Celebrate Asian and Pacific Islander Heritage Month in May |
|
|
|
|
“A haunting meditation on identity and understanding.” —Kirkus (starred review) While studying in El Jardin de San Miguel, Bonita is approached by a woman who claims she knew her mother as a young painter in Mexico; days later Bonita finds the woman she calls The Trickster and follows her on a tour of what may or may not have been her mother's past. For fans of: Afterlife by Julia Alvarez. |
|
|
|
"Delves into the heart of political struggle with both insight and hope." – Netiwit Chotiphatphaisal, Thai activist2014 was the year of the Sunflower Movement in Taiwan, a moment that has Taiwanese defined politics for the past decade. Its aftermath saw a wave of young politicians run for and win office in Taiwan, reversing the course of Taiwan’s destiny at a time in which it seemed like unification with China was all but inevitable. Read-alike: My Friends by Hisham Matar. |
|
|
|
"A compelling, genre-bending romantic epic about two lovers destined to meet lifetime after lifetime." —Julie Tieu, author of Fancy Meeting You Here Across seemingly unrelated timelines woven together only by the twists and turns of fate, two men are reborn, lifetime after lifetime. Within the treacherous walls of an ancient palace and the boundless forests of the Asian wilderness to the heart-pounding cement floors of underground rave scenes, our lovers are inexplicably drawn to each other, constantly tested by the worlds around them. Readers also enjoyed: The Djinn Waits a Hundred Years by Shubnum Khan. |
|
|
|
"You'll love being the guest of this irresistible, tangled family.”—Flynn Berry, author of Northern SpyThe Agarwal family gathers on a private Scottish island for a reunion where patriarch Raj plans to announce his company's succession, but as long-held secrets, personal betrayals, and simmering tensions rise, the reunion takes a deadly turn, leaving someone murdered in their wake. For fans of: The New Couple in 5b by Lisa Unger. |
|
|
|
"Treacherously beautiful and dazzlingly romantic." — Stephanie Garber, author of Once Upon A Broken HeartUpon her grandfather’s death, Liyen ascends a precarious throne, vowing to end her kingdom’s obligation to the immortals. When she is summoned to the Immortal Realm, she seizes the opportunity to learn their secrets and to form a tenuous alliance to safeguard her people, all with the one she should fear and mistrust the most: the ruthless God of War. As they are drawn together, a treacherous attraction ignites between them—one she has to resist, to not endanger all she is fighting for. Read-alike: The Priory of the Orange Tree by Samantha Shannon. |
|
|
|
"This book will leave you with gratitude for the small things that matter most–and also, the urge to hug your cat.” —Julie Leong, author of The Teller of Small FortunesOn the outskirts of Rainbow Town, there is an old, abandoned house. They say that if you send a letter detailing your misfortunes there, you could receive a ticket. If you bring this ticket to the house on the first day of the rainy season, you'll be granted entrance into the mysterious Rainfall Market—where you can choose to completely change your life. Readers also enjoyed: Before the Coffee Gets Cold by Toshikazu Kawaguchi. |
|
Celebrate Jewish American Heritage Month in May |
|
|
|
|
“I loved leaping through time with the four Cohen women" — Ann Napolitano, author of Hello BeautifulA mother and her two daughters find out the hard way over 40 years that running from the past can't save you. Beginning in the 1970s and spanning forty years, this novel journeys through motherhood, the American workforce, the tech industry, the self-help movement, inherited trauma, the ever-evolving ways we communicate with one another, and the many unexpected forms that love can take. Read-alike: All Adults Here by Emma Straub. |
|
|
|
From the winner of the National Jewish Book Award In 1938, diplomat Teddy Hartigan, assigned to the US Consulate in Amsterdam, decides to use his position to save refugees from Nazi-occupied Europe, adopting an orphaned girl and risking everything to join underground rescue efforts. Try this next: Night Angels by Weina Dai Randel. |
|
|
|
"Thrumming with color and scent, alive with idea and ache" —Moriel Rothman-Zecher, author of Before All the World After Rina and her husband partake in a night of wife-swapping with other Orthodox couples, Rina engages in an intoxicating—and forbidden—affair with her married art teacher, awakening her to an existence beyond the confines of tradition—and a glimpse into what she left behind in the olive groves of her youth. Read-alike: Fleishman Is in Trouble by Taffy Brodesser-Akner. |
|
|
|
“Magnificent...[An] incandescent portrait of a singular woman.”—Publishers Weekly (starred review)In 1958 Venice, Peggy Guggenheim, heiress and art collector, reflects on her nearly impossible journey from her old-fashioned Jewish family in New York to Italy, during which she navigated glamorous but sexist and anti-Semitic art worlds and met numerous men who loved her (and her money) while underestimating her intellect, talent and vision. Try this next: The Age of Light by Whitney Scharer. |
|
|
|
"Wry and absorbing and hopeful and just the right amount of grumpy." —Holly Gramazio, author of The HusbandsNothing's going well for Eve: she's single, turning forty, stressed at work and anxious about a recent series of increasingly creepy incidents. With her younger sister's wedding rapidly approaching, Eve is on the verge of panic. Then she recalls a strange story her Yiddish grandmother once told her, and Eve, to her own shock, manages to create a golem. At first, everything seems great. But when they head out to a rural summer camp for the family wedding, Eve's lighthearted rom-com fantasy swiftly mudslides into something much darker. Readers also enjoyed: Worry by Alexandra Tanner. |
|
|
|
"A striking debut from a new global voice." —Kirkus Reviews (starred review)"Berlin Atomized is a kinetic, globetrotting novel following three siblings - Jewish and downwardly mobile - from 2001 to 2034, as they come of age against the major crises of the 21st century" Try this next: Girl at War by Sara Nović. |
|
| "Timely, touching, and trenchant.”—Kirkus Reviews (starred review)This long-awaited latest by the author of Americanah centers on four African women in America. Nigerian travel writer Chiamaka isolates alone in the Maryland suburbs during COVID, pondering her exes. Meanwhile her Washington, D.C. lawyer best friend longs for marriage, her practical cousin starts an MBA program, and her beloved housekeeper is sexually assaulted by a powerful man. Read-alikes: Nikki May's This Motherless Land; Omolola Ijeoma Ogunyemi's Jollof Rice and Other Revolutions. |
|
| "A perfect read for anyone who’s ever felt different, misunderstood, or lonely—that is, for everyone.”―Angie Kim, author of Happiness Falls An undiagnosed neurodivergent girl grows up in southeast England feeling like a misfit. At 12, she learns of the Voynich manuscript, which at least one scholar suggests was made by aliens. Obsessed, she and her only friend sneak off to London to view it, worrying her already mentally fragile mom. Told in second person, this witty, moving debut is for fans of Gail Honeyman's Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine and Ruth Ozeki's The Book of Form and Emptiness. |
|
| Theft by Abdulrazak Gurnah "No word is wasted. . .A tightly constructed family drama with surprising complications.” —Kirkus Reviews, starred reviewThis acclaimed latest from 2021 Nobel Prize winner Abdulrazak Gurnah follows three interlinked young people navigating uncertain futures in Tanzania: Karim, whose mother left his abusive father when he was three; beautiful Fauzia, who'd been sick as a child; and Badar, who was sent to work as a servant boy in his uncle's household. Try this next: A History of Burning by Janika Oza. |
|
| Loca by Alejandro Heredia "As tender as it is brilliant"—Elizabeth Acevedo, author of Family LoreIn this moving, character-driven debut novel that's perfect for book clubs, two 20-something best friends from the Dominican Republic adapt to late 1990s New York. Shy science nerd Sal finds love at a gay club, while beleaguered Charo navigates motherhood, work, family obligations, and a troubled relationship. Read-alike: Greta & Valdin by Rebecca K. Reilly. |
|
| "A powerfully realist novel of men at sea, literally, emotionally, and metaphorically.”—Salman Rushdie, author of Knife In 2019, off the west coast of Africa, Irish writer Anthony Fennell plans a longform article about the people who mend underwater fiber optic cables to keep the internet going. But there's danger ahead for Fennell, his fellow Irishman captain, and the captain's Black actor girlfriend, who's in England for a job. Readers also enjoyed: Migrations by Charlotte McConaghy. |
|
| "Imagine the juiciest pop princess documentary crossed with the darkest David Lynch fever dream"― Layne Fargo, author of They Never LearnAn exclusive, secretive boarding school for actors, the Dollhouse Academy has been the home of 34-year-old megastar Ivy Gordon since she was a teen, and she's desperate to leave. New to the academy are Ramona and her best friend Grace, but life there isn't what the girls imagined. Narrated by Ivy and Ramona, this riveting dark academia novel by the author of Oona Out of Order shines a light on celebrity. |
|
| "Asks thrilling and vital questions about perception, memory, consciousness, and the limits of our known world."—Jessamine Chan, author of The School for Good Mothers
Presented as a doctor's case study notes and as letters written by the subject to her young son, this thought-provoking, slow-burn novel focuses on single Brooklyn mom Jane, who'd previously had a strong memory but now suffers from amnesia and hallucinations. Her psychiatrist, who has his own troubles, looks for answers.
|
|
| "Unstoppable, the literary treasure you’ve been looking for.”—Junot Diaz, author of The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar WaoIn Montana's rugged Beartooth mountains, two brothers, 27-year-old Thad and 26-year-old Hazen, try to survive while burdened by their dead father's medical bills and a falling-apart off-the-grid house. Luckily, they know how to hunt and deal with the elements. Not so luckily, their long-gone mom reappears and a local man tempts Hazen into illegally gathering elk horns. Fans of Peter Heller's books, or TV's Yellowstone will want to try this gritty, evocative novel. |
|
Contact your librarian for more great books!
|
|
|