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.