The Library’s Book Club for Adults meets monthly at 6:30 p.m. on the first Thursday of each month. Books discussed vary widely from meaty non-fiction to enchanting fiction. Any of the following books discussed would be great reads. All of the brief descriptions were found in reviews of each book on Amazon.com.
The Years of Rice and Salt by Kim Stanley Robinson — how might human history be different if in the 14th century the plague had entirely wiped out Europe and Islamic and Buddhist societies emerged as the world’s dominant religious and political forces?
A New Earth by Eckert Tolle — are we really on the verge of creating a new world by a personal transformation that shifts our attention away from our ever-expanding egos?
A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith — this classic created a huge stir when it was first published over 50 years ago with her frank descriptions about life’s squalor which was in such contrast to the unruffled lives of the more genteel society.
Things We Couldn’t Say by Diet Eman — the incredible true story of Diet Eman who, with her fiance, Hein Sietsma, risked everything to rescue Dutch Jews imperiled by Nazi persecution in occupied Holland during World War II.
Tall Grass by Sandra Dallas — part mystery, part historical fiction, part coming-of-age story this novel has all the elements of a tale well told: complex characters, intriguing plot, atmospheric detail, pathos, humor and memorable turns of phrase.
The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield — Setterfield has rejuvenated the ghost story genre with this closely plotted, clever foray into a world of secrets, confused identities, lies and half-truths.
The Lace Reader by Brunonia Barry — Barry dreamt she saw a prophecy in a piece of lace, a vision so potent she spun it into a novel. The Lace Reader retains the strange magic of a vivid dream, though Barry’s portrayal of modern-day Salem, Massachusetts — with its fascinating cast of ecentrics — is reportedly spot-on.
The Heretic’s Daughter by Kathleen Kent — a family’s conflict becomes a battle for life and death in this gripping and original first novel based on family history from a descendant of a condemned Salem witch.
The Boy in Striped Pajamas by John Boyne — Berlin, 1942: Bruno returns home from school one day to discover his belongings packed in crates. His father has received a promotion and the family must move to a new house where there is no one to play with and nothing to do. A tall fence running alongside stretches as far as the eye can see and cuts him off from the strange people he can see in the distance. But Bruno is an explorer at heart and decides there must be more to this desolate new place than meets the eye. While exploring he meets another boy whose life and circumstances are very different from his own and their meeting results in a friendship that has devastating consequences.
Saffron Dreams by Shalila Abdullah — a novel about our ever evolving identities and the events and places that shape them, reminding us that in the midst of tragedy our dreams can become a lasting legacy.
Stealing Buddha’s Dinner by Bich Minh Nguyen — Nguyen’s humorous coming-of-age tale mines the themes of loss and identity by cleverly retelling anecdotes in chapters dealing with — or gleefully obsessing over — particular American foods. Her prose is engaging and half the fun is reliving with her the pop culture of the 1980′s.
The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows — this novel, based on Shaffer’s painstaking and lifelong research is a homage to booklovers as well as a nostalgic portrayal of the 1930′s and 40′s.
Censoring an Iranian Love Story by Shahriar Mandanjpour — laced with surprising humor and irony, at once provocative and deeply moving, this novel takes us unforgettably to the heart of one of the world’s most alluring and least understood cultures.
American Passage: the History of Ellis Island by Vincent J. Cannato — this measured book helps to place in perspective discussions of Ellis Island and the ideas of immigration as a privilege rather than a right.
The Hotel on the Corner of Bitter & Sweet by Jamie Ford — a novel relating the complications and heartbreak of being Japanese at the beginning of World War II
The Cellist of Sarajevo by Steven Galloway — a tense and haunting novel following four people trying to survive war-torn Sarajevo
The Help by Kathryn Stockett — an optimistic, uplifting debut novel set in during the nascent civil rights movement in Jackson, Mississippi, where black women were trusted to raise white children but not to polish the household silver.
The Street of a Thousand Blossoms by Gail Tsukiyama –
As her endearing characters attempt to adjust to the new while preserving the old, Tsukiyama evokes a classic vision of a blasted world returning to life. Tsukiyama’s historically detailed and plot-driven story of resilience, discipline, loyalty, and right action is popular fiction at its most intelligent, appealing, and rewarding.
The Lost Symbol by Dan Brown — Again, brilliant Harvard professor Robert Langdon finds himself in a predicament that requires his vast knowledge of symbology and superior problem-solving skills to save the day. The setting is stateside, and in Brown’s hands Washington DC is as fascinating as Paris or Vatican City. The pace is relentless, the revelations many, and there is an endless parade of intriguing factoids that will make you feel like spending the afternoon with Robert Langdon and the guys from Mythbusters.
The Secret Scripture by Sebastain Barry. In The Secret Scripture, Barry revisits County Sligo, Ireland, the setting for his previous three books, to tell the unforgettable story of Roseanne McNulty. Once one of the most beguiling women in Sligo, she is now a resident of Roscommon Regional Mental Hospital and nearing her hundredth year. Set against an Ireland besieged by conflict, The Secret Scripture is an engrossing tale of one woman’s life, and a vivid reminder of the stranglehold that the Catholic church had on individuals throughout much of the twentieth century. from Amazon.com review.
Cutting for Stone by Abraham Verghese. Marion and Shiva Stone are twin brothers born of a secret union between a beautiful Indian nun and a brash British surgeon. Orphaned by their mother’s death and their father’s disappearance, bound together by a preternatural connection and a shared fascination with medicine, the twins come of age as Ethiopia hovers on the brink of revolution. Moving from Addis Ababa to New York City and back again, Cutting for Stone is an unforgettable story of love and betrayal, medicine and ordinary miracles–and two brothers whose fates are forever intertwined. from Amazon.com review.
A Long Way From Chicago by Richard Peck. Set in the 1930′s the book follows Joe and Mary Alice Dowdel as they make their annual August trek to visit their grandmother who lives in a sleepy Illinois town somewhere between Chicago and St. Louis. A woman with plenty of moxie, she keeps to herself, a difficult task in this small community. however, Grandma Dowdel uses her wit and ability to tell whoppers to get the best of manipulative people or those who put on airs. She takes matters into her own hands to intimidate a father who won’t control his unruly sons, and forces the bank to rescind a foreclosure on a elderly woman’s house. from School Library Journal
The Girl with Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson. Once you start The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, there’s no turning back. This debut thriller–the first in a trilogy from the late Stieg Larsson–is a serious page-turner. Mikael Blomkvist, a once-respected financial journalist, watches his professional life rapidly crumble around him. Prospects appear bleak until an unexpected (and unsettling) offer to resurrect his name is extended by an old-school titan of Swedish industry. The catch–and there’s always a catch–is that Blomkvist must first spend a year researching a mysterious disappearance that has remained unsolved for nearly four decades. With few other options, he accepts and enlists the help of investigator Lisbeth Salander, a misunderstood genius with a cache of authority issues. Little is as it seems in Larsson’s novel, but there is at least one constant; you really don’t want to mess with the girl with the dragon tattoo. –Dave Callanan, Amazon
