New paperback books include fiction by Chabon and nonfiction by Gore

Fiction

"The Yiddish Policemen's Union" by Michael Chabon (HarperPerennial, $15.95). The Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist ("The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay") outdoes himself with this ambitious whodunit/alternate history, in which Sitka, Alaska, has served for the last 60 years as a home to 3.2 million displaced Jews.

"Strawberry Fields" by Marina Lewycka (Penguin, $14). The second novel by the author of "A Short History of Tractors in Ukrainian" is about the experience of seven immigrant laborers from various countries in the "Garden of England." Robert Allen Papinchak found the book "sometimes outrageous, sometimes bawdy and constantly entertaining."

"The Custodian of Paradise" by Wayne Johnston (Norton, $14.95). The Canadian writer's sequel to "The Colony of Unrequited Dreams" continues the story of Newfoundland newspaper columnist Sheilagh Fielding, whom Valerie Ryan called "an irresistible character."

"Origin" by Diana Abu-Jaber (Norton, $13.95). A thriller by the author of "Arabian Jazz," about a fingerprint specialist and a series of crib-deaths that may be murder. Adam Woog found this a "thoughtful, multilayered novel."

"The Reluctant Fundamentalist" by Mohsin Hamid (Harvest, $14). This novel, in which an Americanized Pakistani man tells the story of his life, post-Sept. 11, to a very quiet (and worried) American, was a surprise best-seller. Paula Bock found it "brilliantly written."

"The Ministry of Special Cases" by Nathan Englander (Vintage, $14.95). A first novel, set in Argentina during the "dirty war," by an author who made a splash with his debut story collection, "For the Relief of Unbearable Urges." Misha Berson said Englander handled his subject matter with "pitch-black humor [and] a skeptical affection for his characters."

"Salmon Fishing in the Yemen" by Paul Torday (Harvest, $14). A delightful debut novel about an English fisheries expert hired to create a salmon run in an unexpected locale: the mountains of the Yemen.

"A Handbook to Luck" by Cristina García (Vintage, $13.95). The author of "Dreaming in Cuban" delivers a novel about political/economic refugees living in the U.S. Robin Updike wrote, "The novel, despite moments of sweetness and humor, is ultimately a somber reverie on desire, longing and the unalterable consequences of not recognizing luck when it appears before you."

"Be Near Me" by Andrew O'Hagan (Harvest, $14). A novel about a Scottish priest accused of assaulting a teen. Moira Macdonald said the book goes "far beyond that bald outline" to address "the weight of memories, the challenges of faith and discipline, and the pain of love long lost."

"Suffer the Little Children" by Donna Leon (Penguin, $7.99). Venetian detective Guido Brunetti is back in a whodunit about clandestine traffic in newborn babies.

Nonfiction

"The Assault on Reason" by Al Gore (Penguin, $16). Nobel Peace Prize winner and former vice president looks at "how faith in the power of reason — the idea that citizens can govern themselves through rational debate — is now under assault."

"I Feel Bad About My Neck and Other Thoughts on Being a Woman" by Nora Ephron (Vintage, $12.95). Humorous essays on aging, serial monogamy and other topics, by the best-selling author and screenplay writer ("Heartburn").

"The Architecture of Happiness" by Alain de Botton (Vintage, $16.95). The Swiss-British author who has put his own eccentric stamp on subjects as diverse as "Status Anxiety" and "The Art of Travel" turns his eye to architecture, with genuinely refreshing results.

"Infidel" by Ayaan Hirsi Ali (Free Press, $15) and "The Caged Virgin: An Emancipation Proclamation for Women and Islam" by Ayaan Hirsi Ali (Free Press, $14). Two books by the Somalian-born Dutch parliamentarian and advocate for Muslim women's rights. "Virgin" includes two new essays.

"Supreme Discomfort: The Divided Soul of Clarence Thomas" by Kevin Merida and Michael Fletcher (Broadway, $15.95). A biography of the Supreme Court justice by two Washington Post reporters who found Thomas to be "a welter of conflicting personas." Steve Weinberg described their unauthorized portrait of Thomas as "a superb book."

"The Sushi Economy: Globalization and the Making of a Modern Delicacy" by Sasha Issenberg (Gotham, $15). Sushi, sushi everywhere — but where does it come from? Journalist Issenberg explains in a "splendid account" that's "tasty, textured and aesthetically pleasing," David Takami wrote.

"For Love of Politics: Inside the Clinton White House" by Sally Bedell Smith (Random House, $16) and "Her Way: The Hopes and Ambitions of Hillary Rodham Clinton" by Jeff Gerth and Don Van Natta Jr. (Back Bay, $15.99). Two studies of the Clintons, one looking back, one looking forward, with new updates to both books.

"Reading the Man: A Portrait of Robert E. Lee Through His Private Letters" by Elizabeth Brown Pryor (Penguin, $20). A historian brings the Confederate general to life through his own words, including previously unpublished correspondence. Winner of the prestigious Lincoln Prize.

"Jane Goodall: The Woman Who Redefined Man" by Dale Peterson (Mariner, $17.95). A biography of the scientist-conservationist whose study of chimpanzees made her world-famous. Peterson, who has worked with Goodall, brings an insider's eye to his task.

"Alexis de Tocqueville: A Life" by Hugh Brogan (Yale, $20). A hefty biography, billed as "the first full-scale biography in English" of the 19th-century French aristocrat whose account of his travels in the U.S., "Democracy in America," is widely regarded as the best ever written by a European about this country.

"Edith Wharton" by Hermione Lee (Vintage, $18.95). The noted biographer of Virginia Woolf and Willa Cather tries her hand at the author of "Ethan Frome" and "The House of Mirth." National Book Critics Circle finalist.

Compiled by Michael Upchurch, Seattle Times

book critic, with contributions cited from staff

or freelance critics for The Seattle Times.