The Optimistic Decade

Heather Abel (fiction, Algonquin)

A sharply funny novel about a Utopian summer camp presided over by charismatic leader Caleb Silver, who’s on a mission to teach others to live simply.

When the Center Held: Gerald Ford and the Rescue of the American Presidency

Donald Rumsfeld (nonfiction, Free Press)

A political memoir of the Gerald Ford presidency as seen through Ford’s secretary of defense and chief of staff Donald Rumsfeld, who makes the case that Ford was severely underappreciated.

A Shout in the Ruins

Kevin Powers (fiction, Little, Brown)

The author of “The Yellow Birds” explores the legacy of exploitation and violence through the lives of the inhabitants of Beauvais Plantation outside Richmond, Va. The tale spans over 100 years, from the Antebellum era to the 1980s.

Tip of the Iceberg

Mark Adams (nonfiction, Dutton)

A fascinating journey through Alaska, America’s last frontier, Adams sets out to recreate the 1899 steamship expedition made by railroad magnate Edward H. Harriman. On his journey, Adams meets plenty of characters — and bears.

The Pisces

Melissa Broder (fiction, Hogarth)

After a dramatic breakup with her boyfriend, Lucy decamps to Venice Beach, where she spends the summer dog-sitting in her sister’s gorgeous house. One night while sitting on the beach, she meets a man who turns out to be a merman. Romance ensues.

The Favorite Sister

Jessica Knoll (fiction, Simon & Schuster)

The author of the bestselling “Luckiest Girl Alive” returns with “The Favorite Sister,” a thriller about two sisters who join the cast of a reality TV series. One of them won’t make it out alive.