Every day is reading day {Winter book reviews}

It’s National Read Across America Day, but every day is reading day for me. I usually read a ton in the winter, because the days are short and cold. This year, the days are short, cold, AND boring, so my reading game is on point! An electric blanket, a candle, and a book has seen me through many a late afternoon or evening as I dream about spring, and (im)patiently wait my turn for the vaccine.

Since the start of 2021, I’ve read fifteen and listened to four books. Five were four stars (really good for me), and five of my three stars are also worth recommending.

My favorites:

The Grace Year by Kim Liggett

This intense, thrilling novel was a terrific read that was impossible to put down. In Garner County (where that is, or when that is, is left to the reader’s imagination), women are property, and girls on the cusp of womanhood hold dangerous magic. As a group, all girls are banished for their sixteen year, in order to expel the “magic” and come home purified and ready for marriage. 

Gross and disturbing, right? It’s a fascinating premise, and it’s played out magnificently. I declared it as my favorite read of 2021 after reading only three books, but I suspect it will remain in my top ten.

Chaos Walking trilogy by Patrick Ness

I decided to read these YA books after learning the first one is being adapted into a movie this year. Written between 2008 and 2010, the trilogy is fast-paced. addictively thrilling, and thought-provoking. I devoured all three in less than a week.  Granted, it was January during a pandemic, but still.

Set on a new planet settled by humans, the books follow Todd, the last male child in an all-male world. On this New World, thoughts are broadcast for anyone to hear. It’s called Noise, and animals have it too. Women did not have Noise, but they have been wiped out for some mysterious reason. As Todd becomes a man, he learns not all is as it appears in the New World, because he stumbles upon a girl with no Noise.

Now that I’ve read the books, I’m doubtful about the movie. The leads are both a decade older than they should be, and how will Noise translate to the big screen? It’s written in all caps in the books, but hearing people speak in their heads may be weird to watch. Regardless, I’m glad I read the books; they were a great diversion during the January doldrums.

The Seven or Eight Deaths of Stella Fortuna by Juliet Grames (audio)

The deaths aren’t really deaths, but Stella’s near brushes with death serve as the backbone on which to build this epic family saga. From her parents’ marriage in Italy to the family’s immigration to America and beyond, this novel spans over a century and has a cast of characters worthy of the large Italian family to which they belong. 

Stella is the admirable, exasperating, tragic, heroic, and all too human center of this family saga. She drove me crazy at times, but I enjoyed every minute of listening to her story. It’s a hefty read but a worthwhile one, and the audio version was fantastic.

Girl One by Sara Flannery Murphy

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC of this book. Expected publication date: June 1, 2021

Josephine is Girl One, the first of nine babies born to mothers alone – as in no sperm or male DNA involved. The community scatters until years later, Josephine’s mother disappears. There seems to be someone after the Girls and their mothers, and Josephine embarks on a search to find her “sisters” and fight back.

The description of this novel sounded intriguing, but the book exceeded my expectations. The premise of parthenogenesis (asexual reproduction) in humans is the starting point, but the author takes the concept of conception and births without male involvement and runs with it. This is a thrilling tale of self-discovery and female empowerment, and a subtler exploration of how men have subjugated women in terms of sexuality and reproduction for centuries. A little sci-fi, a lot thriller/mystery, this novel was a page turner!

Finding Freedom : A Cook’s Story; Remaking a Life from Scratch by Erin French

Thank you to Bookish First for an ARC of this book. Expected publication date: April 6, 2021

Erin French is the creator of The Lost Kitchen, a small dining destination in Maine. I don’t think I would have read this memoir if I hadn’t won it, and that would have been my loss. I do not read food memoirs, and I had never heard of The Lost Kitchen, but Erin’s story of resilience, struggle, and self-discovery was an unexpectedly wonderful read for me. Her writing is simple but strong, her honesty is admirable, and her accomplishments are pretty incredible. 

There’s that – an inspiring story in itself. But her descriptions of the food she so lovingly gathers and transforms are mouth-watering. I so appreciated that her culinary knowledge developed as she grew up, and as she taught herself through trial, error, and work. I have missed dining in restaurants this past year, but never as much as when I read Erin’s description of her lovely dining room and the food she serves her guests. I may even enter the reservation raffle when it reopens, and head to Maine if I win a seat at The Lost Kitchen.

Also worth reading:

White Ivy by Susie Yang

We meet Ivy Lin as a young girl, and she is already shoplifting with her grandmother. A daughter of Chinese immigrants, she strives desperately to fit in, social climbing with questionable ethics and misplaced priorities. When she runs into her teenage crush a decade later, she infiltrates his white-bred family in a Talented Mr. Ripley kind of way.

This novel took a bit to get into, but a day after finishing it, I liked it even more in retrospect. It is always interesting to read a novel where the main character, or actually, most of the characters, are deeply flawed and fairly unlikable. It takes a bit of time for the complete reading experience to settle into my psyche. With some surprise twists and intriguing commentary on social class and race, White Ivy ended up being a mediocre turned terrific read for me. Great book club material, too!

Memorial by Bryan Washington

Mike and Ben are a 20-something couple whose four year relationship is tolling its death knell. When Mike gets word that his estranged father is dying, he flies to Japan to be with him. The catch: his mother has just arrived from Japan to spend time with her son, but ends up alone in the house with Ben.

Told alternately from Ben’s, then Mike’s, then Ben’s point of view, Memorial is a layered exploration of relationships and family.  It is a quiet, powerful book, where the space between the words is where the meaning is.

The Book of Unknown Americans by Cristina Henríquez (audio)

What a poignant novel of family, young love, and hope for a better future. The Rivera family move to Delaware  to enroll their daughter Maribel in a special education school after she suffers a traumatic brain injury. They are welcomed by neighbors in their apartment building, other immigrants with stories of their own.

These are the unknown Americans – the people who just want to live their lives in peace and security. Written in 2014, this novel rings even more true six years later.  Now, these Americans are not unknown, but reviled and hated simply because they weren’t born here or their skin is brown. This is both a life-affirming and heartbreaking read. The audio version is excellent, with a different narrator reading for each character whose perspective we hear.

The Mystery of Mrs. Christie by Marie Benedict

True: In December 1926, Agatha Christie disappeared from her home. She resurfaced ten days later, claiming no memory of where she had been. In 1928, she divorced her husband Archie, who then married the woman he had been seeing since before Agatha’s disappearance. 

This novel imagines what really happened during those ten days. It moves back and forth between the story of Agatha and Archie’s relationship and the present day police investigation. The plot is entertaining and fast-paced, and a perfect read for the cooped up days of winter. 

The Indigo Girl by Natasha Boyd

In 1739, sixteen year old Eliza Lucas is left in charge of her family’s South Carolina plantation when her father pursues a political career in the Caribbean. Determined to grow indigo, Eliza faces challenges from all sides, including uprisings from enslaved people, men who want to control her, and a mother who wants her to fail. Based in part on Eliza’s actual correspondence, this is a fictionalized account of an extraordinary woman lost to history.

I hope you’ve found something that interests you, and that you make every day a reading day. If you’ve read a great book this year, I’d love to hear about it!