NONFICTION

Riffing on Bruce Tramps like us, baby we were born to...write? Thirty years (!) after the release of Born to Run, here come three new books inspired by the Boss.

4TH OF JULY, ASBURY PARK by Daniel Wolff. Titled after Springsteen's 1973 classic, this tale by music journalist Wolff recounts the sometimes troubled history of the Jersey Shore paradise where the singer came of age.

MEETING ACROSS THE RIVER edited by Jessica Kaye and Richard J. Brewer. A collection of poignant stories named for and inspired by Springsteen's melancholy 1975 song about a downtrodden man's final desperate attempt at happiness.

RUNAWAY AMERICAN DREAM by Jimmy Guterman. Written by a music journalist who has been reporting about Springsteen since the '70s, this group of essays details the singer's enduring cultural impact.