You may know Michael Lewis from any of his previous successful books: The Big Short; The Blind Side; Moneyball; Liar’s Poker. In each of those books, Lewis took a timely topic, researched it well and wrote a compelling expose type of book. The Premonition fits that model.
With full disclosure, I admit that because Elizabeth Strout and I shared the same college, major and year of graduation, I will forever be favorably disposed towards her books. Having shared that, I believe she has created another masterpiece in Oh William!
How could an author with a name like this be anything but wonderful? All kidding aside, King has written some fabulous novels: Writers & Lovers, Euphoria and The English Teacher are among her best. Five Tuesdays in Winter is her debut collection of short stories. As I’ve shared before, short story collections are not usually my first choice of what to read. But I am so glad that I pushed myself to read this collection.
When I saw that Ruth Ozeki had a new book out, I immediately requested it from the library and put it straight on the top of my ‘to read’ pile. Her earlier novel A Tale For The Time Being (Reviewed here) remains one of my favorite contemporary novels ever. Ozeki is a master storyteller and has outdone herself in The Book of Form and Emptiness.
In many ways, The Year of the Runaways is difficult to read. But despite its length, it is one of those books that sucks you in so completely that it is hard to re-emerge. Sahota has created such an intriguing plot with such vivid, true-to-life characters, that it feels more like watching a movie than reading.
I first heard about Jodi Picoult’s new book Wish You Were Here when I heard Picoult in an interview on NPR. She said she’d written the novel as a way to deal with the strangeness and solitude she felt during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic. She didn’t expect it to be published, but viewed it as more of a personal coping exercise. When friends read the manuscript, however, they encouraged her to go public. And I, for one, am glad she did.
Had I been familiar with Honoree Fannone Jeffers and known that she is a celebrated poet, I might have anticipated what a gorgeous book I was about to read when I opened The Love Songs of W. E. B. du Bois. Honestly, I didn’t know what to expect—because of its title. Was it a collection of love songs by W. E. B. du Bois? It is not. Love Songs is an epic, multi-generational novel in which du Bois’ influence looms large.
This collection of essays is raunchy, self deprecating and hilarious, although definitely not for everyone. Irby’s writing made me laugh out loud as she describes moving in with her wife, her aging body, working as a writer on Shrill and living on the brink of poverty.
To borrow a phrase from my favorite chef/influencer Serena Wolf, this is the perfect “medium-trashy” read for those looking to get sucked into some small-town drama.
Another book where the title says it all. I have reviewed parenting books for L&L before and I wanted to be sure to pass this on to anyone in the toddler phase of parenting.
Not at all what I expected from the title, this book reads almost like a diary of the year following the sudden and unexpected death of Didion’s husband.
A perfect historical fiction escape following a young dancer destined to be a movie star and her small-town chaperone who is searching for details of her past in 1920’s New York City.
The title almost says it all: a very niche theatre book about the director/choreographer of Hello, Dolly! and 42nd Street. A fascinating portrait of an artist who was always looking to create something bigger and better.
Anthony Doerr writes beautiful prose, and in Cloud Cuckoo Land he has perfected his craft. In the novel’s intricate structure Doerr develops three stories simultaneously, those of: Anna in 1439 Constantinople; Seymour and Zeno in 2020 Lakeport, Idaho; and Konstance on a spaceship sometime in the future.
Aptly titled, The Knockout Queen is indeed a knockout and an absolute must-read. In her two main characters, Bunny and Michael, Thorpe has created a relationship as unlikely and unusual as it is beautiful and compelling. Thorpe writes brilliantly, and I was so immersed in these two characters’ lives, I absolutely could not stop reading until I had finished the book.
I read Anxious People before the holidays and named it my favorite book of 2021 that I hadn’t yet reviewed. The only reason for that was timing, and I am thrilled to be reviewing and recommending it to you now.
I believe I picked up The Guest List after Reece Witherspoon chose it for her book club, which was a while ago. And although I’m not usually one for murder mysteries, Lucy Foley and Reece do not disappoint. Engaging and suspenseful as all top-notch mysteries are, Foley also writes well and develops characters I genuinely cared about.
Over the course of the last year and a half, I have challenged myself to read more antiracist literature both to educate myself and hopefully to make positive changes in the lives of my family and community. I bring this up because How The Word Is Passed is easily one of the top three books on this subject that I have read.
When I picked up Into The Water, I was looking for fluff—something that would keep me engaged and turning pages without challenging me to think about much except what might happen next. Based on having read and loved Hawkins’ previous smash hit, The Girl On The Train, I figured this would probably fit the bill.
Paula Hawkins’ latest psychological thriller A Slow Fire Burning rises to the amazing, disturbing, yet wonderful heights of her breakthrough novel, The Girl on the Train. In A Slow Fire Burning, Hawkins has developed three memorable main characters, all women who are deeply troubled by the tragedies they’ve experienced in their lives.
