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General Recommendations

Best Books of 2020: Top 20

By:

ChiPubLib_Adults

Chicago Public Library

Staff-created list

Chicago Public Library recommends these titles as the top books published in 2020.

By:

ChiPubLib_Adults

Chicago Public Library

20 items

20 items

A Burning

A Burning

by Majumdar, Megha

Book - 2020

Majumdar's searing, timely debut tells the story of Jivan, a Muslim shop-girl who lives with her parents in Kolabagan, a slum of Kolkata, India. When Jiva...Show more Majumdar's searing, timely debut tells the story of Jivan, a Muslim shop-girl who lives with her parents in Kolabagan, a slum of Kolkata, India. When Jivan witnesses a train being set on fire at the railway station near her home, and then criticizes the police about the incident on Facebook, she is charged with the attack and thrown in jail. Jivan's backstory, told to a reporter she hopes will generate sympathy for her cause, illustrates the extent to which government corruption and an ingrained caste-system make life miserable for India's poor. When Jivan tells the reporter that she and her neighbors were evicted from their village by a coal company with the help of local police, and that teachers in her village would take tests for children in exchange for bribes, he simply replies "such is our country." The reporter's twisted version of the story becomes national news, and Jivan is smeared as a terrorist by the local Hindu-Nationalist party. Jivan's chances of receiving a fair trial are slim, but two acquaintances, whose stories are told alongside Jivan's, could testify on her behalf. The spirited Lovely, a hijra (Indian transgender woman) and aspiring actress who Jivan was on her way to tutor in English when the train incident occurred, could testify. PT Sir, a former P.E. teacher of Jivan's, could be a character witness for her, if not for his gradual corruption by a local right-wing party. Majumdar deftly illustrates the ease with which populist political parties come to power by preying on the disenfranchised and spreading racist ideologies, and how the media exacerbates the spread. Fans of Aravind Adiga and Kiran Desai will appreciate this powerful testament to the fragility of democracy. Show less

Majumdar's searing, timely debut tells the story of Jivan, a Muslim shop-girl who lives with her parents in Kolabagan, a slum of Kolkata, India. When Jiva...Show more Majumdar's searing, timely debut tells the story of Jivan, a Muslim shop-girl who lives with her parents in Kolabagan, a slum of Kolkata, India. When Jivan witnesses a train being set on fire at the railway station near her home, and then criticizes the police about the incident on Facebook, she is charged with the attack and thrown in jail. Jivan's backstory, told to a reporter she hopes will generate sympathy for her cause, illustrates the extent to which government corruption and an ingrained caste-system make life miserable for India's poor. When Jivan tells the reporter that she and her neighbors were evicted from their village by a coal company with the help of local police, and that teachers in her village would take tests for children in exchange for bribes, he simply replies "such is our country." The reporter's twisted version of the story becomes national news, and Jivan is smeared as a terrorist by the local Hindu-Nationalist party. Jivan's chances of receiving a fair trial are slim, but two acquaintances, whose stories are told alongside Jivan's, could testify on her behalf. The spirited Lovely, a hijra (Indian transgender woman) and aspiring actress who Jivan was on her way to tutor in English when the train incident occurred, could testify. PT Sir, a former P.E. teacher of Jivan's, could be a character witness for her, if not for his gradual corruption by a local right-wing party. Majumdar deftly illustrates the ease with which populist political parties come to power by preying on the disenfranchised and spreading racist ideologies, and how the media exacerbates the spread. Fans of Aravind Adiga and Kiran Desai will appreciate this powerful testament to the fragility of democracy. Show less

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Caste

Caste

The Origins of Our Discontents

by Wilkerson, Isabel

Book - 2020

Isabel Wilkerson's latest (after the One Book One Chicago selection The Warmth of Other Suns) blends research, hard-won insight, and the kind of first-han...Show more Isabel Wilkerson's latest (after the One Book One Chicago selection The Warmth of Other Suns) blends research, hard-won insight, and the kind of first-hand anecdotal evidence that makes big ideas relatable into a work of rare acuity. Her bold thesis is that in order to truly perceive the function of race in America, one must understand the concept of caste, and she draws parallels to the caste systems of India and Nazi Germany, outlining eight pillars that all three systems have in common. One of the most disturbing sections of the book is an account of Nazis in the 1930s who reviewed American Jim Crow laws as a model for what they hoped to achieve with the Jews - and initially rejected some of these laws as simply going too far. Wilkerson offers nothing less than a fresh lens with which to understand American history and society, weaving scholarship into an eloquently-written and accessible reckoning that's sure to be a book club staple for years. Admirers of her previous work and of other powerful works of systemic analysis like Ibram X Kendi's Stamped from the Beginning will want to read what is sure to be one of the most-discussed books of the year. Show less

Isabel Wilkerson's latest (after the One Book One Chicago selection The Warmth of Other Suns) blends research, hard-won insight, and the kind of first-han...Show more Isabel Wilkerson's latest (after the One Book One Chicago selection The Warmth of Other Suns) blends research, hard-won insight, and the kind of first-hand anecdotal evidence that makes big ideas relatable into a work of rare acuity. Her bold thesis is that in order to truly perceive the function of race in America, one must understand the concept of caste, and she draws parallels to the caste systems of India and Nazi Germany, outlining eight pillars that all three systems have in common. One of the most disturbing sections of the book is an account of Nazis in the 1930s who reviewed American Jim Crow laws as a model for what they hoped to achieve with the Jews - and initially rejected some of these laws as simply going too far. Wilkerson offers nothing less than a fresh lens with which to understand American history and society, weaving scholarship into an eloquently-written and accessible reckoning that's sure to be a book club staple for years. Admirers of her previous work and of other powerful works of systemic analysis like Ibram X Kendi's Stamped from the Beginning will want to read what is sure to be one of the most-discussed books of the year. Show less

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The City We Became

The City We Became

by Jemisin, N. K.

Book - 2020

Every city in the world has a heartbeat, a pulse, a rhythm all its own. But what keeps that city moving and breathing? What protects it from threats, both...Show more Every city in the world has a heartbeat, a pulse, a rhythm all its own. But what keeps that city moving and breathing? What protects it from threats, both existential and physical? In NK Jemisin's latest, New York City is finally taking its first steps to become alive. But there are forces, both inside and outside the city, that want to stop this new awakening. Each borough has its own unique avatar to represent and protect it. Will they be able to join together and help the city realize its potential? Urban fantasy has rarely felt so urgent or so diverse and vibrant. Recommended for fans of Daniel Jose Older's Half-Resurrection Blues, LA Banks's Minion, and Ben Aaronovitch's Rivers of London. Show less

Every city in the world has a heartbeat, a pulse, a rhythm all its own. But what keeps that city moving and breathing? What protects it from threats, both...Show more Every city in the world has a heartbeat, a pulse, a rhythm all its own. But what keeps that city moving and breathing? What protects it from threats, both existential and physical? In NK Jemisin's latest, New York City is finally taking its first steps to become alive. But there are forces, both inside and outside the city, that want to stop this new awakening. Each borough has its own unique avatar to represent and protect it. Will they be able to join together and help the city realize its potential? Urban fantasy has rarely felt so urgent or so diverse and vibrant. Recommended for fans of Daniel Jose Older's Half-Resurrection Blues, LA Banks's Minion, and Ben Aaronovitch's Rivers of London. Show less

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The Cold Millions

The Cold Millions

A Novel

by Walter, Jess

Book - 2020

After the death of his mother, teenager Rye Dolan heads west to tramp along the rails and find work with his older brother Gig, an idealistic and well-rea...Show more After the death of his mother, teenager Rye Dolan heads west to tramp along the rails and find work with his older brother Gig, an idealistic and well-read committeeman in the IWW (Industrial Workers of the World). Rye is swept up into Gig’s world of unionizers and radicals after a rally in Spokane, Washington turns violent and both end up in jail. While the brothers are the heart of the story, Walter presents a large cast of dazzling characters who zigzag through this tale of hobos, cops, suffragists, mining magnates and vaudevillians. The free speech fights of 1909 are brought to life through action-packed storytelling and vivid descriptions (you can almost smell the whiskey and smoke). Many real-life figures make appearances such as labor organizer Elizabeth Gurley Flynn and defense attorney Fred Moore (of Sacco and Vanzetti fame). Family and loyalty are tested through the social and political unrest of the time, struggles that still echo today. Ultimately though, the story is Rye's as he navigates his independence and discovers the consequences of his decisions and, perhaps worse, what happens when the few with power make all the decisions for you. Show less

After the death of his mother, teenager Rye Dolan heads west to tramp along the rails and find work with his older brother Gig, an idealistic and well-rea...Show more After the death of his mother, teenager Rye Dolan heads west to tramp along the rails and find work with his older brother Gig, an idealistic and well-read committeeman in the IWW (Industrial Workers of the World). Rye is swept up into Gig’s world of unionizers and radicals after a rally in Spokane, Washington turns violent and both end up in jail. While the brothers are the heart of the story, Walter presents a large cast of dazzling characters who zigzag through this tale of hobos, cops, suffragists, mining magnates and vaudevillians. The free speech fights of 1909 are brought to life through action-packed storytelling and vivid descriptions (you can almost smell the whiskey and smoke). Many real-life figures make appearances such as labor organizer Elizabeth Gurley Flynn and defense attorney Fred Moore (of Sacco and Vanzetti fame). Family and loyalty are tested through the social and political unrest of the time, struggles that still echo today. Ultimately though, the story is Rye's as he navigates his independence and discovers the consequences of his decisions and, perhaps worse, what happens when the few with power make all the decisions for you. Show less

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Deacon King Kong

Deacon King Kong

by McBride, James

Book - 2020

James McBride (author of the National Book Award-winning The Good Lord Bird) has hit it out of the park with this multi-layered novel centered on a housin...Show more James McBride (author of the National Book Award-winning The Good Lord Bird) has hit it out of the park with this multi-layered novel centered on a housing project in Brooklyn as the 60s wind down. A neighborhood rummy shoots a drug dealer in front of just about everybody, and the aftermath of the shooting takes the reader into the wild and wonderful lives of multiple characters: the black and Latino residents, the Italians around the corner, the drunks, the dealers, the church folk, the cops, and more. Essential reading in these troubled times, this nuanced book humanizes the residents of the Cause Houses and their surrounding neighbors. Show less

James McBride (author of the National Book Award-winning The Good Lord Bird) has hit it out of the park with this multi-layered novel centered on a housin...Show more James McBride (author of the National Book Award-winning The Good Lord Bird) has hit it out of the park with this multi-layered novel centered on a housing project in Brooklyn as the 60s wind down. A neighborhood rummy shoots a drug dealer in front of just about everybody, and the aftermath of the shooting takes the reader into the wild and wonderful lives of multiple characters: the black and Latino residents, the Italians around the corner, the drunks, the dealers, the church folk, the cops, and more. Essential reading in these troubled times, this nuanced book humanizes the residents of the Cause Houses and their surrounding neighbors. Show less

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Finna

Finna

Poems

by Marshall, Nate

Paperback - 2020

A rising star of the poetry scene with roots in Chicago, Nate Marshall explores language, identity and place with exciting artistry and a powerful blend o...Show more A rising star of the poetry scene with roots in Chicago, Nate Marshall explores language, identity and place with exciting artistry and a powerful blend of emotion and intelligence. In one series of poems included here, he reflects on the experience of encountering another man online who share his name but espouses a wildly different (racist) perspective - a vertigo-inducing experience common enough in the internet era - which elicits from the poet a rich cascade of responses to this alternate "self." Fans of Terrance Hayes, Danez Smith and Eve Ewing should check this out, as should fans of hip-hop and poetry in general. Show less

A rising star of the poetry scene with roots in Chicago, Nate Marshall explores language, identity and place with exciting artistry and a powerful blend o...Show more A rising star of the poetry scene with roots in Chicago, Nate Marshall explores language, identity and place with exciting artistry and a powerful blend of emotion and intelligence. In one series of poems included here, he reflects on the experience of encountering another man online who share his name but espouses a wildly different (racist) perspective - a vertigo-inducing experience common enough in the internet era - which elicits from the poet a rich cascade of responses to this alternate "self." Fans of Terrance Hayes, Danez Smith and Eve Ewing should check this out, as should fans of hip-hop and poetry in general. Show less

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Hamnet

Hamnet

A Novel of the Plague

by O'Farrell, Maggie

Book - 2020

Inspired by the life of Shakespeare and his family (and brilliantly inspired by what little is known about it), this domestic drama centers on an unforget...Show more Inspired by the life of Shakespeare and his family (and brilliantly inspired by what little is known about it), this domestic drama centers on an unforgettable character, Agnes. A folk healer with a streak of clairvoyance, she is wooed by the son of a glove maker in Stratford-upon-Avon. The story alternates between the present, in which their twin children of Hamnet and Judith are endangered by the bubonic plague, and the past story of their courtship and the busy early years of their marriage during which the husband pursues a new career with a theater troupe in London, free from the domination of his cruel father. It is clear from the first page that tragedy looms for this family, but O'Farrell's rich, spellbinding prose and characterization is irresistible. Fans of Lincoln in the Bardo, Grief is the Thing with Feathers and Circe will especially enjoy this masterpiece of literary and historical fiction. Show less

Inspired by the life of Shakespeare and his family (and brilliantly inspired by what little is known about it), this domestic drama centers on an unforget...Show more Inspired by the life of Shakespeare and his family (and brilliantly inspired by what little is known about it), this domestic drama centers on an unforgettable character, Agnes. A folk healer with a streak of clairvoyance, she is wooed by the son of a glove maker in Stratford-upon-Avon. The story alternates between the present, in which their twin children of Hamnet and Judith are endangered by the bubonic plague, and the past story of their courtship and the busy early years of their marriage during which the husband pursues a new career with a theater troupe in London, free from the domination of his cruel father. It is clear from the first page that tragedy looms for this family, but O'Farrell's rich, spellbinding prose and characterization is irresistible. Fans of Lincoln in the Bardo, Grief is the Thing with Feathers and Circe will especially enjoy this masterpiece of literary and historical fiction. Show less

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Hidden Valley Road

Hidden Valley Road

Inside the Mind of An American Family

by Kolker, Robert

Book - 2020

Mimi and Don Galvin parented 12 children between 1945 and 1965, which spanned the baby boom generation years. This fact would be extraordinary enough on i...Show more Mimi and Don Galvin parented 12 children between 1945 and 1965, which spanned the baby boom generation years. This fact would be extraordinary enough on its own, but six of the ten Galvin boys suffered from schizophrenia. While this wrought unimaginable havoc and trauma on the family, the family's mix of healthy and schizophrenic DNA provided invaluable data for medical researchers trying to understand and provide treatment for the disease. Kolker sensitively investigates the family's history, incorporating perspectives from most of the family members and interspersing them with medical history. He reviews the nature versus nurture debate and examines CAT and MRI research and the human genome project, and how these technologies impacted treatment. Fans of The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks will appreciate Kolker’s investigation into a vulnerable segment of society and how it has been treated by the medical community. Show less

Mimi and Don Galvin parented 12 children between 1945 and 1965, which spanned the baby boom generation years. This fact would be extraordinary enough on i...Show more Mimi and Don Galvin parented 12 children between 1945 and 1965, which spanned the baby boom generation years. This fact would be extraordinary enough on its own, but six of the ten Galvin boys suffered from schizophrenia. While this wrought unimaginable havoc and trauma on the family, the family's mix of healthy and schizophrenic DNA provided invaluable data for medical researchers trying to understand and provide treatment for the disease. Kolker sensitively investigates the family's history, incorporating perspectives from most of the family members and interspersing them with medical history. He reviews the nature versus nurture debate and examines CAT and MRI research and the human genome project, and how these technologies impacted treatment. Fans of The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks will appreciate Kolker’s investigation into a vulnerable segment of society and how it has been treated by the medical community. Show less

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Homeland Elegies

Homeland Elegies

A Novel

by Akhtar, Ayad

Book - 2020

Homeland Elegies is a novel that reflects episodes from the author's experiences in life, including characters such as a father who is a Pakistani immigra...Show more Homeland Elegies is a novel that reflects episodes from the author's experiences in life, including characters such as a father who is a Pakistani immigrant doctor, a mother who is a critic of American culture, and a son who is a Pulitzer Prize-winning author. Readers able to separate the factual and fictional elements of the book or, better yet, allow the two elements to merge, will find a wonderful portrait of Pakistani American life. The father's connection with Donald Trump and the author's portrayal of his influence on his father's life is described quite humorously, and the post-9/11 life of a Muslim family is depicted through their father-son conversations. This blend of domestic family life with public, civic life yields a distinctive take on the contemporary American experience sure to please fans of Exit West and Transcendent Kingdom. Show less

Homeland Elegies is a novel that reflects episodes from the author's experiences in life, including characters such as a father who is a Pakistani immigra...Show more Homeland Elegies is a novel that reflects episodes from the author's experiences in life, including characters such as a father who is a Pakistani immigrant doctor, a mother who is a critic of American culture, and a son who is a Pulitzer Prize-winning author. Readers able to separate the factual and fictional elements of the book or, better yet, allow the two elements to merge, will find a wonderful portrait of Pakistani American life. The father's connection with Donald Trump and the author's portrayal of his influence on his father's life is described quite humorously, and the post-9/11 life of a Muslim family is depicted through their father-son conversations. This blend of domestic family life with public, civic life yields a distinctive take on the contemporary American experience sure to please fans of Exit West and Transcendent Kingdom. Show less

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Interior Chinatown

Interior Chinatown

A Novel

by Yu, Charles

Paperback - 2020

Willis Wu works as an extra in a TV police drama called Black and White, as Generic Asian Man. Even in his personal life, he sees himself as Generic Asian...Show more Willis Wu works as an extra in a TV police drama called Black and White, as Generic Asian Man. Even in his personal life, he sees himself as Generic Asian Man. His career goal is to become Kung Fu Guy, which he considers to be the pinnacle for an Asian actor. Inside his head, Willis lives in an interior Chinatown: although he is American-born and educated, he can’t seem to find his place in the world, except against a Chinatown back drop, and he sees all of the Asian Americans around him as stereotypes that America has cast for them (such as Old Asian Man or Restaurant Hostess). Cleverly formatted as a television script, Yu’s latest novel should appeal to readers who enjoy literary fiction. Show less

Willis Wu works as an extra in a TV police drama called Black and White, as Generic Asian Man. Even in his personal life, he sees himself as Generic Asian...Show more Willis Wu works as an extra in a TV police drama called Black and White, as Generic Asian Man. Even in his personal life, he sees himself as Generic Asian Man. His career goal is to become Kung Fu Guy, which he considers to be the pinnacle for an Asian actor. Inside his head, Willis lives in an interior Chinatown: although he is American-born and educated, he can’t seem to find his place in the world, except against a Chinatown back drop, and he sees all of the Asian Americans around him as stereotypes that America has cast for them (such as Old Asian Man or Restaurant Hostess). Cleverly formatted as a television script, Yu’s latest novel should appeal to readers who enjoy literary fiction. Show less

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Leave the World Behind

Leave the World Behind

A Novel

by Alam, Rumaan

Book - 2020

In Alam's latest, two upwardly-mobile, middle-class New Yorkers and their adolescent children are heading to an Airbnb in Long Island for a family getaway...Show more In Alam's latest, two upwardly-mobile, middle-class New Yorkers and their adolescent children are heading to an Airbnb in Long Island for a family getaway. Through conversations, descriptions of their high-end rental (marble counters, a pool) and internal dialogue, Alam sets up our expectations for a literary novel featuring privileged protagonists who will possibly suffer an existential or family crisis, or that perhaps we're in for a light literary satire of these people's lives. Alam's novel is a slippery thing, however, and when an elderly black couple arrives at the vacation rental in the middle of the night, a sense of unease sets in. They are the owners, and there was a major power outage in the city; could they stay until they figure out what's going on? As the two families inhabit the home together and figure out what's happening, the strain is evident though things remain polite. Once more, the novel feels like an exploration of race, class and a generational divide with a hazy crisis in the background - until it feels like something else. This exceptional and unnerving novel, so well-crafted, manages to encompass many things, and it also manages to hijack our expectations, exploit our biases and offer a surprising and poignant turn that feels particularly timely. Show less

In Alam's latest, two upwardly-mobile, middle-class New Yorkers and their adolescent children are heading to an Airbnb in Long Island for a family getaway...Show more In Alam's latest, two upwardly-mobile, middle-class New Yorkers and their adolescent children are heading to an Airbnb in Long Island for a family getaway. Through conversations, descriptions of their high-end rental (marble counters, a pool) and internal dialogue, Alam sets up our expectations for a literary novel featuring privileged protagonists who will possibly suffer an existential or family crisis, or that perhaps we're in for a light literary satire of these people's lives. Alam's novel is a slippery thing, however, and when an elderly black couple arrives at the vacation rental in the middle of the night, a sense of unease sets in. They are the owners, and there was a major power outage in the city; could they stay until they figure out what's going on? As the two families inhabit the home together and figure out what's happening, the strain is evident though things remain polite. Once more, the novel feels like an exploration of race, class and a generational divide with a hazy crisis in the background - until it feels like something else. This exceptional and unnerving novel, so well-crafted, manages to encompass many things, and it also manages to hijack our expectations, exploit our biases and offer a surprising and poignant turn that feels particularly timely. Show less

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Luster

Luster

by Leilani, Raven

Book - 2020

In this darkly funny, wholly original debut, desperate circumstances lead a young black woman to move in with her married boyfriend, his wife and their ad...Show more In this darkly funny, wholly original debut, desperate circumstances lead a young black woman to move in with her married boyfriend, his wife and their adopted daughter. The underemployed, singularly observant and self-destructive Edie is working in publishing in New York City and living in a squalid Brooklyn apartment when she meets Eric, a man over twenty years her senior, whose matter-of-fact demands and open-marriage strike her as charming and satisfy her need for self-abasement. After Edie loses her job, Eric's wife Rebecca invites her into her home, ostensibly to guide her African-American daughter, Akila, and the story shifts to examine the fraught relationship between the two women. This character-driven story is a page-turning narrative that tosses a grenade at conventional notions of domesticity with wicked delight. Edie's unapologetic, clear-eyed observations on contemporary tech-embedded, urban life are simultaneously heart-breaking and hilarious. Show less

In this darkly funny, wholly original debut, desperate circumstances lead a young black woman to move in with her married boyfriend, his wife and their ad...Show more In this darkly funny, wholly original debut, desperate circumstances lead a young black woman to move in with her married boyfriend, his wife and their adopted daughter. The underemployed, singularly observant and self-destructive Edie is working in publishing in New York City and living in a squalid Brooklyn apartment when she meets Eric, a man over twenty years her senior, whose matter-of-fact demands and open-marriage strike her as charming and satisfy her need for self-abasement. After Edie loses her job, Eric's wife Rebecca invites her into her home, ostensibly to guide her African-American daughter, Akila, and the story shifts to examine the fraught relationship between the two women. This character-driven story is a page-turning narrative that tosses a grenade at conventional notions of domesticity with wicked delight. Edie's unapologetic, clear-eyed observations on contemporary tech-embedded, urban life are simultaneously heart-breaking and hilarious. Show less

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Memorial Drive

Memorial Drive

A Daughter's Memoir

by Trethewey, Natasha D.

Book - 2020

In this compact memoir, Trethewey (a two-term United States Poet Laureate) revisits the harrowing circumstances of her mother's murder. Threthewey was rai...Show more In this compact memoir, Trethewey (a two-term United States Poet Laureate) revisits the harrowing circumstances of her mother's murder. Threthewey was raised in Mississippi, the daughter of civil rights-era activists, and her mother's family nurtured her until her parents divorced and she moved with her mother to Atlanta in the early 70s. There her mother began a relationship with a troubled man who began to come between mother and daughter, tormenting young Threthewy when her mom wasn't around. When her mother, now a social worker, eventually moved to separate from her second husband, he began a pattern of threats that eventually escalated into tragedy. Notably, the adult Trethewey came into possession of phone transcripts between her mother and her mother's killer, since her mother was recording their conversations for legal evidence. She includes them here, and they are chilling. This highly personal true crime memoir is a brave, candid excavation of past trauma, written with an introspective lyricism that comes from a place of healing, maturity and peace. Show less

In this compact memoir, Trethewey (a two-term United States Poet Laureate) revisits the harrowing circumstances of her mother's murder. Threthewey was rai...Show more In this compact memoir, Trethewey (a two-term United States Poet Laureate) revisits the harrowing circumstances of her mother's murder. Threthewey was raised in Mississippi, the daughter of civil rights-era activists, and her mother's family nurtured her until her parents divorced and she moved with her mother to Atlanta in the early 70s. There her mother began a relationship with a troubled man who began to come between mother and daughter, tormenting young Threthewy when her mom wasn't around. When her mother, now a social worker, eventually moved to separate from her second husband, he began a pattern of threats that eventually escalated into tragedy. Notably, the adult Trethewey came into possession of phone transcripts between her mother and her mother's killer, since her mother was recording their conversations for legal evidence. She includes them here, and they are chilling. This highly personal true crime memoir is a brave, candid excavation of past trauma, written with an introspective lyricism that comes from a place of healing, maturity and peace. Show less

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Mexican Gothic

Mexican Gothic

by Moreno-Garcia, Silvia

Paperback - 2020

Noemí is a carefree university student and socialite in 1950s Mexico City when she receives an urgent letter from her newlywed cousin, Catalina. Catalina ...Show more Noemí is a carefree university student and socialite in 1950s Mexico City when she receives an urgent letter from her newlywed cousin, Catalina. Catalina claims she is being poisoned by her new husband and that the family's manor house is haunted. Noemí travels to the remote village where Catalina lives and discovers her once happy-go-lucky cousin is miserable and has fallen severely ill. Catalina's new family is certainly aloof and strange, but are they cursed as the villagers believe? Noemí finds herself experiencing bizarre nightmares and starts to question her own sanity. Can she uncover the truth and save Catalina before it's too late? Author Silvia Moreno-Garcia mixes historical fiction with a slow-burning eerie horror mystery culminating in an unforgettable conclusion. Show less

Noemí is a carefree university student and socialite in 1950s Mexico City when she receives an urgent letter from her newlywed cousin, Catalina. Catalina ...Show more Noemí is a carefree university student and socialite in 1950s Mexico City when she receives an urgent letter from her newlywed cousin, Catalina. Catalina claims she is being poisoned by her new husband and that the family's manor house is haunted. Noemí travels to the remote village where Catalina lives and discovers her once happy-go-lucky cousin is miserable and has fallen severely ill. Catalina's new family is certainly aloof and strange, but are they cursed as the villagers believe? Noemí finds herself experiencing bizarre nightmares and starts to question her own sanity. Can she uncover the truth and save Catalina before it's too late? Author Silvia Moreno-Garcia mixes historical fiction with a slow-burning eerie horror mystery culminating in an unforgettable conclusion. Show less

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The Mirror & the Light

The Mirror & the Light

by Mantel, Hilary

Book - 2020

May 1536. Henry VIII has just rid himself of his second wife, Anne Boleyn, with the help of his faithful secretary, Thomas Cromwell. Cromwell has been man...Show more May 1536. Henry VIII has just rid himself of his second wife, Anne Boleyn, with the help of his faithful secretary, Thomas Cromwell. Cromwell has been managing Henry's personal and private affairs for ten years and has smoothed the way for Henry to marry a third wife in his quest to procure a male heir. Along the way, Cromwell has accumulated wealth, titles, and honors. But Cromwell knows that Henry's whims and volatile temper can change with the wind, and that as much as he is in favor today, it could all fall apart tomorrow. He also knows that his trusted retainers are ambitious and could betray him for money, power, and position, and that he walks a dangerous line every day. This is the third book in Mantel's trilogy about Thomas Cromwell and his rise from humble beginnings to become the most influential man in England, and it's a powerful conclusion to the trilogy. Show less

May 1536. Henry VIII has just rid himself of his second wife, Anne Boleyn, with the help of his faithful secretary, Thomas Cromwell. Cromwell has been man...Show more May 1536. Henry VIII has just rid himself of his second wife, Anne Boleyn, with the help of his faithful secretary, Thomas Cromwell. Cromwell has been managing Henry's personal and private affairs for ten years and has smoothed the way for Henry to marry a third wife in his quest to procure a male heir. Along the way, Cromwell has accumulated wealth, titles, and honors. But Cromwell knows that Henry's whims and volatile temper can change with the wind, and that as much as he is in favor today, it could all fall apart tomorrow. He also knows that his trusted retainers are ambitious and could betray him for money, power, and position, and that he walks a dangerous line every day. This is the third book in Mantel's trilogy about Thomas Cromwell and his rise from humble beginnings to become the most influential man in England, and it's a powerful conclusion to the trilogy. Show less

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Shuggie Bain

Shuggie Bain

by Stuart, Douglas

Paperback - 2020

This intense, beautifully-written, Booker-nominated novel set mostly in 1980s Glasgow tells the story of the Bain family. Two-timed by her husband Hugh, w...Show more This intense, beautifully-written, Booker-nominated novel set mostly in 1980s Glasgow tells the story of the Bain family. Two-timed by her husband Hugh, who plays a diminishing role in the family's life, Agnes is a proud woman who can never quite accept her impoverished circumstances and struggles with alcoholism. The novel subtly views the family life through the lens of youngest son Shuggie, a precocious, flamboyant child who suffers socially in school due to his inability to hide within the conformist culture of their public housing community that sits in the shadow of a collapsed mining economy. Every chapter in this novel adds another heartbreaking twist in the worsening circumstances of the Bain family's life, in which redemption and some semblance of normality seem always just out of reach. While this is an undeniably haunting story of family life and childhood abandonment, Stuart's novel maintains a fierce love of life and a rich vein of humor, and the storytelling is addictive. (It would make for a perfect limited TV series.) Like some kind of topsy-turvy, Thatcher Era response to Richard Llewellyn's classic How Green Was My Valley, this is somewhat reminiscent in milieu of Irvine Welsh's Trainspotting and will surely appeal to fans of A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara. Show less

This intense, beautifully-written, Booker-nominated novel set mostly in 1980s Glasgow tells the story of the Bain family. Two-timed by her husband Hugh, w...Show more This intense, beautifully-written, Booker-nominated novel set mostly in 1980s Glasgow tells the story of the Bain family. Two-timed by her husband Hugh, who plays a diminishing role in the family's life, Agnes is a proud woman who can never quite accept her impoverished circumstances and struggles with alcoholism. The novel subtly views the family life through the lens of youngest son Shuggie, a precocious, flamboyant child who suffers socially in school due to his inability to hide within the conformist culture of their public housing community that sits in the shadow of a collapsed mining economy. Every chapter in this novel adds another heartbreaking twist in the worsening circumstances of the Bain family's life, in which redemption and some semblance of normality seem always just out of reach. While this is an undeniably haunting story of family life and childhood abandonment, Stuart's novel maintains a fierce love of life and a rich vein of humor, and the storytelling is addictive. (It would make for a perfect limited TV series.) Like some kind of topsy-turvy, Thatcher Era response to Richard Llewellyn's classic How Green Was My Valley, this is somewhat reminiscent in milieu of Irvine Welsh's Trainspotting and will surely appeal to fans of A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara. Show less

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Transcendent Kingdom

Transcendent Kingdom

by Gyasi, Yaa

Book - 2020

The author of the breakout hit Homecoming returns with a very different but also excellent novel. The story centers on Gifty, a Stanford University gradua...Show more The author of the breakout hit Homecoming returns with a very different but also excellent novel. The story centers on Gifty, a Stanford University graduate student in neuroscience, a daughter of Ghanaian immigrants, who struggles between the sometimes-conflicting, sometimes-overlapping belief systems of faith and science to come to terms with the wounds of her past. When her mother, in the midst of a wave of depression, comes to visit her, things come to a head. Show less

The author of the breakout hit Homecoming returns with a very different but also excellent novel. The story centers on Gifty, a Stanford University gradua...Show more The author of the breakout hit Homecoming returns with a very different but also excellent novel. The story centers on Gifty, a Stanford University graduate student in neuroscience, a daughter of Ghanaian immigrants, who struggles between the sometimes-conflicting, sometimes-overlapping belief systems of faith and science to come to terms with the wounds of her past. When her mother, in the midst of a wave of depression, comes to visit her, things come to a head. Show less

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The Vanishing Half

The Vanishing Half

by Bennett, Brit

Book - 2020

In Bennett's excellent latest (after her celebrated debut, The Mothers), two identical twin sisters hail from Mallard, a rural Lousiana town of light-skin...Show more In Bennett's excellent latest (after her celebrated debut, The Mothers), two identical twin sisters hail from Mallard, a rural Lousiana town of light-skinned African Americans that takes on an almost mythical quality. Restless Desiree coaxes the more reluctant Stella to run away with her as teens to New Orleans, but in time Stella disappears and Desiree ends up returning home with a much darker-skinned daughter in tow (as we learn in the opening pages). From this simple setup, Bennett proceeds to unfold a wide-reaching story of two generations of family and multifaceted perspective. With a fresh approach on the novel of passing, Bennett has struck gold. This moving and insightful page-turner is pleasure to read that demands book club attention and is a natural for TV adaptation. (And if you enjoy this novel, consider also Jacqueline Woodson's Red at the Bone, Margaret Wilkerson Sexton's A Kind of Freedom, and Anissa Gray's The Care and Feeding of Ravenously Hungry Girls.) Show less

In Bennett's excellent latest (after her celebrated debut, The Mothers), two identical twin sisters hail from Mallard, a rural Lousiana town of light-skin...Show more In Bennett's excellent latest (after her celebrated debut, The Mothers), two identical twin sisters hail from Mallard, a rural Lousiana town of light-skinned African Americans that takes on an almost mythical quality. Restless Desiree coaxes the more reluctant Stella to run away with her as teens to New Orleans, but in time Stella disappears and Desiree ends up returning home with a much darker-skinned daughter in tow (as we learn in the opening pages). From this simple setup, Bennett proceeds to unfold a wide-reaching story of two generations of family and multifaceted perspective. With a fresh approach on the novel of passing, Bennett has struck gold. This moving and insightful page-turner is pleasure to read that demands book club attention and is a natural for TV adaptation. (And if you enjoy this novel, consider also Jacqueline Woodson's Red at the Bone, Margaret Wilkerson Sexton's A Kind of Freedom, and Anissa Gray's The Care and Feeding of Ravenously Hungry Girls.) Show less

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Vesper Flights

Vesper Flights

New and Collected Essays

by Macdonald, Helen

Book - 2020

The author of H is for Hawk returns with a magnificent collection of essays (most of them quite short) about nature, the environment and humanity's relati...Show more The author of H is for Hawk returns with a magnificent collection of essays (most of them quite short) about nature, the environment and humanity's relationship to animals and the natural world. Whereas her previous book delved deep into a single subject with a sustained, challenging and literary focus, her new collection is an accessible grab-bag of writings best savored individually and leisurely. MacDonald balances a sense of wonder with an acute sense of concern as people's impact on the world increasingly puts a long-stable system increasingly out of order. During the pandemic, as people have stayed closer to home and become isolated, many people have taken solace in a rekindled sense of connection to Nature. For them especially, MacDonald's latest will make for a wise and inspiring companion. Show less

The author of H is for Hawk returns with a magnificent collection of essays (most of them quite short) about nature, the environment and humanity's relati...Show more The author of H is for Hawk returns with a magnificent collection of essays (most of them quite short) about nature, the environment and humanity's relationship to animals and the natural world. Whereas her previous book delved deep into a single subject with a sustained, challenging and literary focus, her new collection is an accessible grab-bag of writings best savored individually and leisurely. MacDonald balances a sense of wonder with an acute sense of concern as people's impact on the world increasingly puts a long-stable system increasingly out of order. During the pandemic, as people have stayed closer to home and become isolated, many people have taken solace in a rekindled sense of connection to Nature. For them especially, MacDonald's latest will make for a wise and inspiring companion. Show less

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Writers & Lovers

Writers & Lovers

A Novel

by King, Lily

Book - 2020

Saddled with debt, grieving her mother, disappointed in love, and experiencing medical troubles, 31-year-old Casey's life is certainly at a low ebb. A for...Show more Saddled with debt, grieving her mother, disappointed in love, and experiencing medical troubles, 31-year-old Casey's life is certainly at a low ebb. A former athlete who is hard at work on a novel, she spend long hours waiting tables to pay what bills she can in late 90s Boston. Then in the course of a summer, she meets a fellow struggling writer her age who turns her on but seems unreliable, and a successful older writer raising two boys after being widowed, and suddenly she has some choices to make. This buoyant, intelligent, life-affirming novel is a page-turning blend of relationship narrative and literary fiction, and it's one of the more refreshing reads in recent memory. Show less

Saddled with debt, grieving her mother, disappointed in love, and experiencing medical troubles, 31-year-old Casey's life is certainly at a low ebb. A for...Show more Saddled with debt, grieving her mother, disappointed in love, and experiencing medical troubles, 31-year-old Casey's life is certainly at a low ebb. A former athlete who is hard at work on a novel, she spend long hours waiting tables to pay what bills she can in late 90s Boston. Then in the course of a summer, she meets a fellow struggling writer her age who turns her on but seems unreliable, and a successful older writer raising two boys after being widowed, and suddenly she has some choices to make. This buoyant, intelligent, life-affirming novel is a page-turning blend of relationship narrative and literary fiction, and it's one of the more refreshing reads in recent memory. Show less

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