This book takes place in 1880 New York, with Moth from The Virgin Cure as one of the central characters. Witches abound in New York, along with ghosts and spirits. The practise of witchcraft is mostly folk magic. The story-telling is excellent, with some peril of course for the sisterhood. And there is an alienist. Will there be another sequel?
Category: United States
An Uncommon Education – Elizabeth Percer
This is a remarkable first novel about relationships (my favourite topic): Naomi and her parents; Naomi and her childhood friend; Naomi and her fellow Wellesley College students. Parts of this book reminded me of Donna Tartt’s The Secret History, which is high praise.
A Little Life – Hanya Yanagihara
This is a powerful and also profoundly disturbing book, a guy book about 4 male college friends, with a detailed (1352 pages in my digital library copy) account of their relationships with each other mostly: intense friendship and sometimes love. There are essentially no important relationships with women. At the core of the book is Jude, who undergoes horrific abuse as a child that will bring you to tears. Predictably, Jude suffers pronounced attachment disorder which makes his subsequent relationships with his friends very complicated. One of the brilliant features of this book is the ability to illustrate how someone who is very very intelligent can repeatedly engage in completely irrational behaviour: Jude knows this but can’t stop. This should produce a pause in those who think that abuse can be trivialized by “just get over it”. This is a tough read for emotional reasons but very worthwhile. This book is a Man Booker finalist.
The Mandibles – A Family 2029-2047 – Lionel Shriver
Shriver writes impeccable novels about contemporary issues: the obesity epidemic (Big Brother), health care costs (So Much For That), and a mass killing (We Need To Talk About Kevin) and others (Double Fault is a favourite of mine). In this novel, she describes the near future (2029 and beyond) after the financial collapse of America. Her focus is on 4 generations in a family, so the psychological aftermath is even more chilling. This is an excellent read and very relevant post-2008 financial collapse; what if things had progressed downhill even more dramatically .
Stoner by John Williams
Bill Stoner lives a remarkably passive life characterized by: (a) a disastrous marriage, and (b) a 20-year feud with his University English Department Head. Indeed, the description of University politics is perfect. He has one brief period of passionate love that is doomed by his naivety. The ending of the book has transcendent writing. This is an excellent read; thanks Sarah for this recommendation.
Salvage The Bones by Jesmyn Ward
The writing in this books reminds me of Toni Morrison, so high praise. There is a strong sense of impending doom for a Mississippi family (poverty, dog-fighting, teen-age pregnancy) while Katrina bores down on them. Excellent descriptive writing.
A Spool Of Blue Thread by Anne Tyler
Tyler’s 20th novel is, once again, about a Baltimore family, 3 generations. The writing is elegant, with a subtle reveal of strong emotions: love but also bewilderment and surprising strengths in surprising situations. Characters that we initially dismiss as shallow turn out to be stronger than we expected or suspected. Tyler continues to be a literary treasure.
All Over Creation by Ruth Ozeki
Who knew that a book about Idaho potato farming could be compelling! Rich characters: people who make poor choices (consistently), sleazy scumbags, radical environmentalists. This is not as good as A Tale For The Time Being, but is a fine read.
Orphan Train by Christina Baker Kline
The story of Irish immigrants to NY tenements in the 1920s. Parents and siblings die in a fire so Niamh/Dorothy/Vivian at age 9 is loaded onto the orphan train and sent to the mid-west for hopeful adoption which generally becomes indentured servitude. The story is told as 1929-1943 flashbacks as the 91 year old Vivian is telling her story in 2011 to a contemporary participant in foster care. Parts of the story have a somewhat predictable Charles Dickensian feel, especially of the sad story of hopeless and cruel care at ages 9-10 but overall this is a very satisfying read.
What David Read 