Britt-Marie Was Here: A Novel by Fredrik Backman

 Britt-Marie Was Here: A Novel by Fredrik Backman. Atria Books (an imprint of Simon & Schuster), 2014. Adult fiction.


    Britt-Marie is different from most people. When she goes to the unemployment office and is persistent, she finds a temporary job in the small town of Borg. She arrives with her knowledge of cleaning and manages to change herself and the townspeople forever. Britt-Marie knows little about men, but finds herself wooed by two men. Britt-Marie knows nothing about soccer, but she ends up coaching and mentoring and loving the local children who play passionately. Finding out Britt-Marie's secrets is truly like peeling back the layers of an onion, but readers will laugh with her, sympathize with her, and urge her to live her own best life. One person can really change the world as Britt-Marie proves.


The story reads faster than the author's A Man Called Ove and the main character is just as quirky, but totally different. Part of the fun in the story involves the small drawings that precede each chapter. Each represents a happening or object vital to the story. Even the cover illustration is pitch perfect! And, you might just find yourself rearranging your silverware drawer!

The Shipping News: A Novel by E. Annie Proulx

  The Shipping News: A Novel by  E. Annie Proulx. Scribner, 1993. Adult nonfiction.


Set in Newfoundland, this story of newspaperman Quoyle and his small daughters, Sunshine and Bunny who return to the ancestral home with Quoyle's aunt. The poor man is beset with grief over his first wife, problems at work, and trying hard to make a new life. While acclaim has ranged from "astonishingly accomplished" to comparisons with Edith Wharton and John Steinbeck, the novel reveals its secrets slowly. The characters are memorable and have interesting names like Billy Pretty, Ed Punch, Mrs. Buggit, Wavey, and Murchie. The aunt is a wonder with her talents at upholstery and understanding little girls. Definitely read it in the winter when you can appreciate the ice and cold of the setting!

Swan by Frances Mayes

 Swan: A Novel by Frances Mayes. Broadway Books (Random House),
                    2002. Adult fiction.


Travel writer Frances Mayes branched out from her usual Italian memoirs to write this fictional account of small town life in Swan, Georgia. Grown children, J.J. and Ginger Mason, are shocked when the body of their long dead mother is found lying on the ground beside her grave. Even more shocking is that she did not commit suicide, but was murdered. Everyone has secrets and must move past the traumas and tragedies to seek new futures, new loves, and new adventures. The neighbors, friends, and family will remind readers who grew up in the South of people they know. Slow moving story, sort of like sipping an iced tea in the hot summer and reading on the front porch!

Wish by Barbara O'Connor

 Wish by Barbara O'Connor. Farrar Straus Giroux, 2016. Children's chapter book. Fiction.


Set in rural Colby, North Carolina, this tale of Charlie Reese and her search for family, friends, and a dog to love will capture your heart. Charlie goes to live with Gus and Bertha, her uncle and aunt who have no children, when Mama can't get "her feet on the ground" and while her father is in prison. She is not a great student and has a bit of a temper. But, an unlikely friend, Howard, is steady and helps Charlie figure out ways to catch the stray dog that she names Wishbone. Charlie is big on wishes and makes the same one every day.  How her story plays out is not like she thinks, but perfect, after all.


Like in her book, The Fantastic Secret of Owen Jester, O'Connor weaves searches for a child's heart's desires with the age-old story of wanting to be loved just for yourself, or even in spite of yourself.  The dialog rings true and the story is filled with believable episodes. Charlie learns that you don't have to do everything right to have everything turn out right.

The Woman in Cabin 10 by Ruth Ware

 The Woman in Cabin 10  by Ruth Ware. Scout Press, an imprint of Simon & Schuster, 2016. Adult fiction.


Lo Blacklock thinks it will be a career advantage as a travel writer to sail on the very exclusive yacht Aurora. While her own life has been careening sideways lately, she finds herself completely wrapped up in a mystery soon after the ship  sails. Lord Bullmer and his young wife, Anne, and several other guests provide much to wonder about...and who is the young woman in Cabin 10 and where has she gone? Was she there at all or is it Lo's imagination?


The atmosphere is captured well with lots of fog, splashes, and small spaces.  Ware makes each of the characters distinctive so it's easy to keep up with identities of guests and staff. The only downside to the book is a caveat to read it on dry land! You may not sleep at all if you take this tale on a cruise!

In Such Good Company: Eleven Years of Laughter, Mayhem, and Fun in the Sandbox by Carol Burnett

In Such Good Company: Eleven Years of Laughter, Mayhem, and Fun in the Sandbox by Carol Burnett. Crown Archetype, Crown Publishing Group, a division of Penguin Random House, 2016. Memoir.

 

If you need to put a smile on your face, this is the book for you! The eleven years that Carol Burnett performed her weekly variety show were memorable ones for many Americans. In preparing for this book, Carol watched all 276 episodes herself. The resulting nonfiction work makes a great handbook to watching them all yourself. Carol tells how she and the cast, crew, writers, and guest performers came together to make fun in “the sandbox”.

The tone is light and reads almost like if Carol were sitting across from you at your breakfast table and just telling you about the show. She focuses on select scenes and bits in some chapters, on friends and performers in others. All the shows are listed in chronological order at the end with dates, short descriptions, and names of key people. Small black-and-white photos and video stills provide visual interest and will jog the memories of readers or give background to those unfamiliar with the Carol Burnett Show.  Highly recommended for those who know and love humor…and isn’t that everyone?  I received this book from www.bloggingforbooks.com  in exchange for an honest review.

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The Hamilton Affair: A Novel by Elizabeth Cobbs.

The Hamilton Affair: A Novel by Elizabeth Cobbs. Arcade Publishing, 2016. Historical fiction.


    Many Americans are caught up in the excitement of Lin Manuel Miranda's Broadway smash hit about Alexander Hamilton. This historical fiction tells the story of Hamilton's early life and his rise to success in the American Revolution as well as about his love, Eliza. While utilizing many historical resources and truths, Cobbs chooses to create a fictional young African-American named Ajax to showcase Hamilton's true feelings about slavery and the worth of all human beings. The first half of the book moves smoothly, but the second half gets a little complicated after the war. The story moves past the Hamilton-Burr duel and tells what happens to Eliza and their family.  If you are among the Hamilton obsessed, you will definitely want to read this one.

Leaving Lucy Pear by Anna Solomon

Leaving Lucy Pear by Anna Solomon.
                                  Viking, 2016. Adult fiction.


     In 1917, Bea Haven, a Jewish young woman, has a baby daughter and gives her up by leaving the baby in the pear orchard until someone else claims her. Bea intends to pursue her brilliant piano career at Radcliffe and leave the past behind her. But, ten years later, she is unfulfilled in many ways and taking care of her uncle in the same location where she had the baby. Circumstances bring many threads of their lives together as Emma Murphy, the Catholic mother who has raised Bea's daughter for ten years, comes to help  with the uncle's care. The whole story explores what it means to be a mother, a woman, a daughter, and how each person can change another's life in small as well as large ways.

The Poet's Dog by Patricia MacLachlan.

 The Poet's Dog by Patricia MacLachlan. Katherine Tegen Books (an imprint of HarperCollins, 2016. Children's chapter book.


When dogs speak, only poets and children can hear according to MacLachlan. In this poignant tale, a dog, Teddy, rescues two children from the snow. The dog has been carefully taught by his master, Sylvan, a poet, and can communicate. In the thirteen short chapters (only 88 pages in the book), readers learn about Sylvan and Teddy's lives as well as about Flora and Nickel, the children. Love, loss, friendship and the impact of simple things are woven into the sparse, but beautifully worded, text. If you love dogs, words, children, and great writing, just read this magical story.

The Tea Planter's Wife by Dinah Jefferies.

 The Tea Planter's Wife by Dinah Jefferies. Crown (Penguin Random House), 2016. Adult fiction.


With lush descriptions of the beautiful landscapes and many details about the tea business, Jefferies has created a glimpse into a fascinating bygone culture. Gwen, a young English woman, marries Laurence Hooper, a wealthy owner of a tea plantation in Ceylon and goes home with him. Ultimately, she discovers his first wife, Caroline, has died several years before. While this could have been just another Rebecca remake, Jefferies has created fresh characters and a very different story. Gwen's sister-in-law, Verity, is a troubled and manipulative woman. Her cousin, Fran, is often far away. And, then there's an unusual pregnancy. The book reads smoothly and lovers of historical fiction won't put this one down for long.(Starred review in Booklist)


I receive this book from Blogging for Books in exchange for an honest review.

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Before the Fall: A Novel by Noah Hawley

  Before the Fall: A Novel by Noah Hawley. Grand Central Publishing (Hachette), 2016. Adult fiction.


From the title itself, readers can tell that there's a crash coming. Sure enough, a small private plane takes off from Nantucket and disappears before it reaches New York City.  A family of four, a high profile couple, two pilots and a flight attendant, and an artist are on board. Who survives? What happened?  The author does a good job of keeping the tension going, the intrigue convoluted, and the characters real. Hawley is best known for script writing, and both producing and writing the hit series BONES. No doubt Before the Fall will be one thriller of a movie!  (For some fun reading, pair this one with the very different, but somewhat related After the Crash by Bussi.)

The Leaving by Tara Altebrando

The Leaving by Tara Altebrando. Bloomsbury, 2016. Young Adult. Fiction.

It's been eleven years since six kindergarteners went missing. Suddenly, five of them return, but with no memories of what has happened to them in those years. Someone  finds he knows how to load a gun. Someone remembers a carousel horse. Someone can use a camera well. What happened to these kids and why have they come back now? Do they just start high school now? And, the biggest mystery for one family: where is the sixth child? What makes a person real if there are few memories stored up?  Told in a series of fifteen days after they appear, readers learn of the families and their struggles to both remember and forget, to move on and live their lives. It's a mysterious, twisting tale of friends, families, trying to remember the past and trying find a future in a landscape of "What ifs".

We Could Be Beautiful: A Novel

 We Could Be Beautiful: A Novel by Swan Huntley.

                                             Doubleday, 2016. Adult fiction.


Reading this book is like eating a beautiful chocolate éclair. It's gorgeous and it tastes good, but you wonder if it's really worth all the calories!


Catherine West is almost too good to be true: beautiful, wealthy, successful in Manhattan. Her big flaw seems to be that she has not found the right man with whom to share a family. (WHAT??) Then, she meets William Stockton who has to be too good to be true: handsome, wealthy, successful (Get the trend here?) and who vows to love Catherine forever and they plan to marry. But, wait, he has known Catherine's family in the past and remembers intimate details of both her parents and her sister, Caroline, and Catherine as a child. Catherine's mother is now living with Alzheimer's and has flashes of distinctly not liking William. Something is wrong here, but readers will keep going to find out just what it is. Gorgeous details of life in the fast lane and reads smoothly, but is it worth the time? If you want a tale of deception, greed, love, and family, put this one in your beach bag.

Natural Color by Sasha Duerr

 Natural Color: Vibrant Plant Dye Projects for Your Home and Wardrobe by Sasha Duerr. Photography by Aya Brackett. Watson-Guptill Publications, 2016. Nonfiction.


     Both a coffee table book and a textbook, this gorgeous work will enhance the work of all home textile creators. Projects include useful items like table runners, pillowcases, curtains, hats, napkins, mittens and such. Arranged by the seasons, the projects and many plants are beautifully illustrated in full color, full page illustrations. The book is filled with information about dyeing, mordants, common plants that yield unexpectedly beautiful colors. A bibliography, index, and glossary are helpful additions. Duerr has great passion for her topic and writes in a clear manner. I received this book from  Blogging for Books in exchange for an honest review.

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Falling: A Daughter, A Father, and a Journey Back by Elisha Cooper

 Falling:  A Daughter, A Father, and a Journey Back by Elisha Cooper.  Pantheon Books (Penguin Random House), 2016. Memoir.


I have known the gorgeous work of Elisha Cooper for some years now. His illustrated picture books for children, Farm, Beach, and Train are masterpieces about their respective topics. Full of colorful details, they seem the work of a careful, but happy, person. His prior memoir, Crawling: A Father's First Year is full of happy new fatherhood and the wonder of being a parent and describing the uncertainty of who really learns more during that time, the baby or the parent. A Year in New York is a thick, but small book full of intrigues in the city. The man can both write AND illustrate.


This 2016 book, however, brings new depth to Elisha Cooper's work. While he is holding his four-year-old daughter at a baseball game at Wrigley Field, he notices a small bump under her ribs. It turns out to be a pediatric kidney cancer called Wilms' tumor. Imagine: one day the sky is blue, your child is healthy and the next moment you have a child with cancer. The bottom has literally fallen out, but you must go on. That is the journey that Cooper takes readers on for the next three years of the family's lives.


This sounds like such an awful topic. It sounds like a depressing topic. It sounds like a terrible topic for a book. But, Cooper's writing is eloquent and upbeat while realistic and joyful. He runs the gamut of emotions and continues to love both his daughters and his wife and write other books that show none of this (or maybe they do, but it's so subtle that most readers miss it...I can't wait to reread his whole body of work).


The little family moves back to New York City as they had planned. The descriptions will make readers think they could live there, too. Cooper tells of his high school and college days when he played football. He tells of surviving minefields in the Golan Heights. Nothing is as tough as knowing his child has cancer. Yet, he describes the wonders of working with wood. The family's trip to Florence, Italy makes us long to go there. There is happiness and joy in their daily lives. But, always, there are trips to the hospital for tests and Dr. Lee, who comes off like the doctor we would all want in the lives of our children. Ultimately, and finally, the three year tests are all fine. The cancer is gone.


Can anyone learn to live with cancer? Can cancer be "cured"? Elisha Cooper gives new hope for resounding, positive answers to both. Here's to many more years of great health for him and his family and for many more of those wondrous picture books. I only hope to meet him at a library conference some day and give the man a hug. Better yet, to be in the audience when he accepts a Caldecott Medal one of these years!

The Children by Ann Leary.

 The Children by Ann Leary. St. Martin's Press, 2016.
                                          Adult fiction.






Charlotte and Sally are the grown daughters of Joan and their now deceased stepfather, Whit. Whit's family also includes two grown sons, Perry and Spin. While the boys have attended the exclusive prep school near "Lakeside" and will inherit all the family money and property, the girls and their mother are allowed to live there. Then, in one memorable summer, Spin brings his fiancé, the beautiful Laurel, to meet them all and life is changed forever.


The faded glory of the house and grounds, the attempts to keep everyone "nice", and the slow reveals of resentments and rivalries tie ribbons around all the characters and events of this drama. Charlotte narrates, but she rarely leaves the house. Her "mommy blog" is totally fiction, but earns money from a diaper company. Sally, musically gifted, suffers from mental problems. Others have equally interesting backgrounds. 


My over riding take on this blended family tale is that everyone should have a will. This is sort of like what the "We Were Liars" characters might have been like as adults. Put this one in the beach bag and enjoy.

Arrowood: A Novel

 Arrowood: A Novel by Laura McHugh. Spiegel & Grau (Penguin Random House), 2016. Adult fiction.


The little town of Keokuk, Iowa and the historic Arrowood house are almost as important as the human characters in this twisty tale of mystery. Arden Arrowood has returned to her childhood home to find it much the same as she remembered it when she was a child. The overriding event in her family's lives was the disappearance of her toddler twin sisters when Arden was eight and supposed to be watching them. Can Arden figure out what really happened? Can she ever get over her guilt? With the help of her first love, Ben Ferris (now the town dentist!) and a new friend, Josh, whose website about unsolved mysteries may shed some clues on the case, Arden struggles to move forward with her life. Life on the Mississippi makes for a great read indeed!

Georgia, A Novel of Georgia O'Keefe

 Georgia, A Novel of Georgia O'Keefe by Dawn Tripp. Random House, 2016. Adult fiction.


Most people are familiar with the gorgeous artwork of Georgia O'Keefe. Her birth in Sun Prairie, Wisconsin and later teaching in Canyon, Texas provide a rich canvas for this fictional account of her life as a young teacher. A friend sends some of her work to NYC art dealer and photographer Alfred Stieglitz who becomes her mentor, her husband, and the dominant force in her life for many years. But, Georgia longs for independence to practice her art. She wants to control what is said about her work and keep her personal life out of it.


Tripp provides imaginative details to flesh out the biographical outline that moves O'Keefe eventually into life in New Mexico as an elderly woman. Her siblings, her friends, and her husband all help shape her life and form the legendary artist. But, it is Georgia, alone, who dominates in spirit and in independence, and crafts her own life. Tripp has honored her with this thoughtful tale.

The Forgetting Time, A Novel by Sharon Guskin

 The Forgetting Time, A Novel by Sharon Guskin. Flatiron Books (Macmillan), 2016. Adult fiction.


What would you do if your small child kept asking for his "other mother" and wanting to go to his other home? This is what happens to Janie and her son in this unsettling story. Noah is terrified of many things, has nightmares, and can't stay in the same preschools. Dr. Jerome Anderson, a psychiatrist, has spent much of his career on what appears to be a wild goose chase documenting children who seem to have lived other lives and then seem to grow up and forget those lives. Dr. Anderson is dying and would like to know for sure if his research proves what he thinks it will. What if they can find Noah's "other mother" if she really exists?


By far, the most riveting parts of the book  are the mother and child relationship. Can Janie help her child? Chapters are often preceded by essays by Dr. Jim Tucker's Life Before Life which is nonfiction and tells of international families with some of the same quandaries as Janie and Noah. While the story ends, readers will have far more questions about this intriguing research.

The After Party, A Novel by Anton Disclafani.

  The After Party, A Novel by Anton Disclafani. Riverhead Books
(Penguin Random House), 2016. Adult fiction.


By far, this fictional tale has been my favorite guilty pleasure this summer! Set in 1950's Houston, it details life of several high society women and the secrets they keep. The liquor flows, the diamonds sparkle, and in the midst is beautiful and rich Joan Fortier. Her faithful sidekick, Cece Buchanan, thinks she know Joan well. Alternating between their time at Lamar High and just afterward to 1957 when Cece is married and has a small son, the tale winds through the River Oaks' debutantes with chauffeurs and maids to do their bidding.


The author has obviously done her homework. From the description of the diving boards at the now gone Shamrock Hotel to the delicacies served in the homes, the details ring true. It's interesting that the main characters share a first name with Joan Robinson Hill, the real Houston socialite whose life and death were the subjects of Tommy Thompson's Blood and Money, a Houston classic. The writing is smooth and, although clues are dropped along the way, even readers who suspect the ending will be happy with the way things are neatly tied up by the end.

What Was Mine by Helen Klein Ross

 What Was Mine: A Novel by Helen Klein Ross. Gallery Books (Simon & Schuster, 2016) Adult fiction.


When Lucy and her husband cannot have their own child, Lucy's marriage falls apart and she is stressed out to the max. One day at IKEA, she sees a four month old girl alone in the store and Lucy picks her up and just walks out with her. The whole novel is how Lucy takes care of Mia, eludes the press, the police, and the baby's parents.  Only when Mia is grown does she learn what happened to her and seeks to reconcile her emotions and learn how to become part of the families who love her.


Told from the perspectives of Lucy, her husband Warren, the birth mother Marilyn, Lucy's sister Cheryl, the birth father Grant, Wendy the Chinese nanny, neighbors, coworkers, and Mia herself, the story moves forward engagingly. Each character lends an important view and details that ring true. At times, it seems a little implausible that Lucy could actually navigate medical, educational, and social situations with lies and creative thinking, but she does. The differences between Marilyn and Grant's children and their family and the life Mia has lived is almost jarring. Mia really has two mothers who love her dearly and would do almost anything to secure her happy future. But how can anyone over come the kidnapping and its long aftermath?  Ross will keep readers wondering until the very end.

The Graces by Laure Eve

  The Graces by Laure Eve. Amulet Books (Abrams), 2016. Young Adult. Fiction.


When River Page begins high school in a new town, she meets the intriguing Grace teens. Rumors abound about the wealthy, rather distant, beautiful twins Fenrin and Thalia and their younger sister Summer. Are they really witches? When someone disappears, they all need all the magic they can get!


The book is filled with typical teen angst and the quest to make friends and to fit in with others. River hints at her own "otherness", but it's sometimes hard to tell what's real and what's just in her head. At times, the story is a little like We Were Liars (beautiful, rich kids with another teen who wants to be part of their family) with some magic woven through it. Eve does weave a powerful tale that teens who like witchy and vampirey topics will find appealing.

June: A Novel by Miranda Beverly-Whittemore

June: A Novel by Miranda Beverly-Whittemore. Crown, 2016. Adult fiction. A good choice for summer reading! Friendships, love, mystery, and movie magic! Mourning her grandmother in Ohio, Cassie Danvers receives news that she is heir to a Hollywood star’s fortune. The book alternates between 1955 and 2015 as readers learn about Cassie, her grandmother, and a long ago movie that was filmed in small town Ohio. The man’s very famous daughters are not thrilled with the developments and all the girls have many questions. Are they family or not? In exchange for an honest review, I received this book from Blogging for Books . More Info Author Bio

Kick: The True Story of JFK's Sister and The Heir to Chatsworth by Paula Byrne.

  Kick: The True Story of JFK's Sister and The Heir to Chatsworth. Paula Byrne. HarperCollins, 2016. Adult Nonfiction.  (July, 2016 publication).


Although Kathleen Kennedy was born the second daughter and fourth child of Rose and Joe Kennedy, she acted as the older sister to the other siblings and as the equal to Joe, Jr. and John F. Kennedy. Because of older sister Rosemary's disabilities, Kick's vivid personality and lively spirit especially stood out. (Read Kate Clifford Larson's Rosemary, the Hidden Kennedy Daughter for that story.) In this well researched tale, Byrne tells how Kathleen fell in love with Cavendish while her father was ambassador to England and later returned to live there. Her short marriage to Billy Cavendish was controversial because he was Protestant and she was Catholic. A young woman with Kick's faith did not take lightly never being welcome at communion or confession again. Tragically, both her brother, Joe, Jr. and her husband were killed during WWII. Kathleen found love again, but, alas, with a married man. Both were killed in a plane crash. Many readers already know these facts, but the way that Byrne weaves the facts with accounts from people, letters, and other documents makes this an interesting history of both Kick and the Kennedy family. Byrne mentions the book is dedicated to her own sons and to her grandfather, Robert Kennedy.

Another Brooklyn by Jacqueline Woodson

Another Brooklyn by Jacqueline Woodson. Imistad (an imprint of HarperCollins), 2016. Adult fiction (billed on the galley as Woodson's lst adult novel in 20 years).


A coming of age story about four girls in 1970's Brooklyn, New York, this tale takes a close look at what happens when dreams meet reality. The narrator (Autumn), her younger brother, and father have moved to the city from rural Sweet Grove, Tennessee. The children watch life outside their window as they grow up. Angela, Gigi, and Sylvia become fast friends  with Autumn when it's time to go to school. Each of the girls has different talents and think that they are safe as a group, but they know the dangers that lurk in the streets. As teenagers, they take different routes. Sylvia is pregnant. Gigi gets and then flubs the role of a lifetime. Angela dreams of being a movie star. And, Autumn escapes to university in Rhode Island. Their paths are not straight and readers will be the richer for having walked for a few moments with these girls.

Commonwealth by Ann Patchett

Commonwealth by Ann Patchett. HarperCollins, 2016.
                                   Adult fiction


Ann Patchett does not disappoint with her smooth storytelling and intricately crafted characters. When I picked up this galley at Texas Library Association, the cover really didn't tell much about the book, but based on Patchett's other work, I grabbed it. Coming out in September, 2016, the book will only enhance the reputation of bookstore owner and author Ann Patchett. Looking for a family drama for the autumn? This is it!


Two families live in the same community and their lives intertwine. No one can predict, though, that the two marriages will break apart as one mother and one father fall in love with each other. Pulled from California to Virginia to live with a new father, one set of children grow up with visits from the other set of children. The two "abandoned" parents do the best that they can with their own lives.  The novel takes off as the five adult children adapt and come to grips with their childhoods. Each  character is very different, but readers will care about both their pasts, some of which are revealed only as adults, and their futures, which happen both because of and in spite of, their shared pasts.

The Rainbow Comes and Goes by Cooper and Vanderbilt.

 The Rainbow Comes and Goes: A Mother and Son on Life, Love, and Loss. Anderson Cooper and Gloria Vanderbilt. HarperCollins, 2016. Adult nonfiction.


Anderson Cooper has made a name for himself as a leading journalist who covers the world. His mother, Gloria Vanderbilt, while a designer and artist, is best known as the child over whom a custody battle raged in the early 1900's. For about a year, when Ms. Vanderbilt is between 91 and 92 years of age, she and her son correspond, talk, and visit about their lives. Cooper comes across as an honest and caring adult son, Vanderbilt as a mother who wished she had done some things differently in her life. Her letter to herself at 17 should be read by every teen girl. Her letter to her son, giving advice and expressing much love, should prompt every parent to write a letter to a child. Both acknowledge good times and tragedies, but compare these to a rainbow that comes and goes. Vanderbilt hesitates to call herself an optimist, but says she is hopeful. Cooper hesitates to call himself a pessimist, but clearly plans details and is a realist. Yet, they are family. The bottom line? It is never too late to start a conversation with a loved one. What you learn about them may not be as important as what you learn about yourself.

Raymie Nightingale by Kate DiCamillo

 Raymie Nightingale by Kate DiCamillo. Candlewick Press, 2016. Children's chapter book. Fiction.


When Raymie Clarke's father runs away with a dental hygienist, Raymie decides that if she wins a local contest, he will see her photo in the paper and come home. Raymie thinks  she has no talent so she takes baton twirling lessons from former champion Ida Nee. But, another girl in her class, Louisiana Elefante, badly needs the prize money to help her and her grandmother. And, Beverly Tapinski, the third in this unlikely trio, just wants to wreck havoc on the contest. It is 1975 and the fun is just beginning.


 As with all of her books, DiCamillo zings right to the heart of her characters and brings friendship, wisdom, and new identity on the way to growing up. Finding Archie the cat, attending the services for old Mrs. Borkowski, and even Raymie's swimming lessons from the summer before all point the way to new insights and adventures for the girls. DiCamillo brings humor, empathy, and great storytelling together. Readers won't need batons or bunny  barrettes to join the fun!

Beside Myself by Ann Morgan

 Beside Myself by Ann Morgan. Bloomsbury, 2016. Adult fiction.


    When six-year-old English twins, Helen and Ellie, decide to play a game  and switch places, no one knows. But, Ellie, the slower child, decides not to change back. Smarter, good girl Helen is stranded in her sister's life. Twenty-five years later, a call brings the two sisters together. Alternating between an adult sister's confusing and tragic present life and the little girl she once was, the novel provides psychological insights about what it means to be who you are and whether that can be changed. At times creepy and at times just a great mystery, this debut novel is thought provoking and beautifully written.

Ordinary Grace by William Kent Krueger

 Ordinary Grace by William Kent Krueger. Atria Books (Simon and Schuster), 2013. Adult fiction.


In a small town in Minnesota in the 1960's, young teen Frank lives with his younger brother, his older sister, and his parents. Mr. Drum is a Methodist minister, but Mother smokes cigarettes and sometimes chafes under the role of pastor's wife that has been thrust upon her. The story begins with Frank, forty years later, remembering one of the most disturbing summers of his whole life. Things happen that force Frank into the uncertain world of adults. His Juillard bound sister is acting weird. His little brother stutters and is being bullied. Other characters like Father's war veteran friend, Gus, and his cool motorcycle beckon the boys. Accidents and murder play a part in their ordinary lives, but Frank and his family learn about wisdom, understanding, and extraordinary grace. Beautifully written and with insights into humanity and small town life, this is one novel that readers will not soon forget.

Mrs. Houdini by Victoria Kelly

  Mrs. Houdini: A Novel by Victoria Kelly. Atria Books (Simon and Schuster), 2016. Adult fiction.


  While much has been written about Harry Houdini himself, few novels feature Bess, his loyal and beautiful wife and assistant. Victoria Kelly minds the real to use as a jumping off point for the imaginative. Bess, Mrs. Weiss, Harry's sister Gladys, and Harry all are major figures in this well written tale. A photographer and reporter, Charles Radley becomes a stranger with an intriguing secret. Houdini fans know that while Bess attempted to contact the great magician for some years after his death, she finally conceded that Harry had not contacted her. This novel provides a magical ending that will satisfy the legions of Houdini fans in an unexpected way. Kelly's debut novel has much to recommend it and her author's note provides titles and research she did to make the book authentic.

Alexander Hamilton: The Outsider by Jean Fritz

Alexander Hamilton: The Outsider by Jean Fritz. Illustrations by Ian Schoenherr. G.P. Putnam's Sons (an imprint of Penguin Group (USA) Inc., 2011. Children's chapter book, grades 5-8.


You know the saying that you can learn anything in a children's book? With the recent success of the Hamilton musical on Broadway, I searched for a quick way to learn more about his story. This book fit the bill perfectly. Jean Fritz was legendary for her careful research and readable biographies. Fritz's text describes the complex man, his loyalty to his adopted country, and readers will come away thinking of him as a man of both honor and brilliance. Foibles and faults are presented, but not glossed over.


In the back are author's notes, a bibliography, and an index. Illustrations are large, sometimes double-page spreads between chapters, and smaller ones in the text. All are black and white illustrations. A timeline would have been helpful, but the narrative is so clear that readers will be certain they are in the hands of a master storyteller who has done her research well.

Virginia Woolf books

  Vanessa and Her Sister: A Novel by Priya Parmar.               Ballantine Books, 2014.




The four Stephen siblings live in London in 1905. This thoughtful novel continues through most of 1912. While the Bloomsbury Group takes form, one brother dies while the others develop new lives as well as new ideas. In the form of Vanessa's diary and short post cards to and from each other and family, the author paints an indepth (if fictional) picture of loves and  betrayals. Eccentric  sister Virginia (later Woolf) writes while Vanessa mainly paints. Vanessa eventually marries and has children, but never escapes her caretaker role in the family. At the end of the book, readers learn what happened to each of the characters in real life. Much like Downton Abbey, the preWar years in England are shown through fascinating characters. Of course, the ones in this novel are based on real people!


Adeline: A Novel of Virginia Woolf by Norah Vincent.
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2015.


This complex book begins much later in Virginia Woolf's life, in June of 1925, and continues through her death in 1941. She is married to Leonard Woolf. When she was born, her first name was Adeline and this character now serves as a companion girl to the adult Virginia Woolf in the novel. While this could be confusing, it certainly brings readers directly into the brilliant, complicated, and sometimes fragile mind of Virginia Woolf. Other characters include Leonard, the T.S. Eliots, Lytton Strachey and others of the Bloomsbury Group, but this is truly Virginia's own story. I thought it was helpful to read the first novel (above) before this one, but this Vincent work still sent me to read the real facts about Woolf, her family, and her circle.

Boys Don't Knit (in public) by T.S. Easton

  Boys Don't Knit (in public) by T.S. Easton.
                              Feiwel and Friends, 2015.  Young adult fiction.


Ben Fletcher, age 17, lives in England and seems like a typical youth with angst, mates who goad and tease him, and a family that sometimes embarrasses him. When he gets into a spot of trouble and has to do community service and find a hobby to fill his time with productive efforts, he is faced with a class in auto repair which his dad teaches, pottery which sounds messy and not fun, basic computers which he already knows, and knitting which Ben thinks is taught by the gorgeous Jessica Swallow. So he signs up for knitting, but finds Miss Swallow is not the teacher after all and he is stuck. By some miracle, though, Ben finds he actually is a fast knitter and can "see" the patterns in his head after only a little study. He tells his mother, a travelling magician, about his class, but begs her to keep it from his father who will think Ben's sexual preferences have something to do with his class choice. (No way!) How Ben manages to keep the secrets, do his community service of  helping an elderly neighbour clean out her shed (and finds great knitting supplies!),  and be chosen to complete in a junior all England knitting competition, is a funny, wise, and entertaining romp. At all, his friends and family come together to support him and Ben finds more people are on his side than he ever imagined. 
(The knitting references are right on target. The only hiccup is that the author mentions knitting a "quilted blanket". Quilting implies three layers sewn together: a backing, a batting or wadding, and a top. You can knit a blanket, but not a quilt. Here's hoping Ben takes up quilting in another episode!)

Belle Cora by Philip Margulies

 Belle Cora by Philip Margulies. Doubleday, 2014. Adult fiction.


    Arabella Godwin is born into a wealthy family in the East in the early 1830's. By 1840, as a young girl, she and her brother Lewis are shipped to extended family who live on a farm and virtually abandoned there. This epic novel tells how the two ended up in Gold Rush California. Belle has fallen in love with Jeptha Talbot who becomes a preacher, but their road to life in California is both rocky and exciting.  Twice married, she bears a son who never really knows his mother.
    The story is written as though it were Belle's memoir and tells how she ended up as the best known madam in San Francisco and married to handsome gambler Charley Cora. Finally, one day she vanishes. But, did she?  Full of  details about the growing city of San Francisco, this tale is a tribute to how one woman dealt with tragedy, trouble, poverty and extreme wealth, and became a businesswoman in a man's world.

Under the Wide and Starry Sky by Nancy Horan

  Under the Wide and Starry Sky: A Novel by Nancy Horan. 2013, Large print edition. Random House. Adult Fiction.


     In this wonderfully descriptive historical fiction novel, Nancy Horan brings to life Robert Louis Stevenson and his wife Fanny van de Grift Osbourne. Fanny's life before meeting Stevenson is full. From the gold fields to San Francisco to Belgium, Fanny has lived large. With three children and a not so upstanding husband, she leaves with the children and nanny to study art in Europe. Nothing turns out as she hoped. Later, in France, she meets the ten years younger than she Stevenson. While he falls in love with Fanny almost instantly, she is much more hesitant about the young writer. Their lives are definitely roller coaster material with his frequent illnesses and her struggles to free herself from a husband, from expectations about women and from the unexpected lives that her children live. A wild ride, this tale will keep readers going and provide much satisfaction in providing details about the many places they lived, how they survived the hard times, and how his family finally accepted Fanny.

The Song of Hartgrove Hall by Natasha Solomons

  The Song of Hartgrove Hall: A Novel by Natasha Solomons.
                              Penguin Random House, 2015. Adult fiction.


After the three Fox-Talbot brothers return to their English manor house from WWII, nothing is the same. The gorgeous Russian Jewish singer, Edie Rose, becomes part of all their lives. Chapters alternate between the after-war years and fifty years later as the youngest of the brothers tells of Edie's death. The grandson, Robin, has inherited Edie's talents and is a piano prodigy as a young child. Descriptions are lush and full of details. Family loyalties are tested. Love comes in many ways. And, forgiveness is sweet. If you enjoy this title, you may also want to read The House at Tynford by Natasha Solomons in which a young Jewish Austrian woman hides out as a maid in another manor house and finds unexpected love.

Alena by Razchel Pastan

 Alena: A Novel by Rachel Pastan. Riverhead Books (Penguin), 2014.
                           Adult fiction.


The main character, an unnamed young woman, goes to Italy with Louise, a selfish Midwestern art curator. The young woman soon finds herself hired by Bernard, the owner of the Nauk, a small Cape Cod art museum. Their former curator, Alena, has disappeared. Increasingly, the mystery deepens; what happened to Alena?  The new curator struggles to mount an exhibit of  local artist, Celia Cowry. McManus, another artist and disabled vet, becomes more and more disturbed that his own promised exhibit is not to happen. Handsome policeman Chris becomes more than just a good friend.  All the while, the atmosphere of the near ocean and the characters, quirky people all, make a fine backdrop for mysterious happenings.


With definite echoes of Daphne du Maurier's haunting masterpiece. Rebecca, Pastan makes the story her own. Bernard is not the love interest. His sister is part of the novel as is Ben, who also paints.The Nauk is the carefully constructed building, not a house such as Manderley. The Mrs. Danvers character is echoed in Agnes, a museum assistant not nearly as creepy as Mrs. D.  Readers familiar with the original will enjoy making comparisons, but ultimately will long to reread Rebecca.

Lights Out by Ted Koppel

 

  Lights Out: A Cyberattack, A Nation Unprepared, 

                                                         Surviving the Aftermath

                                     By Ted Koppel. Crown, 2015. Adult nonfiction.

 

   Ted Koppel has done his research and provides stunning data on the ease with which America’s aging electric grids could be attacked. Far from being just the fare for horrific movie scenarios, this well written book not only shows the very real probability of losing electricity and describes what being without basics would mean to both city and rural dwellers. While some “preppers” and “pioneers” and Mormon communities show how they are preparing for an extended emergency period, most  Americans are totally unaware of the dangers and unprepared for even a short crisis. Koppel’s interviews are current and done with people in charge of power, politics, and plans.  In the foreword to his grandchildren, Koppel  says, “Here’s hoping that Opi got it wrong.” Readers will agree with that sentiment!

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