Fiction A to Z
October 2024
Recent Releases
Entitlement
by Rumaan Alam

Working at an elderly billionaire's charitable foundation, former teacher Brooke Orr gets drawn into the opulent world of big money. The tension ratchets up as she makes questionable moves in this thought-provoking novel that examines desire, class, and race. For fans of: the TV show Succession; The Coin by Yasmin Zaher.
Once More From the Top
by Emily Layden

Grammy-winning singer-songwriter Dylan Read's confessional music propelled her to success. But few people know about her high school best friend's disappearance 15 years ago. When Kelsey's body is found, Dylan returns home to upstate New York for the funeral and flashes back to when the girls dreamed of stardom together. For fans of: Taylor Swift; Daisy Jones & the Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid.
Mina's Matchbox
by Yoko Ogawa

When she was 12 years old in 1972, Tomoko lived with her wealthy aunt's family for a year. She recalls the isolated Japanese home that once had a zoo (only a pygmy hippo remained), library trips, and the enigmatic members of the family, including her 11-year-old asthmatic cousin Mina and Mina's German great-aunt. Read-alikes: Claire Keegan's Foster; Edward Burns' A Kid from Marlboro Road.
The Rich People Have Gone Away
by Regina Porter

In March 2020 as COVID-19 surges, Brooklynites Theo and Darla head to the Catskills. They argue while hiking, and pregnant Darla runs off, disappearing. Theo goes back to New York, where he becomes a police suspect as diverse friends, family, and others try to figure out where Darla is in this striking look at New York that explores social status and the pandemic. Read-alike: Our Country Friends by Gary Shteyngart.
Playground
by Richard Powers

Following an artist, an aging oceanographer, and two ex-best friends from Chicago, this lyrical latest by the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of The Overstory primarily takes place on a tiny French Polynesian island where a company wants to launch floating cities. Read-alikes: The Light Pirate by Lily Brooks-Dalton; Harrow by Joy Williams.
There Are Rivers in the Sky
by Elif Shafak

Centered around a single rain drop, two rivers, and a trio of characters who all have a connection to the Epic of Gilgamesh, this eloquent, sweeping tale takes place in ancient Mesopotamia, 1840 London, 2014 Turkey, and 2018 London, where characters deal with poverty, illness, divorce, ISIS, and more. Read-alikes: North Woods by Daniel Mason; Cloud Cuckoo Land by Anthony Doerr.
Five-Star Stranger
by Kat Tang

In New York, an unnamed narrator makes a living renting himself out via a rent-a-stranger app, careful to not get attached to anyone. He's been a pretend fiancĂ©, a funeral mourner, and more, but his longest job involves pretending to be the father of a young girl who's started to ask questions. Poignant and thought-provoking, this character study examines loneliness, connection, and identity. Read-alike: Holding Pattern by Jenny Xie. 
Zero Stars, Do Not Recommend
by MJ Wassmer

The sun explodes while 29-year-old Dan Foster and his girlfriend Mara are at a Bahamas resort, casting everyone into darkness and disarray. As leaders emerge and the remote island falls under martial law, Dan ponders either escaping or leading the revolution he accidentally started in this darkly humorous, action-packed debut. Read-alikes: Lindsay King-Miller's The Z Word; Gene Doucette's The Apocalypse Seven.
Contact your librarian for more great books!
Contact your librarian for more great books!
Sonoma County Library
707-545-0831www.sonomalibrary.org