[bksvol-discuss] Fw: Historical Fiction March 2009

From: "Amber Wallenstein" <amber.wallens@xxxxxxxxx>
To: <bksvol-discuss@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Date: Mon, 23 Mar 2009 10:31:52 -0400
New and Recently Released!

The Women: A Novel - by T. Coraghessan Boyle
Publisher: Viking
Check Library Catalog
Pub Date: 2/10/2009
ISBN-13: 9780670020416
ISBN-10: 0670020419
Based on the life of American architect Frank Lloyd Wright, T.C. Boyle's latest 
novel reveals Wright's character through his relationships with his wives
and mistresses. Prosperous family man Wright leaves his first wife, Kitty, to 
elope with Mamah Cheney, the wife of a wealthy client. But tragedy strikes
when she's killed in an arson fire at his Wisconsin estate Taliesin. He then 
marries morphine addict Miriam, but abandons her in favor of Olgivanna, a
dancer from Montenegro. Each woman takes center stage at different points in 
the book, with her story providing a self-contained narrative. If you enjoyed
Nancy Horan's Loving Frank (which told Mamah Cheney's story), then check out 
The Women.

Genghis : bones of the hills - Iggulden, Conn
Publisher: Delacorte Press
Check Library Catalog
Pub Date: 03/24/2009
ISBN-13: 9780385339537
ISBN-10: 0385339534
Publishers Weekly Review:  The exciting third novel in Iggulden's Genghis Khan 
series tells the dramatic story of the Mongol invasion and conquest of Central
Asia. Genghis has already defeated the Chinese and Koreans, and now marches his 
vast army west to punish and conquer the Muslim lands of central Asia ruled
by Shah Mohammed. For eight years the Mongols ravage the shah's empire, 
crushing armies, destroying cities and slaughtering anyone who resists. 
Iggulden's
vivid descriptions of bloody battles, masterful sieges and political intrigue 
are gripping, showcasing Genghis's brilliance as a strategist, tactician,
administrator and leader. Side plots include the deadly rivalry between two of 
Genghis's sons, the rape and murder of Genghis's sister by a trusted adviser,
the surprising rise of the shah's son as a capable enemy and the treachery of 
Genghis's son toward his father. This is epic historical fiction at its finest:
exciting, suspenseful, colorful and well-grounded in fact. With this tale, it 
is easy to see why the name Genghis is synonymous with conquest and military
genius.

The Virgin Queen's Daughter: A Novel - by Ella March Chase
Publisher: Crown Publishers
Check Library Catalog
Pub Date: 12/30/2008
ISBN-13: 9780307394804
ISBN-10: 0307394808
In this debut novel, author Ella March Chase crafts an engaging story by 
revisiting a centuries-old rumor--that England's Queen Elizabeth I may have had
a secret child with Thomas Seymour, the husband of her stepmother Catherine 
Parr. According to the story, the baby was either murdered at birth or given
away to be raised in secret. When 16-year-old Elinor "Nell" de Lacey is 
summoned to Elizabeth's court to serve as a lady-in-waiting, her resemblance to
the monarch makes her the subject of palace gossip--and arouses the suspicions 
of the Queen herself. If you liked Alison Weir's The Lady Elizabeth (which
explores Elizabeth I's early life) or are a fan of Philippa Gregory's Tudor 
novels, you'll want to read The Virgin Queen's Daughter.
The last Dickens : a novel - Pearl, Matthew
Publisher: Random House
Check Library Catalog
Pub Date: 03/17/2009
ISBN-13: 9781400066568
ISBN-10: 1400066565
When Daniel Sand's body is discovered by the docks where he awaited Charles 
Dickens's unfinished novel, publishing partner James Osgood and Rebecca Sand,
Daniel's sister, attempt to uncover Dickens's final mystery, and they soon 
become entangled in a sinister plot that takes them from the fancy auction 
houses
of London to the dark hearts of opium dens.
First Chapter

After You've Gone - by Jeffrey Lent
Publisher: PGW
Check Library Catalog
Pub Date: 3/1/2009
ISBN-13: 9780871138941
ISBN-10: 0871138948
In 1922, following the deaths of his wife and son in a car accident, college 
professor Henry Dorn quits his job and books passage to Amsterdam, where his
family originated. During the voyage, he meets free-sprited and independently 
wealthy Lydia Pearce and the two embark on a passionate affair fueled by
jazz and absinthe. Interwoven with this narrative are Henry's memories of his 
childhood in Nova Scotia as well as those of his family. If you're interested
in the Lost Generation, you'll want to read After You've Gone, which Booklist 
says "brilliantly captures the early moments of the postwar world."

Jack London in Paradise - by Paul Malmont
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Check Library Catalog
Pub Date: 1/6/2009
ISBN-13: 9781416547228
ISBN-10: 1416547223
Forty years old, ill, and addicted to morphine, famous writer Jack London is 
living in Hawaii (which he calls "Paradise") in 1916 when his R&R is disrupted
by his estranged friend Hobart Bosworth. Bosworth, who owns the failing movie 
studio that has previously produced film adaptations of London's books, begs
the author to write him a script. But Jack would rather surf, drink, party and 
have long philosophical discussions with his associate Professor Homer--in
short, do anything but write. Worse, Jack's wife Charmian is protective of her 
husband and suspicious of Bosworth. Author Paul Malmont skillfully recreates
Jack London's final days in this fascinating novel.
First Chapter
Go West!

Shooting the Sun - by Max Byrd
Publisher: Bantam Books
Check Library Catalog
Pub Date: 10/1/2004
ISBN-13: 9780553583694
ISBN-10: 0553583697
In 1840, a band of explorers sets out to explore the uncharted American 
Southwest. Some members of the party are motivated by profit; others seek 
adventure.
And then there's 23-year-old scientist Serena Cott, who is in search of 
knowledge. The protégé of astronomer Mary Somerville and an admirer of Charles
Babbage, Selena believes she has found a way to photograph a solar eclipse. 
Equipped with the most advanced technology of the day, including a prototype
of Babbage's "difference engine" (a forerunner of the modern computer), Selena 
will pinpoint the exact time of the eclipse and record it for posterity--if
she survives the journey. "Terrific adventures. Splendid details," says Kirkus 
Reviews.
First Chapter

Shavetail: A Novel - by Thomas Cobb
Publisher: Scribner
Check Library Catalog
Pub Date: 2/12/2008
ISBN-13: 9781416561194
ISBN-10: 1416561196
To escape his troubled past, 17-year-old Ned Thorne enlists in the U.S. Army in 
1871 and travels to the Arizona Territories in order to start fresh. Dubbed
"Shavetail" (the word for a young, untrained mule) by the camp's mule driver, 
Brickner, Ned observes firsthand the brutality of Army life and--with the
help of his superior officers Captain Franklin and Lieutenant Austin--learns 
how to survive it. But when Apaches raid a nearby ranch and abduct a woman,
the troop embarks on a rescue mission that will test Ned's endurance and force 
him to make some tough decisions. Booklist calls Shavetail a "darkly symbolic
coming-of-age tale."
First Chapter

Deadwood: A Novel - by Pete Dexter
Publisher: Vintage Contemporaries
Check Library Catalog
Pub Date: 7/12/2005
ISBN-13: 9781400079711
ISBN-10: 1400079713
When, during the Gold Rush of 1876, Wild Bill Hickok and his partner Charley 
Utter ride into Deadwood they're not looking for any trouble. Wild Bill, 
suffering
from syphilis and pining for his estranged wife, wants to quietly drink and 
gamble his days away, while Charley aims to set up a shipping business. But
the duo runs afoul of local whoremonger Al Swearengen, setting off a chain of 
events that results in tragedy. Crafting his tale around real historical
figures and events, National Book Award-winning author Pete Dexter brings the 
Wild West to life in this "unpredictable, hyperbolic and, page after page,
uproarious" (New York Times) novel, originally published in 1986.
First Chapter

Gabriel's Story - by David Anthony Durham
Publisher: Anchor Books
Check Library Catalog
Pub Date: 5/1/2002
ISBN-13: 9780385720335
ISBN-10: 0385720335
In 1870s Baltimore, African-American teenager Gabriel Lynch is angry when his 
mother decides to remarry and relocate her family to her new husband's Kansas
homestead--so he runs away to become a cowboy. Joining a group of cattle 
drovers led by the cruel and unpredictable Marshall Hogg, Gabriel comes to 
appreciate
the stark beauty of the landscape even as he is troubled by Hogg's lack of 
morals. But when Hogg accidentally kills a man, things get out of control and
the cattle drive turns into a bloody spree of looting and killing. With the law 
hot on the gang's trail, Gabriel must find a way to escape. This "intensely
dramatic debut" (Kirkus Reviews) has drawn comparisons to Cormac McCarthy's 
work.
First Chapter

I Should Be Extremely Happy in Your Company: A Novel of Lewis and Clark - by 
Brian Hall
Publisher: Penguin Books
Check Library Catalog
Pub Date: 12/1/2003
ISBN-13: 9780142003718
ISBN-10: 0142003719
In this novel, author Brian Hall recreates the famous Lewis and Clark 
Expedition (1803-1806) from the perspectives of the principal participants. 
There's
brilliant but melancholy Meriwether Lewis, even-tempered soldier Captain 
William Clark, their Shoshone guide Sacagawea, and her fur-trader husband 
Toussaint
Charbonneau. As the party journeys from the Ohio River to the Pacific Coast, 
exploring and mapping out the undefined territory of the Louisiana Purchase
(even President Thomas Jefferson doesn't know exactly how much land he's 
bought), each character's life changes forever--for better or worse. Booklist
calls this book "big-hearted and satisfying."
[bksvol-discuss] Fw: Historical Fiction March 2009

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