We're starting off the Valley Book Club this year with this wildly popular legal drama/mystery by William Landay. The characters and situation are very unique, and they really made me think about how far we should go to protect our children, how deeply we can NOT know someone close to us, and how terrible things can, indeed, happen to good people.

 

First, there is a murder victim, a teenaged boy, found in a park. Then there is a DA who tries to approach and solve the case as he would any other, despite the fact that he has a son at the same school as the victim. Next comes the realization by the DA that his son was actually being bullied by the victim. This is followed by a lot of Facebook stalking by the DA, some damning evidence,  and a trial that tears apart their family and the community.

 

Finally, this is the part where you come to the library and pick up this fascinating book and read it for yourself. And better yet, come to the Valley Book Club's discussion on Sept. 5th.  We'd love to hear your insights!

The English Girl by Daniel Silva

 

 

So, I don't usually read too many series that are this long with the same characters. But Gabriel Allon and his cast of black ops spies are just too irresistible. While all series of this kind get a bit formulaic, Silva always manages to entertain me and leave me wanting just one more book.

 

The English Girl is the story of a kidnapping, a murder, some unrelenting memories, and the skilled team behind Gabriel Allon, Israeli spy, that bring them all together. Is the English girl gone for good? Has Gabriel lost? Will he ever become the chief of intelligence for  The Office? All burning questions. All revealed when you read this exciting new thriller by the master that is Silva. Enjoy!



May We Be Forgiven by A.M. Homes

I had no expectations when I started this book, other than I knew that the author won the Women's Prize for fiction. I just learned that she also went to the Iowa Writer's Workshop. No big surprise. Because this is one of the best, funniest, most though-provoking novels that's come along in a long time.

It starts with an ordinary guy named Harold. A nice, married, educated, normal guy. He has an extraordinary brother. Extraordinarily obnoxious, mean, crass, and successful. In comes obnoxious brother's wife who plants a big Thanksgiving kiss on her brother-in-law in the middle of her kitchen. And all goes downhill from there. Or does it?

The kiss and ensuing affair bring on a terrible, horrifying, hilarious chain of events for Harold. The consequences of his actions with his sister-in-law could never be imagined. His life changes so completely in the year following it that the reader is inexplicably drawn in to laugh at the absurdity and cry at the heartbreaking reality. But good guys don't always finish last, and nice guys can learn from their mistakes. Harold is that guy.

I found myself loving Harold's dry wit and tell-it-like-it-is style. He recognizes that his life really couldn't get any worse, so he might as well make it better. The author's writing style in bringing a guy like Harold to life is fascinating, and unique. I loved it, and I couldn't put it down. This kind of dark comedy is not appealing to everyone, including me usually. But I hope you'll give Harold a try. And I hope that you will, indeed, forgive him. I know I did.

If You Find Me by Emily Murdoch

Carey and her younger sister Jenessa are lost. They are hidden. But they are together. They have been taken from their abusive father and sequestered away in a run-down camper in the middle of a huge state park by their meth-addicted mother. She leaves them to fend for themselves for weeks at a time, but they manage to survive, and in many ways form a complete family with each other. But then some unexpected visitors show up: a social worker and Carey's father. They take the girls out of the woods and try to give them a new life that's very different from their old one. The past in the woods, and their present in the real world clash and meld together in very unexpected ways. And together, Carey and Jenessa then must face the secret of the white star night that changed them forever.

This YA debut by Emily Murdoch takes a terrible, harsh setting and plot that seem pretty unbelievable and brings them so alive that you can't stop reading. The characters and what they say and feel are so real, that it gave me some real moments of extreme emotion. So, if you can find this one, don't let it pass you by.

Tapestry of Fortunes by Elizabeth Berg

There are so many topics or themes in Berg's new book that intrigued me. As soon as I ordered it for the library, I knew I wanted to read it, but I didn't. It sat on the shelf. Sometimes it was read by other patrons. And sometimes it sat - waiting for me. So one fateful day, I picked it up, and in a couple I days I read it. It was not a mistake of fortune.

In the book, Cece Ross, a motivational speaker, mourns her best friend's passing by changing her own life. She finally heeds the wishes of her friend by getting rid of things she doesn't need, taking a long break from her job, giving back to others, and finding out what the rest of life will hold. Cece feels it will be difficult to do these things, but after consulting her many fortune telling items, she decides it is, indeed, the exact right time. So she sells her house and moves in with three other women, into a beautiful, old house. She starts to volunteer at a hospice, and she takes her new friends on a road trip that they will never forget. And neither will I.

Tapestry of Fortunes was a wonderful surprise for me, full of truth and joy and a realness of character that will stick with me for a long time. So, if I were you, I'd check your Taro cards and then heed them - and pick up this great read!

Taken by Erin Bowman

A patron who likes to read the same kind of YA lit as I do recommended this to me after she checked it out. I'm so glad I did! Because, you know, I've always wondered what it would be like to just be living as part of a great big social experiment where my entire life, and death was controlled by a secret government I knew nothing about. Haven't you wondered that?

All kidding aside, this book, which is first in an upcoming series, is full of great details, relatable characters, action, and emotion. Although it relies on some of the stock elements in recent dystopian YA literature, Bowman makes these elements seem original and gives them, yet again, a new, fresh spin.

In the story, Gray Weathersby lives in a world that simply seems from a long time ago. There is no electricity or running water. The townspeople grow all their own food and build their houses. But the real surprise is that there is something really wrong with the town of Claysoot. Its boys disappear at the age of 18. They know it's coming, they prepare, but in the end, something just takes each boy on his 18th birthday, including Gray's brother Blaine. Forever. There is also the fact that there is a giant wall surrounding the town, and no one has ever climbed over it and survived. That is until Gray and his girl Emma get really angry after Blaine is taken, and they want answers. And the answers are beyond the wall.

I love finding first time authors that have talent, and Erin Bowman is very much one of these. Give her first novel a try, and you won't regret it!

Life After Life by Kate Atkinson

Remember the movie Groundhog Day with Bill Murray? I loved that movie. Well, take that premise, of reliving the same day over and over again until you get it right, and then turn it around a bit. Life After Life is about a girl who gets to start over - and over again. It's a book that's really like no other.

Ursula is born on a terrible, snowy night in 1910. Or is she? Yes, she is. And each time she is born, she gets a little bit further in her life before a tragedy strikes to take it all, and she starts all over again. Does anyone notice this strange reliving? Well, Ursula finally does. She comes to think of herself as sort of clairvoyant, experiencing deja vu when in a situation that requires a judgement, a decision. If she can just make the right choice or avoid the tragedy she feels is coming, she will probably live her life a little longer - before it begins again. While this may seem a little too weird, a little too redundant, Atkinson makes it extremely readable and the characters extremely real.

I found myself holding my breath at each turn Ursula must make, thinking, "Oh, please let her live past this this time." It was also a revelation learning how each turn, each decision could mean so much, life or death. How many decisions in our own lives mean the difference between a good, happy, long life and a sad one or a tragically short one. It's probably good we don't know these things in reality, but it was very entertaining to find out in the fantasy with Ursula.

The Adoration of Jenna Fox by Mary E. Pearson

Once in a great while, a book comes along that reaches into you. It makes your brain remember your heart and your true desires in life. Although it seems like just a little young adult novel, just a little bit sci-fi, a little bit romance- to me it was a lot more.

All we know at the beginning is that Jenna Fox has awakened to a world she doesn't remember. She doesn't know her parents or the grandmother who seems to hate her. She comes to learn that she has been in an accident, an event that she is not to speak of to anyone. But then who would she tell? She has no friends and her parents are keeping her outside contact to a minimum. So she watches videos of her life, one for every year. Her memories begin to resurface, making her feel like an alien in host body. It is not until she demands to have her own life and is allowed to go to school and venture outside that she begins to put the mystery of her life together. But is it really her life to live?

The writing in this book is so interesting that it drew me in immediately. Told from Jenna's point of view, at first the language is stilted, halted, like a robot delivering some lines in a play. But then it is interspersed with short interludes, a kind of poetry, that lets us into Jenna's thoughts more deeply. By the end of the book, when Jenna finally understands her situation and grows into who she is going to be, the style is more that of a "normal" teenager, albeit a very thoughtful one.

The other thing I love about this book is knowing that there are sequels. BUT this book also could stand alone. The ending, while perhaps a bit different than we hope, is satisfying in itself. If you wanted to only read this one book, it would be fine - still an excellent book on its own. This is how a series should be done. But I know that this will not be the last Jenna Fox book for me. I will soon have to read The Fox Inheritance, book two in the series. But until then, I will not forget this beautiful, emotional book for all ages.

The Orchardist by Amanda Coplin

A book club friend donated this book to the library, and then another told me she could not put it down, so I thought I would finally take the time to give it a read. It is the kind of book you can sit and think about long after you're through.

It is the story of William Talmadge who was born to grow the many kinds of fruit trees in his orchard. His mother and father start from nothing, and pass on this reassuring, cultivating work to Talmadge. Talmadge is a common man who struggles with the loss of his sister, who mysteriously disappears into the forest one day. It is this event that shapes him, just as he shapes the trees to bear better, hardier fruit. Then one day he is faced with another struggle when two young girls, both pregnant and running away from he knows not what, enter the orchard to steal his fruit. Instead of chasing them away, he chooses the hard decision of cultivating them also. Their relationship to each other fascinates him, and he can't keep himself from helping them. His life in the orchard makes a shift then, from being all about him, his grief, and the land he is on. It shifts to become about love and the true sacrifice that love takes.

Perhaps it is the beautifully detailed writing, the characters that feel like real people when you're done, or the unique description of life cultivating a fruit orchard. Perhaps it is my own dear connection to my own sisters, or my father's life-long interest in fruit trees and grafting. There are a lot of reasons for me to love this book, and I hope you'll find your own.

Carry the One by Carol Anshaw

When we're young, there is a part of our brain that is sadly undeveloped. This part tells us that we are invincible - that whatever we do, it will all work out. We don't seem to get the fact that one action(or lack of action), one decision can change the lives of many, many others forever. It is this one, defining minute that defines the characters' lives in Anshaw's Carry the One.

A beautiful wedding, an unexpected mingling of lovers, and a celebration to excess - and then the accident. An accident that two sisters, their brother, and their friends have to cope with, remember, and live (or die) with forever. How can they cope with such an event? How do they get over the guilt? The siblings all try their whole lives, not only to escape, but to atone for the accident in their different ways. One dives into chemicals, one into art and love, and one into protest. Time goes on, life goes on, but can they ever outrun their connected story? Can they ever do the victim justice? Do they deserve to just move on and live their lives, striving for their own happiness?

While this sounds like a really depressing, heavy book full of dark emotions, it is so much more than that. It has humor, too, and the beautiful, realistic writing style that brings these unforgettable characters to life. It's a book that makes you think, and a story that carries you forward. Let me know what you think!