This literary piece is the story of M, who, as a young mother meets the Devil on a train in Paris. Subsequently, everything in her life goes bad. “I don’t think I realized how many parts of life there were, until each one of them began to release its capacity for badness” she says at the beginning of the novel.
M, who is married to Tony, invites L, an artist, to stay at their “second place” to paint. The marshland is beautiful, and M believes it will inspire L.
M might be in love with L and she might not. Even she doesn’t know. But when he shows up with the young Brett, M doesn’t like it.
A lot of the novel centers around M not feeling or looking like a female. She and Tony seem to simply co-habitate. She does the inside chores, he does the outside chores. Nothing seems to faze him and she wonders if he even sees her.
L is the devil, out to destroy M and her family. (He even tells M’s son-in-law that he’s going to destroy her.) Why she lets him stay on her property, I’m not sure.
In the end, L suffers a stroke. Tony and M’s adult daughter takes care of him. Then he leaves without notice. Later, the world learns that he has died in a hotel room in Paris. M then receives a letter from L from Paris (that someone found), apologizing for his behavior.
This book will appeal to literary readers who love introspection and symbolism with little action or dialog.
Read-alikes:
The Outline Trilogy by Rachel Cusk
Shadow Tag by Louise Erdrich
The Woman Upstairs by Claire Messud
The Museum of Modern Love by Heather Rose
Lori Ludlow, Babylon Public Library
Reading this book felt like doing a puzzle with beautiful, imaginatively drawn pieces. You don't know what the final picture will be, but you know it's got to be something fantastic. The book requires some close attention to recognize all the puzzle pieces, but your patience and attention are well worth it, as it all comes together to form an intricate and unexpected picture.
Made up of three stories from different time periods that intertwine and spiral together, each story contains elements of homecoming, identity, and searching. Anna and Omeir are on opposite sides of the siege of Constantinople in 1453. Seymore and Xeno are on opposite sides of an accidental hostage situation at a library in Idaho in 2020. Konstance is the only survivor on a generation ship in 2145 (or so she thinks). Wrapping around and running through each separate story is the tale of Cloud Cuckoo Land, a fictional ancient Greek comedy that is found and lost and found again throughout history.
Anna finds a codex in a ruin on which is written the tale of Cloud Cuckoo Land, in which Diogenes tells the tale of his attempt to find the mystical world of the birds. Anna keeps the codex safe, and it disappears until it is next discovered some 500 years later in a vault of the Vatican. It is very degraded, but Xeno attempts to translate it as the pages are scanned in and released to the public. He tells the story to a group of children, who decide to create a play based on the story. Konstance is told the story by her father, one of the few members of the generation ship crew who remember Earth, which has become an environmental disaster. When the rest of the crew is killed by a plague, she pieces the story together on scraps of fabric, and ultimately pieces together the reality of her world. It is primarily Xeno's and Konstance's stories that weave together, but no part of any of the stories could exist without the rest.
This is truly one of the most creative and intricate books I've ever read. Doerr puts all the pieces together very well. And not only does he keep the whole puzzle together in his head, he writes lines like:
(on learning Greek) "Boil the words you already know down to their bones, and usually you find the ancients sitting there at the bottom of the pot, starting back up."
(describing the frozen north) "...it was so cold that when the hairy wildmen who lived there spoke, their words froze and their companions would have to wait for spring to hear what had been said."
Read-alikes:
The Actual Star by Monica Byrne
Crossings by Alex Landragin
Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell
Mara Zonderman, Westhampton Free Library
If you know what a “final girl” is, this is probably the book for you! Within the horror movie genre, the last girl standing at the end of the film is referred to as the final girl. Living through the events of a horror movie leaves these girls psychologically traumatized, so they are brought together to form a support group. After several attacks on the members occur, it becomes obvious that a killer is targeting them and it’s a race to see who will once again be left standing.
This fast-paced novel takes place in present day Los Angeles and is told from the perspective of one of the Final Girls, Lynnette, as she navigates the world living in constant fear. Lynnette is clever and hyper aware of her surroundings. Everything she does, including keeping her hair short to avoid someone being able to grab it and taking mental notes of what shoes people around her are wearing (“...if someone’s following they can change their jacket or their hat, but it’s a whole lot harder to change their shoes.”), are part of her all-consuming strategies to stay alive.
Adults who are fans of horror movies will enjoy this story and while they won’t recognize any of the names of the girls in the book, they will notice each survival story matches up with a final girl character from a real film. See if you can figure them all out!
Read-alikes:
My Heart is a Chainsaw by Stephen Graham Jones
Such a Pretty Smile by Kristi DeMeester
Survive the Night by Riley Sager
Jessicca Newmark, The Smithtown Library - Smithtown Building
This book, nominated for the Edgar Award, tells the story of Daniel, who is confined to a wheelchair due to having Spinal Muscular Atrophy, a disease that will eventually kill him. Daniel was born with SMA and has a good outlook on life. He doesn't let his disease get him down even though most of his movement is down to the one hand that controls his wheelchair and he speaks through an computer. He lives on his own with the help of a day nurse and two night nurses as well as his best friend who keeps him entertained and doesn't treat him like he's different.
One morning, while on the porch, Daniel sees a girl get into a car but doesn't think much of it until she's reported missing and he was the last one to see her. Trying to help, he gets his friend to call the police, which turns into a bit of a Laurel and Hardy routine especially when an officer comes to the house and sees Daniel in the wheelchair. Daniel also inserts himself into the investigation by posting online, which leads him to getting in contact with the kidnapper.
A lot of the book is spent with Daniel trying to show people that even though he's in a wheelchair and can't speak, it doesn't mean there's anything wrong with him mentally. His inner monologue has him speaking to the reader, explaining his disease, the things that happen to him, and his thought process for trying to help find the missing girl.
Learning about his disease was interesting as was seeing how people treat and often dismiss him because of his disability. Some of the antics he got himself into were a little farfetched, but his heart was always in the right place. Daniel is a very likeable character and the confrontation with the kidnapper will have you on the edge of your seat. Overall an entertaining read.
How Lucky would be a good read for those looking for a light mystery, books about inclusion and characters with a disability, and young adults as Daniel is in his early twenties and lives in a college town.
Read-alikes:
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time by Mark Haddon
1222 by Anne Holt
Ginny Moon by Benjamin Ludwig
Azurée Agnello, West Babylon Public Library
At Cooper’s Chase, a peaceful retirement community where not much happens, Elizabeth, Joyce, Ibrahim, and Ron meet each week for the Thursday Murder Club to investigate unsolved murder cases. When the murder of Tony Curran, part owner of Cooper’s Chase, happens right in their community, and a photograph is left next to the body, these four septuagenarians decide to stick their noses in and solve it themselves. Their former careers provide them with expertise and the newest murder allows them to put those skills to the test.
PC Donna de Freitas meets the Thursday Murder Club members while she is set to deliver a boring speech to them about security. They make her an offer to join them in being able to actually solve murders. It doesn’t take much for her to join and help the group and later her superior DCI Chris Hudson joins as well.
The novel is full of new and old murders (none are graphic) that keep the reader guessing and trying to figure out who the murderer might be. The characters are quirky and fun and find so much joy in solving the case. The book is told from the perspective of most of the protagonists, so readers know their thoughts, as well as Joyce’s entertaining journal entries dispersed throughout. The beginning of the novel was a bit dragging and confusing with the introduction to many characters, but quickly picked up.
The Thursday Murder Club was a 2021 Edgar Awards nominee for Best Novel. The Edgar Awards are presented by the Mystery Writers of America.
Read-alikes:
Aunti Poldi and the Sicilian Lions by Mario Giordano
Magpie Murders by Anthony Horowitz
The Man Who Died Twice by Richard Osman (book 2 in series)
An Elderly Lady is up to No Good by Helene Tursten
Nanci Helmle, The Smithtown Library - Commack Building
Maeve and Danny Conroy are siblings who grow up in the “Dutch House,” a finely appointed mansion built outside of Philadelphia in the 1920s for Mr. and Mrs. VanHoebeek. When their father, Cyril Conroy, purchases it not long after the end of WWII, he buys the house fully furnished, down to the personal effects of the late occupants. His wife, Elna, is shocked, having believed herself and her husband to be poor. But Cyril has been investing in real estate, starting with a tip from a dying soldier during the war.
Elna, who had intended to become a nun before marrying Cyril, is horrified at their new circumstances, and leaves the Dutch House for longer and longer periods of time until one day, when Maeve is 10 and Danny is 3, she doesn’t come back. After eight years, during which their mother is rarely spoken of, Cyril marries Andrea, a woman who loves the house and brings with her two small daughters, Norma and Bright. Maeve and Danny struggle to adjust to the presence of the chilly and possessive Andrea, until their father suddenly dies four years later. The two siblings learn that their father has left them nothing but a trust to pay for the three youngest children’s education, Maeve having already graduated college. Andrea kicks them out, and Maeve decides that Danny will have the most expensive education money can buy, including medical school, even though Danny has no intention of actually being a doctor.
For years, as Danny grows up, graduates medical school, marries, becomes a real estate developer, and has two children, he and Maeve, who stays in the same job and the same small house, occasionally park outside the Dutch House. They relive their childhood, and dwell on their resentment about everything that was taken from them. The house continues to cast a spell over the Conroys and others who have lived there, as current and former residents of the Dutch House come back into Maeve and Danny’s lives.
The Dutch House is a reflective family saga spanning five decades, with a strong sense of place. The story is told by Danny, who is an engaging narrator, though the reader will sometimes notice and appreciate details that he does not. Readers who like character-driven literary fiction might enjoy this novel, and it would be a good choice for book discussion groups. The Dutch House was a finalist for the 2020 Pulitzer Prize and longlisted for the 2020 Women’s Prize for Fiction. The audiobook, narrated by Tom Hanks, was a finalist for two 2020 Audie Awards, Audiobook of the Year and Best Male Narrator.
Read-alikes:
The Turner House by Angela Flournoy
Family of Origin by CJ Hauser
The Children's Crusade by Ann Packer
French Braid by Anne Tyler
Norah Gillman, Cold Spring Harbor Library
Emira, a young black woman who works as a nanny, is called by her employer, Alix Chamberlain to “please come and take Briar away from the house.” It is 11 p.m. and Emira is at a party with friends. She agrees because she needs the money. She takes two-year old Briar to the all-night grocery in the Chamberlain’s Philadelphia neighborhood. The police are called when a white woman grows suspicious of a black woman out so late with a white child. Emira stands firm with her explanation and denial of wrong-doing. The incident is resolved when Mr. Chamberlain arrives to rescue his daughter and her nanny.
Over the following months, there is growing tension between Emira and Mrs. Chamberlain. Alix, embarrassed by the racial insult to Emira, is determined to show Emira that she loves her as a friend, not an employee--that there are no color or social barriers between them.
Emira is a college graduate. Her friends have jobs in business and education, but Emira is undecided about her life. She loves Briar and the time they spend together. They have an extraordinary, endearing bond. Although she doesn’t make enough money, Emira is unhappy with Alix’ attempts to make her a friend and member-of-the family.
“Such a Fun Age” is a fast-paced, sensitive and unpredictable tale of race relations, “millennial anxieties about adulting”, and the innocence of Briar set against a backdrop of 20 and-30-somethings experiencing changing race relations, careers, marriage, and parenting in the 21st century.
This is Kiley Reid’s first book, it was long-listed for the Booker Prize.
Read-alikes:
That Kind of Mother by Ruman Alam
They Could Have Named Her Anything by Stephanie Jimenez
Disgruntled by Asali Solomon
Grace O'Connor, Retired
This is a story about identical,
red-haired twin sisters. They are precocious and clever but most of all love
learning about the meaning and usage of words. They are given a Webster’s
dictionary by their beloved father that they cherish and use throughout their
entire lives. This story begins when Daphne and Laurel are children and follows
them throughout their lives. We get a front row seat observing the girls as
little kids speaking their own language, which unnerves their mother, to them
living together in NYC in the 1980s.
We watch as they find jobs, search for love, and eventually get married at a double wedding ceremony. Life seems to be fine until the big disagreement occurs. The twins feud over language usage, which is not surprising considering that they both work in the literary field. Daphne becomes a copy editor and Laurel, who is older by 17 minutes, is a poet/kindergarten teacher. It is not until after both parents pass away that the dispute really heats up. The treasured Webster dictionary is up for grabs and both girls want it. They become estranged for years, but it isn’t until after both women lose their husbands that they finally make amends. The twins decide to move in together just as they did when they were both starting out, and true to form keep their treasured dictionary close at hand.
Overall, I enjoyed this book, but it didn’t get off to a great start. I usually listen to books but could not get into this one. So, I broke with tradition and picked up the hard copy and I’m glad I did. What a fun bunch of characters. I was delighted by the twins’ antics. I found them to be funny, clever, and devoted to each other and yet at times they could be stubborn, unkind, and difficult. True to life, I believe the author was able to demonstrate human nature at its best and worst.
I thought the story was unique and intriguing. I felt bad when the sisters became estranged and was really rooting for them to make amends.
I loved the author’s writing style and enjoyed learning the meanings of the words presented at the beginning of each chapter. I am a new fan of Cathleen Schine’s work and recently read the Three Wesismanns of Westport, which I liked a little bit better. In any event, I will continue to read and enjoy more of her novels.
Read-alikes:The Keepsake Sisters by Lori Wilde
The Dictionary of Lost Words by Pip Williams
Nothing to See Here by Kevin Wilson
Karen McHugh, Harborfields Public Library
Long listed for the 2020 National Book Award, The Great Offshore Grounds is a sprawling epic that examines the messy dynamics of a dysfunctional family and it follows the journey that each family member embarks upon to find themselves. Half-sisters Livy and Cheyenne, their adopted brother Essex, and their mother Kirsten are reunited when they are all invited to the upcoming marriage of the estranged father that the two young women share. All three siblings are down and out, financially as well as emotionally, so they reluctantly attend the wedding festivities, if for no other reason than the prospect of free food and drink. Their wealthy father does not share any of his fortune with his children, as they had hoped he would, but instead gives them some information that can lead them to the “other” mother—information that may finally provide the answer as to which daughter was born to which mother and under what circumstances—something their current mother was never willing to share with them. Based on the information that their father gives them, the three take a cross-country road trip to track down their new-found mother, only to be disappointed when their pilgrimage proves to be unsuccessful. This then ignites a quest for each sibling to veer off on their own personal journey to find freedom as well as a life’s purpose. And as they all run off in different directions, they all seem to succeed in actually avoiding life itself, leaving wreckage in their wake.
What the reader will come to see is that the members of this family could not be more dissimilar. Kirsten is a bohemian-type that belongs to a coven of witches; Livy struggles to make her living refinishing boats and traversing the high seas; Cheyenne is unemployed and struggling to find herself after a failed marriage; and Essex drives a cab and ultimately joins the Army in his quest to find a direction in life.
This densely-written, character-driven novel weaves around and about as it alternates narratives and perspectives with a good amount of social, historical, and seafaring content. As the story progresses, love is found in the most unexpected places, surprising revelations about the sisters’ birthright are revealed, and there comes an understanding of disappointment, acceptance, and what it is to belong.
Veselka’s sweeping family saga alternates in writing style throughout—from familiar family dialogue, to detailed descriptions of settings, to poetic literary passages. Picking up The Great Offshore Grounds is definitely a reading commitment—it is a sweeping account of a family dynamic that is messy, evolving, and at times, unsettling.
Read-alikes:
Family Compound by Liz Parker
Malibu Rising by Taylor Jenkins Reid
The Altruists by Andrew Ridker
The Hummingbird by Sandro Veronesi
Deborah Formosa, Northport-East Northport Public Library
