An Autumn Edit
October 6, 2023
Autumnal greetings! It’s a big book season and there are soooo many new titles to consider. I narrowed down a lengthy list to the following six for a podcast chat with Amy Mair, host of Red Fern Book Review. If you’re familiar with our past posts and discussions, you’ll know the drill. If not, read here and hear there! Tune in to our conversation at redfernbookreview.com
The Leftover Woman by Jean Kwok
Previous novels by Jean Kwok include Searching for Sylvie Lee and Girl in Translation. Each of these, along with this new novel, feature elements of the immigrant experience and are written with remarkable emotional depth. I guarantee you will remember scenes from her books for years to come. In a good way! The Leftover Woman, releasing on October 10, 2023, is a family drama featuring two mothers of an adopted daughter. The birth mother was forced to surrender her child due to China’s One Child policy while the adoptive mother has raised the child in her extraordinarily privileged New York City environment. When the birth mother bravely makes her way from China with little to no means of support, leaving a controlling husband behind, she is on a collision course with the adoptive mother who is enmired within crises of her own. Words like “atmospheric” and “profound” and “suspenseful” describe the mystery that unfolds. Jean Kwok moved to Brooklyn, NY as a young immigrant herself and went on to study at Harvard and Columbia universities.
The Class – Memoir of a Place, a Time and Us by Ken Dryden
Ken Dryden is a name familiar to most Canadians; he is in the history books both for his Stanley Cup successes in goal for the Montreal Canadiens and for his time in politics as an MP and Cabinet Minister. He has also written hockey history books: The Game, Home Game and four others. As a young student, he joined a cohort of 35 in a “Selected Class” who remained very closely together throughout their studies. It was the post-war era and a time considered to be of “boundless possibilities” There was little contact among the students following graduation and Dryden takes us along as he connects with his former classmates and discovers what those possibilities turned into. A great glimpse into a period of history and a reflection on the different opportunities and choices made by the individuals in the group. I’m really looking forward to this one.
T’is the season for a new novel from Terry Fallis! The Best Laid Plans launched his writing career and we’re all grateful he’s continued with a variety of warm and humorous tales. This particular story may have a bit more pathos within but I’m certain the funny bits will still be there too. It is the tale of a fellow, recently widowed, who has lost his emotional footing. He has a supportive gang of fellow ball hockey teammates and a loving son but it’s a bit of “gumption”, mystery, and serendipity in Paris that brings him back. “…sometimes, making a change in your life can save your life.”
So here we have a debut novel … but not a debut writer. Amy Chua is author of the wildly successful, iconic even, Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother which dominated headlines for months in 2011. But today we’re talking about her new novel which is gaining traction for its merit as an historical thriller. The scene is set at a spooky landmark setting (Berkeley’s Claremont Hotel) when a homicide detective is perchance on the scene while a Presidential Candidate is murdered upstairs on hotel premises. As our officer digs into this crime and the political enemies around the deceased, he discovers there is a history of unfortunate events at the hotel, with ties to a privileged local family. From the publisher: “Chua’s page-turning debut brings to life a historical era rife with turbulent social forces and groundbreaking forensic advances, when race and class defined the very essence of power, sex, and justice, and introduces a fascinating character in Detective Sullivan, a mixed race former Army officer who is still reckoning with his own history.”
(Bonus) Crossings: How Road Ecology is shaping the future of our planet by Ben Goldfarb
I’ve posted before about the publishing phenomenon of synchronistic releases – two (or more) books on the same topic published very near to one another in the calendar. This latest example is focused on the topic of Road Ecology. A topic which may seem dry to some of you but fascinating when you delve a little way in. There are 40 million miles of roadways on our planet, reflecting growth and prosperity of communities. And yet, these paved ways have an enormous impact on our planet’s surface, waterways, plants, and the wildlife with whom we share it. Perhaps you’ve heard of the Tunnels of Love in Australia which allow animals to pass under the roads? Or the overpasses in the Rockies providing the same service? These explorations of an important global topic will appeal to the non-fiction readers among us but will also intrigue anyone wishing to understand more about Earth’s well-being and how we can become more mindful of development’s effect. Both of these books are rating extremely generously among reviewers.
Talking at Night by Claire Daverley
And now for romance. A debut UK author receiving great acclaim, Claire Daverley’s writing has been described as evocative of Sally Rooney’s. High praise for Sally fans. I’ve just begun the story and have to say there is a quiet tender tone to the writing that easily draws the reader in and creates space to absorb and appreciate the dialogue and characters as they reveal their stories. Will and Rosie are utter opposites in the high school pecking order and yet establish an unexpectedly deep interest and bond with one another. Tragic circumstances prevent them from being together and, as the decades pass, they come close to reuniting, again and again. However, missed opportunities abound. It’s an emotional see-saw, poignant and hopeful. “It’s the story of the many loves we have in a lifetime.” and “It’s about the people we meet who change us irrevocably and who we always carry with us.”
As always, dig in and let us know what you enjoy most. Happy reading!
Summer Reading (Nostalgia version) ’23 – part two
October 6, 2023
This long-awaited post is now named Summer Nostalgia rather than Summer Reading as our weather hints (pretty strongly) that the warm season has officially drifted off now. These choices seem to fit the mood, nevertheless. Hopefully you can enjoy with a dose of fresh sea air.
An Autumn Edit is hot on the heels of this post (feast or famine my loyal followers!) so prepare to be overwhelmed with cozy season choices.
Fellowship Point by Alice Elliott Dark
Newly in paperback, this seems like a quintessential summer mood read. Or … a cozy up in front of the fire read, while reflecting on summers past. It’s a bit heftier than most but the beautifully written pages will take you off to Coastal Maine to explore themes of friendship and legacy and love and literature. A 79 year old renowned writer of children’s books, Agnes Lee, is suffering from writer’s block at the same time that she is attempting to plan her estate by preserving a land holding at Fellowship Point where she’s spent most of the summers of her life. Her dear friend, and Fellowship Point neighbour, Polly, needs to approve of the plans but is under the influence of her adult children who have less sentimental ideas. Conflict arises between the old friends and their privileged summer community. If that wasn’t enough, Agnes has been convinced to write her memoir and the ghosts and secrets that emerge complicate matters further. This is an epic multi-generational trip with the layered stories unfolding in a majestic landscape. Extremely well-reviewed as Alice Elliott Dark is a widely respected and talented writer.
Beyond That the Sea by Laura Spence-Ash
While one family must heart-wrenchingly part ways with their 11 year old daughter in order to protect her from the German bombings on London, another family welcomes her a world away, to Boston. Young Bea will forever be influenced by her time with the Gregory family and their sons with whom she bonded over her years spent savouring idyllic summer retreats and the easy American lifestyle they enjoy. Bea returns to London and her family but carries her time with the Gregory’s deep within. “As we follow Bea over time, navigating between her two worlds, Beyond That, the Sea emerges as a beautifully written, absorbing novel, full of grace and heartache, forgiveness and understanding, loss and love.”
Here’s another story where the location is a a character unto itself. Set on a small isolated island off the rugged Newfoundland coast in the 1990s, a young boy is mourning the loss of his fisherman father. Another tragedy, this time the disappearance of a teen girl, also preoccupies his thoughts as he and his friends become insistent seekers of the truth behind the mystery. The fierce weather and landscape along with the characters seeking to make their way in a changing culture amid the failing fishing industry all play key roles in the unfolding of the tale. “Part coming-of-age story, part literary mystery, and part suspense thriller, Closer by Sea is a page-turning, poignant, and powerful novel about family, friendship, and community set at a pivotal time in modern Newfoundland history. It is an homage to a people and a place, and above all it captures that delicate and tender moment when the wonder of childhood innocence gives way to the harsh awakening of adult experience.”
The Last Life Boat by Hazel Gaynor
If you have read The Lost Book of Flora Lea by Patti Callahan Henry, this would be a good follow up or vice versa. A story of the children of WWII who were sent off for safer shores and yet, encountered tragedy and challenges despite best efforts to provide security. After their ship is torpedoed, a young teacher is alone with a group of frightened and desperate evacuee children adrift at sea, fighting for their survival. On shore, a desperate mother will do her best to aid in the rescue. The women’s lives will be forever intertwined. Also a bit reminiscent of Beyond That the Sea listed above, but a quite different take. Choose one or immerse yourself in the genre with all of them! Hazel Gaynor is renowned for her skill in bringing historical events and characters vibrantly to life with memorable and entertaining stories.
Good Night, Irene by Luis Alberto Urrea
More historical fiction, this time focused on The Red Cross and its “Donut Dollies” – the women charged with driving the Clubmobile military vehicles along the front lines in Europe during World War II. The special sisterhood of friendships forged, along with heroic endeavours, and the highs and lows of love are shared with beautiful writing by Luis Alberto Urrea who was inspired by his own Mother’s stories of her experiences as a wartime volunteer.
The Heaven & Earth Grocery Store by James McBride
The author of Deacon King Kong once again immerses his reader in a vivid neighbourhood community. The mostly Jewish immigrants and African Americans resident of Chicken Hill are enmeshed in a web of secrets, long held, behind the discovery of a skeleton during an excavation by developers. “As these characters’ stories overlap and deepen, it becomes clear how much the people who live on the margins of white, Christian America struggle and what they must do to survive. When the truth is finally revealed about what happened on Chicken Hill and the part the town’s white establishment played in it, McBride shows us that even in dark times, it is love and community—heaven and earth—that sustain us.”
