In “A Shout in the Ruins” by Kevin Powers, the traumatic impact of the Civil War is followed across the generations of 2 families from the same plantation, one white and one black.  “Gods of Howl Mountain” by Taylor Brown evokes a world of folk healers, whiskey-runners, and dark family secrets set in North Carolina. In “The Romantics” by Pankaj Mishra, an Indian student is caught between the tug of his culture and the allure of the West. “Circe” by Madeline Miller depicts the mythic witch who famously turned Ulysses men into wild pigs.