Generally speaking, I like three things in my crime fiction: a twisty puzzle, an engaging protagonist, and a distinctive style. It's the trifecta of crime writing, and I was delighted to discover that Rachel Howzell Hall’s latest thriller, THESE TOXIC THINGS succeeds on all counts. Known for her lauded Detective Lou Norton mysteries, Hall's…
Cloud Cuckoo Land. It is literary fiction. It is historical fiction. It is contemporary fiction. It is science fiction. It is a masterpiece. Anthony Doerr, who won the Pulitzer Prize in 2014 for his great World War II novel All the Light We Cannot See, has returned with an even better, more inventive creation. This genre-bending…
I now have read all three of Amor Towles’ novels, each published five years apart. The stories are as different as they can be, but all are gems in their own right. Towles’ newest, The Lincoln Highway, confirms to me that he is of one of the great novelists of our time. This road-trip…
I am a firm believer that pets enrich our lives by providing comfort, companionship, purpose, and a whole host of other intangible, but still very real, benefits. If you are lucky enough to be on the receiving end of an animal’s love, then you don’t need me to tell you what’s what because you already…
Naomi Hirahara’s new historical thriller tells a riveting story about the Japanese community that settled in Chicago from the World War II internment camps. Hirahara is an award-winning mystery author and a former editor for the largest Japanese American newspaper in the United States. She drew on these talents to create Clark and Division, about…
I admit I am a bit of a chicken. I marvel at people who do scary things I never dream of doing. Bungie jumping. Going into space. Flying an airplane. It's amazing I'm the daughter of a man who trained pilots how to fly in World War II. The beauty of books is that you…
Every time I read a new book, I ask myself whether it will make the annual Staff Favorites booklets I put together at the end of the year. The newest gem I just finished will definitely make the cut. Early Morning Riser’s charming story is driven by its multiple quirky characters. The cheerful protagonist, Jane,…
“How is it possible to become free when you do not even know who you are?”--Libertie Sampson Freedom is a theme woven throughout Kaitlyn Greenidge’s excellent new novel set during and after the Civil War. What does it mean to be free, when you must face other people’s expectations, racism and sexism? Libertie’s father was…
In the library world, every season has a hot book, the one with a gazillion holds. This spring’s buzzy title is The Four Winds by Kristin Hannah, about a family trying to survive the Dust Bowl and Great Depression of the 1930s. This topic was expertly taken on in 1939 by John Steinbeck’s epic The…
After rereading Paulette Jiles’ outstanding News of the World for the library’s morning book club, I was reminded of how much I enjoy books set in the Old West, especially if they have unusual twists. When I heard about a new novel described as a feminist western, I knew I had to read it. I…
