|
|
|
|
| The Women on Platform Two by Laura AnthonyIn 2023, after a fight with her fiancé about having kids, Saoirse meets elderly Maura, who describes life when all contraception was illegal in Ireland. In 1969, Maura, her friend Bernie (who may be killed by another pregnancy), and other women push against the status quo in this timely dual timeline novel.
Try this next: Heather Marshall's Looking for Jane or Dolen Perkins-Valdez's Take My Hand. |
|
| I Leave It Up to You by Jinwoo ChongAfter 23 months in a coma, 30-year-old Jack Jr. awakens to a world where COVID exists, yet his fiancé, New York apartment, and advertising job are gone. Returning to Fort Lee, New Jersey, he works at his Korean American parents' sushi restaurant, spars with his brother, spends time with his nephew, and reconnects with his male nurse.
Try this next: Caroline Leavitt's With or Without You. |
|
| Hot Air by Marcy DermanskyOh her first date in years, struggling single mom Joannie is in Johnny's backyard while their kids watch TV inside. When a hot air balloon carrying a billionaire and his wife lands in the pool, the foursome end up spending the weekend together in this funny short novel about wealth, power, desire, and more. "It's a hoot," raves Publishers Weekly. |
|
|
|
Fever Beach
by Carl Hiaasen
Dale Figgo, a former Proud Boy known for his incompetence, picks up a hitchhiker. This encounter sets off a chain of events in a politically charged and environmentally threatened Florida. The narrative follows these characters and many others as their lives intertwine within a landscape of extremism, greed, and corruption.
You may also enjoy The Minister Primarily by John Oliver Killens.
|
|
| Counting Backwards by Binnie KirshenbaumLeo, a New York City medical researcher and professor, is diagnosed with Lewy body dementia at 53, shattering his world and leaving his wife, collage artist Addie, balancing caregiving, work, grief, and her own mental health. Told primarily in second person by Addie, this darkly funny novel examines marriage, memory, loss, and loneliness.
Read-alikes: Still Alice by Lisa Genova; This Is a Love Story by Jessica Soffer. |
|
| Audition by Katie KitamuraIn a Manhattan restaurant, a celebrated middle-aged actress working on a new Broadway play meets a mysterious young man for lunch. But who are they to each other and what does their relationship mean for their futures? Presented in two disorienting parts, this sparsely written unconventional novel defies reader expectations.
Read-alike: Miranda July's All Fours. |
|
|
|
Maine Characters
by Hannah Orenstein
This love letter to lake life is "the Parent Trap for adults," the story of two half-sisters who meet for the first time at their father's cabin in Maine after his unexpected death.
For fans of If We're Being Honest by Cat Shook.
|
|
| Tilt by Emma PatteeWhen a devastating earthquake hits Portland, Annie is 35 years old, 37 weeks pregnant, and shopping for an IKEA crib. Amidst the destruction, she walks toward downtown while talking to her unborn child about the present (the chaos, money troubles) and the past (her playwriting dreams).
If you like this moving debut, try Death Valley by Melissa Broder. |
|
| The Blanket Cats by Kiyoshi Shigematsu; translated by Jesse KirkwoodIn a mysterious Tokyo shop, cats with special blankets are available for three-day rentals. Struggling people, some of whom aren't always easy to like, take cats home in these seven thought-provoking and open-ended stories, which provide an intriguing look at transitional times.
Read-alike: Mai Mochizuki's The Full Moon Coffee Shop. |
|
| Sister Europe by Nell ZinkVarious guests -- including an art critic, his 15-year-old trans daughter, a disaffected prince, a German socialite, a publisher originally from Texas, and his online date -- prepare for and attend a formal dinner celebrating an acclaimed author in Berlin, where events culminate in a late night adventure.
Fans of Evenings and Weekends by Oisín McKenna will want to try this witty tale. |
|
Contact your librarian for more great books!
|
|
|
|
|
|
|