The author of the acclaimed Scarborough now is writing about MG, a Filipina caregiver with problematic times as a nanny in Hong Kong and Canada. Her story turns dramatically when MG begins to care for Liz, a transgender woman with Alzheimer’s, to become an achingly beautiful homage to resilience and inclusion. Finally, the story is told from a unique point-of-view, a brilliant literary device which shall remain a mystery until the book is read.
Author: AJ
The Night Travelers – Armando Lucas Correa
An angst-filled story of 4 generations of women: sometimes daughters have to be sent away to save them. What are the motivations of the mothers? Lilith, an 8-year-old mixed-race child (mischling), is sent from Germany to Cuba in 1939. Her daughter, Nadine, is born in 1959 in the midst of the Cuban Revolution and must be sent to the USA at age 3. Nadine and her daughter Luna complete the research of family endurance and sacrifice.
When Women Were Dragons – Kelly Barnhill
This is a brilliant book of speculative fiction. Imagine America in 1955 – more than 640,000 women undergo a Mass Dragoning. Alex is an almost 9-year-old girl who asks the sensible question – why did some women transform into dragons (her aunt) but not others (her mother)? What if the official response is denial? Information is ignored and suppressed – this is the McCarthy era after all. Suffice it to say that these are not Game of Thrones dragons, and many return to their communities, but for what purpose? And finally, libraries and librarians have important roles! Although there is much feminist rage, this is ultimately about women having choices. HIGHLY recommended.
The Dickens Boy – Thomas Keneally
The acclaimed author of Schindler’s List and The Daughters of Mars (just 2 of his 33 books) has turned his attention to his Australian homeland. Edward Dickens, the 10th and youngest child of his father Charles Dickens, travels to Australia in 1868 at age 16 to make something of himself in the outback. What follows is written with impeccable detail of the following two years: sheep shearing and cricket, encounters with Aboriginals (darks), colonialists and criminals. Very entertaining.
The Lincoln Highway – Amor Towles
Simply put, this is a great book. Set in 1954 in Nebraska, the story covers only 10 days. The main characters are all kids: three are 18, one is 8 years old but surprisingly is the most clever and mature individual. A trip on the Lincoln Highway to New York is not straight forward, involving both a car and freight trains. Importantly, there are unexpected plot twists, all described with impeccable detail. The characters and themes are richly imagined – this is a must-read book.
Shrines of Gaiety – Kate Atkinson
It is 1926 in London and Nellie Coker is the formidable owner of multiple nightclubs. Of course, success breeds envy and creates numerous enemies for Nellie and her 6 children, and crime is rampant. Ms. Atkinson’s writing, as always, is sublime: words (iconolatry), phrases (wore her bereavement with triumph rather than sorrow), and droll asides and magnificent metaphors. Overall, a delightful read about (mostly) bad people – highly recommended.
The Winners – Fredrik Backman
This fabulous and long (670 pages) book concludes a trilogy: previous books were Beartown and Us Against You. Backman’s writing is both heart-warming and heart-wrenching. Two remote forest towns (in Sweden but could be Canada) are intense rivals in hockey and politics. There are two funerals, impending violence and intimidation, and a ferocious summer storm. Backman’s writing is often philosophical: what it means to experience fear, for example. Be warned, the story is very emotional with complicated relationships, especially within families; expect to experience extreme sadness (and tears) when confronting loyalty, friendship and loss.
The Woman In The Library – Sulari Gentill
The structure of this mystery/thriller is very intriguing. Hannah is writing a novel about 4 strangers who meet in a reading room in the Boston Public Library, and then hear a scream from a woman is later found murdered. One of the characters is writing about these events, so this is a book about someone writing a book about the same mystery. Is one of the 4 the murderer? A delicious plot with a slow reveal of information – very impressive.
The Atlas Six – Olivie Blake
Six powerful magicians are recruited to the secret Alexandrian Society and given the unique opportunity to become even more powerful. What is fascinating in this truly imaginative book is not what they can do, but their personalities and psychologies. They are willing to compete for a place in the Society (only 5/6 will “graduate”) so there is suspicion and meanness but also fear and apprehension. Think ambition in a magical library. What is the cost of their actions? The book’s subtitle is “Knowledge is carnage”, after all. Highly recommended.
What David Read 