My life in books
n her introduction to EX LIBRIS (HarperCollins, $39.99), 100-plus essays about books she has read and loved, Michiko Kakutani, Pulitzer Prize-winning literary critic and chief book critic for the from 1983 to 2017, says that, from an early age, books became both a sanctuary and an escape. Kakutani, the only child of a Yale mathematician who worked as a reporter for papers such as the before joining the , read under the blankets at night with a flashlight, in the school library during recess to avoid playground bullies, and in the family car even though it made her is also gorgeous to look at and hold, embellished throughout with Dana Tanamachi’s Art Deco-inspired illustrations. Go no further if you’re looking for charm and intelligence in a small book.
