Category: Staff Picks

100 Years of Books- Decade Challenge

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Guest Blog by Brittany P.

Last year, I was listening to a podcast called What Should I Read Next. The host was interviewing a guest reader who had created a challenge for herself to read 100 books, one for each year beginning in 1922. Knowing that there was no way that I could complete this challenge, I decided that I could commit to 10 books! Below are my 10 titles and what I thought of them. I would be very interested to know what you thought of the titles listed if you have read them!

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1923 – The Murder on the Links by Agatha Christie

3 out of 5 stars

In this second installment of the Hercule Poirot Series, Detective Hercule Poirot finds himself in France after receiving a letter from millionaire Monsieur Renauld. Upon arrival however, Poirot finds Renauld’s body in a hollow grave on the golf course near his property. To make matters more complicated, Renauld’s wife was found bound and gagged. Upon further inspection, things are not always black and white.

I listened to this on audio and enjoyed it immensely. This involved a full cast of characters complete with background sounds! It was a whole experience and surpassed my expectations. I hope to read more Agatha Christie works next year!

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1933 – The Thin Man by Dashiell Hammett

4 out of 5 stars

I didn’t know how much I was missing until I picked up this short and fantastically-written piece by Dashiell Hammett. Nick and Nora Charles find themselves in New York for a short visit. After marrying Nora, Nick took on her family business and left his detective days behind. This all ends when the pair are approached by a flustered young woman asking for help locating her missing father. Nick begrudging takes on the case after some rather interesting interactions.

This book was fun, the characters were hilarious, but the best part was Nora Charles. She made the entire book a joy to read. Set in the 1920’s it was full of parties, drinking, and wise banter. Truly a recommended read.

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1943 – The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry and translated by Richard Howard

3 out of 5 stars

When a pilot crash lands in the Sahara Desert, his situation seems hopeless. As he is trying to repair his broken engine, the pilot is greeted by a small child. The Little Prince offers hope in the hopeless to the Pilot and shares of his adventures that led him the the very place they stood together.

I am glad that I read this title as it was one that I have meant to read for a while now.

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1953 – Madeline’s Rescue by Ludwig Bemelmans

5 out of 5 stars

Twelve little girls in two straight lines go out for a stroll one day. All is going according to plan until Madeline slips and falls in the Seine. When all seems hopeless, a brave dog jumps in and rescues the child. After the great rescue, the dog is taken in and has especially taken a liking to Madeline. Just when everything is settled, Lord Cucuface discovers that a dog is living in the old house in Paris and bans Genevieve and all future dogs from the home. Never fear, the girls and Miss Clavel find a way to keep the beloved dog Genevieve in the end!

As a child, I loved Madeline in all of her forms! It was fun to revisit her adventures with my children through this lovely story. I ended up buying this title used and it currently resides on my daughter’s bookshelf!

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1963 – The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath

5 out of 5 stars

A classic novel that is required reading for most high school and college curriculums that I somehow never got a chance to read until now. The Bell Jar is a story of one woman’s battle with mental illness and the stark contrast of care in which is given to those with connections vs. those without. Having been written in 1963, Esther gives a first-hand account of the practices Psychiatry performed.

Plath writes beautifully and perfectly grasped the feelings of a young adult woman trying to figure life out while battling serious depression. At times this boom was hard to read due to traumatic scenes but I am so glad that I read it! I am especially glad to have read it at this stage in my life.

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1973 – How to Eat Fried Worms by Thomas Rockwell

3 out of 5 stars

Billy, Tom, Alan, and Joe are all bored one day. Out of their boredom, a bet ensues. Alan and Joe bet that Billy can’t eat 15 worms in 15 days. If Billy succeeds, his buddies must pay him $50. With the dream of buying a bike from a neighborhood kid at stake, Tom helps his best buddy every step of the way.

This book was part of my 2023 reading challenge. This book turned 50 years old this year and I understand why kiddos have loved it so much. It was witty and very gross. The perfect combo for many of the kids that I know.

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1983 – Heartburn by Nora Ephron

4 out of 5 stars

Rachel Samstat, a well-known public television chef and author is seven months pregnant when her husband tells her that he has fallen in love with someone else. In the midst of a downward spiral, Rachel heads home to New York City and finds refuge in her father’s apartment and recounts her life leading her to Mark, the cheating scoundrel.

Nora Ephron is famous for creating witty characters and romantic comedies. This story is all about loving yourself and being whole on your own. I really loved this short read and look forward to watching the movie!

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1993 – The Giver by Lois Lowry

2 out of 5 stars

Jonas lives in a society dictated by the elders. No one seems to question the rules and regulations because they help keep the society efficient and running smoothly. When a child is a 12 they are assign the job that they will carry out for the society. Jonas is assigned a rather distinguished role that makes him begin to question everything.

The Giver is assigned reading for many young people and I missed the boat. Deciding to take this on as an adult, oof. It is heavy and sad. The writing is good but I gave it a 2 because of where I am in my life currently.

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2003 – Can You Keep a Secret? by Sophie Kinsella

3 out of 5 stars

On a flight home from a business trip, Emma pours out all of her secrets during some uncommonly rough turbulence. Thinking that she will never see the man sitting next to her again or anyone else for that matter, Emma discloses everything that she has kept locked tight for years. Once home, she finds that spilling her secrets to a stranger had a lasting effect beyond her wildest dreams.

I love Sophie Kinsella books and I am excited to have finally made time for this one!

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2013 – Crazy Rich Asians by Kevin Kwan

4 out of 5 stars

Rachel Chu is invited to spend a summer with her boyfriend Nick’s family in Singapore. Rachel and Nick have a quiet life in New York City but finds that the Nick in America is not the same Nick in Singapore. Nick is from a well-known family that is quick to judge Rachel making her question everything.

I really liked this book and look forward to reading more titles in this series! Kwan paints a beautiful story making you feel as if you are in Singapore as you read and made me incredibly hungry as he described the meals that were consumed. Food, paired with delightful characters, made this book a very fun read!

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2023 – Good for You by Camille Pagán

5 out of 5 stars

Aly Jackson has finally landed her dream job but after a public meltdown, she is put on administrative leave. Not knowing where to go from there, Aly finds herself in Michigan at her brother’s lake house. When Aly arrives, she finds that she is not the only one in the house. Her brother’s broody, messy best friend is there too.

Good For You is a story of finding your strength even in the darkest of times. Pagan paints a gorgeous story making this a perfect summer read!

When Stars are Scattered by Victoria Jamieson and Omar Mohamed

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“But we are not one star. We are millions. Not one background, but millions.

To the untrained eye, the night sky is a scattering of stars, a chaos of light and dark across the universe.

And yet, the stars are not lost.
They form patterns. Constellations. If you know how to look, there are stories woven into the very essense of stars.

Be like a star. Shine your light. Shine your story. For stories will lead us home.”
― Victoria Jamieson and Omar Mohamed, When Stars Are Scattered

Omar Mohamed and Victoria Jamieson worked together to create When Stars are Scattered, a graphic memoir telling the story of Omar and his younger brother’s lives as refugees. Omar and his younger brother, Hassan, have spent most of their lives in a refugee camp in Kenya called Dadaab. Separated from their mother at a tender age, the two young boys are taken in by an older woman in the camp who becomes their foster mother/legal guardian. Life in the camp is boring. Hassan has complex medical needs that the doctors in the camp don’t know how to treat. There is never enough food. Straying too far past their camp could result in bullies taking their clothes.

When Omar is offered the chance to go to school, he is torn. He would love to go to school. He wants to learn. School would also add some liveliness into his day. If he went, he would have to stay away from Hassan for longer periods of time, something that he isn’t quite sure Hassan would understand given that they are the only family the other has left. The balance between family duty and the chance to change their future weighs on Omar the entire time they live in the refugee camp.

This graphic memoir was heartbreaking, yet full of so much tender hope. Victoria captures Omar’s story so expressively and manages to inject humor into a difficult situation. While the art style is simple, it doesn’t detract from the point the authors are making. This retelling of Omar’s story pulls on your hearstrings and will bounce your feelings all over the place. Even though this is categorized as a juvenile graphic novel, this story is applicable to readers of any age.

This title is also available as a Libby eBook and Libby eAudiobook.

Sports Romances

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I have noticed an increase in sports romances being featured on BookTok (the book part of TikTok), in other types of media (television, newspapers), and at book stores and libraries. My latest read even mentioned my favorite sports romance movie: Bend It Like Beckham. In my research, I discovered romances spanning many sports: figure skating, football, baseball, gymnastics, soccer, dance, basketball, and more.

I’ve gathered a list of different types of sports romances, both adult and young adult, owned by the Davenport Public Library. This is by no means all of the sports romances available and is only intended to give you a glimpse. All descriptions have been provided by the publishers or authors.

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Adult Sports Romances

Icebreaker by Hannah Grace

Sparks fly when a competitive figure skater and hockey team captain are forced to share a rink.

Anastasia Allen has worked her entire life for a shot at Team USA. It looks like everything is going according to plan when she gets a full scholarship to the University of California, Maple Hills and lands a place on their competitive figure skating team.

Nothing will stand in her way, not even the captain of the hockey team, Nate Hawkins.

Nate’s focus as team captain is on keeping his team on the ice. Which is tricky when a facilities mishap means they are forced to share a rink with the figure skating team—including Anastasia, who clearly can’t stand him.

But when Anastasia’s skating partner faces an uncertain future, she may have to look to Nate to take her shot.

Sparks fly, but Anastasia isn’t worried…because she could never like a hockey player, right?  – Simon & Schuster

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Intercepted  by Alexa Martin

Marlee thought she scored the man of her dreams only to be scorched by a bad breakup. But there’s a new player on the horizon, and he’s in a league of his own…

Marlee Harper is the perfect girlfriend. She’s definitely had enough practice by dating her NFL-star boyfriend for the last ten years. But when she discovers he has been tackling other women on the sly, she vows to never date an athlete again. There’s just one problem: Gavin Pope, the new hotshot quarterback and a fling from the past, has Marlee in his sights.

Gavin fights to show Marlee he’s nothing like her ex. Unfortunately, not everyone is ready to let her escape her past. The team’s wives, who never led the welcome wagon, are not happy with Marlee’s return. They have only one thing on their minds: taking her down. But when the gossip makes Marlee public enemy number one, she worries about more than just her reputation.

Between their own fumbles and the wicked wives, it will take a Hail Mary for Marlee and Gavin’s relationship to survive the season. – Penguin Random House

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The Bromance Book Club by Lyssa Kay Adams

The first rule of book club: You don’t talk about book club.

Nashville Legends second baseman Gavin Scott’s marriage is in major league trouble. He’s recently discovered a humiliating secret: his wife Thea has always faked the Big O. When he loses his cool at the revelation, it’s the final straw on their already strained relationship. Thea asks for a divorce, and Gavin realizes he’s let his pride and fear get the better of him.

Welcome to the Bromance Book Club.

Distraught and desperate, Gavin finds help from an unlikely source: a secret romance book club made up of Nashville’s top alpha men. With the help of their current read, a steamy Regency titled Courting the Countess, the guys coach Gavin on saving his marriage. But it’ll take a lot more than flowery words and grand gestures for this hapless Romeo to find his inner hero and win back the trust of his wife. – Penguin Random House

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Cleat Cute by Meryl Wilsner

A sapphic rivals to lovers rom com for fans of Ted Lasso and A League of Their Own, where two soccer teammates are at odds before falling in love as their team gears up for the World Cup.

Grace Henderson has been a star of the US Women’s National Team for ten years, even though she’s only 26. But when she’s sidelined with an injury, a bold new upstart, Phoebe Matthews, takes her spot. 22-year-old Phoebe is everything Grace isn’t—a gregarious jokester who plays with a joy that Grace lost somewhere along the way. The last thing Grace expects is to become teammates with benefits with this class clown she sees as her rival.

Phoebe Matthews is too focused on her first season as a professional soccer player to think about seducing her longtime idol. But when Grace ends up making the first move, they can’t keep their hands off of each other.

As the World Cup approaches and Grace works her way back from injury, a miscommunication leaves the women with hilariously different perspectives on their relationship. But they’re on the same page on the field, realizing they can play together instead of vying for the same position. With every tackle the tension between them grows, and both players soon have to decide what’s more important—being together or making the roster.

The perfect blend of funny and steamy, Meryl Wilsner’s Cleat Cute is about being brave enough to win on and off the field. – Macmillan Publishers

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Everything for You by Chloe Liese

Enemies become lovers in this sizzling sports romance about taking a chance on love when life’s taught you it’s a losing game.

Oliver Bergman is a beloved rising soccer star, all sunshine smiles and the heart of their team’s spirit. To make matters worse, he’s obscenely attractive. In short: he’s genetically designed to get under misanthropic, miserable Gavin’s aggravated skin.

Ten years older than Oliver and a legendary player at the end of his career, Gavin Hayes is the team’s demanding captain. He’s also a giant–albeit gorgeous–grump who lives to rain on Oliver’s parade. Especially when Oliver and Gavin are named co-captains of the team.

Sick of their hostility, Coach gives them an ultimatum: put an end to their enmity or say goodbye to being captains. Forced to finally to lower their guards, Gavin and Oliver realize that they also have chemistry off the field and it’s fueled by something much more powerful than competition—an explosive attraction. – Penguin Random House

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Head Over Heels by Hannah Orenstein

The past seven years have been hard on Avery Abrams: After training her entire life to make the Olympic gymnastics team, a disastrous performance ended her athletic career for good. Her best friend and teammate, Jasmine, went on to become an Olympic champion, then committed the ultimate betrayal by marrying their emotionally abusive coach, Dimitri.

Now, reeling from a breakup with her football star boyfriend, Avery returns to her Massachusetts hometown, where new coach Ryan asks her to help him train a promising young gymnast with Olympic aspirations. Despite her misgivings and worries about the memories it will evoke, Avery agrees. Back in the gym, she’s surprised to find sparks flying with Ryan. But when a shocking scandal in the gymnastics world breaks, it has shattering effects not only for the sport but also for Avery and her old friend Jasmine. – Simon & Schuster

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Take the Lead by Alexis Daria

Gina Morales wants to make it big. In her four seasons on The Dance Off, she’s never even made it to the finals. But her latest partner, the sexy star of an Alaskan wilderness show, could be her chance. Who knew the strong, silent, survivalist-type had moves like that? She thinks Stone Nielson is her ticket to win it all—until her producer makes it clear they’re being set up for a showmance.

Joining a celebrity dance competition is the last thing Stone wants. However, he’ll endure anything to help his family, even as he fears revealing their secrets. While the fast pace of Los Angeles makes him long for the peace and privacy of home, he can’t hide his growing attraction for his dance partner. Neither wants to fake a romance for the cameras, but the explosive chemistry that flares between them is undeniable.

As Stone and Gina heat up the dance floor, the tabloids catch on to their developing romance. With the spotlight threatening to ruin everything, will they choose fame and fortune, or let love take the lead? – Macmillan Publishers

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 Out of His League by Caroline Richardson

Gretchen Harper has always been practical. Dependable, solid, predictable. She’s never taken risks, and she’s especially never bought coffee for gorgeous professional athletes in airports. That is, until she meets her favorite baseball player on the worst day of his career.

Being sent to the minor league is just the first of Joshua Malvern’s many worries—he’s got an injury that won’t heal and his entire career and future are on the line. When a beautiful woman offers him coffee, that simple kindness is exactly what he needs to lift him out of his funk. He asks her to join him in first class, not expecting to end up joining her in bed.

What starts as a one night stand ends up holding the promise for so much more. And while stepping out of her comfort zone has never been Gretchen’s style, for a chance at true love she’ll have to decide whether she’ll swing for the fences, even if it means striking out. And Josh will have to step up to the plate. – Provided by the author

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Young Adult Sports Romances

She Drives Me Crazy by Kelly Quindlen

High school nemeses fall in love in Kelly Quindlen’s She Drives Me Crazy, a queer YA rom com perfect for fans of Becky Albertalli and Casey McQuiston.

After an embarrassing loss to her ex-girlfriend in their first basketball game of the season, seventeen-year-old Scottie Zajac gets into a fender bender with the worst possible person: her nemesis, Irene Abraham, head cheerleader for the Fighting Reindeer.

Irene is as mean as she is beautiful, so Scottie makes a point to keep her distance. When the accident sends Irene’s car to the shop for weeks’ worth of repairs and the girls are forced to carpool, their rocky start only gets bumpier.

But when an opportunity arises for Scottie to get back at her toxic ex—and climb her school’s social ladder—she bribes Irene into an elaborate fake- dating scheme that threatens to reveal some very real feelings. – Macmillan Publishers

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The Passing Playbook by Isaac Fitzsimons

Fifteen-year-old Spencer Harris is a proud nerd, an awesome big brother, and a David Beckham in training. He’s also transgender. After transitioning at his old school leads to a year of isolation and bullying, Spencer gets a fresh start at Oakley, the most liberal private school in Ohio.

At Oakley, Spencer seems to have it all: more accepting classmates, a decent shot at a starting position on the boys’ soccer team, great new friends, and maybe even something more than friendship with one of his teammates. The problem is, no one at Oakley knows Spencer is trans—he’s passing.

But when a discriminatory law forces Spencer’s coach to bench him, Spencer has to make a choice: cheer his team on from the sidelines or publicly fight for his right to play, even though it would mean coming out to everyone—including the guy he’s falling for. – Penguin Random House

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Until Friday Night by Abbi Glines

To everyone who knows him, West Ashby has always been that guy: the cocky, popular, way-too-handsome-for-his-own-good football god who led Lawton High to the state championships. But while West may be Big Man on Campus on the outside, on the inside he’s battling the grief that comes with watching his father slowly die of cancer.

Two years ago, Maggie Carleton’s life fell apart when her father murdered her mother. And after she told the police what happened, she stopped speaking and hasn’t spoken since. Even the move to Lawton, Alabama, couldn’t draw Maggie back out. So she stayed quiet, keeping her sorrow and her fractured heart hidden away.

As West’s pain becomes too much to handle, he knows he needs to talk to someone about his father—so in the dark shadows of a post-game party, he opens up to the one girl who he knows won’t tell anyone else.

West expected that talking about his dad would bring some relief, or at least a flood of emotions he couldn’t control. But he never expected the quiet new girl to reply, to reveal a pain even deeper than his own—or for them to form a connection so strong that he couldn’t ever let her go… – Simon & Schuster

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Icebreaker by A.L. Graziadei

A. L. Graziadei’s Icebreaker is an irresistible YA debut about two hockey players fighting to be the best—and the romance that catches them by surprise along the way.

Seventeen-year-old Mickey James III is a college freshman, a brother to five sisters, and a hockey legacy. With a father and a grandfather who have gone down in NHL history, Mickey is almost guaranteed the league’s top draft spot.

The only person standing in his way is Jaysen Caulfield, a contender for the #1 spot and Mickey’s infuriating (and infuriatingly attractive) teammate. When rivalry turns to something more, Mickey will have to decide what he really wants, and what he’s willing to risk for it.

This is a story about falling in love, finding your team (on and off the ice), and choosing your own path. – Macmillan Publishers

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Do you have a favorite sports romance? Let us know in the comments!

Banned Book Club by Kim Hyun Sook, Ko Hyung-Ju, and Ryan Estrada

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“But you can learn a lot about history by figuring out what people wanted to hide.”
― Kim Hyun Sook, Banned Book Club

I read Banned Book Club by Kim Hyun Sook and Ryan Estrada and illustrated by Ko Hyung-Ju right before Banned Book Week 2023 began. This week celebrates the freedom to read and the opposition to censorship. Banned Book Club couldn’t have been a more appropriate book to start off this year’s Banned Book Week. To boil it down, this book tells the story of a group of students who form a book club that reads banned books during the reign of South Korea’s Fifth Republic. They put their lives and the lives of their family and friends in danger in order to read censored and banned books, amongst other forms of protest.

In 1983, Kim Hyun Sook was finally able to convince her mother to let her go to college. She was beyond excited to start college, to expand her world, and to study Western Literature. Kim was ready for the break of working in her family’s restaurant. She couldn’t have known that her literature class would send her down a road that she never saw coming; it would be a massive turning point that would alter her life in a way she couldn’t imagine.

Kim’s decision to go to college happened in the midst of the South Korea’s Fifth Republic. This military regime found its way to power through torture, censorship, and the murder of protestors. When Kim started school, she was met with a wall of protestors hurling insults and molotov cocktails. Not interested in getting involved, she throws herself into her books. After meeting the editor of the school newspaper who invites her to join his book club, she is shocked to see that the group is actually an underground book club reading banned and illicit literature that the military regime has forbidden. Unsure of what to do, but wanting to read these books, Kim stays in the club and finds herself drawn into the dangerous activities that the other members are involved in. Soon she will be swept up in a torrent of fear and violence as the people of power close ranks on the protestors.

“Do they ban books because they see danger in their authors, or because they see themselves in their villains?”
― Kim Hyun Sook, Banned Book Club

Wake: The Hidden History of Women-Led Slave Revolts by Rebecca Hall

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“History written by the victors always erases the resistance. And those of us who live in the wake/ruins learn that we’re inferior and needed to be conquered and enslaved. This is the afterlife of slavery that the victors need us to inhabit. One in which we have always already lost and have accepted our fate a handed to us.”
― Rebecca Hall, Wake: The Hidden History of Women-Led Slave Revolts

Over the last couple months, I have been actively searching for information about hidden histories: the histories of people, places, objects hidden just below the surface that people don’t think about (or know about). These hidden histories can also be the histories of a people that weren’t deemed to be known by the winners of a conflict. During my latest deep dive, I found Wake: The Hidden History of Women-Led Slave Revolts. Rebecca Hall has, with the help of illustrator Hugo Martínez and lettered by Sarula Bao, written about the lives of enslaved black women warriors. This is a mix between a graphic novel and memoir, as Rebecca acknowledges during her flashbacks that she doesn’t know the full truth, so she has taken some liberties in discussing what actually happened.

During this book, Rebecca is a scholar working on her dissertation to find the truth about the black women warriors involved in slave revolts. Her research takes her across the globe as she works to fill in the holes in their histories. She is the granddaughter of slaves and has forever been haunted by their history and legacy. Wanting to know more about enslaved women, Rebecca heads to archives, courts, businesses, museums, and libraries to dig up their histories. She finds deteriorating correspondence, slave ship captain’s logs, old court records, and forensic reports/evidence that lead her to the truth of these women warriors.

Wake is illustrated gorgeously/hauntingly in black and white, pushing the boundaries of the history of these black women, while showcasing what Rebecca finds in the historical records and then her reconstruction of the past when no records can be found. In addition to the look at the past, Rebecca also shows how her own life is impacted by her research into slavery through her work as an attorney and a historian.

“We reach the final stage of healing from trauma when we integrate the past into who we are. It becomes a part of us that we acknowledge and provides understanding of our world […] Our memories must be longer than our lifetimes.”
― Rebecca Hall, Wake: The Hidden History of Women-Led Slave Revolts

“When we go back and retrieve our past, our legacy of resistance through impossible odds, our way out of no way, we redress the void of origin that would erase us. We empower and bring joy to our present. This is ancestry in progress, and it is our superpower.”
― Rebecca Hall, Wake: The Hidden History of Women-Led Slave Revolts

TV6 Book Club October Read Wrap-Up

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Guest Blog by Brittany P.

In October, Brittany and Morgan read The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman. This title was presented by Brittany to celebrate International Day of the Elderly on October 1st.

Here is a little bit about the book: Set in a retirement community, a group of individuals meet weekly to solve murder cases. In this first installment of The Thursday Murder Club Series, Elizabeth, Joyce, Ibrahim, and Ron try to solve the cases of mysterious bones found in a grave, two dead people, and struggle with grief and loss.

Although this book is beloved by most that read it, it wasn’t something that suited me at this time. The premise of this story is right up my alley, retired folks, solving crime, sign me up! Unfortunately, there were so many characters to keep straight and I found the book rather confusing and hard to get into. This said, I do still think that you should try it, I blame my lack of interest on being distracted. Try picking up a print copy. I am confident that the experience would be far different than that of listening to the audio!

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During each of our Book Club meetings, we discuss what we read the month previous and introduce the next read! Options for November include:

The Accidental Beauty Queen by Teri Wilson (in honor of Book Lover’s Day November 4th)

Charlotte Gorman loves her job as an elementary school librarian, and is content to experience life through the pages of her books. Which couldn’t be more opposite from her identical twin sister. Ginny, an Instagram-famous beauty queen, has been chasing a crown since she was old enough to say “world peace,” and she’s not giving up until she wins Miss American Treasure. But when Ginny has a face-altering allergic reaction the night before competition, Charlotte suddenly finds herself in a switcheroo the twins haven’t successfully pulled off in decades.

Woefully unprepared for the glittery world of hair extensions, false eyelashes, and push-up bras, Charlotte realizes, after walking a mile in her twin’s sky-high stilettos, there might be more to the pageant circuit than just a sparkly crown . . . – provided by Goodreads.

 

Arsenic and Adobo by Mia P. Manansala (in honor of Cook Something Bold Day on November 8th)

When Lila Macapagal moves back home to recover from a horrible breakup, her life seems to be following all the typical rom-com tropes. She’s tasked with saving her Tita Rosie’s failing restaurant, and she has to deal with a group of matchmaking aunties who shower her with love and judgment. But when a notoriously nasty food critic (who happens to be her ex-boyfriend) drops dead moments after a confrontation with Lila, her life quickly swerves from a Nora Ephron romp to an Agatha Christie case.

With the cops treating her like she’s the one and only suspect, and the shady landlord looking to finally kick the Macapagal family out and resell the storefront, Lila’s left with no choice but to conduct her own investigation. Armed with the nosy auntie network, her barista best bud, and her trusted Dachshund, Longanisa, Lila takes on this tasty, twisted case and soon finds her own neck on the chopping block… -provided by Goodreads.

 

The Winemaker’s Wife by Kristin Harmel (In honor of International Merlot Day on November 6th)

Champagne, 1940: Inès has just married Michel, the owner of storied champagne house Maison Chauveau, when the Germans invade. As the danger mounts, Michel turns his back on his marriage to begin hiding munitions for the Résistance. Inès fears they’ll be exposed, but for Céline, half-Jewish wife of Chauveau’s chef de cave, the risk is even greater—rumors abound of Jews being shipped east to an unspeakable fate.

When Céline recklessly follows her heart in one desperate bid for happiness, and Inès makes a dangerous mistake with a Nazi collaborator, they risk the lives of those they love—and the champagne house that ties them together.

New York, 2019: Liv Kent has just lost everything when her eccentric French grandmother shows up unannounced, insisting on a trip to France. But the older woman has an ulterior motive—and a tragic, decades-old story to share. When past and present finally collide, Liv finds herself on a road to salvation that leads right to the caves of the Maison Chauveau. – provided by Goodreads.

 

You Again by Kate Goldbeck (in honor of Fall)

When Ari and Josh first meet, the wrong kind of sparks fly. They hate each other. Instantly.

A free-spirited, struggling comedian who likes to keep things casual, Ari sublets, takes gigs, and she never sleeps over after hooking up. Born-and-bred Manhattanite Josh has ambitious plans: Take the culinary world by storm, find The One, and make her breakfast in his spotless kitchen. They have absolutely nothing in common . . . except that they happen to be sleeping with the same woman.

Ari and Josh never expect their paths to cross again. But years later, as they’re both reeling from ego-bruising breakups, a chance encounter leads to a surprising connection: friendship. Turns out, spending time with your former nemesis is fun when you’re too sad to hate each other–and too sad for hate sex.

As friends-without-benefits, they find comfort in late-night Netflix binges, swiping through each other’s online dating profiles, and bickering across boroughs. It’s better than romance. Until one night, the unspoken boundaries of their platonic relationship begin to blur. . . .

With sharp observations and sizzling chemistry, You, Again explores the dynamics of co-ed friendship in this sparkling romantic comedy of modern love in all its forms. – provided by Goodreads.

 

Next Month’s pick is: The Accidental Beauty Queen by Teri Wilson! I can’t wait to read this title and review here and on air with Morgan next month!

Sugar Falls by David A. Robertson, illustrations by Scott B. Henderson, and colours by Donovan Yaciuk

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Elder Betty Ross from Cross Lake First Nation has a story to tell. It may have taken her decades to tell her truth, but with the help of David A. Robertson, she has introduced the world to her resiliency and abuse at Canadian residential schools in the graphic novel, Sugar Falls: A Residential School Story. The hidden history of the Canadian Residential School System is shocking and needs to be talked about more than it has been in the past.

Betsy Ross was abandoned by her family at a young age. Betsy was eventually rescued and adopted by a loving family. Her world changed a few years later when, at the age of 8, she was taken away to a residential school against both her and her adopted family’s wishes. Her father made her promise to remember the strength of her relationships in order to survive. Those relationships would help light up any dark time she ran up against in the future.

When Betsy arrives at the school, she has no idea what to expect. She undergoes unspeakable abuses and indignities while at the school. She and other students are constantly berated and belittled by the priests and nuns. Her father’s words echo in her brain over and over filling her with hope, strength, determination, and resiliency she needs to survive this ordeal.

Betsy ended up changing her name to Betty in honor and remembrance of her friend, Helen Betty Osborne. Elder Betty Ross wrote this book with the help of David A. Robertson as a way to tell the truth about the residential schools.

 

Online Reading Challenge – October Wrap-Up

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Hello Fellow Challenge Readers!

How did your reading go this month? Did you read something set in Iceland that you enjoyed? Share in the comments!

I read our main title: Burial Rites by Hannah Kent. Initially I was wary of this book. I thought it was going to be hard for me to get through given the ‘Note on Icelandic Names and Pronunciation’ at the beginning and the map that confused me even more. (Now I realize those two items highlighted how well-researched this book is.) The more I read though, the more I found myself wanting to ignore my responsibilities and only read this book. I can’t pinpoint when it hooked me, but once it did, I was enthralled. Bonus: this book was based on a true story – the story of the last woman to be executed in Iceland. For more information about the true story, the author discusses it at the end of the book.

“To know what a person has done, and to know who a person is, are very different things.”
― Hannah Kent, Burial Rites

The above quote is the epitome of Burial Rites by Hannah Kent. In 1829 Iceland, Agnes and two others were convicted of a brutal double murder on a remote homestead. The judicial system, as it was at the time, ordered Agnes to be housed with a family on their small family farm. She is to stay there until her execution, receiving spiritual guidance from an assistant minister assigned to help in her final days.

Her hosts are naturally horrified when they learn that they are to house a murderer. Being forced to share a small space with her and to sleep and eat next to her is disastrous. The monetary compensation they are given isn’t even worth it in their eyes, but they are not given a choice as to whether or not they will house Agnes. They avoid Agnes at first, but when the assistant minister, Toti, shows up, they are forced to confront their feelings. Toti is the only one who tries to understand her, even though she is reticent to discuss religion with him. As Agnes’ execution date looms closer, the family learn more about Agnes and the truth of what happened the night two people were murdered.

This book is set against Iceland’s stark landscape. The language is beautifully written, showcasing to reader the hardships that farmers were facing at that time. The author also discusses what it’s like to face a death sentence. Agnes starts this story stoic, determined to face her death with dignity, but the closer her death becomes, the more her resolve cracks. She begins to open up, giving readers, and the people around her, a rare glimpse at her truth.

I hope you enjoyed traveling to Iceland with me this month! In November, we’re headed to Africa.

Love Everlasting Volume 1 by Tom King

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Love Everlasting: Volume One is a graphic novel that was published in 2023. It contains Love Everlasting #1-5 and was written by Tom King, artist Elsa Charretier, colorist Matt Hollingsworth, letterer Clayton Cowles, and editor Marla Eizik. This book caught my eye as the cover reminded me of Jamie S. Rich and Joelle Jones’s Lady Killer. (The familiar cover is Issue #1 and an image can be found on the Dark Horse website.)

‘Love is everlasting.’ That is what Joan Peterson is told immediately before she is murdered. Shocking, right?! In Joan’s world though, being murdered is a frequent occurrence. She has been caught in a never-ending cycle of deadly romance for as long as she can remember. After each death, Joan wakes up in another timeline with a new, yet somehow the same, problem: a man wants to marry her. Every time she falls in love, says yes to marriage, she is dramatically torn from that world and catapulted into another one with more disastrous love on her horizon. Joan is confused about how she even started on this path, wanting to break free, but unsure of how. Readers are at a loss right alongside her. Towards the end of this first volume, Joan starts her journey to escape this maddening cycle of love and death. Will she escape? Only time will tell.

Dark and Morbid Nonfiction

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Nonfiction is hard for me to get through, but when I read any, I tend to go to the dark side: topics that are terrible, dangerous, tragic, and morbid. This goes hand in hand with my love of all things true crime. As I was compiling my list for this blog, I gathered a list of pop-science, investigative journalism, historical writings, research-centered nonfiction, and some adventure-based.

I have gathered a list of dark and morbid nonfiction that haven’t been discusses on the blog before and that can be found at the Davenport Public Library (basically my dark to-be-read list!). Descriptions have been provided by the publishers and/or authors.

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A Fever in the Heartland: the Ku Klux Klan’s Plot to Take Over America, and the Woman who Stopped Them by Timothy Egan

The Roaring Twenties–the Jazz Age–has been characterized as a time of Gatsby frivolity. But it was also the height of the uniquely American hate group, the Ku Klux Klan. Their domain was not the old Confederacy, but the Heartland and the West. They hated Blacks, Jews, Catholics and immigrants in equal measure, and took radical steps to keep these people from the American promise. And the man who set in motion their takeover of great swaths of America was a charismatic charlatan named D.C. Stephenson.

Stephenson was a magnetic presence whose life story changed with every telling. Within two years of his arrival in Indiana, he’d become the Grand Dragon of the state and the architect of the strategy that brought the group out of the shadows – their message endorsed from the pulpits of local churches, spread at family picnics and town celebrations. Judges, prosecutors, ministers, governors and senators across the country all proudly proclaimed their membership. But at the peak of his influence, it was a seemingly powerless woman – Madge Oberholtzer – who would reveal his secret cruelties, and whose deathbed testimony finally brought the Klan to their knees.  – Penguin Random House

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Waco: David Koresh, the Branch Davidians, and a Legacy of Rage by Jeff Guinn

For the first time in thirty years, more than a dozen former ATF agents who participated in the initial February 28, 1993, Waco raid speak on the record about the poor decisions of their commanders that led to this deadly confrontation. The revelations in this book include why the FBI chose to end the siege with the use of CS gas; how both ATF and FBI officials tried and failed to cover up their agencies’ mistakes; where David Koresh plagiarized his infamous prophecies; and direct links between the Branch Davidian tragedy and the modern militia movement in America. Notorious conspiracist Alex Jones is a part of the Waco story. So much is new and stunning.

Guinn puts you alongside the ATF agents as they embarked on the disastrous initial assault, unaware that the Davidians knew they were coming and were armed and prepared to resist. His you-are-there narrative continues to the final assault and its momentous consequences. Drawing on this new information, including several eyewitness accounts, Guinn again does what he did with his bestselling books about Charles Manson and Jim Jones, revealing “gripping” (Houston Chronicle) new details about a story that we thought we knew. – Simon & Schuster

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Tell Me Everything: The Story of a Private Investigation by Erika Krouse

Erika Krouse has one of those faces. “I don’t know why I’m telling you this,” people say, spilling confessions. In fall 2002, Erika accepts a new contract job investigating lawsuits as a private investigator. The role seems perfect for her, but she quickly realizes she has no idea what she’s doing. Then a lawyer named Grayson assigns her to investigate a sexual assault, a college student who was attacked by football players and recruits at a party a year earlier. Erika knows she should turn the assignment down. Her own history with sexual violence makes it all too personal. But she takes the job anyway inspired by Grayson’s conviction that he could help change things forever. And maybe she could, too.

Over the next five years, Erika learns everything she can about P. I. technique, tracking down witnesses and investigating a culture of sexual assault and harassment ingrained in the university’s football program. But as the investigation grows into a national scandal and a historic civil rights case, Erika finds herself increasingly consumed. When the case and her life both implode at the same time, Erika must figure out how to help win the case without losing herself.  – Erika Krouse

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Sex Cult Nun: Breaking Away from the Children of Gold, a wild radical religious cult by Faith Jones

Faith Jones was raised to be part of an elite religious army preparing for the End Times. Growing up on an isolated farm in Macau, she prayed for hours every day and read letters of prophecy written by her grandfather, the founder of the Children of God. Tens of thousands of members strong, the cult followers looked to Faith’s grandfather as their guiding light. As such, Faith was celebrated as special and then punished doubly to remind her that she was not.

Over decades, the Children of God grew into an international organization that became notorious for its alarming sex practices and allegations of abuse and exploitation. But with indomitable grit, Faith survived, creating a world of her own—pilfering books and teaching herself high school curriculum. Finally, at age twenty-three, thirsting for knowledge and freedom, she broke away, leaving behind everything she knew to forge her own path in America.

A complicated family story mixed with a hauntingly intimate coming-of-age narrative, Faith Jones’ extraordinary memoir reflects our societal norms of oppression and abuse while providing a unique lens to explore spiritual manipulation and our rights in our bodies. Honest, eye-opening, uplifting, and intensely affecting, Sex Cult Nun brings to life a hidden world that’s hypnotically alien yet unexpectedly relatable. – Faith Jones

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Midnight in Chernobyl: The Untold Story of the World’s Greatest Nuclear Disaster by Adam Higginbotham

Early in the morning of April 26, 1986, Reactor Number Four of the Chernobyl Atomic Energy Station exploded, triggering one of the twentieth century’s greatest disasters. In the thirty years since then, Chernobyl has become lodged in the collective nightmares of the world: shorthand for the spectral horrors of radiation poisoning, for a dangerous technology slipping its leash, for ecological fragility, and for what can happen when a dishonest and careless state endangers its citizens and the entire world. But the real story of the accident, clouded from the beginning by secrecy, propaganda, and misinformation, has long remained in dispute.

Drawing on hundreds of hours of interviews conducted over the course of more than ten years, as well as letters, unpublished memoirs, and documents from recently-declassified archives, Adam Higginbotham brings the disaster to life through the eyes of the men and women who witnessed it firsthand. The result is a “riveting, deeply reported reconstruction” (Los Angeles Times) and a definitive account of an event that changed history: a story that is more complex, more human, and more terrifying than the Soviet myth.

“The most complete and compelling history yet” (The Christian Science Monitor), Higginbotham’s “superb, enthralling, and necessarily terrifying…extraordinary” (The New York Times) book is an indelible portrait of the lessons learned when mankind seeks to bend the natural world to his will—lessons which, in the face of climate change and other threats, remain not just vital but necessary. – Simon & Schuster

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Dopesick: Dealers, Doctors, and the Drug Company that Addicted America by Beth Macy

In this extraordinary work, Beth Macy takes us into the epicenter of a national drama that has unfolded over two decades. From the labs and marketing departments of big pharma to local doctor’s offices; wealthy suburbs to distressed small communities in Central Appalachia; from distant cities to once-idyllic farm towns; the spread of opioid addiction follows a tortuous trajectory that illustrates how this crisis has persisted for so long and become so firmly entrenched.

Beginning with a single dealer who lands in a small Virginia town and sets about turning high school football stars into heroin overdose statistics, Macy sets out to answer a grieving mother’s question-why her only son died-and comes away with a gripping, unputdownable story of greed and need. From the introduction of OxyContin in 1996, Macy investigates the powerful forces that led America’s doctors and patients to embrace a medical culture where overtreatment with painkillers became the norm. In some of the same communities featured in her bestselling book Factory Man, the unemployed use painkillers both to numb the pain of joblessness and pay their bills, while privileged teens trade pills in cul-de-sacs, and even high school standouts fall prey to prostitution, jail, and death.

Through unsparing, compelling, and unforgettably humane portraits of families and first responders determined to ameliorate this epidemic, each facet of the crisis comes into focus. In these politically fragmented times, Beth Macy shows that one thing uniting Americans across geographic, partisan, and class lines is opioid drug abuse. But even in the midst of twin crises in drug abuse and healthcare, Macy finds reason to hope and ample signs of the spirit and tenacity that are helping the countless ordinary people ensnared by addiction build a better future for themselves, their families, and their communities. – Little, Brown, & Company

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From Here to Eternity: Traveling the World to Find the Good Death by Caitlin Doughty

Fascinated by our pervasive fear of dead bodies, mortician Caitlin Doughty embarks on a global expedition to discover how other cultures care for the dead. From Zoroastrian sky burials to wish-granting Bolivian skulls, she investigates the world’s funerary customs and expands our sense of what it means to treat the dead with dignity. Her account questions the rituals of the American funeral industry—especially chemical embalming—and suggests that the most effective traditions are those that allow mourners to personally attend to the body of the deceased. Exquisitely illustrated by artist Landis Blair, From Here to Eternity is an adventure into the morbid unknown, a fascinating tour through the unique ways people everywhere confront mortality. – W.W. Norton

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Want some more dark and morbid nonfiction? Try these!