|
|
Fast Girls : A Novel of the 1936 Women's Olympic Team
by
Elise Hooper
Traces the lesser-known stories of such athletes as Betty Robinson, Louise Stokes and Helen Stephens to detail the barriers they overcame to become the first integrated women’s Olympic team at the 1936 games in Berlin. Original. 75,000 first printing. Illustrations.
|
|
The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett Featuring: twin sisters Stella and Desiree, who last saw each other as teenagers when they fled the Louisiana hometown where their father had been lynched.
Over the years: Stella has built a life for herself in which everyone, including her husband, believes her to be white; Desiree is the mother of a daughter so dark-skinned the hometown gossips stare.
Why you should read it: Spanning decades (from the 1940s to the 1990s), this is a compassionately drawn tale of family, colorism, and identity. | |
Mother Daughter Widow Wife
by
Robin Wasserman
Left with no memory of who she is, Wendy Doe arrives at the Meadowlark Institute of Memory Research, where she falls under the control of a doctor and his ambitious student, while the daughter she left behind tries to make sense of it all. 100,000 first printing.
|
|
Broken People by Sam Lansky What it's about: an L.A. writer (also named Sam) who visits a Portland shaman and, under the influence of ayahuasca, comes to grips with his past, especially his poor treatment of the men in his life.
Why you might like it: messy relationships and choices later regretted are things most readers have experienced; they're portrayed here with humor and compassion.
About the author: Sam Lansky has also written a memoir about his own struggles with addiction as a teen, The Gilded Razor. | | The Sight of You by Holly Miller Starring: Joel, whose literally prophetic dreams about loved ones has him swearing off new relationships; and Callie, the barista he can't resist.
What happens: Soon enough, Joel and Callie have fallen in love, but when Joel dreams of her death, will they be able to handle the knowledge?
Why you might like it: Alternating perspectives puts readers in both Joel and Callie's shoes in what is ultimately both a sad and uplifting tale. | | What We Lose by Zinzi Clemmons Starring: Thandi, the U.S.-raised daughter of a mixed-race mother from South Africa and an African American father.
What it's about: The death of Thandi's mother propels the novel -- in a life shaped by not-belonging, the loss of her mother threatens to overwhelm Thandi as she deals with an unplanned pregnancy.
Why you might like it: This collage-like debut features short chapters punctuated by photographs and other ephemera, and Thandi's family, at home and in post-apartheid Johannesburg, offers a nuanced exploration of race and privilege. | |
What Alice forgot
by
Liane Moriarty
Suffering an accident that causes her to forget the last ten years of her life, Alice is astonished to discover that she is thirty-nine years old, a mother of three children, and in the midst of an acrimonious divorce from a man she dearly loves
|
|
What Happens in Paradise by Elin Hilderbrand What happens: In this engaging novel (a follow-up to Winter in Paradise), Irene Steel faces up to her late husband's double life, and finds herself returning to St. John -- perhaps for good.
Why you might like it: As in the best escapist fiction featuring wealthy families, the beach (and accompanying Steel villa) is beautiful, secrets are around every corner, and there are romantic entanglements aplenty.
What you need to know: the 3rd in the series, Troubles in Paradise, is coming this October. | | What Is Not Yours Is Not Yours by Helen Oyeyemi What it is: a "beguiling" (Booklist) collection of stories that read like modern fairy tales or folklore: there are echoes of Pinocchio in "Is Your Blood as Red as This?"; "Dornicka and the St. Martin's Day Goose" is a retelling of Little Red Riding Hood.
Why you might like it: Along with striking imagery and surreal occurrences, a theme of locks and keys winds throughout the loosely connected stories, which offer a diverse array of characters, each seeking something they may never be able to find. | |
Contact your librarian for more great books!
|
|
|
|
|
|