Not able to watch the Oscars Sunday night? No problem. Just read them! While it is not unusual for Oscar nominees to come from book adaptations, this year is unprecedented. Six of the eight Best Picture Nominees got their start on the printed (or downloaded) page: The Big Short, Bridge of Spies, Brooklyn, The Martian, The Revenant and Room. You shouldn’t […]
Salt to the Sea by Ruta Sepetys“Titanic. Lusitania. Wilhelm Gustloff. All major maritime disasters, yet the last is virtually unknown. Ruta Sepetys changes that in her gripping historical novel. Told in short snippets, Salt to the Sea rotates between four narrators attempting to escape various tragedies in 1945 Europe. Powerful and haunting, heartbreaking and hopeful–a must read.”- Jennifer Asimakopoulos, Indian […]
Don’t forget to tune in to CBS at 7pm on February 15th to watch the 58th Annual Grammy Awards! Must-see performances include James Bay, Tori Kelly, Andra Day, Sam Hunt, and my favorites, Carrie Underwood and Ellie Goulding! For a full list of this years Grammy Nominees, go to https://www.grammy.com/nominees
My Name Is Lucy Barton: A Novel by Elizabeth Strout“Set in the mid-1980s, Lucy Barton, hospitalized for nine weeks, is surprised when her estranged mother shows up at her bedside. Her mother talks of local gossip, but underneath the banalities, Lucy senses the love that cannot be expressed. This is the story that Lucy must write about, the one story […]
The Japanese Lover: A Novel by Isabel Allende“Irina is a young Moldavian immigrant with a troubled past. She works at an assisted living home where she meets Alma, a Holocaust survivor. Alma falls in love with Ichi, a young Japanese gardener, who survived Topaz, the Japanese internment camp. Despite man’s inhumanity to man, love, art and beauty can exist, as […]
City on Fire: A Novel by Garth Risk Hallberg“WOW! An excellently executed work with intricate plot lines and fascinating characters. It’s a story of how the stories of many different people of New York City in the late seventies crash into each other like waves on rocks. This work may encapsulate the whole of New York City, as it has wealth, […]
The National Book Foundation has announced their Longlist for the National Book Award for Fiction. Finalists will be revealed October 14th. For more information about the authors and to see which books were nominated in other categories including poetry, nonfiction, and young people’s literature, visit their web site. How many of these titles have you read? Click on the […]
The Art of Crash Landing: A Novelby Melissa DeCarlo“At once tragic and hilarious, this book is a roller coaster of a read. You’ll find yourself rooting for the snarky and impulsive but ultimately lovable Mattie. At the heart of this tale is a beautifully unraveled mystery that has led Mattie to her current circumstances, ultimately bringing her to her first real […]
Best Boy: A Novel by Eli Gottlieb“What happens when someone on the autism spectrum grows up, and they aren’t a cute little boy anymore? Gottlieb’s novel follows the story of Todd Aaron, a man in his fifties who has spent most of his life a resident of the Payton Living Center. Todd begins to wonder what lies beyond the […]
Kitchens of the Great Midwest: A Novel by J. Ryan Stradal“This novel is quirky and colorful. The story revolves around chef Eva Thorvald and the people who influence her life and her cooking. With well-drawn characters and mouthwatering descriptions of meals, Kitchens of the Great Midwest will appeal to readers who like vivid storytelling. Foodies will also enjoy this delicious tale.”- […]
