Imagine Phoebe Waller-Bridge's Fleabag as a war correspondent in Gaza and you'd get Sara, the cynical and raunchy antiheroine of Phoebe Greenwood's Vulture. Working from a generator-powered, four-star hotel for international media, Sara wreaks havoc on herself and everyone around her in a quest for an exclusive with the leader of a terrorist group. Greenwood covered the Middle East for the Guardian, Daily Telegraph, and the Sunday Times, and the book's portrayal of Gaza and its forsaken residents feels like an insider account. It's hard to say that the book is hilarious given all the graphic death and destruction, but Vulture is a daring dark comedy that doesn't shy away from the horrors that have been going on in the Palestinian territories for too long. (Aug. 12)
