The Overdue Life of Amy Byler by Kelly Harms (FIC Har)

Amy's husband, John, left her (and her two children) three years ago.  Now he is back and Amy isn't sure how she feels.  When he says he wants to repair his relationship with his children and insists she takes a week off, she signs up to be a presenter at a conference in New York City for librarians.

This might not sound too exciting to the normal person but to Amy the chance to connect with other librarians and sit around and read all day is heaven.  And when she connects with a Hot Male Librarian, it truly is heaven.  But all things must come to an end, right?

Well, not necessarily.  John wants to be with the children all summer and proposes that Amy takes the summer off and leave everything to him.  Amy's college friend, Talia, is the editor of a fashion magazine in NYC and she proposes that the magazine cover Amy's summer off.  And then, there's the Hot Male Librarian...

This book is a fun, breezy story but still has depth to it.  Amy agonizes over her feelings for her not-quite-ex-husband, the time she is spending away from her children, her feelings for said Hot Male Librarian, and how she has spent her life.  And while I enjoyed the subtle references to books, the average reader will (hopefully) come away with a better look at the struggles librarians face and the importance of literacy in our society.

Motherland a memoir of love, loathing, and longing by Elissa Altman (audiobook on Overdrive)

    If the word memoir were not on the front and you just began reading this book, you might not realize it is not a true story but instead a very readable novel.  It was great!
      Elissa has been married to her wife for twenty years and they are happily settled in Connecticut.  There she finds peace.  One big reason for that is she is away from Manhattan where  Rita, her mother, lives.
     Rita was once a singer on a television show.  That is the part of her life with which she still identify.  Clothing, make-up and her singing 'career' are Rita's obsessions.  Having a daughter who is not so interested in make-up or clothing was very hard on Rita.
      Elissa's childhood was rocky.  She is keeping her life stable now with wine and the distance from Rita.  But they are still mother and daughter and Elissa does what is needed for her mom.
      From the description of the book on Amazon -
"...it is an exploration of what it means to escape from the shackles of the past only to have to face then all over again. "

Three Things About Elsie by Joanna Cannon (ebook on Overdrive)

     When the book begins we are introduced to Florence - she is 84, living at a Home for the Elderly, and unfortunately she has fallen and is waiting for someone to miss her and to come looking.  The first two things about Elsie are easy.  She is Florence's best friend since forever.  Whenever Florence is down on herself Elsie will know the right thing to say to make her feel better.  The third thing - well you will have to wait to read the book to find out.
      As Florence lies on the floor she begins to think about Elsie rescuing her when she stops by as she promised.  And then she begins to try and figure out how the new resident looks just like  someone from her past and she is worried.  She is worried because she thinks he might harm her - and also because that man died 60 years ago.
      I loved this book.  The characters are great and the mystery of that man is woven throughout the narrative.

All You Can Ever Know A Memoir by Nicole Chung 921 Chung

  I really like non-fiction books.  I always learn something or get a perspective on people or things that I had never thought about.  I know several people who have adopted children but I have never heard first-hand  stories from adoptees.
      This book is about a baby girl born in the United States to a Korean couple who already had two daughters.  She was born very prematurely  and the Doctors weren't certain she would live. The parents signed papers to give her up for adoption.  The baby spent two months in the hospital and then was adopted by a young couple who were eager to become parents.
      Nicole writes beautifully about her life.  She was a Korean surrounded by children who looked nothing like her.  Her parents were great.  Her life was great.  But there was always this part of her who wonders about her birth parents.  Did they love her? Why did they give her up?
       So she began the quest to find out about her birth parents and the circumstances of her birth.  She finds out - the good, the bad and the ugly.

Syria's Secret Library by Mike Thomson (025.8 Tho)

A reporter for the BBC, the author is familiar with the war in Syria.  In the course of his reporting, he learns of a secret library in the besieged rebel town of Daraya.  Unable to believe what he has heard and also unable to travel to Syria to investigate in person, he manages to establish contact with residents of the city.  Using phones, texts, WhatsApp and almost any means of (often unreliable) communication you can think of, the author slowly tells the story of the secret library of Daraya.

Over the course of months, a group of young men "rescued" books from houses that had been bombed and were now deserted.  At considerable risk to themselves, they moved the books to a basement under a bombed building.  Carefully concealing the entrance, they moved in or built bookshelves and furniture in order to create a space for residents to come.  Because discovery was never very far away, its location (and even the fact that it existed) was kept secret.  In order to use it, you had to know someone.

Why did these young men go to such lengths to create this library?  Because they believed that food for the soul was just as important as food for the body.  Although as the siege went on and food became even more scarce, people became less certain of that.  But even then, this secret library became a source of hope for the future - that the books it contained would help keep citizens informed and educated in a town where schools were almost non-existent.

I was awed at the courage it took, not just to create the library but to live in the conditions they all lived in.  And with Syria still in the news, the book gave me some insight into what life is like in that country and under that dictator.

Moloka'i and Daughter of Moloka'i by Alan Brennert Overdrive

   These two books aren't available in our library (at least at the time I am writing this) but you can download them from Overdrive.   I will just give a general summary of the books.  I had holds on both of the books but the Daughter one came first.  After reading the first book I think it doesn't really matter the order in which you read them!
      They are historical fiction but the author explains at the end how he did his research.  He used real people in his books interspersed with his fictional characters.
     In the first book (which begins over 100 years ago) we meet Rachael  She is a happy seven-year-old who loves her family and life in general in Hawaii.  She is especially close to her father who is often gone since he is a merchant seaman.  But he always comes back with a doll for her.  And then one day a red mark appears on her thigh.  Her mother tries different local remedies but they don't help.  She has leprosy (later known as Hansen's disease).  Taken from her family, she is sent to the quarantined settlement on the Island Moloka'i to live with others who are also afflicted.

The second book is the story of Ruth.  As was the protocol,  Ruth was taken from her mother Rachel shortly after the birth.  Adopted by a loving family, Ruth has a good life but always wonders about her mother - while Rachel grieves for the baby girl she gave up decades before.

You will be drawn in quickly to this fascinating story.

Wunderland by Jennifer Cody Epstein FIC EPS

          WWII is one of my time periods when it comes to books.  So the minute I saw the cover I knew I would love it.  And I did.
    In 1989 Ava Fisher is living  with her teen daughter in NYC.  She was born in Germany.  She never knew her father who was killed.  Her mother, Ilse, had sent Ava to an orphanage during the war for her protection.  Ava waited years for her mother to come back for her.  Their relationship has always been shaky. In fact, Ava told her daughter that Iles died a long time ago.
       And then one day she receives a package from an attorney in Germany.  It contains her mother's ashes and letters addressed to someone Ava had never know.
      That is part of the story.  The other part is the life of Iles.  She was a teen when Hitler was beginning his reign of terror.  But for Iles and her best friend Renate it seems more exciting than scary at the beginning.  But things change for Iles as she sees the awful things that happen to her friends, neighbors and town.
     These two stories were interwoven in a way that kept me engaged from page one to the last past.

The Book of Dreams by Nina George (FIC Geo)

This is kind of a hard book to describe but I'll give it a shot.

On his way to meet his 13-year-old son for the first time, Henri is struck by a car and ends up in the hospital on life support.  For the next 46 days, he is joined by his son, Sam, and his former love, Eddie (short for Edwina).  Deep in his coma, Henri relives his life, sometimes confronting reality and other times not. 

Meanwhile, Sam becomes attached to Madelyn, the only surviving member of her family who is in the same hospital wing as Henri.  Sam is a synesthete, someone who sees voices and words as colors, and he can see and sense both what Henri is feeling as well as what Madelyn thinks and feels.

Eddie finds herself in the position of holding Henri's medical power of attorney.  As she sits by his bedside, she remembers their relationship (it is her version that we ultimately believe) and mourns its passing even years after it ended.

And then there are the doctors and nurses who treat both of these patients as well as others on the floor.  It is through them that Sam and Eddie (and the reader) come to better understand comas and how they work.  And also through them that we understand that sometimes science doesn't hold all the answers.

I really liked this book. I liked the way the author
blends both the real world and the dream world.  It is a little sad but ultimately uplifting and reassuring.   Reading this book was time well-spent and I mourned its ending just a little bit.

The Guest Book by Sarah Blake (FIC Bla)

The story of three generations told back and forth in time.

In 1936 and a year after the sudden and tragic death of their oldest son, Kitty and Ogden Milton buy an island off the coast of Maine with a house on it.  They return, with their children, to the Island year after year.  It becomes the anchor for their family and friends.

In 1959, their youngest daughter, Evelyn, is about to be married.  Their oldest daughter, Joan, meets and falls in love with a man not of their "kind" (meaning East coast white upper class privilege).  He is, in fact, Jewish, and his best friend is African American.  And their oldest son, Moss, is struggling to find his way.  All of these people end up on the Island to celebrate Evelyn's impending marriage and nothing is the same after.

In 2019, Evie, Joan's only child, mourns the passing of her mother.  Suddenly she is confronted by all she doesn't know about not only her mother's past but, in many ways, her own.  And now she and her five cousins must decide whether they can afford to keep the Island or if they must sell it.

I liked this book almost in spite of itself.  The tone is moody and contemplative and thoughtful.  There were times when I wanted to shout at the characters and tell them to just get over themselves and move on.  There's a lot of talk about what makes "us", well, "us".  I realized in reading this that in many ways our society has not moved on from long held prejudices but that, in the end, there is hope.  I'm curious now about the author's other books.

The Only Woman in the Room by Marie Benedict FIC Ben

      An historical novel on the life of Hollywood star Hedy Lamarr.   I remember seeing her in movies (decades ago!) and I am certain I knew that she was from Europe,  This book will take you into Hedy's life from the decade leading up to WWII through the war.
     When the novel begins Hedy is living a good life.  She lives with her parents (her father was her idol but the relationship with her mother was much more complicated) but is also doing well as an actress.  She catches the eye of a rich and influential man named Friedrich Mandl who begins to send her beautiful flowers. Then he corresponds with her parents asking for permission to come introduce himself and to take out their daughter.
    Hedy's father was very well versed in the dangerous politics of the time.  He felt it would be ill-advised to turn Friedrich away.  It leads to a hellish marriage.
      Later Hedy will end up in Hollywood.  The war is still raging.  It was time for Hedy to use her knowledge to try and help her new country put an end to the war that was tearing apart her beloved Austria .  An interesting read.

My Lovely Wife by Samantha Downing FIC DOW

     I always like a psychological thriller and this was no exception.  The plot is exceptional.
      The story begins in a bar.  A man begins to flirt with a woman by pushing his phone toward her to introduce himself - Tobias, and he is deaf.  With his ability to read lips they begin a flirty conversation.
     In reality "Tobias" is an alias and he isn't deaf.  He is looking for a mark.  He is in fact a father and a husband who is wildly in love with Millicent, his wife.  "Tobias" is the narrator of the story and we never do learn his name.
     Throughout the book we learn more about the background of these two people and why killing women is the thing that spices up their marriage.  In the meantime they live their lives as if they are your normal couple.
     It's different and I enjoyed it!

The Favorite Daughter by Kaira Rouda FIC ROU

    Mommy Dearest - yes that is Jane.  A narcissist on steroids (or wine in this case). She was living the good life - husband, David, and her daughters in a beautiful home on the coast.  Jane has plenty of time to be the helicopter mother that is the bane of any child.
     Then a year ago her daughter Mary, home from college, disappears over a cliff and her body is recovered a few days later. Jane spends the past year trying to block out everything. She spends most of her time hiding in her bedroom- mentally and emotionally checked out.
    The book begins on the one year anniversary and she decides she is ready to join life again.  But she isn't really capable of doing that .  David is spending more time than ever at work.  Daughter Betsy is finishing up her senior year of high school and tries to avoid her mother as much as possible.
      One day Jane receives an anonymous note saying that Mary's death was not an accident.  Time for Jane to turn to her detective skills.
The story is told in Jane's voice and it is a wild ride.

Outer Calm Inner Calm by Gretchen Rubin 648.5 Rub

       
    After reading organizing and decluttering books for decades I feel that I'm finally in a good place.  However, it never hurts to get a new injection of enthusiasm and this book hit the spot. It is not a long book.  There are lots of 'try this' and 'try that' in the book and some hit home for me.
      Early in my quest I thought organizing my stuff was the answer to find inner calm.  Now I have no doubt that for me it is a matter of getting rid of stuff.  That is what helps me feel more calm!  
    If you are interested in this subject I would recommend that you spend a couple of hours reading this book,

The First Mistakes by Sandie Jones FIC Jon

     Alice is a mother and a very talented interior designer.  Her business was started with Tom, her first husband.  She was devastated by his death and had a hard time coping.  Then she met Nathan.  He bonded with her daughter and won Alice's heart.  They marry and he becomes a partner in the business that is doing very well.
      And then Nathan begins behaving strangely.  Like most women Alice confides in her best friend Beth about her worries.  Beth was abandoned by her daughter's father years ago so she understands Alice's concerns.
     There are many things that convince Alice there is an affair going on even though Nathan insists he isn't.
     This is a story that had me trying to figure out the truth but it wasn't the usual domestic psychological thriller!   Loved it.

Things You Save in a Fire by Katherine Center FIC CEN

   Cassie Hanwell is a successful firefighter but she is still scarred by her 16th birthday.  On that day her mother left her and her father for another man.  She has never been able to forgive her.
Cassie is happy at her firehouse in Texas and the people she works with.  Out of the blue her mother reaches out to her asking her to move to Boston and help her out for a couple of years due to a medical issue.
      An incident in Texas makes Cassie say yes to her mother and she moves to a new state and a new firehouse.  But this firehouse is quite different and she is not well-received.  Living with her mother is more than difficult.  At work she is tasked with mentoring a rookie who happens to be very hot!  But rule number one is to never date a firefighter.
      I liked the characters and the way the author brought in the past of her life and her mother's,

The Mother-in-Law by Sally Hepworth by Sally Hepworth FIC Hep

     Mother-in-law books will never go out of style!  In this novel Lucy is the DIL who struggles with her relationship to her MIL, Diana.  Lucy is never able to have the bond she wanted with her.  Diana was polite but never warm - at least with Lucy.  Yet Diana was well-respected in the community.  After all she spent her time helping female refugees become a part of the community.  Her deceased husband, Tom, had left her well off.
       Five years into Lucy's marriage Diana is found dead.  According to a suicide note she had cancer and didn't want to go through it.  Seemed like a likely reasons for suicide - except the autopsy makes it clear that there was no cancer.  But there was some poison and signs of suffocation.
    It is also discovered that Diana recently changed her will and left no money to her two adult children or their spouses.  There are some things that will have to be explained!
      I loved the book.

The Unwinding of the Miracle: A Memoir of Life, Death and Everything That Comes After by Julie Yip-Williams (available from Bridges)

A miracle?  I think when you finish this book you will truly
understand how many miracles there were in the life of Julie
Yip-Williams.  Her parents were refugees who fled from China
to Vietnam where Julie was born- blind.  She narrowly escaped being euthanized at the request of some of her family.  In the 1970's her family escaped the chaos of Vietnam by boat.  They went to Hong Kong and eventually to the U.S.
     Julie was given the gift of partial sight by a surgeon at UCLA. Unbelievably she goes to Harvard and earns a law degree.  She gets married and they have two daughters.  When she was 37 when she found out that she had colon cancer which was already metastatic .
      There is no part of her journey from birth to death that won't leave you in awe.

The Little Book of Hygge Danish Secrets to Happy Living 648.5 WIK

        I am constantly in a state of anxiety because of what is going on these days.  This seemed liked the perfect book to provide some escapism.  And it was.
      If you ever see any articles or polls on the happiest places on earth (excluding Disneyland of course!), Denmark is always leading the pack.  So what is their secret?  Part of it is Hygge.  I don't think there is an equivalent word in English that can properly translate it but here is one explanation: "Hygge is a sense of comfort, togetherness, and well-being.  It is about an atmosphere and an experience.  A feeling of home.  A feeling that we are safe."  Sounds great doesn't it?
       Part of it is physical - bringing plants into your home, paying a lot of attention to the lighting in your home, using lots of candles, having a simple approach to home decor.
       Part of it is social - spending a lot of time with family and friends, leaving work at a reasonable time so that you have that time with people.
  

      Even if you only a find a couple of take-aways from the book, I think it is worth your time to read it!

The Girl He Used to Know by Tracey Garvis Graves (FIC Gra)

Jonathan and Annika (rhymes with "Monica") meet as seniors in college when he joins the university chess club.  Annika has difficulty relating to other people but Jonathan is completely different.  In fact, each feels immediately comfortable with the other.  Over the course of that year, their relationship grows.  Until something happens that tears them apart.

Now, ten years later, they run into each other again while standing in line at the grocery store.  Can they move on from their past and rebuild their relationship?  And survive the threat that current events present?

This is a sweet novel.  The author (from the Des Moines area) draws her characters well.  The story moves back and forth in time and is told from the point of view of both Jonathan and Annika.  I really had a lot of sympathy for Annika and, I must admit, a bit of a crush on Jonathan.  This is the first book I've read by Graves and I think I'm going to add her to my author list.

The Enlightenment of Bees by Rachel Linden (FIC Hol)

At 26, Mia has her whole life planned out - her boyfriend of six years will propose to her, they will live in a Craftsman cottage in Seattle, and she will continue baking at the job she loves.  But then, suddenly, that boyfriend can't bring himself to propose to her and tells her instead that he "needs a break" and he doesn't think they "work together" anymore.

Mia finds herself having to create an alternate life than the one she planned.  Mother Teresa was a childhood hero and she herself would like to become Saint Mia.  But baking is all she really likes to do and that just doesn't seem like enough.  So on a whim, she joins her roommate on  a humanitarian trip around the world, hoping to figure out what it is she's meant to do while she's gone.  They visit Mumbai and then are called to the Hungarian border to help with the refugee crisis there.  Will she ever be able to figure out what she is called to do?

This was a good, quick read.  (Which seems to be what I've been reading lately!)  But it isn't necessarily a light-hearted book.  We visit the slums of Mumbai with Mia and her teammates and see and feel their frustration at how little they can do.  And that frustration is only strengthened when they have to deal with the hordes of people trying to escape such difficult lives that living as a refugee is better than what they left.

The romance may be a bit too obvious but the characters are likable and worth rooting for.  I enjoyed it a lot.

P.S.  This book is NOT about honeybees in the obvious way.  You won't learn anything about how bees produce honey but you MIGHT learn something about how bees can guide you on your path.