Have you been to one of our Book Lovers Evenings before? It’s where we talk about new books and discover great new reads. Here’s the books that our staff recommended at the Book Lovers in Douglas County Libraries, Castle Rock yesterday night.
Carol’s Recommendations
The Samaritan by Mason Cross
This sequel to The Killing Season (2015) features Carter Blake, a man whose specialty is finding people that don’t want to be found including serial killers. In The Samaritan, a serial killer is preying on women when their car breaks down. A new series for readers who like Jack Reacher, Alex Cross & Jason Bourne novels.
What’s Wrong with My Houseplant? by David Deadorff and Kathryn Wadsworth
Houseplants add style, clean the air, and bring nature indoors. But they are often plagued with problems—aphids, mealybugs, mites, and thrips to name just a few. What’s Wrong with My Houseplant? shows you how to keep indoor plants healthy by first teaching you how to identify the problem. This hardworking guide includes plant profiles for 148 plants organized by type, visual keys to the most of common problems, and the related organic solutions that will lead to a healthy plant.
The Book of Memory by Petina Gappah
Set in Zimbabwe, Memory is an albino woman incarcerated in the Chikurubi Maximum Security Prison for murdering her adoptive father, Lloyd Hendricks. The death penalty is a mandatory sentence for murder. As part of her appeal, her lawyer insists that she write down what happened as she remembers it. Both literally and metaphorically, Memory is writing for her life. But did everything happen exactly as she remembers?
Be Frank with Me by Julia Claiborne Johnson
This debut novel combines the charming pluck of Eloise, the poignant psychological quirks of The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time and the page-turning spirit of Where’d You Go, Bernadette. Reclusive literary legend M. M. “Mimi” Banning has been holed up in her Bel Air mansion for years. But after falling prey to a Bernie Madoff-style ponzi scheme, she’s flat broke. Now Mimi must write a new book for the first time in decades, and to ensure the timely delivery of her manuscript, her New York publisher sends an assistant to monitor her progress.
How We Got to Now: Six Innovations that Made the Modern World by Stephen Johnson
In this illustrated history, Steven Johnson explores the history of innovation over centuries, tracing facets of modern life (refrigeration, clocks, and eyeglass lenses, to name a few) from their creation to their unintended historical consequences. Filled with surprising stories of accidental genius and brilliant mistakes, How We Got to Now investigates the secret history behind the everyday objects of contemporary life and inspired a 6-part series on PBS which is available at DCL on DVD.
When Breath Becomes Air by Paul Kalanithi
At the age of thirty-six, on the verge of completing a decade’s worth of training as a neurosurgeon, Paul Kalanithi was diagnosed with stage IV lung cancer. One day he was a physician treating complicated cases involving the brain, the most critical place for human identity and the next he was a patient struggling to live. When Breath Becomes Air is a life-affirming reflection on the challenge of facing death and on the relationship between doctor and patient, from a brilliant writer who became both.
The Vegetable Butcher by Cara Mangini
The skills of butchery meet the world of fresh produce in this essential, inspiring guide that demystifies the world of vegetables. In step-by-step photographs, “vegetable butcher” Cara Mangini shows how to break down a butternut squash, cut a cauliflower into steaks, peel a tomato properly, turn carrots into coins and parsnips into matchsticks, and find the meaty heart of an artichoke. This book shares everything you need to know to get the best out of vegetables and includes more than 150 original, simple recipes that put vegetables front and center.
Miss Ruffles Inherits Everything by Nancy Martin
Rich and flamboyant Honeybelle Hensley dies a suspicious death and enrages the whole town of Mule Stop, Texas, by leaving her worldly fortune to her dog, Miss Ruffles. Miss Ruffles is a Texas Cattle Cur and likes nothing better than digging up the rose garden and terrorizing any callers. But now Miss Ruffles is in danger, and it’s up to Sunny McKillip, the unwilling dogsitter, to keep her safe. Sunny is new to Texas, and feels as if she’s fallen into an alien world. With a killer on the loose, Sunny needs all the help she can get understanding how Texans think to solve this cozy mystery.
The Child Garden by Catriona McPherson
Living in Scotland, Gloria Harkness is divorced and living a life that is trying to drag her down. But Gloria is a surprising protagonist. When a childhood friend turns up at her door, Gloria jumps in to help him even though he may not be what he seems. Soon Gloria is in over her head as she tries to figure out the connection between a death in the past and a recent suicide. McPherson’s newest book, Quiet Neighbors will be published April 8, 2016 (also a stand-alone).
Gratitude by Oliver Sacks
Author of The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat, Dr. Sacks spent almost fifty years working as a neurologist. The New York Times referred to him as “the poet laureate of medicine,” and he received many awards from the Guggenheim Foundation, the National Science Foundation, the American Academy of Arts and Letters, and the Royal College of Physicians. During the last few months of his life, he wrote a set of essays in which he movingly explored his feelings about completing a life and coming to terms with his own death.
The Kind Worth Killing by Peter Swanson
For fans of Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins. On a night flight from London to Boston, Ted Severson meets the stunning and mysterious Lily Kintner. The strangers begin to play a game of truth, revealing very intimate details about themselves and Ted talks about his cheating wife, Miranda. But then Ted jokes that he could kill Miranda for what she’s done and Lily agrees to help. Back in Boston, Ted and Lily’s twisted bond grows stronger as they begin to plot Miranda’s demise. But who is Lily and is murder already a part of her past?
Fortune Falls by Jenny Goebel
Welcome to Fortune Falls, a magical town where superstitions are real, four-leaf clovers really do bring good fortune, and owning a rabbit’s foot is the secret to success. However, there aren’t enough charms in the universe to help Sadie Bleeker, who is an Unlucky. She can’t pass a ladder without walking under it, and black cats won’t leave her alone. As she gets older, things will only get worse which is why Unluckies are sent away at age twelve to protect those around them. Sadie can’t stand the thought of leaving home, so a plan is devised to reverse her bad luck. The situation turns dire when the plan causes a mirror to be broken which equals seven years of bad luck. Can a girl who’s never so much as found a single lucky penny change her fortune?
The Lie Tree by Frances Hardinge
To most people, Faith Sunderly is reliable, dull, and trustworthy. But inside, Faith is full of questions and curiosity, and she cannot resist mysteries: an unattended envelope, an unlocked door. She knows secrets no one suspects her of knowing. And she knows, when her father is discovered dead, that he was murdered. In pursuit of justice and revenge, Faith hunts through her father’s possessions and discovers a strange tree. The tree bears fruit only when she whispers a lie to it. The fruit of the tree, when eaten, delivers a hidden truth. The tree might hold the key to her father’s murder—or it may lure the murderer directly to Faith herself.
Britt-Marie Was Here by Fredrik Backman
The bestselling author of A Man Called Ove returns with an irresistible novel about finding love and second chances in the most unlikely of places. Britt-Marie is a socially awkward, fussy busybody. Sometimes people interpret her helpful suggestions as criticisms, which is certainly not her intention. She is not one to judge others—no matter how ill-mannered, unkempt, or morally suspect they might be. But hidden inside is a woman who has more imagination, bigger dreams, and a warmer heart that anyone around her realizes.
It’s Okay to Laugh (Crying is Cool Too) by Nora McInerny Purmort
In her 20’s, Nora McInerny Purmort bounced from boyfriend to boyfriend and job to job. Then she met Aaron, a charismatic art director and her kindred spirit. They just knew they were meant to be together. When Aaron was diagnosed with a rare brain cancer, they refused to let it limit their love.
Natalie’s Recommendations
The Truth According to Us by Annie Barrows
Co-Author of The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Society, Annie Barrows once again evokes the charm and eccentricity of a small town filled with extraordinary characters. Her new novel, The Truth According to Us, brings to life an inquisitive young girl, her beloved aunt, and the alluring visitor who changes the course of their destiny forever. In the summer of 1938, Layla Beck’s father, a United States senator, cuts off her allowance and demands that she find employment on the Federal Writers’ Project, a New Deal jobs program. Within days, Layla finds herself far from her accustomed social whirl, assigned to cover the history of the remote mill town of Macedonia, West Virginia, and destined, in her opinion, to go completely mad with boredom. But once she secures a room in the home of the unconventional Romeyn family, she is drawn into their complex world and soon discovers that the truth of the town is entangled in the thorny past of the Romeyn dynasty. At the Romeyn house, twelve-year-old Willa is desperate to learn everything in her quest to acquire her favorite virtues of ferocity and devotion—a search that leads her into a thicket of mysteries, including the questionable business that occupies her charismatic father and the reason her adored aunt Jottie remains unmarried. Layla’s arrival strikes a match to the family veneer, bringing to light buried secrets that will tell a new tale about the Romeyns. As Willa peels back the layers of her family’s past, and Layla delves deeper into town legend, everyone involved is transformed—and their personal histories completely rewritten.
The Road to Little Dribbling: Adventures of an American in Britain by Bill Bryson
Twenty years ago, Bill Bryson went on a trip around Britain to discover and celebrate that green and pleasant land. The result was Notes from a Small Island, a true classic and one of the bestselling travel books ever written. Now he has traveled about Britain again, by bus and train and rental car and on foot, to see what has changed—and what hasn’t. Following (but not too closely) a route he dubs the Bryson Line, from Bognor Regis in the south to Cape Wrath in the north, by way of places few travelers ever get to at all, Bryson rediscovers the wondrously beautiful, magnificently eccentric, endearingly singular country that he both celebrates and, when called for, twits. With his matchless instinct for the funniest and quirkiest and his unerring eye for the idiotic, the bewildering, the appealing, and the ridiculous, he offers acute and perceptive insights into all that is best and worst about Britain today. Nothing is more entertaining than Bill Bryson on the road—and on a tear. The Road to Little Dribbling reaffirms his stature as a master of the travel narrative—and a really, really funny guy.
Did You Ever Have a Family by Bill Clegg
The stunning debut novel from bestselling author Bill Clegg is a magnificently powerful story about a circle of people who find solace in the least likely of places as they cope with a horrific tragedy. On the eve of her daughter’s wedding, June Reid’s life is completely devastated when a shocking disaster takes the lives of her daughter, her daughter’s fiancé, her ex-husband, and her boyfriend, Luke—her entire family, all gone in a moment. And June is the only survivor. Alone and directionless, June drives across the country, away from her small Connecticut town. In her wake, a community emerges, weaving a beautiful and surprising web of connections through shared heartbreak. From the couple running a motel on the Pacific Ocean where June eventually settles into a quiet half-life, to the wedding’s caterer whose bill has been forgotten, to Luke’s mother, the shattered outcast of the town—everyone touched by the tragedy is changed as truths about their near and far histories finally come to light. Elegant and heartrending, and one of the most accomplished fiction debuts of the year, Did You Ever Have a Family is an absorbing, unforgettable tale that reveals humanity at its best through forgiveness and hope. At its core is a celebration of family—the ones we are born with and the ones we create.
Everybody Rise by Stephanie Clifford
Everyone yearns to belong, to be part of the “in crowd,” but how far are you willing to go to be accepted? In the case of bright, funny and socially ambitious Evelyn Beegan, the answer is much too far…At 26, Evelyn is determined to carve her own path in life and free herself from the influence of her social-climbing mother, who propelled her through prep school and onto New York’s glamorous Upper East Side. Evelyn has long felt like an outsider to her privileged peers, but when she gets a job at a social network aimed at the elite, she’s forced to embrace them. Recruiting new members for the site, Evelyn steps into a promised land of Adirondack camps, Newport cottages and Southampton clubs thick with socialites and Wall Streeters. Despite herself, Evelyn finds the lure of belonging intoxicating, and starts trying to pass as old money herself. When her father, a crusading class-action lawyer, is indicted for bribery, Evelyn must contend with her own family’s downfall as she keeps up appearances in her new life, grasping with increasing desperation as the ground underneath her begins to give way.
We Never Asked for Wings by Vanessa Diffenbaugh
From the beloved New York Times bestselling author of The Language of Flowers comes her much-anticipated new novel about young love, hard choices, and hope against all odds. For fourteen years, Letty Espinosa has worked three jobs around San Francisco to make ends meet while her mother raised her children—Alex, fifteen, and Luna, just six—in their tiny apartment on a forgotten spit of wetlands near the bay. But now Letty’s parents are returning to Mexico, and Letty must step up and become a mother for the first time in her life. Navigating this new terrain is challenging for Letty, especially as Luna desperately misses her grandparents and Alex, who is falling in love with a classmate, is unwilling to give his mother a chance. Letty comes up with a plan to help the family escape the dangerous neighborhood and heartbreaking injustice that have marked their lives, but one wrong move could jeopardize everything she’s worked for and her family’s fragile hopes for the future. Vanessa Diffenbaugh blends gorgeous prose with compelling themes of motherhood, undocumented immigration, and the American Dream in a powerful and prescient story about family.
In A Dark, Dark Wood by Ruth Ware
What should be a cozy and fun-filled weekend deep in the English countryside takes a sinister turn in Ruth Ware’s suspenseful, compulsive, and darkly twisted psychological thriller. Leonora, known to some as Lee and others as Nora, is a reclusive crime writer, unwilling to leave her “nest” of an apartment unless it is absolutely necessary. When a friend she hasn’t seen or spoken to in years unexpectedly invites Nora (Lee?) to a weekend away in an eerie glass house deep in the English countryside, she reluctantly agrees to make the trip. Forty-eight hours later, she wakes up in a hospital bed injured but alive, with the knowledge that someone is dead. Wondering not “what happened?” but “what have I done?” Nora (Lee?) tries to piece together the events of the past weekend. Working to uncover secrets, reveal motives, and find answers, Nora (Lee?) must revisit parts of herself that she would much rather leave buried where they belong: in the past.
Lisa’s Recommendations
The Guest Room by Christopher Bohjalian
One of Bohjalian’s best. Richard throws a bachelor party for his brother which is to include a stripper. But things get way out of hand – fast. Uncontrolled and dark. Richard and his family bear the brunt of the fallout from the night. So does Alexandra who refers to herself as a courtesan. The story alternates between Richard/his family’s view and Alexandra’s story. Bohjalian is one of the most amazing writers I’ve read – he can weave stories within stories and it fits so well together that readers are captivated. The Guest Room contains dark subjectmatter. But it is something that is in the news almost every day. Bohjalian has the gift of making readers think and keep thinking long after they get to the end of the novel. That’s talent, and as a reader, you can tell he puts his all into every novel. One of the best books I’ve read this year already.
The Lost Sisterhood by Anne Fortier
Oxford lecturer Diana Morgan is an expert on Greek mythology. Her obsession with the Amazons started in childhood when her eccentric grandmother claimed to be one herself—before vanishing without a trace. A mysterious foundation finds Diana at Oxford and entices her to a dig. Traveling to North Africa, Diana is met by Nick Barran, an enigmatic Middle Eastern guide, and begins deciphering an unusual inscription on the wall of a recently unearthed temple. There she discovers the name of the first Amazon queen, Myrina, who crossed the Mediterranean in a heroic attempt to liberate her kidnapped sisters from Greek pirates, only to become embroiled in the most famous conflict of the ancient world—the Trojan War. Sweeping from England to North Africa to Greece and the ruins of ancient Troy, and navigating between present and past, this is a breathtaking, passionate adventure of two women on parallel journeys, separated by time, who must fight to keep the lives and legacy of the Amazons from being lost forever. “Grounded in a thorough knowledge of classical literature, this skillful interweaving of plausible archaeological speculation, ancient mythology, and exciting modern adventure will delight fans of such authors as Kate Mosse and Katherine Neville.”— Library Journal
The Language of Secrets by Ausma Zenhanet
This is the second in this series featuring INSET Detectives Esa Khattak and Rachel Getty, and it’s the first series I’ve read with a Detective who is Muslim and who works on unique cases in Toronto. Khan’s storytelling not only incorporates the crime and police procedures, she delves deep into the different aspects of a thriving Muslim community. In this case, Esa and Rachel are investigating a murder connected to an ultra-conservative mosque. Esa is, again, torn between his faith, his family and his job. The way Khan incorporates the poetry and imagery of the Muslim faith helps readers see a broader picture and not stereotypes portrayed daily by the media. Unquiet Dead and The Language of Secrets are a great start to what promises to be an excellent series.
The Luckiest Girl Alive by Jessica Knoll
Her perfect life is a perfect lie. As a teenager at the prestigious Bradley School, Ani FaNelli endured a shocking, public humiliation that left her desperate to reinvent herself. Now, with a glamorous job, expensive wardrobe, and handsome blue blood fiancé, she’s this close to living the perfect life she’s worked so hard to achieve. But Ani has a secret. There’s something else buried in her past that still haunts her, something private and painful that threatens to bubble to the surface and destroy everything. With a singular voice and twists you won’t see coming, The Luckiest Girl Alive explores the unbearable pressure that so many women feel to “have it all” and introduces a heroine whose sharp edges and cutthroat ambition have been protecting a scandalous truth, and a heart that’s bigger than it first appears. The question remains: will breaking her silence destroy all that she has worked for—or, will it at long last, set Ani free? Come see the author at Douglas County Libraries – James H. LaRue branch on Saturday, April 23rd at 6:30pm. Books will be sold at the event and book signing to follow presentation. This book is unforgettable.
West of Sunset by Stewart O’Nan
I love Stewart O’Nan’s work and if you haven’t read any – you should. He’s a great writer. His novels take you away and also provoke thought and discussion. The publisher calls this: A mesmerizing and haunting novel of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s last years in Hollywood. In 1937, F. Scott Fitzgerald was a troubled, uncertain man whose literary success was long over. In poor health, with his wife consigned to an asylum and his finances in ruin, he struggled to make a new start as a screenwriter in Hollywood. Those last three years of Fitzgerald’s life are the focus of Stewart O Nan’s graceful and elegiac novel. With flashbacks to Fitzgerald’s glamorous Jazz Age past, the story follows him as he arrives on the MGM lot, falls in love with brassy gossip columnist Sheilah Graham, begins work on “The Last Tycoon,” and tries to maintain a semblance of family life with the absent Zelda and their daughter, Scottie. The Golden Age of Hollywood is brought vividly to life through the novel’s romantic cast of characters, from Dorothy Parker and Ernest Hemingway to Humphrey Bogart. Written with striking grace and subtlety, this is a wise and intimate portrait of a man trying his best to hold together a world that’s flying apart.
The Jesus Cow by Michael Perry
lighter read but good discussion points surrounding society today. Michael Perry is a NYT bestselling humorist who’s written several books about rural life in Wisconsin. In the Jesus Cow, life is suddenly full of drama for low-key Harley Jackson: A woman in a big red pickup has stolen his bachelor’s heart, a Hummer-driving predatory developer is threatening to pave the last vestiges of his family farm, and inside his barn is a calf bearing the image of Jesus Christ. His best friend, Billy, a giant of a man who shares his trailer house with a herd of cats and tries to pass off country music lyrics as philosophy, urges him to avoid the woman, fight the developer, and get rich off the calf. But Harley takes the opposite tack, hoping to avoid what his devout, dearly departed mother would have called “a scene.” Then the secret gets out—right through the barn door, and Harley’s “miracle” goes viral. Within hours pilgrims, grifters, and the media have descended on his quiet patch of Swivel, Wisconsin, looking for a glimpse (and a percentage) of the calf. Does Harley hide the famous, possibly holy calf and risk a riot, or give the people what they want—and raise enough money to keep his land—and, just possibly, win the woman and her big red pickup truck? The story is a great take on society and the reality of social apps today. It’s funny, tugs at the heart and makes you think.
The Sacred Wisdom of the Earth by Christopher Scotton
I can’t say enough good things about The Secret Wisdom of the Earth. The characters are wonderful. Scotton should be on everyone’s reading list – great for men or women. I also listened to it and the reader is wonderful. You will miss the characters after you are done. It keeps moving and it was hard for me to stop reading or listening to it. Timely and timeless, this is a dramatic and deeply moving novel about an act of violence in a small, Southern town and the repercussions that will forever change a young man’s view of human cruelty and compassion. After seeing the death of his younger brother in a terrible home accident, fourteen-year-old Kevin and his grieving mother are sent for the summer to live with Kevin’s grandfather. In this peeled-paint coal town deep in Appalachia, Kevin quickly falls in with a half-wild hollow kid named Buzzy Fink who schools him in the mysteries and magnificence of the woods. The events of this fateful summer will affect the entire town of Medgar, Kentucky.
Girl Waits with a Gun by Amy Stewart
Author of The Drunken Botanist, Wicked Plants, Flower Confidential – all nonfiction and great reads. This book is a novel based on a true story. Constance Kopp doesn’t quite fit the mold. She towers over most men, has no interest in marriage or domestic affairs, and has been isolated from the world since a family secret sent her and her sisters into hiding fifteen years ago. One day a belligerent and powerful silk factory owner runs down their buggy with his car, and a dispute over damages turns into a war of bricks, bullets, and threats as he unleashes his gang on their family farm. When the sheriff enlists her help in convicting the men, Constance is forced to confront her past and defend her family — and she does it in a way that few women of 1914 would have dared. This is the first in the Kopp Sisters’ series. I loved it and was sad when it was done. Amy’s website has wonderful extra information on the world of Constance Kopp. http://www.amystewart.com/books/girl-waits-with-gun/
The Bookseller by Cynthia Swanson
I loved this book! She is a Colorado author and it is set in 1962-63 Denver. A provocative and hauntingly powerful debut novel reminiscent of Sliding Doors, The Bookseller follows a woman in the 1960s who must reconcile her reality with the tantalizing alternate world of her dreams. Nothing is as permanent as it appears . . . Denver, 1962: Kitty Miller has come to terms with her unconventional single life. She loves the bookshop she runs with her best friend, Frieda, and enjoys complete control over her day-to-day existence. Then the dreams begin. Denver, 1963: Katharyn Andersson is married to Lars, the love of her life. They have beautiful children, an elegant home, and good friends. It’s everything Kitty Miller once believed she wanted—but it only exists when she sleeps. Convinced that these dreams are simply due to her overactive imagination, Kitty enjoys her nighttime forays into this alternate world. But with each visit, the more irresistibly real Katharyn’s life becomes. Can she choose which life she wants? If so, what is the cost of staying Kitty, or becoming Katharyn? As the lines between her worlds begin to blur, Kitty must figure out what is real and what is imagined. And how do we know where that boundary lies in our own lives?
The Book of Speculation by Erika Swyler
Simon Watson, a young librarian, lives alone in a house that is slowly crumbling toward the Long Island Sound. His parents are long dead. His mother, a circus mermaid who made her living by holding her breath, drowned in the very water his house overlooks. His younger sister, Enola, ran off six years ago and now reads tarot cards for a traveling carnival. One June day, an old book arrives on Simon’s doorstep, sent by an antiquarian bookseller who purchased it on speculation. Fragile and water damaged, the book is a log from the owner of a traveling carnival in the 1700s, who reports strange and magical things, including the drowning death of a circus mermaid. Since then, generations of “mermaids” in Simon’s family have drowned–always on July 24, which is only weeks away. Could there be a curse on Simon’s family? What does it have to do with the book, and can he get to the heart of the mystery in time to save Enola? I loved this book. It is magical and quirky. The “mermaids” are mercurial creatures and you can see why men fall under their spell. It’s a look into the traveling shows long ago and how times have, and have not, changed.