Category: Books

Online Reading Challenge – September

- Ann

Hello Fellow Challenge Readers!

Welcome to the September edition of the Online Reading Challenge! This month our spotlight author is: Ann Patchett!

Ann Patchett is one of my favorite authors. I love her smooth, unfussy writing style and the depth and complexity of her characters. The story lines and locations of her books are wide ranging, from the Amazonian rain forest to an unnamed South American capital to a family home in the suburbs, but while the locations are fascinating and integral to the plot, it’s the characters that really draw you in.

Because Patchett’s books are so varied in setting and subject, it’s hard to pin down authors that are exactly like her. Look for books centered on ordinary people facing difficult moral issues that examine how different people respond to significant events.

Plus, if you haven’t yet read any of Patchett’s books, I highly recommend that you choose of of hers! Bel Canto may be her most well-known book about a lavish party at an unnamed South American capital that is interrupted and held hostage by terrorists, or State of Wonder about a woman going to the Amazonian rainforest to search for her missing colleague and a controversial scientist. Her most recent book is The Dutch House, an intriguing look at a complex family dynamic and the grand house at the center of their dramas.

Patchett also wrote Truth and Beauty, a non-fiction account of her friendship with poet Lucy Grealy who suffered from a disfiguring disease and struggled with addiction and depression. A portion of the book takes place in Iowa City where they were both enrolled in the Iowa Writer’s Workshop.

If you’ve already read all of Ann Patchett’s books, or would like to try someone else, here are a few suggestions.

In the Midst of Winter by Isabel Allende

The Immortalists by Chole Benjamin

My Name is Lucy Barton by Elizabeth Strout

Flight Behavior by Barbara Kingsolver

At the Water’s Edge by Sara Gruen

The Most Fun We Ever Had by Claire Lombardo

Don’t forget, we’ll have displays of Ann Patchett books and read alikes at all three Davenport library buildings.

I am planning on reading A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles about a Russian aristocrat who is sent to live in a hotel room for life. It has been highly recommended to me by more than one person, so I’m hoping for a great reading experience!

What about you, what will you be reading this month?

Online Reading Challenge – August Wrap-Up

- Ann

Hello Readers!

How did your August Challenge reading go? Did you find a fun, action-packed David Baldacci or similar book to read?

Here is my confession. I didn’t particularly like the book by David Baldacci that I read, and I’m not really interested in trying another. I can understand, though, why he is so popular – lots of gritty action, a flawed but righteous hero, corruption and wrong-doing stopped at the last possible moment. The plots are complex (convoluted?) and the action is non-stop. Great escape fiction, but not what I wanted to read right now!

I read The Innocent which introduces Will Robie, a paid assassin working for a clandestine, secret government organization. Robie is a loner, keeping himself apart from “ordinary” people living everyday lives. Each job is delivered to him via flash drive, all equipment (i.e. guns) that he’ll need are waiting for him at his destination, his exit route already outlined. Robie plans each job meticulously, studying the location and all possible escape routes in detail. When the job is done and he moves on to the next, he doesn’t think again about his target (or targets). It’s a job with clear parameter’s and no regrets.

Everything changes when he is tasked with killing a mother of two young children, a woman that has no obvious ties to global wrong-doing. When his back-up finished the job for him (killing one of the children as well as the woman), Robie breaks away, saves the second child then goes on the run. He has multiple escape plans, a safe house unknown to the agency and a fast track to disappear. Again, his plan is interrupted when he encounters another person on the run – Julie, a 14-year-old runaway who has just witnessed the murder of her parents and is hiding from the murderer. At first reluctantly, then as a team, the two work together to find the people who want them dead.

Ok, I think I missed a couple of twists and turns, and for a story about two loners this book had a lot of added characters, many with mysterious names (The Blue Man). It did deliver on action though and, while not necessarily my cup of tea, it was hard to put down.

Now it’s your turn – what did you read this month?

The Maidens by Alex Michaelides

- Stephanie

What would you do if you knew who was behind a violent crime yet no one believed you? Alex Michaelides discusses this topic in his latest novel, The Maidens.

Mariana knows the truth, but she can’t understand why no one believes her. She knows that Edward Fosca is a murderer. It’s so obvious to her that he’s behind this string of horrible events, but the problem is that Edward Fosca is untouchable. A beloved Greek Tragedy professor at Cambridge University who is handsome and adored by staff and students, Fosca is shielded by his politeness, mystique, and charisma. Mariana just knows he did it.

Flashback to when Mariana first saw Fosca. After being called to Cambridge University by her niece Zoe, Mariana finds herself overwhelmed. One of Zoe’s friends has been found brutally murdered in Cambridge. As a group therapist, Mariana places herself in the middle of a secret society of female students known as The Maidens to figure out what happened. After all, the murdered girl was a member of The Maidens. As she starts exploring, Mariana realizes that Edward Fosca is the man in charge of the group. His relationship with The Maidens concerns her. He seems to have complete control over his students who worship him.

The more Mariana dives into this mystery, the more she suspects that behind the beauty of the Cambridge campus and its intricate traditions something incredibly more sinister lurks. She believes that Edward Fosca is to blame for everything even though he has an alibi. Marina quickly spirals out of control when another body is found in Cambridge. With her credibility at stake and her relationships floundering, Mariana must stop the killer at any cost.

This book is also available in the following formats:

Get Graphic Series: The Adoption by Zidrou

- Mary Perez 1 Comment

What do you think of when you hear the phrase “graphic novel”? Comic books? Japanese manga? A book with pictures and not much to read? While those answers are correct, graphic novels are so much more than what you may think! Graphic novels can be memoirs, fiction, biographies, nonfiction, or adaptations.

For a reader who doesn’t have time to knock out a 400 page novel, graphics are the perfect alternative! I love to read graphics when I want something quick and easy. But don’t let “quick and easy” fool you- graphic novelist have a way of putting a lot of story in just a few lines!

In this series I will be highlighting adult graphic novels that fall outside the comic book and Japanese manga categories.

First up is The Adoption by Zidrou. This graphic novel follows the story of Gabriel, a retired butcher whose life flips upside down when his son adopts a Peruvian orphan, Qinaya. Gabriel is your typical retiree; he workouts with his friends at the local park, he reads with his wife before bed, and he tends to his vegetable garden. Gabriel was absent for most of his children’s lives, so when Qinaya starts spending more time at Gabriel’s house, he isn’t sure how to handle it. As Qinaya and Gabriel begin to bond, an unexpected visit changes everything. Gabriel must face his own past in order to overcome the new challenges in his retired life.

The Adoption  is a great pick for first time graphic novel readers. The story highlights family, friends, love, and loss. I did not know what to expect out of the story and Zidrou kept me intrigued until the very end. When I finished reading, I found myself reflecting on my own family and the relationships I have with them.

Alongside beautiful illustrations, The Adoption provides an intimate portrait of life during retirement and how the little things can matter the most.

Early Morning Riser by Katherine Heiny

- Lynn

Katherine Heiny’s novel doesn’t fit into a neat box. It starts out as a rom com; it’s a fairly predictable pairing  of two attractive, charming people, surrounded by their eccentric friends.

Jane and Duncan meet, have a relationship of sorts, and break up, which isn’t fatal to HEA (Happily Ever After). However, the book begins to take a darker, messier turn. This is when it really starts to get unpredictable and  much more interesting.  Jane, a grade school teacher in a small Michigan town, gets some of what she wanted but not necessarily in the way she wanted.

A highlight is Heiny’s skill in capturing kids and adults with  delightfully brief character sketches or with  telling anecdotes.  I looked forward to the work life passages, and the insight into the second- grade mind. Boyne City is populated with  quirky residents and Heiny has fun with the dynamics of rural life.

It turns out that, perhaps, the most pivotal relationship of Jane’s life is with Jimmy Jellico. He’s a sweet and naive man who nominally works for Duncan in his workshop.  Jimmy has always had difficulty understanding how to navigate in the world, and hasn’t mastered even the most basic of adulting skills. Jane becomes more and more involved in Jimmy’s daily life, and despairs that he’ll ever find a love of his own. Jane’s friends, family and co-workers are very imperfect, as is Jane, but they evolve and create a fascinating community.

The Queer Bible edited by Jack Guinness

- Callen

A beautiful, heartfelt book about inspiration, creation, fame, and feeling less alone, The Queer Bible is a love letter to the celebrities who have given hope to generations of confused kids, scared teens, and lonely adults. Divided roughly into sections, it’s a book of essays, each written by a current LGBTQ public figure about their respective LGBTQ celebrity hero and what the celebrity’s work meant to them. It began as a lovely website, QueerBible.com (which is still going strong, so if you like this book make sure to check it out) but has been well-translated into an illustrated print form.

I learned so much reading this book! There was a ton of history and cult classic media that I never knew about, or didn’t understand in its full context. The essayists in this book did a fantastic job of not only explaining a lot of that history, but also examining why it mattered to them and matters now. More than that, I loved the tone of this book; none of the writers shied away from talking about how hard their experiences were, and how difficult others had it, but at the same time they all circled back to a place of defiant hope in the face of adversity. The grief and horror of the AIDS epidemic figures largely throughout the book, but it doesn’t diminish the joy of community and self-expression that is the other major theme.

The other fantastic aspect of the book as a whole was the introduction of LGBTQ figures, past and present. I knew some of the famous faces that wrote or were written about, but others were completely new to me – making my reading experience a fascinating journey of discovery. Helpfully, every essay ends with a profile of its author, so you not only hear their voice describing their hero, but you also understand who they are and what they’ve done as an LGBTQ icon themselves.

All in all, this is a vital LGBTQ text, and a great read if you’re looking for a memoir omnibus, a cultural history, and/or a meditation on why media and representation matters.

Too Good to be True by Carola Lovering

- Stephanie

I’ll admit that I frequently choose books to read based on what the cover looks like and Too Good to be True by Carola Lovering falls under that category. This book caught my attention from the start and had me desperate for a happy ending for all involved at the end.

Skye Starling is bursting with happiness. She has everything. She’s beautiful, smart, and from a rich family. Yet the death of her mother when she was only eleven left Skye to deal with crippling OCD that has led her relationships to suffer. After years of battling social anxiety and OCD, she has finally found a man that loves her truly. Burke Michaels is everyone she could have ever wanted. After dating for a short time, Burke proposes and she can’t wait to be married to him.

Despite her tragic past, Burke wants her. He may be older, but Skye sees that as a positive since he’s very handsome and definitely more emotionally mature than any other men she’s met (and dated). In fact, he may be too perfect. Actually he is. Throughout the novel, readers are privy to letters Burke has written to his therapist that reveal the truth: Burke is already happily married and his relationship with Skye is full of deceptions.

In another perspective thirty years earlier, a young seventeen-year-old named Heather wants out of her relationship. Her boyfriend, Burke, is the local bad boy. If Heather really wants to make a better life for herself, she has realized that she needs to end her relationship with Burke because he’s only holding her back. After all, she wants out of the run-down town they live in. She has big dreams of heading to New York City to make a name for herself.

Skye is blissfully unaware of the scheme that Burke is working behind her back. As she gets to work planning their wedding, Skye lets herself believe that her happiness is right around the corner. Past and present collide the closer they get to the wedding, leaving Burke and Skye stunned with the consequences.

This book is also available in the following format:

Sebastian and Waite: Historical LGBTQ Romances

- Callen

When we were teenagers, my sister and I loved reading Avon romances. Now that I’m older and want to read more diverse books, I’ve been delighted to find a few authors that provide steamy period pieces for an LGBTQ audience. Here are two entries published in 2021, both involving career criminals transformed by true love.

In The Queer Principles of Kit Webb, a nobleman needs a highwayman’s help retrieve something precious, but the thief is retired and will only help by teaching the man what he knows about stealing. As the lessons go on, though, they each want more than just a business arrangement… Cat Sebastian is a writer with a number of series under her belt, including Seducing the Sedgwicks (featuring Two Rogues Make a Right) and the Turner series (featuring The Soldier’s Scoundrel and The Ruin of a Rake).

The Hellion’s Waltz focuses on a Robin-Hood-style swindler and the swindler-hating woman she must seduce to bring off her heist. But though funding a weaver’s union is a good cause, morality and unexpected love may lead them astray. Olivia Waite has also written The Lady’s Guide to Celestial Mechanics and the Care and Feeding of Waspish Widows in this same universe of historical sapphic feminists.

Though perhaps not going to win any literary awards, everything I’ve read by these authors is funny, heartwarming, poignant, addictively readable, and just generally good romantic escapism. If Downton Abbey, Bridgerton, and other swooning period pieces have captured your heart, you may want to try the work of Cat Sebastian and Olivia Waite. (And if you’re just looking for unconventional bodice-rippers, I can also recommend the Parasol Protectorate series by Gail Carriger, starting with Soulless).

One, Two Three by Laurie Frankel

- Ann

Laurie Frankel’s new book, One Two Three  examines love and loyalty, how to let go of the past and how to move toward a new future, all through the eyes and actions of three sisters (triplets) in this lovely, bittersweet story of one family and how they cope with disaster.

17 years ago, the tiny town of Bourne became briefly famous when its water turned green and was declared unfit for use.  Belsum Chemical Plant was forced to close but was never held responsible. High concentrations of cancer, birth defects and neurological disorders wasn’t considered enough to convict the company in court. Belsum disappeared, leaving the town and it’s citizens broken, to cope with the lingering damage on their own.

Three sisters are born here as the disaster is unfolding. Mab, Monday and Mirabel are very different from each other but understand each other on an almost telepathic level. When Belsum Chemical makes plans to return to Bourne, promising jobs but no further regulations, the sisters and their mother fight back. But what can a girl in love with the son of the family who owns the chemical plant, a neuro-diverse girl with autism and a girl confined to a wheelchair who cannot speak do? Each are brilliant in their own way and together they create a fearsome opponent.

I really enjoyed this book. There is a lot of humor and heart in the story, from the way the townspeople support and accept each other to the way the girls’ mother loves and tends to each one. The sisters are amazing – it’s fun to watch them blossom and become their own person, yet stay connected to each other. Each girl has a voice in the book, with the multiple chapters rotating between them, One, Two and Three (their names for each other) which gives you different viewpoints of what is happening as they campaign for the chemical plant to do right by them and the town. Highly recommended.

Doctor Who in Books

- Callen 1 Comment

I can’t be the only one who got into Doctor Who after the 2005 series reboot and is now completely overwhelmed by the prospect of trying to get into the original series. I know some of the basics of course, but where (and how) to start watching the original stories?? Well, there are some DVDs available, BUT I found another loophole / fun avenue to explore: Doctor Who novelizations. Here’s two I’ve read recently to get started with:

The Dinosaur Invasion, published 1976, stars the Third Doctor (think gentleman scientist) and superstar companion Sarah Jane Smith (journalist, legend, icon) attempting to unravel a mysterious plot to bring live dinosaurs across time into modern-day London, assisted of course by Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart and UNIT. I adore Sarah Jane (pro tip for parents: The Sarah Jane Adventures is a fun and kid-friendly introduction into the Doctor Who universe) and I love that this book showed her off in all her determination and resourcefulness. I also enjoyed the informative, no-nonsense writing style because it felt like a good immersion into 1970s sci-fi / spy culture.

Shada, by comparison, is much more tongue-in-cheek because it was developed from a script written by Douglas Adams (definite sci-fi icon, humorist extraordinaire  and one of my all-time favorite authors). Here, the Fourth Doctor (Mr. Being Eccentric is my Job and I’m Good At It) and Romana (Paragon of Dignity) travel with K-9 (Surprisingly Sassy Robot Dog) to Cambridge to meet up with an old friend, Professor Chronotis. Once there, they get entangled with a mysterious Gallifreyan relic, a megalomaniac with a mind-stealing orb, and a pair of hapless almost-romantically-involved scientists. The humorous tone is absolutely perfect, the stakes are high, the action is well-paced, and most importantly the characters are sympathetic and well-made. This one was published later, so it captures the spirit of the character while fleshing out some underdeveloped elements.

If you like Doctor Who, 60s and 70s sci-fi, Douglas Adams, or novelizations of famous TV series, you may enjoy one or the other of these books.