Talk Totes

Discussion starter kits for your book group

 

 

Calling All Book Clubs!

We know how difficult it is to choose a book for your next book group meeting, and to find enough copies for all the members of your group.

So we've made it easier for you by collecting discussible books and putting all the copies in a canvas bag.

We've included discussion questions and information about each author in a folder for each collection.

 

How can I get a Talk Tote?

Once your book discussion group has decided on a title, you may request the title by contacting Patty Franz at pfranz@pamunkeylibrary.org or 804-365-6209.

 

It will be helpful if your group is flexible about which month you will use the talk tote, in case another group has already reserved it.  However, once we agree on a date, the tote will be reserved for your group.

 

Each Talk Tote Includes:

• Multiple copies of the same title

• Author biographical information

• Reviews

• Discussion questions

• Helpful hints on facilitating a group discussion

 

Checking out a Talk Tote:

• Talk Totes may be checked out for eight weeks to library cardholders.

• No more than one Talk Tote at a time may be checked out to an individual.

• Talk Totes may be renewed once if there are no holds.

• Talk Totes must be returned to a branch library circulation desk. Do not put Talk Totes in book drop boxes.

• Talk Totes are checked out to one person. Members of the group should get their copies from that member of their group.

• The individual who checks out the Talk Tote is responsible for the return of the complete Talk Tote, including the bag, the books, and the binder.

What if a Book Is Lost?

If your group happens to lose a book, we ask that you replace it with another copy of the book, new or second hand that is clean and readable.

 

How Can My Book Group Help?

You can help us build our Talk Totes collection by donating copies of books your group has read. This will be a great way for area groups to share not just the titles of what they've read and enjoyed, but the books themselves. Drop off copies of your discussion books at any Pamunkey Regional Library. Be sure to mention that they are for the Talk Totes.

 

Thanks for your help!

 

Talk Tote Titles

 

Titles are listed alphabetically by author's last name.  More titles coming soon! (list updated 9/30/09)

 

Ackerman, Diane
The Zookeeper's Wife: a war story
Jan Zabinski, the innovative director of the Warsaw Zoo, and Antonina, his empathic wife, lived joyfully on the zoo grounds during the 1930s with their young son, Ryszard (Polish for lynx), and a menagerie of animals needing special attention. ...Resourceful and courageous, the Zabinskis turned the decimated zoo into a refuge and saved the lives of several hundred imperiled Jews. Ackerman has written many stellar works, ...but this is the book she was born to write. ...Ackerman’s affecting telling of the heroic Zabinskis’ dramatic story illuminates the profound connection between humankind and nature, and celebrates life’s beauty, mystery, and tenacity. Booklist Reviews. /* Starred Review */
 

Allison, Jay, editor
This I Believe
National Public Radio listeners have been moved to tears by the personal essays that constitute the series This I Believe. Created in 1951 with Edward Murrow as host, the sometimes funny, often profound, and always compelling series has been revived, according to host Jay Allison, because, once again, "matters of belief divide our country and the world." Oral historian Studs Terkel kicks things off, and 80 personal credos follow. Essays from the original series are interleaved with contemporary essays … to create a resounding chorus. …Appendixes offer guidelines and resources because the urge to write such declarations is contagious, and schools and libraries have been coordinating This I Believe programs, which we believe is a righteous endeavor. Copyright 2006 Booklist Reviews
 

Anderson, Joan
A Year by the Sea: Thoughts of an Unfinished Woman
Curling up with this autobiography will refresh readers' souls and adjust their attitudes. With their two sons grown and married, Anderson and her husband decided to take a "vacation" from their long marriage. Her husband moved on to a new job hundreds of miles away, while Anderson cocooned herself in her rusting Volvo and drove to her family's cottage on Cape Cod. …Anderson's story reminds readers not to overlook their personal needs when providing for family members. Library Journal Reviews 1999.
 

Atkinson, Kate
Case Histories
"Atkinson turns her deft hand to the hard-boiled detective genre and wreaks wonderful havoc. Cambridge P. I. and Francophile Jackson Brodie serves as the link among three interwoven tales. Red herrings abound as Jackson plows through the sad cases of a missing toddler, a young woman brutally killed while temping at her father's law firm, and an overwrought mother driven to ax murder." Library Journal Review

Barbery, Muriel
The Elegance of the Hedgehog
"The Elegance of the Hedgehog is a beautifully written novel, translated from the French, with unforgettable characters, Renee, a concierge with a rich inner life, and Paloma, a surprisingly talented young girl. Read it and get a reality check on who we are beneath our images of age, class, and occupation." -- Jane Jacobs, Porter Square Books, Cambridge, MA September 2008 Indie Notables

Beasley, Nancy

Izzy's Fire
...(T)ells the harrowing yet hope-filled true story of five Lithuanian Jewish families during the Holocaust who escaped Kovno Ghetto and were ultimately hidden (and saved) by a Catholic farm family. ...Beasley draws from personal interviews, research and numerous memoirs, including extensive memoirs from Israel "Izzy" Ipson, who helped his family escape from Kovno Ghetto, one of the most notorious killing fields for Jews in Lithuania.
 

Beckerman, Ilene
Love, Loss and What I Wore
This captivating little pictorial autobiography for adults, a life told through clothes, features Beckerman's brightly colored drawings of the vestments she wore at different times in her life, accompanied by diary-like entries. … her minimalist self-portrait is a wry commentary on the pressures women constantly face to look good. Copyright 1995 Cahners Business Information. Publishers’ Weekly
 

Braselton, Jeanne

A False Sense of Well Being

"This debut novel by a Georgia writer comes with much-deserved praise from authors such as Kaye Gibbons, Anne Rivers Siddons, and Lee Smith. After 11 years of marriage and four miscarriages, Jessie Maddox is puzzled by thoughts and dreams of her husband Turner's death. Why would she want her kind (if somewhat boring) husband dead?" Library Journal Review: /* Starred Review */

 

Brooks, Geraldine
The People of the Book
Hanna Heath, an Australian book conservationist, is thrilled to be chosen to work on the rare illuminated Haggadah created in Spain in the Middle Ages. The book had been protected in a museum in Sarajevo until 1994, when it was rescued from certain plunder during the Bosnian conflict and hidden in a bank vault by a Muslim librarian. …The author uses these artifacts to weave a thrilling tale of the unusual creation of the Haggadah in Seville in 1480 and its dangerous journey to Tarragona, Venice, Vienna, and finally Sarajevo. …Inspired by the true story of the Sarajevo Haggadah, Brooks has imagined a thrilling mystery and a history that has deep ramifications in our own time.– School Library Journal, 2008.
 

Brown, Carrie
The Rope Walk
In this latest from Brown, ten-year-old Alice MacCauley enjoys an idyllic if motherless childhood in quaint Grange, VT, surrounded by five adoring, much older brothers and gently guided through life by Archie, her professor father. Alice's self-contained curiosity meets its match when Thelonius Swann, also ten, joins their household for the summer while his family struggles with debilitating crises. …It takes a masterly touch to make believable Alice's maturity and her unfiltered forthrightness when telling her story. Brown's exquisite word paintings of the details of childhood are tone-perfect and utterly irresistible. Highly recommended. Library Journal 2007
 

Brown, Rachel Manija

All the Fishes Come Home to Roost: an American Misfit in India

"Rachel Manija Brown's memoir of leaving California at age seven with her parents to live in an ashram in India is a funny, tragic, unforgettable book." --Janet Brown, The Elliott Bay Book Company, Seattle, WA  from Book Sense Picks and Notables

 

Carter, Stephen L.
New England White
Two lesser characters from Yale law professor Carter's bestselling first novel, The Emperor of Ocean Park (2002),husband and wife Lemaster and Julia Carlyle take center stage in his second, a compelling, literate page-turner that effortlessly blends a gripping whodunit with complex discussions of politics and race in contemporary America. Publishers' Weekly 2007
 

Chabon, Michael
Gentlemen of the Road
"Once again, something entirely different from one of the country's most respected writers. A swashbuckling, plot-twisting, soul-searching good time."" --Joe Foster, Maria's Bookshop, Durango, CO from BookSense Picks and Notable Preview."
 

Chevalier, Tracy

Burning Bright
Late 17th-century London comes alive in this latest offering from Chevalier (Girl with a Pearl Earring). After a tragic death in the family, the Kellaways are persuaded by a traveling circus owner to move to the bustling city, where they discover that they live next door to the famous William Blake: printer, poet, and political radical. … (T)he French Revolution has made everyone jittery, and the family is soon caught up in the excitement and uncertainty of political unrest; they also face economic hardship, struggling daily to earn enough to stay together. Chevalier's vivid descriptions and unusual mix of characters make this story an easy pleasure to read. Library Journal, 2007.
 

Conway, Jill Ker

The Road from Coorain

"Engrossing memoir of an unorthodox girlhood in Australia by Conway, a historian who in 1975 became the first woman president of Smith College. Conway was born at Coorain, a sheep ranch on Australia's western plains. Her mother...was often disoriented by the isolation and harshness of the landscape, but young Jill discovered profound satisfaction in 'the annihilation of the self, subsumed into the vast emptiness of nature.'" Kirkus Reviews

Coomer, Joe

Apologizing to Dogs

It's one hectic day in the lives of 12 antique dealers on sleepy Worth Row. When a severe storm blows in, everyone on the row comes face-to-face with life-altering revelations and decisions. Coomer packs this fast-paced novel with a variety of quirky characters, but no one takes center stage. Still, the small glimpses into each of their lives are enough to make each one stand out. Booklist Review

Dillard, Annie

The Maytrees

"Every so often, a novel comes along that describes a relationship with such thoroughness that you almost feel better about love. Maybe, just maybe, it's a worthy use of our time alive. Annie Dillard's The Maytrees is such a novel…. An exquisite book." - The Los Angeles Times Book Review
 

Dillard, Annie

Pilgrim at Tinker Creek

"Pilgrim at Tinker Creek is the story of a dramatic year in Virginia's Blue Ridge valley. Annie Dillard sets out to see what she can see. What she sees are astonishing incidents of 'mystery, death, beauty, violence.'"
 

Follett, Ken

Pillars of the Earth

A spellbinding epic set in twelfth-century England, this novel tells the story of Philip, prior of Kingsbridge, a devout and resourceful monk driven to build the greatest Gothic cathedral the world has known... of Tom, the mason who becomes his architect... of the beautiful, elusive Lady Aliena, haunted by a secret shame... and of a struggle between good and evil that will turn church against state, and brother against brother.

Ford, Jamie
Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet
Fifth-grade scholarship students and best friends Henry and Keiko are the only Asians in their Seattle elementary school in 1942. Henry is Chinese, Keiko is Japanese, and Pearl Harbor has made all Asians even those who are American born targets for abuse. ...When Keiko's family is sent to an internment camp in Idaho, Henry vows to wait for her. … The result is a vivid picture of a confusing and critical time in American history. Recommended for all fiction collections. Joanna M. Burkhardt, Univ. of Rhode Island Lib., Providence Library Journal October 2008

Fraser, Gail R.

Stealing Lumby

"The second installment in a series set in the bucolic Pacific Northwest town of Lumby picks up where The Lumby Lines left off. But when the painting The Barns of Lumby by the esteemed Dana Porter is stolen, the quiet town suddenly finds itself in the media spotlight. There’s a …quality to the writing that lends an unrushed, meandering feel to the narrative as evildoers are dispatched and equilibrium is restored. Fraser’s story is as small town cozy as they come." Publisher's Weekly

Gilbert, Elizabeth

Eat, Pray, Love: one woman's search for everything across Italy, India, and Indonesia

"Eat, Pray, Love has it all. Many stories of soul-searching come with a know-it-all narrative voice that makes it hard for me to keep turning pages, mainly because I don't know it all and get tired of reading about people who do. By contrast, Gilbert shares her tale in a voice rich with gentleness and hope, with a healthy dose of self-deprecating humor." --Andrea Avantaggio, Maria's Bookshop, Durango, CO from Book Sense 2007-2008 Reading Group Picks

Gilman, Charlotte Perkins
Herland
Gilman situates the world of Herland on a "spur" of land "up where the maps had to be made," where the all-female inhabitants have been able to create a utopia because of the absence of men. The story is narrated by a male, Vandyck Jennings, one of three stereotypically under-evolved American men who stumble into this no man's land, each with his own predictable reaction to a community that neither needs nor desires a masculine intrusion. From St. James Guide to Science Fiction Writers, 4th edition, 1996.

Glass, Julia

The Whole World Over

"If we are really lucky, a novel will resonate with our minds and, possibly, even with our souls--and, if we are really lucky, with the entirety of the human condition. This is such a book, a fiercely character-driven novel…Julia Glass has created characters you will have no choice but to fall in love with as they gracefully intertwine with tension, strength and fallibility." Calvin Crosby, Books, Inc, San Francisco, CA from Book Sense Picks and Notables Preview.

 

Gloss, Molly
The Jump-off Creek
Set in the high mountain country of Oregon during the 1890s, this first novel is a quiet, unsparing portrait of pioneer life, recounted simply and without romanticism. Drawing on pioneer diaries, journals and hand-me-down stories of her own ancestors, Gloss displays a deep awareness not only of the brutal hardships of frontier life, but also of the moral codes and emotional attachments of the people who settled there. Publishers' Weekly 1989
 

Gruen, Sara

Water for Elephants

"Water for Elephants has heart-wrenching subplots and is peopled with characters that will live on in readers' memories -- and it brings an early 20th-century circus to life. But this novel is about so much more than a circus: It is the story of Jacob, Marlena, and Rosie the elephant. And ultimately, it is the story of the power of love, friendship, and kindness. It's a poignant, engrossing novel with a wonderfully satisfying conclusion." --Judy Mathys, Family Book Shop, Deland, FL from Book Sense 2007-2008 Reading Group Picks
 

Gudenkaug, Heather
Weight of Silence
"The Weight of Silence is a suspenseful story of two girls who go missing that will have you turning pages late into the night, but, beyond this, it is a heartrending story of emotional ties told with gently lyrical language that belies brutal truths." -- Beth Simpson, Cornerstone Books, Salem, MA Indie Next List
 

Haddon, Mark
Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time
The fifteen-year-old narrator of this ostensible murder mystery is even more emotionally remote than the typical crime-fiction shamus: he is autistic, prone to fall silent for weeks at a time and unable to imagine the interior lives of others. This might seem a serious handicap for a detective, but when Christopher stumbles on the dead body of his neighbor's poodle, impaled by a pitchfork, he decides to investigate. Christopher understands dogs, whose moods are as circumscribed as his own ("happy, sad, cross and concentrating"), but he's deaf to the nuances of people, and doesn't realize until too late that the clues point toward his own house and a more devastating mystery. This original and affecting novel is a triumph of empathy; whether describing Christopher's favorite dream (of a virus depopulating the planet) or his vision of the universe collapsing in a thunder of stars, the author makes his hero's severely limited world a thrilling place to be. Copyright © 2005 The New Yorker
 

Haien, Jeanette

The All of It

A sleeper hit when first published in 1986, Jeannette Haien's exquisite, beloved first novel is a deceptively simple story that has the power and resonance of myth. The story begins on a rainy morning as Father Declan de Loughry stands fishing in an Irish salmon stream, pondering the recent deathbed confession of one of his parishioners. The resolution of his dilemma is a triumph of strength and empathy that, as Benedict Kiely has said, makes The All of It "a book to remember".

Harris, Joanne
The Girl with No Shadow
Harris revisits characters from 1999's bestselling Chocolat in this equally delectable modern fairy tale. More than four years have passed since Vianne Rocher pitted her enchanted chocolate confections against the local clergy's interpretation of Lent in smalltown France… Harris again structures the narrative (told in alternate chapters by Zozie, Yanne and Anouk) around a liturgical season (in this case Advent). Harris gives fans much to savor in this multilayered novel, from the descriptions (including Yanne's mouthwatering chocolate confections, Zozie's whimsical footwear and Anouk's artistic efforts) to the novel's classic, enduring theme of good vs. evil and the difficulty of telling the difference. Publishers Weekly 2008
 

Hegland, Jean
Into the Forest
"A story of two sisters who increasingly must rely on their own resources and the increasing wild landscape that surrounds them. The energy from industrial society begins to dwindle away and the girl's natural instincts must take over. A coming-of-age novel with great depth and dimension."-Julie Schmuckie, Hawley-Cooke Booksellers, Louisville, KY from Booksense January /February 2001
 

Hoeg, Peter

Smilla's Sense of Snow

 "A compelling and suspenseful adventure about a solitary 37-year-old Greenlander, an unemployed glaciologist who lives in Copenhagen. The story begins when her six-year-old neighbor falls from a snow-covered roof.  Her investigation takes her from shipyards, corporate headquarters, and the dark back streets of the Danish capital to a secretive voyage along the icy Greenland coast. It's a rare thriller that has such a strong, fascinating female protagonist, but this book also excels in story and characterization." School Library Journal Review
 

Horan, Nancy
Loving Frank
"Frank Lloyd Wright and his mistress faced insurmountable obstacles in creating a life together. Seeing their love through the eyes of this talented, educated, and strong 'other woman' is a revelation when set against the simmering suffragette movement of the era, and it raises questions still being argued today." --Candy Purdom, Anderson's Bookshop, Naperville, IL from Booksense August 2007
 

Horn, Dara
The World to Come
"In this imaginative, multilayered novel, Dara Horn handles themes of betrayal, trust, and memory with both luminous prose and sensitivity. Sympathetic characters fill stories within stories surrounding the theft of a Chagall painting, as she traces its history while also predicting its future. I loved it and think readers and book clubs will too." --Hester Jeswald, Sarasota News & Books, Sarasota, FL from Booksense January 2006

Hosseini, Khaled
A Thousand Splendid Suns
Raised in poverty by her unwed epileptic mother and married off early by the rich, elegant father who has always kept her at arm's length, Mariam would seem to have little in common with well-educated and comfortably raised young Laila. Yet their lives intertwine dramatically in this affecting new novel from the author of The Kite Runner… Hosseini deftly sketches the history of his native land in the late 20th century while also delivering a sensitive and utterly persuasive dual portrait. His writing is simple and unadorned, but his story is heartbreaking. Highly recommended. Library Journal 2007
 

Hurston, Zora Neale
Their Eyes Were Watching God
One of the most inportant works of twentieth century American literature, Zora Neale Hurston's beloved 1937 classic, Their Eyes Were Watching God, is an enduring love story sparkling with wit, beauty and heartfelt wisdom. …(I)t is the story of fair-skinned, fiercely independent Janie Crawford... from the book flap.
 

Irving, John

A Prayer for Owen Meany

"A wondrous novel…ultimately beguiling in its soulful account of a remarkable friendship…Irving's ability to create idiosyncratic characters and put them through weirdly ridiculous yet realistic paces has never been in finer fettle. Humor partnered with compassion, wisdom with absurdity, leave the reader both mirthful and tearful." Booklist

Jin, Ha

A Free Life

"This is another excellent story by Ha Jin, who immediately draws you into the lives of the Wu family -- father Nan, mother Pingping, and son Taotao -- immigrants from China now in the U.S. The experiences that Nan goes through make him re-evaluate his life, which, in turn, opens readers to a wonderful, introspective read." --Bobbi Brewer, Maine Coast Book Shop, Damariscotta, ME from Book Sense Picks and Notables

Kingsolver, Barbara

Animal, Vegetable, Miracle: A Year of Food Life

"This account of Kingsolver's and her family's attempt to eat only locally grown food is incredibly thought-provoking, asking you to examine where your food really comes from and what it really costs in terms of environmental effects, transportation, and people's livelihoods. There are lots of suggested actions people can take, and the whole thing is hysterically funny." --Kate Reynolds, Colgate Bookstore, Hamilton, NY from Book Sense Picks and Notables
 

Lansens, Lori

The Girls

"I believe that the best writing these days is coming out of Canada, and Lori Lansens is another one of the great ones. The Girls is as interesting a book as I've ever read about love and the many forms it takes. These girls, conjoined twins, are thoroughly lovable and are presented without a sappy note. I feel Rose and Ruby are part of my life." --Paul Ingram, Prairie Lights Books, Iowa City, IA Book Sense Picks

Lee, Harper

To Kill a Mockingbird

"In 1960, To Kill a Mockingbird won the Pulitzer prize, ... but not even thirty years of Civil Rights laws or the gentrification of ante-bellum estates render this book an anachronism. Harper Lee combines two of the most common themes of Southern writing - a child's recollection of life among eccentrics in a small town seemingly untouched by the twentieth century and the glaring injustice of racial prejudice - to create a contemporary American classic." 500 Great Books by Women

Lende, Heather
If You Lived Here, I Would Know Your Name
Wife, mother, and obituary writer Lende lives in Haines, Alaska (pop. 2,500), a town without a stoplight, hospital, or home mail delivery. Haines has been called "the real Northern Exposure and the town is certainly full of colorful characters... The author has a real gift for eulogy; she knows that every life contains something to admire, honor, or illuminate. And the people are Haines: by the time the profiles are finished, the reader has a good idea of what it's like to live among the varied citizens (and the moose, sea lions, and bears) of Haines, in the shadow of a glacier. Lende's quiet voice resonates long after the book is finished. Booklist Reviews 2005

Little, Benilde

Good Hair: A Novel

"Entering the terrain of the African American upper class previously explored by Dorothy West and Andrea Lee, Little makes a distinctive debut. She shows a discerning eye for class divisions among socially mobile blacks and an astute insight into the damaged psyches that can result. Her protagonist is a middle-class African American woman whose values are called into question when she meets the crown prince of Boston's black bourgeoisie." Publishers Weekly

 

Matalon Lagnado, Lucette

The Man in the White Sharkskin Suit: My Family's Exodus from Old Cairo to the New World
Bittersweet memoir unveils a nearly forgotten era of Jewish-Muslim affinity in the streets of Egypt's capital."The Jews of Aleppo were a breed apart," writes Wall Street Journal reporter Lagnado of her father's origins, "intensely Jewish, intensely Arab." The author documents her almost fairy-tale upbringing in a Syrian family that fled to Egypt at the turn of the 20th century. …Nostalgic but objectively tempered portrait of a family at the heart of social & cultural upheaval. Kirkus Reviews 2007
 

McEwan, Ian

Saturday

"McEwan's key strategy is to pit reason against chaos and art against arbitrariness as he orchestrates thorny moral dilemmas and menacing situations. This is the structure underlying...(this novel) about one day in the life of a sanguine London neurosurgeon. Henry Perowne is a good man... For him this particular Saturday in February 2003 is a day full of promise, even though he's had a strange night and London is gearing up for an immense protest march against the impending war in Iraq, and even though he gets into a frightening altercation with a twitchy thug named Baxter...McEwan is as provocative, transporting, and brilliant as ever as he considers both our vulnerability and our strength, particularly our ability to create sanctuary in a violent world. Booklist Review
 

Mortenson, Greg
Three cups of tea : one man's mission to fight terrorism and build nations-- one school at a time
Some failures lead to phenomenal successes, and this American nurse's unsuccessful attempt to climb K2, the world's second tallest mountain, is one of them. Dangerously ill when he finished his climb in 1993, Mortenson was sheltered for seven weeks by the small Pakistani village of Korphe; in return, he promised to build the impoverished town's first school, a project that grew into the Central Asia Institute, which has since constructed more than 50 schools across rural Pakistan and Afghanistan. …Captivating and suspenseful, with engrossing accounts of both hostilities and unlikely friendships, this book will win many readers' hearts. Publishers Weekly Review Starred Review
 

Naslund, Sena Jeter

Ahab's Wife

Una, named by her mother after the personification of Truth in Spenser's Faerie Queene, is so vividly portrayed that she seems more real than fictional... A questioning woman, before she ever met the legendary Captain Ahab, she was a defiant daughter, a lover of literature, an accomplished seamstress, a seafaring adventurer (disguised as a boy aboard a whaling ship), survivor of a horrific shipwreck, and a spiritual seeker. This narrative, written in Una's voice, captures the exciting and pivotal times of mid-nineteenth-century New England... It is part adventure, part love story... A complex and sophisticated book, brilliantly written, beautifully illustrated. Booklist Reviews

Nemirowsky, Irene

Suite Francaise

"Celebrated in pre-WWII France for her bestselling fiction, the Jewish Russian-born Némirovsky was shipped to Auschwitz in the summer of 1942, months after this long-lost masterwork was composed. Némirovsky, a convert to Catholicism, began a planned five-novel cycle as Nazi forces overran northern France in 1940. This gripping "suite," collecting the first two unpolished but wondrously literary sections of a work cut short, have surfaced more than six decades after her death. In a workbook entry penned just weeks before her arrest, Némirovsky noted that her goal was to describe "daily life, the emotional life and especially the comedy it provides." This heroic work does just that, by focusing--with compassion and clarity--on individual human dramas." Publishers' Weekly

 

Newmark, Elle

The Book of Unholy Mischief
"The Book of Unholy Mischief is a delicious thriller set in Venice in 1498. Luciano is a street kid -- using his wits and his friends to survive until a master chef literally plucks him from the street and takes him to live in the doge's kitchen. There, Luciano learns about food, life, and integrity -- and also about a mysterious book. The quest for the book and surviving its impact bring chills and thrills in this fantastic novel." The Indie Next LIst
 

Niffenegger, Audrey
The Time Traveler's Wife
On the surface, Henry and Clare Detamble are a normal couple living in Chicago's Lincoln Park neighborhood. Henry works at the Newberry Library and Clare creates abstract paper art, but the cruel reality is that Henry is a prisoner of time. It sweeps him back and forth at its leisure, from the present to the past, with no regard for where he is or what he is doing. It drops him naked and vulnerable into another decade, wearing an age-appropriate face. In fact, it's not unusual for Henry to run into the other Henry and help him out of a jam. Sound unusual? Imagine Clare Detamble's astonishment at seeing Henry dropped stark naked into her parents' meadow when she was only six. Though, of course, until she came of age, Henry was always the perfect gentleman and gave young Clare nothing but his friendship as he dropped in and out of her life. Elsa Gaztambide Copyright © American Library Association. Booklist 2003
 

Oates, Joyce Carol

The Falls: A Novel

"Oates' unflinching dramatization of the insidious aftereffects of a horrific crime neatly exposes the underside of family loyalty, dissects the hatred victims attract, and reminds readers that the real power resides in the survivor, not the attacker." Booklist Reviews

Pamuk, Orhan

Snow

"This story is thick with detail concerning the country's background; it does take some time to introduce all the characters. Once everyone is in place, however, the novel picks up and ultimately is a worthwhile read for those interested in a closer look at the hot topics of religion, its devout followers, and what arises from such passions." Library Journal

Peterson, Holly

The Manny

"Jamie Whitfield, 36, lives on Park Avenue with her three children and her mostly absent high-powered attorney husband, Phillip, and works part-time as a producer for a prime-time news program. She hires Peter Bailey... to plug the household's gaps and be a father figure to nine-year-old Dylan... Jamie's co-workers are more realistically portrayed than her shallow friends, but even Jamie's children come alive when they root for mom's success." Publishers Weekly

Petterson, Per
Out Stealing Horses
In this quiet but compelling novel, Trond Sander, a widower nearing seventy, moves to a bare house in remote eastern Norway, seeking the life of quiet contemplation that he has always longed for. ... Trond’s recollections center on a single afternoon, when he and Jon set out to take some horses from a nearby farm; what began as an exhilarating adventure ended abruptly and traumatically in an act of unexpected cruelty. Petterson’s spare and deliberate prose has astonishing force, and the narrative gains further power from the artful interplay of Trond’s childhood and adult perspectives. Loss is conveyed with all the intensity of a boy’s perception, but acquires new resonance in the brooding consciousness of the older man. Copyright © 2007 The New Yorker

Picoult, Jodi
My Sister's Keeper
Expect to be kept up all night by Picoult's latest novel, but it's much more than a page-turner; it's a fascinating character study framed by a complex, gripping story. Thirteen-year-old Anna Fitzgerald walks into the office of lawyer Campbell Alexander and announces she wants to sue her parents for the rights to her own body... Campbell is a jaded young man who nevertheless decides to take her case pro bono. Anna's parents are shocked when they learn of her lawsuit, and her mother, a former civil defense attorney, decides to represent them. Anna refuses to budge on her position despite the fact that she clearly loves her sister and longs for her family's happiness. ...Picoult's novel grabs the reader from the first page and never lets go. This is a beautiful, heartbreaking, controversial, and honest book. Booklist Reviews 2004

Rayner, Richard

The Cloud Sketcher

"From the war-torn Finnish landscape to the jazz din of 1920s New York City, a boy dreaming of skyscrapers grows into the architect that can make that vision a reality. Sweeping panoramas, twists of fate, and historical references come together to create an unforgettable reading experience. " - Tula Patterson, The Children's Corner Bookshop, Spokane, WA Book Sense Picks
 

Roach, Mary

Bonk: The Curious Coupling of Science and Sex
The New Yorker dubbed Roach "the funniest science writer in the country." OK, maybe there's not a lot of competition. …Of course, she chooses good subjects: cadavers in Stiff (2003), ghosts in Spook (2005), and now a genuinely fertile topic in Bonk. As Roach points out, scientists studying sex are often treated with disdain, as though there is something inherently suspicious about the enterprise. …To stay on the ethical side of human-subjects experimentation, Roach offers herself as research subject several times, resulting in some of her best writing. Booklist Reviews, 2008. *Starred Review*
 

Samet, Elizabeth D.

Soldier's Heart: Reading Literature Peace and War at West Point

"As a teacher of literature at West Point, Samet has prepared cadets for war by conveying a wisdom not found in technical manuals for laser-guided munitions. But exploring the military meaning of Homer and Milton, Shakespeare and Hemingway, has changed both Samet and her students. In this deeply introspective memoir, readers trace the transformations. Readers thus glimpse the tensions surrounding the revolutionary gender-integration of the military, as Samet struggles to reinterpret the literature of masculine valor. A valuable bridge between literature and military life. Booklist Reviews."

 

Shaara, Michael
The Killer Angels
A gripping novel about the four days of the battle of Gettysburg, The Killer Angels is alive with noble figures and moves through its fated courses in a prose both simple and epic. Happily, a leading character is Colonel Joshua Chamberlain, a young professor of rhetoric from Maine, who speaks to his men with a power that Mark Antony might envy. …A strong, spirited, bloody book, equal to its subject. (Kirkus Reviews, September 1, 1974)
 

Shaffer, Mary Ann

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society
The German occupation of the Channel Islands, recalled in letters between a London reporter and an eccentric gaggle of Guernsey islanders. This debut by an "aunt-niece" authorial team presents itself as cozy fiction about comfortably quirky people in a bucolic setting, but it quickly evinces far more serious, and ambitious, intent. The engrossing subject matter and lively writing make this a sure winner. Kirkus Reviews 2008
 

Shakespeare, William

The Taming of the Shrew
The Taming of the Shrew is a comedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written between 1590 and 1594. The main plot depicts the courtship of Petruchio, a gentleman of Verona, and Katherina, the headstrong, obdurate shrew. Initially, Katherina is an unwilling participant in the relationship, but Petruchio tempers her with various psychological torments – the "taming" – until she is an obedient bride. The sub-plot features a competition between the suitors of Katherina's less intractable sister, Bianca. From Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Taming_of_the_Shrew
 

Shields, Charles J.

Mockingbird: A Portrait of Harper Lee

"Readers have been waiting decades for this respectful, in-depth look at the author of the most widely read American novel of the 20th century. Six hundred interviews, years of research, and Shields' straightforward writing have brought us the biography of the year." --Jake Reiss, The Alabama Booksmith, Birmingham, AL Book Sense Picks & Notables Preview
 

Sidhwa, Bapsi

Cracking India

The narrator of Sidwha's timely novel about the violent 1947 partition of India is the extremely observant Lenny Sethi, whose family belongs to the Parsee community in Lahore. As a child, a polio victim and a member of a minority, she is the perfect witness... to the historic upheaval. Sidwha tempers Lenny's hyper-awareness, however, by capturing the whole range of her fears and joys as her innocence becomes another casualty of the violence among Moslems, Sikhs and Hindus. ...She is alternately thrilled and frightened by the events she dutifully records, and so, in the end, is the reader. Publishers' Weekly

 

Stein, Garth

The Art of Racing in the Rain
Enzo the dog feels sure that his next life will be spent in a man's body. In preparation, he closely studies human behavior, and it's from Enzo's observant point of view that Stein writes his moving third novel. …(R)eaders will nonetheless delight in Enzo's wild, original voice; his aching insights into the limitations and joys of the canine and human worlds; and his infinite capacity for love. A natural choice for book clubs, this should inspire steady demand. Booklist Reviews 2008
 

Stockett, Kathryn
The Help
"We've been telling our customers who are members of book groups to read this story of race-ridden, 1960s Jackson, Mississippi. Unforgettable characters live out a story that makes you rage against intolerance as you step into the lives of three Southern women who are committed to creating change." -- Gail Wetta, Anderson's Bookshop, Naperville, IL Indie Booksellers Fall '09/Winter '10 Reading Group List
 

Stott, Rebecca
Ghostwalk

"If moments in time become entangled in the same way that photons become entangled, then there might be strange connections between the past and the present." Stott...explores one of these entanglements. It begins when a Cambridge historian, Elizabeth Vogelsang, is found dead in the river Cam, just as she was about to finish her unconventional study of Isaac Newton's infatuation with alchemy. ...Can a series of Cambridge murders in the present, all apparently connected to Cameron's scientific research, be linked to a similar series of deaths in the seventeenth century that opened the door for Newton to win a professorship? This daring novel works on multiple levels: as thriller, as love story, as ghost story, as historical speculation.

 

Strout, Elizabeth
Olive Kitteridge
“The book discussion we had about Elizabeth Strout's Pulitzer Prize-winning novel about Olive Kitteridge, a retired schoolteacher in a little town in Maine, was one of the best we ever had. The reading group members were incredibly passionate about their love of the book and their love (and hatred) of Olive. We laughed and cried, and one member called us afterward and asked what we were going to read to get us that riled up again!” -- Deb McDonald, Garden District Book Shop, New Orleans, LA Indie Next List

Theroux, Paul
Ghost Train to the Eastern Star: on the Tracks of the Great Railway Bazaar
Realizing that many travel writers never retrace their steps, Theroux decides to travel as he did in his landmark book The Great Railway Bazaar (1975): east, across Europe and Asia, by train. Taking detours due to political unrest Iran refuses a visa, and Afghanistan seems risky he still manages a reasonable approximation: Hungary, Romania, Turkey, Georgia, Azerbaijan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, India, Sri Lanka, Myanmar, Thailand, Singapore, Cambodia, Vietnam, Japan, and, finally, back across Russia, on the Trans-Siberian Express. … A wonderful book infused with the insights of maturity, this succeeds on many levels while also doing what the best travel writing can't help but do: make the reader want to hit the road. Moreover, it's a reminder that in this age of increasingly homogenous urban centers and easy air travel, those who really want to discern national differences should stay on the ground. Copyright 2008 Booklist Reviews. Starred Review

Thom, James Alexander
Red Heart
Having already produced one novel about a white woman captured by the Shawnee, popular historical novelist Thom (Follow the River) uses an actual captivity narrative as the inspiration for an ambitious, epic novel based on the well-known true-life story of Frances Slocum. The five-year-old daughter of a Pennsylvania Quaker family, Slocum was kidnapped by Delaware Indians in 1778 and adopted by an Indian woman who raised the child as her own. …Thom's research is exhaustive, his eye for detail impressive. The scope of his tale will draw in readers undaunted by his natural expansiveness. Copyright 1998 Publishers Weekly Reviews
 

Thomas, Abigail
A Three Dog Life
"Abigail Thomas' memoir recounts life after her husband sustains a traumatic brain injury. Her story is the pain and joy of the human condition distilled in a small volume. She weaves a new cloth of love from what was and what is. A truly memorable read." --Donna Bucholz, Mostly Books, Gig Harbor, WA from Book Sense Picks and Notables Preview

 

Thorton, Sarah
Seven Days in the Art World
"Each chapter in Thornton's new book is a separate essay about a particular aspect of the art world, and a day spent there. We are shown both the sincerely creative and the unbelievably pretentious, the front-page headliners and the little-known people behind the scenes. What a great idea for a book!" -- Anne Wilde, Harry W. Schwartz Bookshop, Mequon, WI January 2009 Indie Notables
 

Trollope, Anthony
The Way We Live Now
In 1872 novelist Anthony Trollope returned to England from abroad and was appalled by the greed loose in the land. His scolding rebuke was his longest and arguably best novel, The Way We Live Now.

Tyler, Anne
Saint Maybe
All is well with the Bedloe's Baltimore family until Danny, the eldest son, announces his engagement to Lucy, a woman he has known for only two weeks and who is the mother of two small children, Agatha and Thomas. The suicides of first Danny and then Lucy are unexplained, and all but destroy the Bedloe family. While only a college freshman, Ian, Danny's younger brother, returns home to raise the orphaned children and to search for his own salvation through the Church of the Second Chance. Tyler's remarkable novel pulls at the heart strings and jogs the memories of forgotten youth. Ian's story is neither action packed nor fast moving, but each page will be eagerly anticipated. School Library Journal 1991

Uruburu, Paula
American Eve : Evelyn Nesbit, Stanford White, the birth of the "It" girl, and the crime of the century
(This is the) scandalous story of America's first supermodel, sex goddess, and modern celebrity, Evelyn Nesbit, the temptress at the center of Stanford White's famous murder, whose iconic life story reflected all the paradoxes of America's Gilded Age. The story of Evelyn Nesbit is one of glamour, money, romance, sex, madness, and murder, and Paula Uruburu weaves all of these elements into an elegant narrative that reads like the best fiction — only it's all true. American Eve goes far beyond just literary biography; it paints a picture of America as it crossed from the Victorian era into the modern, foreshadowing so much of our contemporary culture today. Publisher’s blurb
 

Vreeland, Susan

Luncheon of the Boating Party

"Imagining the banks of the Seine in the thick of la vie moderne, Vreeland tracks Auguste Renoir as he conceives, plans and paints the 1880 masterpiece that gives her vivid fourth novel its title... On July 20, the daughter of a resort innkeeper close to Paris suggests that Auguste paint from the restaurant's terrace... Auguste and his friends only have two months to catch the light he wants and fend off charges that he and his fellow Impressionists see the world "through rose-colored glasses." Vreeland achieves a detailed and surprising group portrait, individualized and immediate." Publishers Weekly

Walls, Jeannette

The Glass Castle

"You will not be able to put this great memoir down. This account of Walls' finding herself, and defining herself, within the bizarre framework of her family is a beautiful story written without blame, just pure love. A rich, honest, and funny saga that is full of very real characters -- a loving tribute to family." -- Andra Tracy, Out Word Bound, Indianapolis, IN from Book Sense Picks and Notables

Warner, William
Beautiful swimmers: watermen, crabs, and the Chesapeake Bay
William W. Warner's book on blue crabs is called Beautiful Swimmers and beautiful is the word for it. Other words are elegant, moving, informative and provocative….His book so meticulously researched and gracefully written, is a small work of art and a large joy for the reader. Jonathan Yardley for Sports Illustrated.

Waters, Sarah
Affinity
Her first, Tipping the Velvet, was good; her second is just terrific. Moody, haunting, and haunted (it's about love among Victorian spiritualists), Affinity is two parts Wilkie Collins, with whose The Woman in White it shares an obsession with prisons, madness, journal-keeping, and elaborate, carefully engineered deceits; and just a dash of Jeanette Winterson for up-to-the-minute lesbian-historical-fiction flavor. ("He, she--you ought to know that in the spheres there are no differences like that.") The New Yorker
 

Waugh, Evelyn
Brideshead Revisited
Brideshead Revisited, The Sacred & Profane Memories of Captain Charles Ryder is a novel by the English writer Evelyn Waugh, first published in 1945. Waugh wrote that the novel "deals with what is theologically termed 'the operation of Grace', that is to say, the unmerited and unilateral act of love by which God continually calls souls to Himself". This is achieved by an examination of the Catholic aristocratic Marchmain family, as seen by the narrator, Charles Ryder. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brideshead_Revisited

Young, William P.

The Shack
"Four years after his daughter is abducted and evidence of her murder is found in an abandoned shack, Mackenzie Allen Philips returns to the shack in response to a note claiming to be from God, and has a life-changing experience." -from the back of the book
 

Zola

Nana

"This rather risque novel--for 1880 that is--tells the story of ruthless protagonist Nana's rise from the gutter to the height of Parisian society. The book's heavy allusion to sexual favors caused it to be denounced as pornography upon publication, which, of course, made it a big hit." Library Journal Review