|
Fiction A to Z October 2020
|
|
|
| Homeland Elegies by Ayad AkhtarWhat it is: a thought-provoking literary novel-in-stories about being Pakistani-American before and after 9/11, with clear parallels to the author's own life.
About the author: Ayad Akhtar is, like his protagonist, the son of Muslim immigrants from Pakistan and a Pulitzer-winning playwright known for a complex, controversial play about being Muslim-American after 9/11.
What reviewers say: It's "a provocative and urgent examination of the political and economic conditions that shape personal identity, especially for immigrants and communities of color" (Publishers Weekly). |
|
|
The herd : a novel
by Andrea Bartz
When the enigmatic founder of their exclusive New York women’s mentorship community goes missing, two sisters search for answers to protect their friends and careers before uncovering dangerous secrets. By the author of The Lost Night.
|
|
|
142 ostriches / April Davila
by April Davila
When Tallulah Jones was thirteen, her grandmother plucked her from the dank Oakland apartment she shared with her unreliable mom and brought her to the family ostrich ranch in the Mojave Desert. After eleven years caring for the curious, graceful birds,Tallulah accepts a job in Montana and prepares to leave home. But when Grandma Helen dies under strange circumstances, Tallulah inherits everything--just days before the birds inexplicably stop laying eggs. Guarding the secret of the suddenly barren birds, Tallulah endeavors to force through a sale of the ranch, a task that is complicated by the arrival of her extended family. Their designs on the property, and deeply rooted dysfunction, threaten Tallulah's ambitions and eventually her life. With no options left, Tallulah must pull her head out of the sand and face the fifty-year legacy of a family in turmoil: the reality of her grandmother's death, her mother's alcoholism, her uncle's covetous anger, and the 142 ostriches whose lives are in her hands
|
|
| Transcendent Kingdom by Yaa GyasiStarring: Ghanaian American Gifty, a neuroscience PhD candidate studying neural pathways in mice as a way of understanding the loss and suffering in her family -- though she insists that's not what she's doing.
Why you might like it: Gifty's a reflective and observant narrator, nimbly moving from analyzing previous relationships or her childhood church's entrenched racism to noting her lab mate's quirks or her mother's struggles.
Read it for: a complex, non-linear story that examines faith and science, addiction and grief. |
|
| His Only Wife by Peace Adzo MedieStarring: young Ghanaian Afi Tekple, who escapes poverty with an arranged marriage to wealthy Eli, who does not attend his own wedding and prioritizes his business (and his mistress) over Afi.
What happens: Making full use of her new family's connections, Afi learns new skills and gains confidence -- and soon wants to be the only woman in her husband's life.
What reviewers say: "an emotional rollercoaster" (Booklist). |
|
|
The Turner House
by Angela Flournoy
The Turner family has owned their home on Detroit's East Side for more than 50 years, but their traditionally black, working-class neighborhood has deteriorated and they now owe more on their mortgage than the building is worth. Focusing on three of the 13 Turner siblings, this engaging family saga traces both family and social history, incorporating flashbacks of their now-deceased father's early years in Detroit after the Great Migration. If you enjoyed the sweep of history found in Ayana Mathis' The Twelve Tribes of Hattie, you'll likely enjoy this engrossing, character-driven debut as well.
|
|
| Lost and Wanted by Nell FreudenbergerWhat it's about: Wealthy, stylish Charlie (who is Black) and nerdy scholarship student Helen (who is white) were best friends and roommates in college. Twenty years later, Charlie is dead...but Helen continues to receive texts from her.
Is it for you? This complex, leisurely paced novel is as much a character study of Helen, now a respected scientist, as it is a story of female friendship. Deep discussions of physics add an intriguing layer of appeal. |
|
|
The stopped heart
by Julie Myerson
Moving into a beautiful old cottage on the edge of a small village to escape the horror of the past, Mary Coles and her husband, Graham, soon realize that there is something evil lurking in the shadows that, they soon discover, is linked to an event 150 years earlier involving a red-haired man.
|
|
|
Old Lovegood girls : a novel
by Gail Godwin
Separated by a devastating loss, two estranged college roommates reach out to each other years later in the face of unpredictable hardships before discovering the power of their unbreakable bond to transform their lives. Illustrations.
|
|
| Past Perfect by Danielle SteelWhat it's about: a wealthy family has moved from Manhattan to San Francisco, but their new home, grand as it is, seems still to be occupied by a family who used to live there...a century ago.
What happens: The 21st-century Gregory family and the ghostly Butterfields of the early 1900s get along just fine, dressing for dinner, sharing the gossip of their day, and learning about each other's times.
Read it for: a story of family and friendship, and detailed depictions of life for the rich and famous in 1917 -- just be willing to suspend your disbelief before jumping in to this fantastical tale. |
|
Contact your librarian for more great books!
|
|
|
|
|
|