The Library is so excited to be open and to have so many new members. In June alone, we added 41 to our rolls, and in just the first full week of July, nine new families signed up for library cards. We are so happy to welcome them to library and to the mountain. And, if you haven’t seen the progress of our construction, please come by. It’s amazing!
After months of not seeing young people inside our building, we have had many here since we reopened in June. It’s been such a delight for us to see how much everyone has grown and to help them find books. We have most of the required books on schools’ reading lists, and these books have seen steady ins-and-outs all summer. Please let us know if you need something that we don’t have, and we’ll try our best to obtain it.
During our limited-service months, along with adding lots of new children’s books, we also purchased many adult titles, both fiction and nonfiction, including multiple copies of the most popular new fiction. We have all the current bestsellers and are constantly on the lookout for the next blockbusters.
Beatriz Williams is an author whom our patrons have gravitated to, so when her latest book debuted, I decided to read it. Williams has been prolific in the realm of historical fiction, and we have 13 of her titles here at the library. Here is a brief review what I think many of our patrons will enjoy.
“Our Woman in Moscow” by Beatriz Williams. William Morrow, 448 pages. $27.99.
In her latest, Williams creates two sisters and fits their fictional life and that of their families and lovers into a true Cold War setting. Ruth and Iris Macallister are quite different but devoted to each other. Ruth is the glamourous one, while Iris is more retiring. Visiting Rome in the summer of 1940, they are unprepared for the impending war. When Iris meets and falls in love with dashing American diplomat Sasha, she remains in Europe with him while Ruth returns home, and the sisters remain estranged for years. Iris and her family disappear from London, and the suspicion is that Sasha is a traitor and has defected to Moscow, similar to the real-life defectors Guy Burgess and Donald Maclean of the Cambridge Five. Chapters alternate between the two sisters’ perspectives and occasionally that of another woman, Lyudmila, a shadowy Russian NKVD operative. While the book is not overly complicated, it is dense enough to be engrossing, and the eventual denouement is shocking and satisfying.
Other new and engaging fiction includes the following:
“Aviary” by Deirdre McNamer is set in a senior residence where a fire breaks out. The town’s fire inspector sets out to find out why it started and what has happened to two of the home’s residents, who are missing.
“The Damage” by Caitlin Wahrer concerns brothers, Nick and Tony. When Nick is attacked, Tony’s wife, attorney Julia, tries to help the detective assigned to the case. The novel is full of surprises and is an explosive psychological drama.
“The Great Mistake” by Jonathan Lee takes place at the turn of the 20th century and spins off the true murder of an elderly man who had made his mark on New York City. Hailed by many reviewers, it tells a “rich and unforgettable story.”
“Hostage” by Clare Mackintosh is billed as a “locked-room thriller.” It is set on a long-haul flight and stars an attendant who must make a terrible decision. Full of twists and turns, it is one of summer’s hits.
“Lizzie and Dante” by Mary Bly is a romantic novel set on the island of Elba that considers serious issues and is ultimately affecting and inspiring. Booklist calls it “an emotional roller coaster” and claims, “Bly writes with a Prosecco-fizzy wit.”
“The Maidens” by Alex Michaelides follows his bestseller “The Silent Patient” and continues his penchant toward psychological suspense. In this book, a therapist, Mariana Andros, becomes convinced that a renowned professor of Greek tragedy at Cambridge, Edward Fosca, is a murderer. As her suspicions become stronger, Mariana herself becomes a target in what has been called “a mesmerizing tale.”
“The Cape Doctor” by E. J. Levy is a historical novel based on the life of Dr. James Miranda Barry, born a woman, but who assumed the guise of a man in order to go to medical school. Set in Edinburgh, London and finally Cape Town, it is described as “gorgeous, thoughtful and heartbreaking.”
“Dream Girl” by Laura Lippman is a thriller that has been compared to Stephen King’s “Misery.” The central character is an author who is bedridden after an accident and must rely on the care of two unpredictable women. When he receives a phone call from someone purporting to be the embodiment of one of his fictional characters, he is at first confused and then frightened, but who will help him? It’s a tricky read!
“Songs in Ursa Major” by Emma Brodie, the author’s debut, takes the reader into the world of the ’70’s music scene. Named an Amazon Best Book of 2021, it will have a particular appeal to those who came of age when that musical genre was king. Said to be based on James Taylor and Joni Mitchell’s relationship, it deals with universal problems and especially gender discrimination.
“The Sweetness of Water” by Nathan Harris is an Oprah’s Book Club pick. Set in the last days of the Civil War, it tells the story of two brothers, Prentiss and Landry, who, now freed, are trying to make a new life. Said Winfrey about the book, “As the best writers can do, Nathan takes us back in time, and helps us to feel we are right there with Prentiss and Landry as they get their first taste of freedom. I rooted for them, and feared for them, too.”
by Karin Glendenning
After months of not seeing young people inside our building, we have had many here since we reopened in June. It’s been such a delight for us to see how much everyone has grown and to help them find books. We have most of the required books on schools’ reading lists, and these books have seen steady ins-and-outs all summer. Please let us know if you need something that we don’t have, and we’ll try our best to obtain it.
During our limited-service months, along with adding lots of new children’s books, we also purchased many adult titles, both fiction and nonfiction, including multiple copies of the most popular new fiction. We have all the current bestsellers and are constantly on the lookout for the next blockbusters.
Beatriz Williams is an author whom our patrons have gravitated to, so when her latest book debuted, I decided to read it. Williams has been prolific in the realm of historical fiction, and we have 13 of her titles here at the library. Here is a brief review what I think many of our patrons will enjoy.
“Our Woman in Moscow” by Beatriz Williams. William Morrow, 448 pages. $27.99.
In her latest, Williams creates two sisters and fits their fictional life and that of their families and lovers into a true Cold War setting. Ruth and Iris Macallister are quite different but devoted to each other. Ruth is the glamourous one, while Iris is more retiring. Visiting Rome in the summer of 1940, they are unprepared for the impending war. When Iris meets and falls in love with dashing American diplomat Sasha, she remains in Europe with him while Ruth returns home, and the sisters remain estranged for years. Iris and her family disappear from London, and the suspicion is that Sasha is a traitor and has defected to Moscow, similar to the real-life defectors Guy Burgess and Donald Maclean of the Cambridge Five. Chapters alternate between the two sisters’ perspectives and occasionally that of another woman, Lyudmila, a shadowy Russian NKVD operative. While the book is not overly complicated, it is dense enough to be engrossing, and the eventual denouement is shocking and satisfying.
Other new and engaging fiction includes the following:
“Aviary” by Deirdre McNamer is set in a senior residence where a fire breaks out. The town’s fire inspector sets out to find out why it started and what has happened to two of the home’s residents, who are missing.
“The Damage” by Caitlin Wahrer concerns brothers, Nick and Tony. When Nick is attacked, Tony’s wife, attorney Julia, tries to help the detective assigned to the case. The novel is full of surprises and is an explosive psychological drama.
“The Great Mistake” by Jonathan Lee takes place at the turn of the 20th century and spins off the true murder of an elderly man who had made his mark on New York City. Hailed by many reviewers, it tells a “rich and unforgettable story.”
“Hostage” by Clare Mackintosh is billed as a “locked-room thriller.” It is set on a long-haul flight and stars an attendant who must make a terrible decision. Full of twists and turns, it is one of summer’s hits.
“Lizzie and Dante” by Mary Bly is a romantic novel set on the island of Elba that considers serious issues and is ultimately affecting and inspiring. Booklist calls it “an emotional roller coaster” and claims, “Bly writes with a Prosecco-fizzy wit.”
“The Maidens” by Alex Michaelides follows his bestseller “The Silent Patient” and continues his penchant toward psychological suspense. In this book, a therapist, Mariana Andros, becomes convinced that a renowned professor of Greek tragedy at Cambridge, Edward Fosca, is a murderer. As her suspicions become stronger, Mariana herself becomes a target in what has been called “a mesmerizing tale.”
“The Cape Doctor” by E. J. Levy is a historical novel based on the life of Dr. James Miranda Barry, born a woman, but who assumed the guise of a man in order to go to medical school. Set in Edinburgh, London and finally Cape Town, it is described as “gorgeous, thoughtful and heartbreaking.”
“Dream Girl” by Laura Lippman is a thriller that has been compared to Stephen King’s “Misery.” The central character is an author who is bedridden after an accident and must rely on the care of two unpredictable women. When he receives a phone call from someone purporting to be the embodiment of one of his fictional characters, he is at first confused and then frightened, but who will help him? It’s a tricky read!
“Songs in Ursa Major” by Emma Brodie, the author’s debut, takes the reader into the world of the ’70’s music scene. Named an Amazon Best Book of 2021, it will have a particular appeal to those who came of age when that musical genre was king. Said to be based on James Taylor and Joni Mitchell’s relationship, it deals with universal problems and especially gender discrimination.
“The Sweetness of Water” by Nathan Harris is an Oprah’s Book Club pick. Set in the last days of the Civil War, it tells the story of two brothers, Prentiss and Landry, who, now freed, are trying to make a new life. Said Winfrey about the book, “As the best writers can do, Nathan takes us back in time, and helps us to feel we are right there with Prentiss and Landry as they get their first taste of freedom. I rooted for them, and feared for them, too.”
by Karin Glendenning
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