August 2019 Reads

August	48	Red at the Bone	Jacqueline Woodson
	49	The Nickel Boys	Colson Whitehead
	50	Macbeth	Jo Nesbo
	51	The Better Sister	Alafair Burke
	52	Virgil Wander	Leif Enger
	53	A Better Man	Louise Penny

The Nickel Boys make my heart hurt. Even though it is a work of fiction, I, unfortunately, know that much of it probably really happened.  Colton Whitehead is an incredible writer!

“Enger deserves to be mentioned alongside the likes of Richard Russo and Thomas McGuane. Virgil Wander is a lush crowd-pleaser about meaning and second chances and magic. And in these Trumpian times, isn’t that just the kind of book and protagonist we’re all searching for?” — New York Times Book Review.

Louise Penny’s novels are unique for how seamlessly they straddle the line between charmingly small-town mysteries and big-city police procedurals.  A Better Man is not to be missed.

What are you reading?

July 2019 Reads

July	41	The Travelers	Regina Porter
	42	American Dirt	Jeanine Cummins
	43	Never Have I Ever	Josilyn Jackson
	44	Knife	Jo Nesbo
	45	The Night Olivia Fell	Christina McDonald
	46	Throw Me To The Wolves	Patrick McGuiness
	47	The Beekeeper of Aleppo	Christy Lefteri

The Travelers is a great read.  The New Yorker said it best, “[A] kaleidoscopic début . . . Porter deftly skips back and forth through the decades, sometimes summarizing a life in a few paragraphs, sometimes spending pages on one conversation. As one character observes, ‘We move in circles in this life.’”  Plus, as a quilter, I loved the cover!

American Dirt is one of the most important books for our times.  It's outstanding.  This time I'm going to quote John Grisham “I strive to write page-turners because I love to read them, and it’s been a long time since I turned pages as fast as I did with American Dirt. Its plot is tight, smart, and unpredictable. Its message is important and timely, but not political. Its characters are violent, compassionate, sadistic, fragile, and heroic. It is rich in authenticity. Its journey is a testament to the power of fear and hope and belief that there are more good people than bad.”

Never Have I Ever is a fun and suspenseful novel --perfect for a summer read.

The Beekeeper of Aleppo speaks to so much that is happening in the world today. It’s intelligent, thoughtful, and relevant, but very importantly it is accessible.  It's a fabulous read.

What are you reading?

June 2019 Reads

June 35 Stars of Alabama Sean Dietrich 36 The Secrets We Kept Lara Prescott 37 This Tender Land William Kent Krueger 38 Joe Country Mick Herron 39 The Stranger Inside Lisa Unger 40 Today We Go Home Kelli Estes

I really loved Stars of Alabama.  Dietrich has woven together a rich tapestry of characters—some charming, some heartbreaking, all of them inspiring.  I'm looking forward to more from this author.

The Secrets We Kept is well worth reading. Prescott’s triumphant debut offers a fresh perspective on women employed by the CIA during the 1950s and their role in disseminating into the Soviet Union copies of Dr. Zhivago.  Fiction at it's best.

I love Mick Herron's writing and stories.  Slough House isn't where you want to end up, and you won't if you're good at your job, which is being a spy!  Joe Country doesn't disappoint.

The Stranger Inside by Lisa Unger is a very highly recommended psychological thriller featuring survivors, murder, kidnapping, and vigilante justice.  It has a bit of something for every mystery/thriller reader.



What are you reading?