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The four winds by Kristin HannahThe decision: a Depression-era woman confronts a wrenching choice between fighting for the Dust Bowl-ravaged land she loves in Texas or pursuing an uncertain future in California. Why you'll like it: it's a sweeping novel that stunningly brings to life the Great Depression and the people who lived through it as seen through the eyes of one indomitable woman whose courage and sacrifice will come to define a generation.
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| My Name is Anton by Catherine Ryan HydeNew York, 1965: Still recovering from his brother's death, troubled teen Anton is fiddling around with his telescope when he discovers that a neighbor is beating his wife, a woman named Edith. Moved to action, Anton connects Edith with a friend who can shelter her if she decides to leave her husband.
Washington D.C., 1980: On a train into the city, Anton and Edith run into each other and despite their age difference, form a heartwarming bond built on Anton's act of kindness 15 years ago. |
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The kitchen front : a novel by Jennifer RyanStarring: an indebted young widow, a freedom-seeking kitchen maid, the wife of a wealthy but unkind man and a trained chef navigating sexism compete for a once-in-a-lifetime spot hosting a BBC cooking program during World War II. Read it for: these four women are giving the competition their all even if that sometimes means bending the rules. But with so much at stake, will the contest that aims to bring the community together only serve to break it apart?
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Our darkest night : a novel of Italy and the Second World War by Jennifer RobsonWhat it's about: leaving Nazi-occupied Venice and posing as a farmer’s bride, a Jewish-Italian woman and aspiring doctor struggles to hide her true identity from a vengeful Nazi official targeting the man pretending to be her husband. Read it for: as Nina and Nico come to know each other, their feelings deepen, transforming their relationship into much more than a charade. Yet both fear that every passing day brings them closer to being torn apart .
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The rose code : a novel by Kate QuinnFeaturing: three women from very different walks of life join the elite Bletchley Park codebreaking team during World War II and uncover a spy’s dangerous agenda against a backdrop of the royal wedding of Elizabeth and Philip. Why you'll like it: a mysterious traitor has emerged from the shadows of their past, and now they must resurrect their old alliance and crack one last code together. But each petal they remove from the rose code brings danger--and their true enemy--closer...
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Books You Might Have Missed
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The daughters of Erietown : a novel by Connie SchultzWhat it is: explore the impact of forfeited dreams, long-kept secrets and evolving gender roles on a small family throughout the latter half of the 20th century What it's about: the evolution of women's lives, and how much people know about each other and pretend not to, the grinding factory work of a smart man in a blue-collar job, and the secrets that explode lives and how the mistakes of one generation get repeated or repaired by the next.
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The black swan of Paris by Karen RobardsWhat it's about: a celebrated singer in World War II occupied France joins the Resistance to save her estranged family from being killed in a German prison. Why you'll like it: it showcases the extraordinary lengths one goes to save their family from a German prison. A web of spies, the resistance and a vivid portrayal of Paris in wartime. It reminds us of the power of love, hope and courage.
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| The Henna Artist by Alka JoshiStarring: artistic Lakshmi Shastri, who has left behind her arranged marriage to make a new life for herself in 1950s Jaipur, India, where she works as a henna artist for wealthy women in the city.
The problem: Lakshmi's 13-year-old sister Radha arrives at her door with news that their parents have died, and in her grief Lakshmi must find a way to keep her own dreams alive while making room for her sister in her life. |
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The Chanel sisters : a novel by Judithe LittleWhat it is: a novel of survival, love, loss, triumph; and the sisters who changed fashion forever. What happens: raised by pious nuns, Antoinette, the younger sister of Gabrielle “Coco” Chanel, escapes to Paris, where her shared effort to launch a fashion brand is challenged by discriminating conventions and the horrors of World War I.
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The lions of Fifth Avenue : a novel by Fiona DavisWhat it's about: a series of book thefts roils the iconic New York Public Library, leaving two generations of strong-willed women to pick up the pieces. Why you'll like it: a New York Public Library superintendent’s wife reevaluates her priorities upon joining a woman’s suffrage group in 1913, decades before her granddaughter’s efforts to save an exhibit expose tragic family secrets.
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Contact your librarian for more great books!
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