Well-Read: 7 Hot Books for Summer
Tuesday, July 26, 2011
Having started off the summer with lofty reading goals, I’m doing a respectable job getting to the ones at the top of my list. As the summer continues along I inevitably add titles, making the list impossible to complete, but that’s half the fun! With the extreme temperatures that we’ve been having, staying inside with a great book has been the perfect activity! Here are a bunch of novels that I’ve recently read—and loved! As a bonus, all of these books will make for lively book club discussions!
Then Came You – Jennifer Weiner
I was first introduced to Jen’s writing almost ten years ago with her first novel, Good in Bed. I have been a fan ever since, having read all nine of her novels. She has been a guest on Reading With Robin many times and is always a fan-favorite. The latest Weiner release, Then Came You, is about four women and the baby they all share. Told in the voices of Annie, India, Bettina and Jules, and with the sharp, witty language we’ve come to expect in a Weiner novel, this heartfelt story left me cheering for the strong friendships at the novel’s core and is my favorite Weiner book to date.
Silver Girl – Elin Hilderbrand
Nothing says summer like an Elin Hilderbrand novel and her beloved home, Nantucket.
GET THE LATEST BREAKING NEWS HERE -- SIGN UP FOR GOLOCAL FREE DAILY EBLASTThis ‘ripped from the headlines’ tale tells the story of a woman left behind after her powerful investor husband cheated rich investors out of billions of dollars and is hauled off to jail. Meredith Martin Delinn has lost everything and when she needs a place to regroup, she winds up calling the only true friend she has ever had, Connie. The nighttime pick-up is furtive and the conversation sparse as Meredith is told to “get in the car and we’ll talk about this at the house.” The friends have not spoken in years and we learn what has happened between them as the story takes us back and forth from their teen years to the present. The themes of friendship, second chances, love and what’s really important are woven through this page-turner that includes lots of fun local island references.
State of Wonder – Anne Patchett
The book blogs have been buzzing, the glowing reviews pouring in, and after reading Patchett’s latest, I must concur with the lavish praise heaped upon State of Wonder. This is one of those treats of a novel that I have been telling everyone about. Wonder is an exotic journey into the jungles of the Amazon as Dr. Marina Singh is on a mission to find out what happened to her friend and colleague, Anders Eckman, when a brief and belated letter is received announcing his death. Singh is sent into unfamiliar territory where she must face not only the demons lurking in the trees, but also her former teacher, the reclusive and elusive Dr. Annick Swenson who has been doing research on a possible miracle fertility drug. This is an unforgettable story about the power of love and the lengths we must go to find out the truth.
Best Kept Secret – Amy Hatvany
A mother’s love is at the heart of this novel that grabbed me with its opening sentence: “Her drinking snuck up on her – as a way to sleep…to relieve some of the stress of the painful divorce… .”
Cadence knows that she is drinking too much and each morning she promises herself that she’ll stop. As pervasive as it is, addiction is still one of those hushed topics, a secret. Those who love Cadence have certainly witnessed the warning signs of her illness but as often happens, these well-drawn and flawed characters live in denial. The custody of her son is at stake as her ex-husband learns of her (not so) best kept secret. This haunting tale incorporates the gray areas which we inhabit, and preserves the hope of another chance.
The Arrivals – Meg Mitchell Moore
Who says you can’t go home? Not the three adult characters in this compulsively readable debut novel.
The summer is just beginning for Ginny and William, empty nesters in Vermont, when one by one their three adult children return. The relationships between the siblings are notable as the perceptions they have of each other play out in entertaining dialog. Secrets are revealed as the elders attempt to determine what exactly is going on with their kids and how much help they should offer them. Observing how the “children” revert to their younger selves and how much of this their parents are willing to put up with makes The Arrivals an emotion-filled journey back home.
Bossypants – Tina Fey
This book is pure Fey - fun! Brilliant writing from one of the most well-respected writers today. From Tina’s beginnings as a child who needed to perform to her stint at Second City in Chicago and her gig as the first female head writer on Saturday Night Live, you will laugh aloud with everything from her storytelling to the hilarious quotes on the back of the book. Fey has a girl-next-door likeable quality that makes you root for her though this award-winning writer, comic, and actress needs no help from her audience. I enjoyed reading about the wisdom imparted to Tina by her mentor, Lorne Michaels, and the opportunities made available to her by that relationship. Don’t miss this book!
Game of Secrets – Dawn Tripp
There are lots of secrets in the books on this list and Game of Secrets, as the name suggests, is no exception. The story takes us to 1957 when Jane Weld was eleven years old and her father—not the most upstanding guy—disappears. Three years later his skull appears which sets off a mystery; this mystery unravels at the same time Jane’s daughter, Marne, has taken up with the son of the woman with whom Jane’s father had been involved. Love a good mystery? You’ll love Game of Secrets, as you watch the Scrabble game that plays out between the two women of the families in conflict.
Plus: Come meet Dawn this Thursday, July 28, at Books on the Square in Providence, 7pm! Reading and signing to follow.
On to a whole new pile of books starting with The Butterfly’s Daughter by Mary Alice Monroe, which is already looking like a winner!
Reading enthusiast and all around "book-pusher" Robin Kall can be heard live Saturday mornings from 7-8am on Reading With Robin WHJJ 920AM. This week, authors Ann Hood (The Red Thread) and Joan Nathan (Quiches, Kugels and Couscous: My Search for Jewish Cooking in France) will be her guests. Also streaming live at www.920whjj.com. Follow on Twitter @robinkall, and Facebook - Reading With Robin.
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