Literary Fiction
History of wolves : a novel
Emily Fridlund
FICTION Fridlund Emily
Literary Fiction
""So delicately calibrated and precisely beautiful that one might not immediately sense the sledgehammer of pain building inside this book. And I mean that in the best way. What powerful tension and depth this provides!"-Aimee Bender. Fourteen-year-old Linda lives with her parents in the beautiful, austere woods of northern Minnesota, where their nearly abandoned commune stands as a last vestige of a lost counter-culture world. Isolated at home and an outlander at school, Linda is drawn to the enigmatic, attractive Lily and new history teacher Mr. Grierson. When Mr. Grierson is charged with possessing child pornography, the implications of his arrest deeply affect Linda as she wrestles with her own fledgling desires and craving to belong. And then the young Gardner family moves in across the lake and Linda finds herself welcomed into their home as a babysitter for their little boy, Paul. It seems that her life finally has purpose but with this new sense of belonging she is also drawn into secrets she doesn't understand. Over the course of a few days, Linda makes a set of choices that reverberate throughout her life. As she struggles to find a way out of the sequestered world into which she was born, Linda confronts the life-and-death consequences of the things people do-and fail to do-for the people they love. Winner of the McGinnis-Ritchie award for its first chapter, Emily Fridlund's propulsive and gorgeously written History of Wolves introduces a new writer of enormous range and talent"--
Motherhood
Sheila Heti
FICTION Heti Sheila
Literary Fiction
This is a brilliant meditation on one of those great questions of life: To have children, or not? This is very much a book about that idea - it reads more like literary nonfiction or memoir than a novel. There isn't much by way of traditional plot or sense of place - the woman narrator takes us on a journey in her mind as she wrestles with ambivalence about whether or not to procreate. For me, this was a timely read and very reassuring that not everyone feels strongly about whether or not they want children. -Heidi K
An American marriage
Tayari Jones
FICTION Jones Tayari
Literary Fiction
"Newlyweds Celestial and Roy, the living embodiment of the New South, are settling into the routine of their life together when Roy is sent to prison for a crime he didn't commit. An insightful look into the lives of people who are bound and separated by forces beyond their control"--
When newlyweds Celestial and Roy are separated by Roy's incarceration for a crime he didn't commit, the life they've been trying to build together falls apart. This is a book written as letters between Roy and Celestial, which I really enjoyed. The writing is excellent, and the ending surprised me somewhat while still not being disappointing. -Heidi K
The immortalists
Chloe Benjamin
FICTION Benjamin Chloe
Literary Fiction
It's 1969 in New York City's Lower East Side, and word has spread of the arrival of a mystical woman, a traveling psychic who claims to be able to tell anyone the day they will die. The Gold children -- four adolescents on the cusp of self-awareness -- sneak out to hear their fortunes. Their prophecies inform their next five decades. Golden-boy Simon escapes to the West Coast, searching for love in '80s San Francisco. Dreamy Klara becomes a Las Vegas magician, obsessed with blurring reality and fantasy. Eldest son Daniel seeks security as an army doctor post-9/11, hoping to control fate. Bookish Varya throws herself into longevity research, where she tests the boundary between science and immortality. The Immortalists probes the line between destiny and choice, reality and illusion, this world and the next. It is a deeply moving testament to the power of story, the nature of belief, and the unrelenting pull of familial bonds.
I found myself immersed in this book. I couldn't put it down. It is a serious read--it begins when four siblings visiting a fortune teller learn the dates of their deaths. Each person reacts differently as they approach their day, often looking like self-fulfilling prophecies, except one--who works to fight her time. This was a great read--wonderfully written--engaging characters. -Anne M
This novel reverberates beyond the page. This had been on my to-read list since it came out, and I'm glad I finally got around to it. I loved the portrayal of the rural Minnesota landscape. I was haunted by the ending. I can't wait to read future books by Emily Fridlund! -Heidi K