Defending Jacob by William Landay MYS Lan

I had the day off today.  What did I accomplish?  Not much - except finish a great book that I started last night.  I could not stop reading it.  It reminded me of Presumed Innocent by Scott Turow.  That book was written decades ago and I still remember it because it was so good.  (You should read it and also the sequel Innocent!)  But back to this book!  Andy Barber has a good life. He is still madly in love with his wife Laurie, he has a good job as a D. A. and he is father to Jacob.  When a fourteen-year-old, Ben, is murdered Andy takes the reins since it will likely be a high-profile case.  Even when colleagues suggest that he should pass because Jacob and Ben attended the same school, Andy thinks he is the man for the job.  There are not many clues and the kids at school aren't saying much.  When Andy finds a knife in his son's room he begins to change his approach to the investigation.  After Jacob is arrested Andy finds out what it is like on the other side of the aisle in a trial.  He is introduced to the emotional and social pains of a defendant's family.  He realizes the high financial cost - even if his son is found innocent - which of course he will be.  It is a fantastic book!!!!!!

The Age of Miracles by Karen Thompson Walker FIC Wal

This is a coming-of-age type novel with a twist.  Julia is going through the usual angst of becoming a teenager.  She has a crush on a boy, a best friend, a desire to have a bra and some issues with her mother.  Things were changing in the world although Julia hadn't really noticed yet.  The days were getting longer - and not because the season was changing.  The scientists finally gave it the name 'the slowing'.  Julia's mother begins to hoard food and supplies.  Her father, a doctor, seems confident that everything will be okay.  As 'the slowing' gets worse the government asks people to use clock time and to ignore nature's new idea of daytime.  Insomnia is rampant, people are stressed and new cracks begin to appear in humanity.  It was an interesting book but also unsettling.  I am still trying to decide if I feel better that it is cataloged as fiction instead of science fiction!  This is a debut novel and I look forward to more from this author. 

Wife 22 by Melanie Gideon FIC Gid

Alice Buckle is middle-aged. She is approaching the age her mother was when she died.  She has been married for 20 years and has two children.  She worries about her kids and feels that her marriage is stagnant.  One day she sees an email about a research project studying Marriage in the 21st Century.  After checking to make sure that it has come from a reliable source she decides to reply and is accepted into the study.  It might be interesting and she will be paid $1000 at the end.  She is now officially known as Wife 22 and is assigned a caseworker known as Researcher 101.  As her life seems to be spiraling out of control (her husband is having job problems, her son may be gay and her daughter is acting very odd) she finds herself developing a dependency on her caseworker.  Researcher 101 seems to be so understanding and interested in her that she finds herself confessing things online that she never would to her husband.  They move beyond the questionnaires and set up a private Facebook account where they communicate.  Alice becomes a slave to her phone as she constantly is checking for messages.  It was a very readable book and an interesting story.  Is social media a friend or foe?  I enjoyed this book a lot. 

The First Patient by Michael Palmer FIC Pal

We own the book but I downloaded the audiobook from WILBOR.  This was part medical mystery and part political mystery.  Gabe and Andrew roomed together at the Naval Academy.  Today Gabe lives a quiet life in Wyoming as a small town doctor.  Andrew, on the other hand, lives in Washington D.C..  In a big white house.  On Pennsylvania Avenue.   They are reunited when the President shows up in Wyoming.  He is involved in a very tough re-election campaign.  As if that weren't stressful enough, his personal physician has disappeared.  He begs Gabe to come to the White House for the next few months until the election is over.  Soon after arriving in D.C., Gabe begins to suspect that the President may be going insane. (Yes, I know that isn't an unusual suspicion!).  Should he use his knowledge to transfer power to the V.P.????  Lots to consider here.  In all mysteries the main character asks that awful question - "Whom can I trust?".  But if you are the Prez the answer is easy - no one.

Making Piece: a memoir of love, loss and pie by Beth M. Howard 977.7 How

Beth Howard grew up in Ottumwa Iowa. After high school she left the state and had no reason to return after her parents moved to California.  Her life took several twists and turns.  Although she was a journalist she had worked in the .com industry where she made good money.....sitting in a cubicle......for many, many hours a day.  Money isn't everything, is it.  Shortly afterwards she meets Marcus, a German workaholic.  They fall in love and marry but it isn't an easy road.  They are apart and then together and then apart.....  Although they are still in love, Beth decides that divorce is the only logical thing to do.  Beth is in Texas and Marcus is in Washington State.  Seven hours before he is to sign the divorce papers he dies (natural causes) and Beth is swept into a frenzy of guilt and grief.  Making Piece is the story of how she dealt with that grief.  It involves a lot of pie (you will be craving pie throughout the book),  travel,  a trip to the Iowa State Fair, a journey back to Ottumwa and a pie stand in front of the house made famous in the painting American Gothic.  I enjoyed the book and plan on tasting her pie sometime soon!

Dream New Dreams:Reimagining My Life After Loss by Jai Pausch 616.994 PAU

This is written by the widow of Randy Pausch who wrote The Last Lecture (which you should read if you haven't!).  Typically a professor would give this talk at the end of his career. In Randy's case it was also at the end of his life.  He was diagnosed with terminal cancer.  With a wife and three young kids (the newest one was four months old) Randy was willing to fight with everything he had with the support of his wife Jai.  In this book Jai takes us along as she relives those years.  She was in such an impossible situation - being there for her husband and being there for her children.  Of course there are no winners in such a situation and she always felt that she was slighting someone.  And being the head cheerleader for everyone, that's exhausting.  I cannot imagine for one second being able to do what she did.  If you or someone you know is in a position as caretaker I think you will find this book enlightening.

Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn MYS Fly

I haven't been this excited about a book in a while.  It was a  mystery which relied on a great story and not a lot of violence.  It would have made a great Alfred Hitchcock movie - so those of you who are old enough to remember Hitchcock movies will have some idea about the type of book it is.  It begins on the fifth anniversary of Nick and Amy Dunne's marriage. The day might have started out normally but it changes to abnormal when he comes home and finds the house in disarray and no sign of her.    They are living in Nick's childhood home in Missouri.  They moved there after both of them lost jobs in N.Y. and Nick's mom was dying of cancer.   Nick calls the police who begin an investigation.  The story moves back and forth between what is happening on the investigation and excerpts from Amy's diary.  When no trace of Amy is found, Nick becomes the top suspect. There are many twists and turns along the way and lots of interesting characters.  I can't imagine you could be disappointed in this book!