[bksvol-discuss] Fw: Fiction A to Z June 2008
- From: "Amber Wallenstein" <amber.wallens@xxxxxxxxx>
- To: <bksvol-discuss@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Mon, 16 Jun 2008 08:59:59 -0400
A to Z June 2008
"I travel not to go anywhere, but to go. I travel for travel's sake. The great
affair is to move."
~ Robert Louis Stevenson (1850-1894), Scottish novelist
New and Recently Released!
The Sugar Queen - by Sarah Addison Allen
Publisher: Bantam Dell
Check Library Catalog
Pub Date: 5/20/2008
ISBN: 9780553805499
ISBN-10: 0553805495
In quiet, plain 27-year-old Josey Cirrini's closet lies a treasure trove of
romance novels, travel magazines, and candy bars that represent an oasis in
a rather lonely life spent caring for her elderly mother. Then one night Della
Lee Baker, a no-nonsense waitress, climbs in through a window and hides
out in Josey's closet. She shows no sign of leaving, but this unlikely fairy
godmother starts sending Josey on errands that slowly allow her to step out
of her shell and away from the shelter of her closet. Complete with delightful
elements of magical realism, including a woman who attracts books the way
pollen attracts bees, this quirky read is "delectable" (Booklist).
First Chapter
The Plague of Doves - by Louise Erdrich
Publisher: HarperCollins
Check Library Catalog
Pub Date: 5/1/2008
ISBN: 9780060515126
ISBN-10: 0060515120
Back in 1911, four Ojibwe men were blamed for a white family's slaughter and
lynched; only one--Mooshum--survived. A gifted storyteller, by the 1960s he
is grandfather to young Evelina Harp, who is part white. Many of the people in
their dying North Dakota community are descendants of either the lynched
men or the lynch mob's members (sometimes both), and they are still struggling
to come to terms with the events of that day. The intertwining stories in
The Plague of Doves reflect these struggles, and are tied together by Evelina,
who herself becomes deeply involved with two descendants of the lynch mob's
participants. The Washington Post calls this latest work by Louise Erdrich
"wondrous."
A Case of Exploding Mangoes - by Mohammed Hanif
Publisher: Alfred A. Knopf
Check Library Catalog
Pub Date: 5/6/2008
ISBN: 9780307268075
ISBN-10: 0307268071
The title of this book may lead you to expect a comedy, but it's far
darker--and more complicated--than that. In 1988 a plane crash killed
Pakistan's military
ruler, General Zia, but author Mohammed Hanif suggests that perhaps that crash
wasn't so accidental, after all... In a political satire that will appeal
to fans of Joseph Heller's Catch 22, junior officer Ali Shigri (of the Pakistan
Air Force) has learned that the General may have been the cause of his
father's suicide. He's pledged revenge, but he's not the only one with a
potentially lethal bone to pick with General Zia. With terrific secondary
characters
and a cameo by Osama bin Laden, this is a "sure-footed, inventive debut"
(Kirkus Reviews).
First Chapter
Lovehampton - by Sherri Rifkin
Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin
Check Library Catalog
Pub Date: 5/13/2008
ISBN: 9780312380212
ISBN-10: 0312380216
In this "dazzling debut" (Publishers Weekly), TV producer Tori Miller is
looking for a way to get over her post-breakup depression (she's been wallowing
for two years). Her friends get her a makeover as the first subject on a
reality show--and from there she joins a summer share in the Hamptons with
several
upwardly mobile strangers. This leads to a glamorous new social life, complex
romantic situations (she's juggling two men), and ultimately a growing inability
to determine what's really important in life. Will she pick the right man? Will
she rescue her foundering company? Can she save her friendships? Pick up
this book to find out--and to experience your own Hamptons summer.
The God of War - by Marisa Silver
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Check Library Catalog
Pub Date: 4/29/2008
ISBN: 9781416563167
ISBN-10: 1416563164
In 1978, Ares Ramirez is only 12 years old, but he's almost entirely
responsible for his mentally handicapped younger brother, Malcolm. The two boys
live
with their flighty, irresponsible mother, Laurel, in a trailer on the desolate
shores of the Salton Sea in the California desert. Ares, frustrated in his
role as protector and caregiver, isolated from any support from others, and
approaching adolescence, doesn't know what to do with the anger that fills
him. When he meets Kevin, an older, troubled foster child, that anger threatens
to erupt in violence. How he deals with his burdens makes for an illuminating
read.
First Chapter
The Art of Racing in the Rain: A Novel - by Garth Stein
Publisher: HarperCollins
Check Library Catalog
Pub Date: 5/1/2008
ISBN: 9780061537936
ISBN-10: 0061537934
Enzo is a highly unusual lab/terrier mix--not only is he the loving protector
of his family, he's the narrator of this book, and he believes that he will
be reincarnated as a human. Now, nearing the end of his life, he looks back
over the years he's spent watching over his owner, aspiring race-car driver
Denny Swift, and shares his memories of the events that threatened his family.
Dog lovers and race-goers alike will enjoy his story, as will those who
enjoy reading about families in crisis.
Road Trip!
St. Dale - by Sharyn McCrumb
Publisher: Kensington Books
Check Library Catalog
Pub Date: 2/1/2005
ISBN: 9780758207760
ISBN-10: 075820776X
Seven states. Eight days. Thirteen NASCAR fans (and one driver). It's an
unusual group of people who only have one thing in common--their love for NASCAR
and for the late beloved driver, Dale Earnhardt. Well, that's not strictly
true--Wall Street broker Terence Palmer is on the memorial bus tour to try to
understand his father, who recently passed away; Reverend Bill Knight is
chaperoning a young boy whose dying wish is being fulfilled by this trip. In
addition,
there's a soon-to-be-married couple, a judge, her much-married sister and their
cousin, among others. In such a confined space and under the watchful eye
of their beloved Number Three, who knows what this pilgrimage will bring?
Nowhere is a Place - by Bernice L. McFadden
Publisher: Dutton
Check Library Catalog
Pub Date: 2/2/2006
ISBN: 9780525948759
ISBN-10: 0525948759
Even though 30-something Sherry has gotten just about as far from her family as
possible (and only to talks to her mother, Dumpling, once a month by phone),
she convinces Dumpling to join her on a cross-country road trip to Georgia for
a family reunion. Along the way, at Sherry's urging, a reluctant Dumpling
begins to share stories of their family's past, starting with family matriarch
Nayeli, a Native American woman who was sold into slavery and who had three
children with a fellow slave. As the stories unfold, the long-standing tension
between Sherry and her mother slowly starts to erode; watching them connect
through their ancestors may have you looking into your own family's genealogy.
The Memory of Running - by Ron McLarty
Publisher: Penguin Books
Check Library Catalog
Pub Date: 12/27/2005
ISBN: 9780143036685
ISBN-10: 0143036688
This is perhaps one of the only books to be published first as an audiobook,
and then in print due to popular demand--after being touted by Stephen King
in his Entertainment Weekly column as "the best book you can't read." The
story: Smithy Ide is a middle-aged, overweight drunk--until he loses his entire
family in a matter of days. What he learns at his parents' wake sends him from
Rhode Island to California...on a bicycle, still wearing his suit. On the
way he comes to terms with his past, and starts looking forward to his future.
This one didn't win the Pulitzer, but sometimes just being published is
prize enough.
Sideways - by Rex Pickett
Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin
Check Library Catalog
Pub Date: 6/1/2004
ISBN: 9780312324667
ISBN-10: 0312324669
Jack's about to get hitched. His best friend, Miles, has divorced his wife,
lost his money, been rejected by publishers left and right, and just about
forgotten
his passion for life. What better way for them to contemplate their last days
of freedom (Jack) or reevaluate their lives (Miles) than to take off on a
weeklong road trip from L.A. to the Santa Ynez wine country? Wine-loving Miles
is there to take advantage of the wineries; Jack just wants to get laid.
But Miles drinks too much and Jack doesn't always make the right choices;
hilarious--and occasionally dangerous--misadventures ensue. Sound familiar? The
prize-winning movie Sideways was based on this novel.
First Chapter
The Myth of You and Me: A Novel - by Leah Stewart
Publisher: Three Rivers Press
Check Library Catalog
Pub Date: 4/25/2006
ISBN: 9781400098071
ISBN-10: 1400098076
Cameron and Sonia were inseparable throughout high school and college, until a
falling-out tore them apart. They haven't spoken in ten years, but the reclusive
Cameron has just received a letter from Sonia announcing her engagement--and
suggesting reconciliation. Cameron's employer, Oliver Douchet, encourages
a reunion, but she refuses until Oliver's death forces her to track Sonia down
and hand-deliver his wedding gift. Traveling across the country, Cameron
slowly comes out of hiding as she reconnects with people from her past.
Booklist calls The Myth of You and Me "affecting and genuine."
First Chapter
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