Agatha of Little Neon by Claire Luchette
271 pages

What’s it about?
 Agatha takes her vows to become a nun in her early twenties and spends the next nine years under the care of Mother Roberta and alongside Therese, Frances, and Mary Agatha working in the nursery.  Over time more and more professional daycares open and fewer and fewer babies come for the nuns to take care of.  The church decides to close the nursery and move the nuns to a new location.  Mother Roberta retires and the three sisters are moved together and put in charge of a halfway house serving recovering felons and addicts.  "Four sisters in heavy habits, muttering Glory Bes, who slept with their mouths open and ate beef jerky straight from the plastic.  We were the opposite of invisible, but still difficult for people to see.  When people saw our habits, they ceased to see our faces."

What did it make me think about?
 Who is called...

Should I read it?
 This slim novels reads like a series of short vignettes.   Sister Agatha really touched my heart.  She is worth getting to know.

Quote-
"We'd come to Woonsocket to care for these people, but we had no idea what that meant.  We thought we had things to give them, prayer and compassion and mercy and home-cooked meals, but none of this was enough. 
It's truer to say that we -or, I, at least-had come because we'd been told it was God's plan, which a lot of the time has nothing to do with what you had in mind for yourself."

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Driftless by David Rhodes
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The Weekend by Charlotte Wood

8 1/2 stars

Crying in the H Mart by Michelle Zauner
239 pages

What’s it about?
The old adage that "complicated relationships bring complicated grief" is demonstrated in this memoir.  Michelle is only in her mid-twenties when she realizes that her mother is seriously ill.  She is just beginning to come to terms with her immigrant mother and their complicated love when she finds herself having to say goodbye.  Mother and daughter relationships are always complicated but this memoir shows us the added burden of being from distinctly different cultures.  

What did it make me think about?
 Mothers and daughters and food!

Should I read it?
 If you are a fan of memoirs then pick this book up.  I learned of Michelle Zauner through her music, but she is a talented writer as well.  This is a clear, candid look at growing up biracial in America.  Her mother's use of food to show love and care plays a central role in this slim book and I found these references especially illuminating. ​"I wonder how many people at H Mart miss their families .  How many are thinking of them as they being their trays back from the different stalls.  If they're eating to feel connected, to celebrate these people through food.  Which ones weren't able to fly back home this year, or for the past ten years?  Which ones are like me, missing the people who are gone from their lives forever?"  

Quote-
"It was difficult to write about someone I felt I knew so well.  The words were unwieldy, enforced with pretensions.  I wanted to uncover something special about her that only I could reveal.  That she was so much more than a housewife, than a mother.  That she was her own spectacular individual.  Perhaps I was still sanctimoniously belittling the two roles she was ultimately most proud of, unable to accept that the same degree of fulfillment may await those who wish to nurture and love as those who seek to earn and create."

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Forty Autumns by Nina Willner
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7 1/2 stars

Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir
478 pages

What’s it about?
When Ryland Grace wakes up to find himself in a small bunk with tubes attached to his body he is confused.  He soon realizes that the two people in the bunks next to him are dead. He can’t remember who he is or why he is there, but he is definitely on a rocket ship hurtling through space. It slowly dawns on him that he is on a mission to save humanity and he is all alone.  Now, if he can just remember what the mission entails…
 
What did it make me think about?
Science, space, and what’s out there? 

Should I read it?
Andy Weir is such a unique talent.  He takes complicated science and sprinkles it throughout his stories to make a novel that challenges and entertains.  He is certainly making new science fiction fans everywhere.  Anyone who enjoyed “The  Martian” will love “Project Hail Mary”.

Quote-
“ I glanced at the pile of papers on a desk. The scientific community had moved into overdrive in a very unscientific way. Gone were the days of careful peer review and published articles. Astrophage research was a free-for-all where researchers posted their findings immediately and without proof. It lead to misunderstandings and mistakes, but we just didn’t have time to do things the right way.“

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Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel
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The Dog Stars by Peter Heller

9 stars

The Last Thing He Told Me by Laura Dave
303 pages

What’s it about?
 Hannah Hall is thirty eight-years-old and a successful woodturner when she meets Owen Michaels and falls in love. She soon finds herself moving to California where she becomes Owen's wife.  Hannah also becomes a step-mother to Owen's daughter Bailey.  Bailey is a sixteen year old teenager with no interest in a new mom.  When one day Owen goes missing Hannah and Bailey find a way to come together and find Owen.  

What did it make me think about?
 What happened to Owen?

Should I read it?
 I love a book that is clear about what it is- this book is a good old fashioned mystery.  What happened to Owen?  Is there something in his past that Hannah is unaware of?

Quote-
"You see it all the time on television.  There's a knock at the front door.  And, on the other side, someone is waiting to tell you the news that changes everything."

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My Sunshine Away by M.O. Walsh
The Hunting Party by Lucy Foley
The Long and Faraway Gone by Lou Berney
These Women by Ivy Pochoda

9 stars

The Other Black Girl by Zakiya Dalila Harris
354 pages

What’s it about?
 Nella Rogers is a hard working 26-year-old editorial assistant.  She is a young Black woman trying to work her way up in the all-White world of publishing in New York City.  Nella is pleasantly surprised to look up one day and see that another black woman has been hired as an editorial assistant.  Soon she will wonder if this is a good thing for her career or not...

What did it make me think about?
 How much I don't know....

Should I read it?
 I don't even know where to start on this book.  It seemed to have so many different threads going all at once.  Some of the threads were amazing and some of the threads seemed disjointed to me.  Having said that- Ms. Harris has written a really interesting and inventive novel.   I am really glad I read it and although it didn't all work for me I would highly recommend it. One of my favorite aspects of this novel is the glimpse Ms. Harris gives us into the world of publishing.   Lots to think about in this novel!

Quote-
"But there'd been something profound in those moments.  Something intangible.  This something was in the look that her friends gave her when she told them how many hours she'd spent sitting between her mother's legs watching he 227 marathon the had been on TV One that weekend (then explaining what 227 was); it was in the nature of this elongated physical contact that most non-Black teenagers didn't have with their mothers, but she did.  And it was in the little things such contact -however many hours of time she's spent with hands in her hair- taught her about the women in her family.  Hair-care regimens, passed down from both sides.  Patience, until the fine line of impatience settled over the whole scene like a bad odor.  Perfectionism."

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Afterland by Lauren Beukes​
Underground Railroad by Colson Whitehead
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8 stars

We Begin at the End by Chris Whitaker
367 pages

What’s it about?
Duchess is a 13 year-old girl just trying to keep her mom (Star) and her brother (Robin) safe.  Her only ally is a local sheriff named Walk.  Walk grew up with Star and does his best to keep her sober and watch out for her two kids.  When Star and Walk’s old friend Vincent is released from prison after 30 years everyone is put on edge.  This whole story hinges on one question- is Vincent a good man?

What did it make me think about?
Justice. 

Should I read it?
This was a plot driven thriller and I thoroughly enjoyed it!   Set in both California and Montana this story has a western feel to it.  Occasionally some of the sentences seemed a little stilted, but can you argue with being too poetic?  Part hard luck story, part who-dun-it, but always full of heart.  I highly recommend this book.  One of my favorites this summer.

Quote-
“You’re like a kid.  Better and worse.  Bad and good.  None of us are only one thing.  We’re just a collection of the best and worst things we’ve done.”

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9 stars

Klara and the Sun by Kazuo Ishiguro
303 pages
​
What’s it about?
Klara is an AF (artificial friend) waiting in a store window when she first sees Josie.  Josie is a teenager and wants to buy Klara as soon as she sees her.  Josie asks Klara to wait for her- she promises to return.  Klara waits patiently, and as she waits we begin to see her kindness and her excellent observational abilities. When Josie comes back Klara can see that Josie is very ill and she is determined to help her. Klara will need all her skills to make a difference in this situation.  

What did it make me think about?
 Loneliness, faith, and what constitutes a human being.

Should I read it?
I can not tell you exactly why I like this book so much.  The plot and characters often seem opaque.  The glimpses Ishiguro gives us are thought provoking but so vague that different people will probably glean different messages.  A.I. presents so many interesting and troubling ethical questions.  Klara and the Sun touches on some of these possibilities.   Just fascinating!

Quote-
" 'Yes.  Until recently, I didn't think that humans could choose loneliness.  That there were sometimes forces more powerful than the wish to avoid loneliness.' "

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​The Circle by Dave Eggers
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9 stars

The Lying Life of Adults by Elena Ferrante
322 pages

What’s it about?
 "Two years before leaving home my father said to my mother that I was very ugly."  Giovanni is a 12-year-old girl living in Naples when she overhears this remark.  It unmoors her.  She no longer knows what to believe about herself and those around her.  This marks the beginning of a detachment from her parents.  As she tries to figure out who she is (beautiful or ugly, kind or spiteful, smart or cunning) she begins to understand all the lies the adults around her are advancing. Most of these lies revolve around sex.  

What did it make me think about?
 Elena Ferrante has such a unique writing style.  I really enjoyed all four of the novels that make up the "Neopolitan Quartet" and have been looking forward to reading this newest book.  Her stories are distinctly Italian, always told from a feminist perspective, and contain some really interesting characters.

Should I read it?
 This book seemed lighter than the the earlier novels in the Neopolitan Quartet. Yet the story shared many of the same themes. Elena Ferrante is able to capture the angst of those tumultuous teenage years so well.  I hope that we see more of Giovanna in the next book Elena Ferrante writes.  

Quote-
​"I didn't intend to be sarcastic.  Part of me really wished, at that point, to discuss with him the bad that , while you seem to be good, gradually or suddenly spreads through your mind, your stomach, your whole body.  Where does it come from Papa- I wanted to say to him- how do you control it, and why does it not sweep away the good but , rather, coexists with it."

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What Are You Going Through by Sigrid Nunez
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9 stars

Olympus Texas by Stacey Swann
318 pages

What’s it about?
March was effectively banished from his hometown of Olympus, in East Texas, after having an affair with his brother's wife.  When he decides to return after two years away he has high hopes that the family can reconcile.  But families are never as predictable as you imagine.

What did it make me think about?
Can kindness can be self-serving?

Should I read it?
 What a great summer book!  It was so nice to just read a book and enjoy the story.  This was a well written family drama and I highly recommend it!
​
Quote-
"At first she chided herself for being annoyed with her husband's innate goodness, bt eventually she decided his kindness wasn't generosity.  It was self-serving.  He was the perfect son.  The magnanimous boss.  The patient husband with the irritable wife.  To feel good, he needed to be better than the rest of them. "

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The Most Fun We Ever Had by Claire Lombardo

​8 1/2 stars