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Earl sees the world differently and this makes him a loner and easy to take advantage of in the little town of Stovall Texas. As a teen in the 1970's a potential girlfriend talks him into a roadtrip to Austin that ends in tragedy and Earl is sent away to prison. After 44 years he is released into a world he knows nothing about and must begin again in Oregon. He is helped by a kindly librarian, her boyfriend and mom. This allows him to begin trusting again and feel like he finally belongs. But sometimes you just can't escape your past. The writing forces you to see things from Earl's perspective and it takes a few chapters to get into the rhythm but once you do -you are hooked. Gritty, heartfelt and poetic in the juxtaposition between the violence in his past and his quiet calm demeanor, this is one beautiful and tearful read. Readers of RAZORBACK TEARS and GREEN MILE will find much to love. 4 stars 
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Two sisters take an unscheduled roadtrip to find the mother who left suddenly years before. Zadie is the older one and usually the stable one but now is unsettled being newly pregnant and has just left the baby's father. While Zadie is sensitive and a psychic she tends to keep those premonitions to herself unlike her sister Finn who reads echoes of other's memories. This is the first time Finn has picked up an echo of their mom. As they journey following the echoes the storyline jumps back to their mom's erratic behavior just weeks before she left. Zadie is trying to fit in what she remembers but is still really angry and Finn just wants to find her mom even if it feels like a wild goose chase. The sisters push and pull looking to make up for their separation in the past and find a new common ground while they look for answers. A stunning blend of family, loss and connection with a touch of the mystical for good measure. 4 stars  At 16 Frankie wants to be a mystery writer and mostly left alone by her mom and older triplet brothers but when Zeke moves to their small town her life and everything in it changes. Frankie and Zeke become unlikely friends deciding to spend the summer creating something wonderful. They share their awkwardness, teen angst and feeble attempts at young love to create a poster which they plaster throughout the town and beyond. Their creation and the rumors surrounding it spread like wildfire and leads to panic with disastrous results. Twenty years go by and Frankie wants to believe that summer is long gone with her secret safe until a savvy reporter approaches her and forces her to give her the truth. Witty and remarkably human, this coming-of-age story speaks to all of us as teens on the threshold of something great if only we could figure out what it is. Kevin Wilson brings us characters that are far from perfect and we love that vulnerability and truth. We are the fugitives! His many fans will delight in this story as will readers of coming of age stories. 5 stars  Touching and sometimes very funny this is a story of two best friends - supporting each other through good times and the tough times. This is the toughest time of all because Edi is in hospice and dying of cancer. Ash is determined to be there for Edi whether it is finding a lemon polenta cake or attempting to take Edi's advice on Ash's ping pong love life. I won't sugarcoat it - this is a sad story but there is a little bit of both women in all of us so even if you are fortunate enough never to have lost someone that close to you, you will still be able to laugh and cry right along with them. Once you begin reading you realize that this is not just a book about loss and the end of a life but a celebration of a life well lived and all the messiness in between. The story has all the wit and humor of Elizabeth McCracken's THE HERO OF THIS BOOK with the tenderness of Iris Rainer Dart's BEACHES or your favorite Nicholas Sparks novel. Beautifully told and stock up on tissue boxes. 4 1/2 stars  Three siblings and their families spend a sad Christmas in their mom's home after she passes away. They are there to decide what to do about the house and they all have different needs and opinions about it. They get into spirited discussions (not of the holiday kind) and old rivalries and bickering begins. When a child goes missing they band together to help and find a new level of understanding and respect. There are a lot of characters and relationships to sort out so I found myself writing out a family tree to keep it all straight. Readers of big family dramas by Elizabeth Strout and Tara Conklin's THE LAST ROMANTICS will find this a good fit. 3 stars  A stunning debut set in Northern Ireland in the 70's. Cushla is worried about her mother's drinking, her family's pub and the students she teaches at the Catholic school. Her world is small but Belfast and war seem very close. She makes good choices and bad and gets caught up in what she thought was right and what might not be right at all. This does not read like a debut but more of a seasoned author who delves deep into characters that we may have nothing in common with but we want to know more. 4 stars  Maggie just intended to get out of her parent's house and help out her best friend during her maternity leave. Little did she know that she would find a community, a potential love interest and start a book revolution in just a couple of months. Every business in Bell River revolves around the town's patriarch, a famous writer. The town is controlled by a descendant of the famous Bell who would like to keep everything stuck in time from the 1930's . That creates a host of problems for the local businesses and townspeople alike and dashes Maggie's marketing plans. She begins an underground book event which is hugely popular but could get people she cares about (and herself) in big trouble. The novel takes a stand for early feminism and righting historical wrongs as well as a lighthearted look at finding your superpower in an unlikely place. Emily Henry fans and readers of all things bookseller and librarian will find much to smile about. 4 stars  PRETTY BABY meets MOMMY DEAREST, this coming of age drama jumps from Ryan as a young girl in the 70"s to the present where she is forced to confront her past and her mother's unsavory business deals. You can't choose your family and Ryan would not have chosen to have Fiona, who is known more for her sudden disappearances than her cuddly mothering skills. Ryan is such a pretty little girl- a grown up seductive face in a little girl body whose look at 10 years old was just what men wanted for ads and a movie. Now Ryan is an adult and a mom herself when she comes back to New York for a funeral after living a quiet life. She begins to remember the events that shaped her future and made her grow up way too fast and must confront her mother's role when a scandal and questionable photos come to light. Right away I thought of Brooke Shields as a real life model for Ryan - a child model and actor whose innocence was stripped when she was made to act and look older and seductive. Kiddie porn, stage moms and the power of childhood friends to save you all play out in this powerful and disturbing look at manipulation and innocence lost. 4 stars  A road trip between a mostly absent father and his 10 year old son across America could be the last chance to bond or a complete disaster. Brendan is a filmmaker who won't be up for Father of the Year but he thinks he can make it up to Brenlyn by taking him on a cross country road trip using an outdated travel guide from the 30's. Stopping in iconic and less well known cities starts off as complete boredom for Brenlyn but will end as a coming of age adventure. The banter between father and son is wonderful and there are both funny and frightening situations. I had a difficult time with what seemed like a bit of rambling prose. There is a lot going on in this story - a flawed father looking for redemption and a son searching for a role model. 3 stars  Just like DAVID COPPERFIELD was the social commentary of its time, DEMON COPPERHEAD is its successor in every way. Instead of the slums of London we find ourself in the heart of Appalachia where everyone is a cousin or knows one of your cousins and the life expectancy is short and not at all sweet. Demon is born into a tough life that gets tougher when his teenage mom dies leaving him in the foster care system that basically is a front for child slave labor. There is a bright side when a caring art teacher sees great promise in his art and a coach sees football glory and a different path. It is a bumpy path that Demon sets out on filled with a little joy and a lot of sorrow thanks to the opiod epidemic that touches everyone. Even when you feel it is a lost cause you can't stop yourself from hoping that Demon will turn it around. Barbara Kingsolver's coming of age saga is guaranteed to shock and anger you but also open your eyes so that maybe we can be that person who holds out a hand instead of walking away. Readers of GLASS CASTLES, DOPESICK and HILLBILLY ELEGY will find so much to love. 4 1/2 stars  |
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