Looking for a little reading inspiration? Here’s what our book clubs have been reading this month.

BOOK CLUBBERS
(Meets the first Thursday evening of each month)

An international spy thriller about a former CIA agent who moves with her family to Luxembourg where everything is suspicious and nothing is as it seems.

SPINECRACKERS
(Meets the first Friday morning of each month)

Marrying Mozart
by Stephanie Cowell

Eighteenth-century Europe comes alive with unforgiving winters and yawning princes; scheming parents and the enduring passions of young talent. Set in Mannheim, Munich, Salzburg and Vienna, Marrying Mozartis the richly textured love story of a remarkable historical figure-and four young women who engaged his passion, his music, and his heart.

CLASSICS
(Meets the third Wednesday evening of each month)

The Pioneers
by James Fenimore Cooper

Natty Bumppo, now on the threshold of old age, finds his way of life challenged as the land he has roamed becomes private property and the laws of man supplant the laws of nature.

BOOKALICIOUS
(Meets the second Monday evening of each month at Village Vintner)

Fake ID
L. R. Giles

“An African-American teen in the Witness Protection Program moves to a new town and finds himself trying to solve a murder mystery when his first friend is found dead”

NITE READERS
(Meets the third Thursday evening of each month)

The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry
by Gabrielle Zevin

The irascible A.J. Fikry, owner of Island Books, has already lost his wife. Now his most prized possession, a rare book, has been stolen from right under his nose. One night upon closing, he discovers a toddler in his children’s section with a note from her mother saying she can no longer raise her. It doesn’t take long for the locals to notice the transformation of both bookstore and owner, especially to a lovely yet eccentric sales rep.

Want to join us next month? Stop by the Adult Services desk to pick up the reading selections for NEXT month!

June 2015 Library Reads Picks

June 16, 2015

Eight Hundred Grapes: A Novel

by Laura Dave

“Take your time and savor the family dynamics. Enjoy the romantic twists in this tale of a career-minded young woman circling back to her roots at a California winery. The appeal is broader than that of a romance since it delves into the complexities of various relationships — parent to parent, parents and children, even winery and owner. This is an excellent summer read!”

- Joan Hipp, Florham Park Public Library, Florham Park, NJ

The Truth According to Us: A Novel
by Annie Barrows

“It is 1938 in a rural West Virginia town and a young woman arrives to write the town’s history. Layla doesn’t really know what to expect from the town, and the town doesn’t know what to make of her. This is the heart of the South, the soul of small towns, where everyone looks out for you and knows your history. Sweet story tailor-made for fans of Billie Letts, Fannie Flagg, Pat Conroy and Harper Lee.”

- Kimberly McGee, Lake Travis Community Library, Austin, TX

The Book of Speculation: A Novel
by Erica Swyler
Published: 6/23/2015/2015 by St. Martin’s Press
ISBN: 9781250054807

“A roller coaster of a read! This is the story of a librarian from a splintered family with a tragic past who is gifted a mysterious book that leads him to dive deep into his family’s history, all while his present life seems to be falling to pieces around him. If you loved Morgenstern’s The Night Circus or Kostova’s The Historian, this is a book for you.”

- Amanda Monson, Bartow County Library System, Cartersville, GA

The Invasion of the Tearling: A Novel
by Erika Johansen

“The Mort are coming! Johansen introduces new characters and enticing bits of history, with the second volume of her intriguing tale of fantasy, mystery and royal politics. Kelsea, the new Tearling Queen, has broken the Red Queen’s treaty and prepares to suffer the consequences as her nation is about to be invaded. Readers will be eager for the final volume in the Tearling saga.”

- Lucy Lockley, St. Charles City-County Library, St. Peters, MO

In the Unlikely Event: A Novel
by Judy Blume

“The obvious ‘unlikely events’ of Judy Blume’s latest — the three plane crashes afflicting Elizabeth, NJ in one horrifying winter — set the framework for everyday unlikely events around love, family, friendship, relating all that can go so wrong, and so right, with all three. Readers will enjoy the period detail and relatable characters that feature in this hybrid domestic/disaster tale.”

- Becky Bowen, Kenton County Public Library, Independence, KY

The Rumor: A Novel
by Elin Hilderbrand
Published: 6/16/2015 by Little, Brown and Company
ISBN: 9780316334525

“Elin Hilderbrand has done it again! Grace is married to Fast Eddie, a successful real estate broker on the island. They live with their twin teenage daughters in a beautiful house with three manicured acres overlooking the harbor. Financial troubles, affairs or supposed affairs, teenage angst and shady deals kick the rumor mill on the island in high gear. The Rumor is the ideal beach book for this summer!”

- Claudia Silk, Fairfield Public Library, Fairfield, CT

The Precipice: A Novel
by Paul Doiron

“When two women go missing while hiking a difficult part of the Appalachian Trail, Maine game warden Mike Bowditch helps in trying to determine where the women were last seen. Mike then discovers there is no shortage of people whose behaviors make them suspicious. With a puzzle that keeps the reader guessing, and a main character that you can’t help but empathize with, The Precipice is another home run for Doiron.”

- Lora Bruggeman, Indian Prairie Public Library, Darien, IL

My Grandmother Asked Me To Tell You She’s Sorry: A Novel
by Fredrik Backman
Published: 6/16/2015 by Atria Books
ISBN: 9781501115066

“From the author of one my favorite books of last year, A Man Called Ove, this book packs a similar emotional punch at the end, but has some significant differences. It is told from the point of view of Elsa, a seven-year-old child who loves Harry Potter, fairy tales, and her grandmother. Once I stopped trying to make the story fit my adult view of the world and entered into Elsa’s world, I had a whale of a time.”

- Janet Lockhart, Wake County Public Libraries, Cary, NC

Pirate Hunters: Treasure, Obsession, and the Search for a Legendary Pirate Ship
by Robert Kurson

“This is the journey of Tracy Bowden, John Chatterton, and John Mattera as they follow a quest to find the sunken pirate ship named the Golden Fleece. I think anyone would be interested in the treasure of a famous buccaneer, Joseph Bannister. Many people, including me, have dreamed of digging up a treasure chest of gold. What could be more fun than traveling along with treasure hunters to find a lost pirate ship?”

- Linda Payne, Lake Placid Memorial Library, Lake Placid, FL

May Library Reads Picks

June 16, 2015

A Court of Thorns and Roses
by Sarah J. Maas

“The human world is in peril. Feyre, a semi-literate girl, hunts for her family’s survival. After she kills an enormous wolf, a fierce fey shows up at her doorstep seeking retribution. Feyre is led to beautiful eternal springs, but the journey is not without danger. Maas masterfully pulls the reader into this new dark fantasy series which feels like a mix of fairy tales, from Beauty and the Beast to Tam Lin.”

- Jessica C. Williams, Westlake Porter Public Library, Westlake, OH

Early Warning: A Novel
by Jane Smiley

“In the second book of the Langdon trilogy, the Pulitzer Prize winning novelist follows the next generation of the unforgettable Iowa family introduced in Some Luck. Beginning with the death of the patriarch Walter in 1953, Smiley chronicles the social consciousness in America of the 1960s. The book goes up to events in the 1970s and early 1980s that touch each family member in unforeseen ways.”

- Jennifer Winberry, Hunterdon County Library, Flemington, NJ