New in paperback

Fiction

"A Thousand Splendid Suns" by Khaled Hosseini (Riverhead, $16). The author of "The Kite Runner" sets his new novel in 1970s-1990s Kabul, where he views the Soviet invasion and rise of the Taliban through the eyes of two Afghani women. Haley Edwards said Hosseini's tale of love and war was "violent and sorrowful and savagely human."

"The Bad Girl" by Mario Vargas Llosa, translated by Edith Grossman (Picador, $14). A stinging tease of a novel about four globehopping decades in the lives of two ill-matched yet incendiary lovers. The Peruvian writer also contemplates his country's political vacillations and what it means to be an exile, while he's at it.

"The Appeal" by John Grisham (Delta, $14). New legal thriller by the best-selling author, about a Mississippi town's lawsuit against a lethal chemical polluter. Kevin J. Hamilton said the novel "seems pointedly designed to address a serious issue rather than simply to entertain with implausible plot twists."

"Exit Ghost" by Philip Roth (Vintage, $14.95). Roth's latest novel about writer Nathan Zuckerman — now in his 70s and battling impotence and incontinence. Robert Allen Papinchak said, "Roth invests what might have been a bleak tale of desperation with a triumphant examination of the exigencies of age, illness, and fame."

"Someone Knows My Name" by Lawrence Hill (Norton, $14.95). This novel by a Canadian author follows the life of an escaped 18th-century slave who aids the British during the Revolutionary War, wins her freedom in Nova Scotia and ends up in London, via Africa, to battle the evils of slavery. Winner of the prestigious Commonwealth Writers' Prize.

"A Fraction of the Whole" by Steve Toltz (Spiegel & Grau, $14.95). This hefty debut novel from Australia (a Man Booker Prize finalist) is a father-son story that is also, Valerie Ryan wrote, "a nonstop, politically incorrect diatribe about — for and against — religion, politics, relationships, sex, marriage, work, play, children, sleep, friends, art, labyrinths, schemes and dreams."

"Don't Look Now" by Daphne du Maurier (New York Review Books, $15.95). A selection of nine stories by the English gothic writer, including the bases for films by Alfred Hitchcock ("The Birds") and Nicolas Roeg ("Don't Look Now"). In his introduction, novelist Patrick McGrath noted du Maurier's "brilliant flashes of originality, pessimism and even perversity."

"Rumpole Misbehaves" by John Mortimer (Penguin, $14). Rumpole's latest case involves the murder of a prostitute and some priggish handslapping of minor infractions of the law. Adam Woog called this tale "brief but potent and funny as can be."

Nonfiction

"Eden's Outcasts: The Story of Louisa May Alcott and Her Father" by John Matteson (Norton, $17.95). Pulitzer Prize-winning dual biography revealing how the author of "Little Women" and her father "were unable to rise above the typical bugaboos of parent-child relations." Barbara Lloyd McMichael praised the book's "assiduous attention to detail."

"Schulz and Peanuts: A Biography" by David Michaelis (HarperPerennial, $19.95). A life of the man who brought us Charlie Brown, Snoopy, Lucy and Linus. Lucy Mohl said Michaelis' portrait of the hugely ambitious and successful but perennially melancholic Schulz is "captivating, and full of marvelous details."

"Arsenals of Folly: The Making of the Nuclear Arms Race" by Richard Rhodes (Vintage, $15.95). The Pulitzer Prize-winning author ("The Making of the Atomic Bomb") traces the rise of nuclear overkill since 1945. John Hartl said "Rhodes concludes that the cost of the arms race amounted to 'a waste of treasure unprecedented in human history ... [with] no reasonable gain in security.' "

"Nureyev: The Life" by Julie Kavanagh (Vintage, $19.95). A weighty biography of the legendary Russian dancer. Moira Macdonald said Rudolf Nureyev remains "elusive" in this account, but that Kavanagh delivers "thoughtful reflections on his technique [and] his encounters with ballet greats."

"Sacco & Vanzetti: The Men, the Murders, and the Judgment of Mankind" by Bruce Watson (Penguin, $16). A new look at one of the most controversial trials in U.S. history, in which two Italian immigrants with anarchist leanings were convicted, on flimsy evidence, of murdering two payroll clerks. Kevin J. Hamilton remarked, "Watson's careful study is unlikely to definitively settle the dispute, but does provide a welcome clear-eyed overview."

"Chasing the Flame: One Man's Fight to Save the World" by Samantha Power (Penguin, $17). A biography of U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Sergio Vieira de Mello, who died in the 2003 suicide bombing of U.N. headquarters in Baghdad.

"Apollo's Fire: The Journey Through the Extraordinary Wonders of an Ordinary Day" by Michael Sims (Penguin, $16). A science writer contemplates the Earth's diurnal cycle. David B. Williams said Sims "weaves science, literature, lore and history to craft a witty and erudite field guide to ... the rising and setting sun."

"Gonzo: The Life of Hunter S. Thompson" by Jann S. Wenner and Corey Seymour (Back Bay, $15.99). Rolling Stone editor Wenner and his colleague Seymour assemble an oral biography of the larger-than-life journalist best known for his book "Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas."

"The Toothpick: Technology and Culture" by Henry Petroski (Vintage, $15.95). The author of "The Pencil" examines "an omnipresent yet often overlooked part of our daily lives."

Compiled by Michael Upchurch, Seattle Times book critic, with contributions cited from staff or freelance critics for The Seattle Times.