| Everything inside: Stories by Edwidge DanticatWhat it is: a collection of eight short stories set among the Haitian diaspora in New York, Miami, and Haiti itself.
What it's about: death, loss, determination, and human relationships. Don't miss the story of survivors in "The Gift," or the complex interpersonal dynamics in "Dosas."
Reviewers say: "an extraordinary career milestone: spare, evocative, and moving" (Kirkus Reviews). |
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| Quichotte by Salman RushdieWhat it is: an homage to Cervantes' classic Don Quixote. Set in the modern day, a middling Indian crime writer invents a delusional traveling salesman who crosses the U.S. in search of the love of a TV talk show host, accompanied by a son who doesn't exist.
Why you might like it: it's a sharply humorous indictment of modern American culture.
Reviewers say: "brilliant" (Publishers Weekly); "dazzling and provocative" (Booklist) |
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The bookish life of Nina Hill
by Abbi Waxman
Raised by a single mother, Nina Hill has a job in a bookstore, a kick-butt trivia team, a world-class planner and a cat named Phil. Then the father she never knew existed suddenly dies, leaving behind innumerable sisters, brothers, nieces, and nephews. They all live close by! They're all excited to meet her! She'll have to Speak. To. Strangers. And now Tom, her trivia nemesis, has turned out to be cute, funny, and deeply interested in getting to know her.
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The Dutch house: A novel
by Ann Patchett
Danny Conroy grows up in the Dutch House, a lavish mansion. Though his father is distant and his mother is absent, Danny has his beloved sister Maeve: Maeve, with her wall of black hair, her wit, her brilliance. Life is coherent, played out under the watchful eyes of the house's former owners in the frames of their oil paintings. Then one day their father brings Andrea home. Though they cannot know it, her arrival to the Dutch House sows the seed of the defining loss of Danny and Maeve's lives. The siblings are drawn back time and again to the place they can never enter, knocking in vain on the locked door of the past. For behind the mystery of their own exile is that of their mother's: an absence more powerful than any presence they have known.
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The nickel boys: A novel
by Colson Whitehead
1960s Florida. Kept on the straight and narrow by his grandmother, Elwood Curtis is about to enroll in the local black college. But for a black boy in the Jim Crow South, one mistake is enough to destroy the future. He is sentenced to a juvenile reformatory called the Nickel Academy, whose mission statement says it provides "physical, intellectual and moral training" so the delinquent boys in their charge can become "honorable and honest men." In reality, the sadistic staff beats and sexually abuses the students, corrupt officials and locals steal food and supplies, and any boy who resists is likely to disappear "out back." He meets Turner, who knows that the world is crooked, and that the only way to survive is to scheme and avoid trouble. A decision creates repercussions that will echo down the decades.
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Doxology: A novel
by Nell Zink
Pam, Daniel, and Joe might be the worst punk band on the Lower East Side. Struggling to scrape together enough cash and musical talent to make it, they are waylaid by surprising arrivals, a daughter for Pam and Daniel; a solo hit single for Joe. As the '90s wane, the three friends share in one another's successes, working together to elevate Joe's superstardom and raise baby Flora. On September 11, 2001, the city's unfathomable devastation coincided with a shattering personal loss for the trio. In the aftermath, Flora comes of age, navigating a charged political landscape and discovering a love of the natural world. Joining the ranks of those fighting for ecological conservation, Flora works to bridge the wide gap between powerful strategists and ordinary Americans, becoming entangled ever more intimately with her fellow activists along the way.
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| A door in the Earth by Amy WaldmanFeaturing: Afghan American college student Parveen Shamsa, inspired by a doctor's memoir of his time in Afghanistan. Travelling to a remote village there, she finds that nothing is as he described it.
What happens: Told through multiple perspectives, this thought-provoking novel explores American goals in the region and the often-misguided actions undertaken there.
For fans of: meditative reflections on war. |
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The ghost clause
by Howard A Norman
It's been several months since Simon Inescort had a heart attack and keeled over the rail of a Nova Scotia-bound ferry. His widow, Lorca Pell, sold their farmhouse to newlyweds Zachary and Muriel after revealing that the deed contains a 'ghost clause,' an actual legal clause, not unheard of in Vermont, allowing for reimbursement if a recently purchased home turns out to be haunted. In fact, Simon finds himself still at home, replaying his marriage in his own mind, while also engaging in occasionally intimate observation of the new homeowners. When a child goes missing the Green Mountain Agency assigns Zachary, their rookie detective, but the case threatens the couple's domestic equilibrium.
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| The boat people by Sharon BalaFeaturing: Sri Lankan immigrant Mahindan, detained and separated from his young son and despairing of a new start in Canada.
Why you might like it: Though Mahindan is a sympathetic character at the outset, his prior actions in Sri Lanka complicate things; law student Priya and judge-advocate Grace are similarly complex characters.
Try this next: Sri Lankan stories, like Anuk Arudpragasam's The Story of a Brief Marriage, or refugee crisis novel Exit West by Mohsin Hamid. |
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| Rich People Problems by Kevin KwanWhat happens: In this 3rd in a trilogy about uber-wealthy Asian families (after Crazy Rich Asians and China Rich Girlfriend), matriarch Shang Su Yi is dying, prompting lots of political manoeuvrings to win her estate.
Why you might like it: Family drama is especially enjoyable when it involves dis-inheritances, public scandals, palaces, and extremely expensive fashion, travel, and real estate.
Our advice: Start at the beginning of the series to prolong this delectable read. |
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| Other people's houses by Abbi WaxmanWhat do you do...when you witness a neighbour in a compromising position with a man who's not her husband? That's the question generally un-flusterable mom Frances Bloom must ask herself, raising doubts about her own marital relationship as well as those around her.
Read it for: the flawed, believable characters and enjoyable (if salty) humor.
For fans of: modern middle-class family dramedies, like Maria Semple's Today Will Be Different. |
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| The best kind of people by Zoe WhittallWhat happens: A celebrated and much-loved teacher has been accused of attempted rape by several students; over the following months, his family is destroyed by external threats -- and internal doubts.
What reviewers say: "a humane, clear-eyed attempt to explore the ripple effects of sexual crime" (Kirkus Reviews).
Book buzz: Written by Lambda Literary Award-winner Zoe Whittall, The Best Kind of People was shortlisted for Canada's Giller Prize and is reportedly being adapted for film. |
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Contact your librarian for more great books!
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