The Next Good Book
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I love a good read!  Sometimes I get so excited about a book that I just want to shout about it. Other times, I do not look up long enough to digest what I am reading at all.  This site will give me an incentive to think about what I am reading… and i am hopeful it will help you to find
THE NEXT GOOD BOOK
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driftless by david rhodes

4/19/2018

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Driftless by David Rhodes
429 pages
 
What’s it about?
This book is a collage of stories that center around the small, rural town of Words, Wisconsin. It is the kind of small town that you drove through 30 years ago and wondered if it would still be there the next time you passed through.  It is town alive with characters that live a different kind of life- a life that is slowly becoming extinct.
 
What did it make me think about?
This book is about life in a rural small town and it made me sad to think this way of life may be coming to an end.  This book was also about our universal journey through life and how- although we are essentially alone in our experience- we do not have to be lonely.  It is about the connections we make as a community and how those connections ultimately sustain us.  It is a message that resonates whether you live in a small, rural town or a high-rise in the city.  Having said that it also uniquely demonstrates the attitude and work ethic that have sustained the American farmer for hundreds of years.
 
Should you read it?
Well- this book was a slow starter for me. I really loved it, BUT these interwoven stories are not for everyone.  There are so many characters and it takes awhile to see who is who, and how they connect.   The characters are SO incredibly well drawn that you find yourself looking forward to hearing from them again.   In some ways Mr. Rhodes writing reminds me of Wallace Stegner.  I remember reading “Angle of Repose” and enjoying it but feeling like I could only read it slowly.  I felt the same way with “Driftless”.  So I encourage you all to pick it up and take your time as Mr. Rhodes is a man of immense talent!
 
Quote-
“Though he didn’t give a nickel what any particular individual thought about him and even help most of his neighbors in near-contempt, the mass of them all together- the community- had considerable weight.”
 
If you like this try-
Angle of Repose by Wallace Stegner
My Antonia by Willa Cather
 Fourth of July Creek by Smith Henderson
​The Bartender's Tale by Ivan Doig

9 stars
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beneath a scarlet sky by mark sullivan

4/10/2018

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Beneath a Scarlet Sky by Mark Sullivan 
509 pages

What’s it about?
This book is based on a true story and takes place in Italy during World War II.   The story follows young Pino Lella from 1943 through the end of the war.  We see Pino change from a carefree teenager to a man willing to risk his life for what he believes is right.
 
What did it make me think about?
This novel made me wonder at all the stories that go untold after a war.  Italy during WW II is a very complicated place.  Between the Fascists, the Nazi's, and the Resistance their were lots of sides to come down on.  This story sheds some light on Italy’s history.

Should I read it?
For fans of "Unbroken", those interested in World War II, or anyone who likes historical fiction this is an engaging and interesting story.  Pino Lella is a man you will root for throughout this book.

Quote-
“Pino left the chapel believing that he’d entered it as a boy and now exited having made a decision to become a man.”

If you liked this try-
​Everyone Brave is Forgiven by Chris Cleave
​The Women in the Castle by Jessica Shattuck
The Narrow Road to the Deep North by Richard Flanagan
All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr

​8 stars



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beartown by fredrik backman

3/29/2018

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Beartown by Fredrik Backman
415 pages
 
What’s it about?
 Beartown is a dying community in the woods of Sweden.  The town has pinned its last hopes on its Junior Hockey Team winning a championship and putting the town back on the map.  With a large cast of characters this book examines the idea of what makes a community from lots of different perspectives.
 
What did it make me think about?
 This book asks so many questions.   What is loyalty?  What makes a leader?  What are the consequences of our obsession with athletes?  What does this obsession do to young star athletes?  What is required of a friend?  What does it take to be a good parent?  And it goes on and on….  I felt like there were so many ideas to explore in this book.
 
Should I read it?
 I thoroughly enjoyed the book.   The plot really picked up in the second half- but the characters were engaging from the first page.   Frederik Beckman    seems to write in platitudes, but they are all good and do not thwart the plot so how do you fault him for that?  Their were so many pearls of wisdom in this story that I had trouble picking out which quote to include.  One of my favorite themes in the novel was the power of our early friendships ,“You never have the sort of friends you have when you’re fifteen ever again. Even if you keep them for the rest of your life, it’s never the same as it was then.”  If I had included all the quotes I found memorable- my review would have been WAY too long!
 
Quote-
“Hate can be a deeply stimulating emotion.  The world becomes much easier to understand and much less terrifying if you divide everything and everyone into friends and enemies, we and they, good and evil.  The easiest way to unite a group isn’t through love, because love is hard.  It makes demands.  Hate is simple.”
 
If you like this try-
​​A Man Called Ove by Frederik Backman
The Love Song of Miss Queenie Hennesy by Rachel Joyce
Ordinary Grace by William Kent Krueger
Sing, Unburied, Sing by Jesmyn Ward

9 stars

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the heart's invisible furies by John Boyne

3/21/2018

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The Heart’s Invisible Furies by John Boyne
580 pages
 
What’s it about?
It is 1945 and 16-year-old Catherine Googin finds herself pregnant and alone in a small Irish town.  After the parish priest casts Catherine out of town in a very public way- she makes her way to Dublin.  Catherine will reappear again in this novel but the main character is Catherine’s out of wedlock son- Cyril Avery.  Cyril has a lonely childhood with his adoptive family.   It is the 1950’s and the Catholic Church rules Dublin with an iron fist.  In this time and place Cyril discovers that he is attracted to boys not girls.   And the novel thus really begins….
 
What did I think?
Wow!  John Boyne really has a bone to pick with the Catholic Church of Ireland.  His writing is beautiful but the story goes lots of different directions.  Boyne does a good job of demonstrating how heart-wrenching being a young gay teenager was in a time of repression.  However at times I just wanted to Cyril to be honest with someone- anyone….  At heart this is a character driven novel.  The plot sometimes goes awry and I didn't always like Cyril, but it drew me in all the same.
 
Should you read it?
I enjoyed most of this book.  It is certainly a reminder of how painful life can be if you are not in the majority.   It is also an interesting look at the harm that religion can do when it is more interested in the rules- than in the person.
 
Quote-
“But for all we had, for all the luxury to which we were accustomed, we were both denied love, and this deficiency would be scorched into our future lives like an ill-considered tattoo inscribed on the buttocks after a drunken night out, leading each of us inevitably toward isolation and disaster.”
 
If you like this try-
 *A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara
*And The Mountains Echoed by Khaled Hosseini
Fourth of July Creek by Smith Henderson
Skippy Dies by Paul Murray

7 1/2 stars
 
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the power by naomi alderman

3/6/2018

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The Power by Naomi Alderman
382 pages
 
What’s it about?
Imagine a world in the future where women develop a  power that makes it possible to physically dominate men.  How would society change?  Naomi Alderman cleverly asks this question in her new novel.
 
What did I think?
This novel is based on a really interesting question- how much does physical power really affect the relationship between sexes?  What if women were the ones with the physical dominance?  What would it change?
 
Should you read it?
This was an interesting premise and made for a pretty good book.  I would recommend this selection for book clubs.  Lots of interesting assumptions are made in this story that would generate good discussions. 
 
Quote-
“There is a part in each of us which holds fast to the old truth: either you are the hunter or you are the prey.  Learn which you are.  Act accordingly.  Your life depends on it.”
 
If you like this try-
 ​The Girl With All the Gifts by M.R. Carey
Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel
The Dog Stars by Peter Heller
The Sparrow by Mary Doria Russell

8 stars

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grief cottage by gail goodwin

3/5/2018

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Grief Cottage by Gail Goodwin
321 pages

What’s it about?
 This coming of age story centers around 11-year-old Marcus.  Marcus is sent to live with his elderly Aunt Charlotte after his mother suddenly dies in a car crash.  Set on the South Carolina beach this novel was an easy read.

What did it make me think about?
Childhood friendships and the particular viewpoint of adolescents.

Should I read it?
This book was like a really good “B” movie.  Enjoyable, probably not going to win any awards, but pretty entertaining. That is not too say that this book is poorly written- it is not.  

Quote-
“What am I when I get past being a particular daughter, wife, mother, neighbor, friend?  What would be left of the essential me without any of my roles?  That was the first dead end I reached.  Maybe nothing will be left, I thought, I am my roles.”

If you like this try-
​
​Kitchens of the Great Midwest by J.  Ryan Stradal
Ordinary Grace by William Kent Krueger
Saints for All Ocassions by J. Courtney Sullivan
​
The Nest by Cynthia D''Aprix Sweeney

7 1/2 stars
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miss jane by brad watson

2/23/2018

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​Miss Jane by Brad Watson 
279 pages

What’s it about?
This is a book that chronicles the life of Miss Jane.  Jane was born in early 20th century Mississippi with a congenital birth defect that set her apart from others.  

What did it make me think about?
This book was as much about a woman coming to terms with a solitary life as it was about her physical abnormality.  It certainly made you appreciate the hardships that people must have  endured because of the lack of medical knowledge in the early 1900’s.  This story was also a testament to people’s innate kindness, and to Jane’s affable nature.

Should I read it?
This was not a novel for those that love a good plot.  This book really concentrated on the character of Jane and those people that surrounded her.  The time, place, and characters are interesting even if the plot was somewhat slow paced.  The writing is beautiful.

Quote-
"By late spring of the year she would turn six, a more complex awareness of her difference had begun to shape itself in her mind like the root of some strange plant down deep in the woods.  She had moments when she felt like a secret, silent creation, invisible, more the ghost of something unknowable than a person, a child, a girl."

If you like this try-
*Another Brooklyn by Jacqueline Woodson
My Brilliant Friend by Elena Ferrante
The Elegance of the Hedgehog by Muriel Barbery

7 1/2 stars

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manhattan beach by jennifer egan

2/5/2018

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​Manhattan Beach by Jennifer Egan
433 pages
 
What’s it about?
This novel takes place in the 1930’s and 40’s and revolves around Anna Kerrigan.  As a young girl of 12-years-old Anna accompanies her father along on a visit to a man named Dexter Styles.  Years later Anna’s father has gone missing and she runs into Dexter Styles again.  World War II is raging- Anna is now grown and working as an underwater diver in the Brooklyn Naval Yard.   What exactly does Dexter Styles know of her father’s disappearance and how can Anna find out?
 
What did I think?
I so enjoyed Jennifer Egan’s novel “A Visit From the Goon Squad” that I was chomping at the bit to read her newest book.  This novel is such a vast departure from her previous book that I was somewhat surprised at first.
 
Should you read it?
This novel started off with incredible promise.  The characters are great and the plot was interesting.  The character of Dexter Styles was unexpectedly likable and interesting.  Anna’s relationship with her disabled sister was really the heart of the book.   I liked the book a lot but the second half of the book was just not as cohesive to me as the first half.  For me there was a definite great beginning- and then just an ok and improbable ending.  I would still recommend the book but I wish it had lived up to the first half.
 
Quote-
“Natalie was boy-crazy, and Tabby had grown prettier than Dexter would have liked.  Not that he wished ugliness on his only daughter, but showy beauty was an invitation to dependence.  He’d have liked her to have the hidden kind, visible only to those who looked closely.”
 
If you like this try-
A Spool of Blue Thread by Anne Tyler
 Love & Treasure by Ayelet Waldman
​
Anything is Possible by Elizabeth Strout
​
A Gentleman in Moscow By Amor Towles

​
8 STARS
​


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magpie murders by anthony horowitz

1/26/2018

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Magpie Murders by Antony Horowitz
4 pages + 213 pages + 241 pages (well... just lots of pages?)
 
What’s it about?
 This whodunit contains a book within a book.  It is almost too clever to work, and yet somehow Anthony Horowitz pulls it off. 
 
What did it make me think about?
 This was a murder mystery that is as much about literature and publishing  as it  is about who did it. 
 
Should I read it?
 I was in the mood for a good whodunit and this book certainly filled the bill.  I am a fan of anything Anthony Horowitz does (starting with Foyle’s War on PBS) so I expected a good read.  This book was almost too clever, and yet he pulled it off!  If you are looking for a good murder mystery then this book will satisfy.
 
Quote-
“It’s strange when you think about it.  There are hundreds and hundreds of murders in books and tlelevision.  It would be hard for narrative fiction ot survivie without them.  And yet there are almost none in real life, unless you happen to live in the wrong area.  Why is it that we have such a need for murder mystery and what is it that attracts us- the crime of the solution?


If you like this try-
The House of Silk by Anthony Horowitz 
The Trespasser by Tana French
Norwegian by Night by Derek B. Miller
Still Life by Louise Penny

8 stars
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rabbit cake by annie hartnett

1/19/2018

1 Comment

 
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​Rabbit Cake by Annie Hartnett
327 pages

What’s it about?
This coming-of-age story centers around young Elvis Babbitt as she grapples with the drowning death of her mother in the Chattahouchee river in Alabama.  Elvis is intrigued by animals and science.   She grieves along with a sleepwalking older sister and a lipstick wearing Dad. Quite a memorable cast of characters!

What did it make me think about?
Annie Hartnett has a sense of humor.  The subject matter sounded so sad that I was hesitant to pick this one up, but the cover accurately depicts the mood of the book.  Elvis Babbitt just made me smile.

Should I read it?
This novel is made for those of us who appreciate a cast of quirky characters and a strange sense of humor.  

Quote- 
“On my tenth birthday, six months before she sleepwalked into the river, Mom burned the rabbit cake.  “Ten might not be a great year for you, she said, squeezing my shoulder.  I couldn’t tell if she was kidding.  The rabbit’s face and ears were charred black.”

“Dogs have a lot of things about life figured out; they aren’t afraid to let something go.  Their hearts are always open to loving no more.”

If you like this try-
The Family Fang by Kevin Wilson
Standard Deviation by Katherine Heiny
The Wangs vs. the World by Jade Chang
​Ginny Moon by Benjamin Ludwig

​
8 stars



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