Books to read during literary awards season.
'DO NOT SAY WE HAVE NOTHING' by Madeleine Thien. Shortlisted for the prestigious Man Booker Prize, this novel by a Canadian writer just came out in the United States. It follows the fortunes of a group of Chinese musicians from the Cultural Revolution of the mid-1960s through the Tiananmen Square protests of 1989. (W.W. Norton, $26.95)
'TRUEVINE: Two Brothers, a Kidnapping, and a Mother's Quest: A True Story of the Jim Crow South' by Beth Macy. The new book by the author of "Factory Man" is a finalist for the Kirkus Prize in nonfiction. It tells the story of George and Willie Muse, black albinos enslaved in a circus sideshow act in the early 20th century. Prize winners are announced Nov. 3. (Little, Brown; $28)
'NEWS OF THE WORLD' by Paulette Jiles. An elderly Civil War veteran agrees to deliver a young girl to her family in San Antonio, four years after Kiowa raiders killed her parents and abducted her. This lyrical Western by the author of "Enemy Women" is a finalist for the 2016 National Book Award in Fiction; the ceremony is held in New York on Nov. 16. (William Morrow, $28.50)
