Cuckoo Clocks to ChatGPT

By Vanessa Chang, AM’06; Melville House, 2025

Technologies have always affected our bodies, shaping how we process information, create meaning—and even move. Today the gestures involved in opening an email on a smartphone are as second nature as those we perform to put pen to paper. Vanessa Chang chronicles the ways our bodies and technology have interacted throughout history. She argues that in a moment when new inventions like generative artificial intelligence blur the line between human and machine, it’s time to consider creative solutions that put humanity first.