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The Mere Wife: A novel

August 2, 2019

mere

Just out in paperback, this was a novel I loved and thought deserved a lot more attention.   Maybe every monster is a miracle meant to change the world... Author Maria Headley dives into a modern-day retelling of Beowolf beginning with its title, The Mere Wife. This is no novel about a slight wife, a minor presence, a smudge of a life. No, the women in this tale ... Read More...

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Filed Under: Book Reviews, Fiction Tagged: book clubs, contemporary fiction, literary, Picador, retellings

The Lager Queen of Minnesota

July 24, 2019

lager

  I absolutely loved J. Ryan Stradal’s debut novel, Kitchens of the Great Midwest so was nervous about his second novel. Sophomore efforts can be notoriously underwhelming. Happily, this was not the case with The Lager Queen of Minnesota. The story is about two sisters, Edith and Helen, and the wildly different paths their lives take when Helen reneges on a promise ... Read More...

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Filed Under: Book Reviews, Fiction Tagged: 20th century, family saga, Pamela Dorman Books

If You Want to Make God Laugh: A Novel

July 22, 2019

god

Delilah hasn’t been home in forty years, but when she arrives on her family’s farm in South Africa it’s to find her sister Ruth drunk on the couch and getting ready to sell the place. The sisters are polar opposites. Literally. Delilah left the family at 17 to become a nun and when that didn’t happen devoted herself to working in an orphanage in Zaire. Ruth became famous as a ... Read More...

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Filed Under: Book Reviews, Fiction Tagged: 20th century, book clubs, cultural, literary, Putnam, racism, South Africa, women

The Nickel Boys by Colson Whitehead

July 17, 2019

nickel

Thanks to his strict grandmother, Elwood Curtis is the kind of young man anyone would be proud of. He's smart, honest, and dependable. He is a devoted follower of Martin Luther King, listening to a record of his speeches until he knows them by heart. After he graduates from high school he has the chance to take free classes at a nearby technical college. It’s on the trip to ... Read More...

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Filed Under: Book Reviews, Fiction Tagged: book clubs, Doubleday, historical fiction, literary, racism

The Most Fun We Ever Had: A Novel

July 8, 2019

eight

Where to begin about The Most Fun We Ever Had? To be concise: It’s a sweeping story of a Chicago couple who meet and marry in 1970s and go on to have four daughters. But that’s like telling someone the Grand Canyon is a big hole in the ground and not the way I work. Marilyn and David are the perfect couple to everyone around them, including their daughters Wendy, Violet, Liza ... Read More...

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Filed Under: Book Reviews, Fiction Tagged: 21st century, book clubs, debut, Doubleday, family saga, marriage, relationships

Whisper Network by Chandler Baker

July 3, 2019

whisper network

Sloane, Ardie, and Grace are all well-paid, director level lawyers at an athletic apparel company in Dallas. Their boss, Ames, is a high-powered executive about to be promoted to CEO. Each of them has been subjected to inappropriate behavior on his part so when they learn about an anonymous spreadsheet with the actions and names of men who’ve behaved badly at other Dallas ... Read More...

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Filed Under: Book Reviews, Fiction Tagged: book clubs, contemporary life, Flatiron Books, social issues, women

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