Five star reads {September book reviews}

I have read or listened to fourteen books since my last review post on June 18th. As usual, I gave most of them three out of five stars, which is my rating for a good book. Five books, however, rated four or five stars. I’m stingy with my four and five star ratings, so take note! Two novels are slated for publication this fall, so get on the library reserve list now.

The links to these books are affiliate links, so if you click and buy through Amazon, I’ll earn a few cents to feed my Audible habit.

The Warmth of Other Suns – The Epic Story of America’s Great Migration by Isabel Wilkerson (audio)

I came across this book as I was browsing through Audible, and I knew I had to listen. I am ashamed to admit I knew nothing of the Great Migration; how did I not know that almost six million black Americans migrated from the South between 1915 and 1970? Why is this epic event in our history not a significant topic in our history lessons? (That’s a rhetorical question; I know why, and that is why I listened to this book.)

Wilkerson gives the reader statistics and historical frames of reference, but she weaves them into the stories of three unique people who left the South between 1937 and 1953. Ida Mae Gladney was a sharecropper who headed to Chicago, George Starling fled Florida for Harlem, and Robert Foster pursued a medical career in California. Each life story could be its own book, but together they add a depth and breadth to an astounding and fascinating piece of nonfiction.

You’ll Grow Out of It by Jessi Klein (audio)

This book made me laugh out loud. Jessi Klein is the head writer for Inside Amy Schumer, and she is funny. She is also introspective and astute and completely, utterly normal. She writes about everything – her tomboy childhood, her dating life, her quest for the perfect wedding dress. Each essay is honest and real, and I could relate to much of it even though I’m not a comedy writer living in New York City.

I highly recommend listening to this book; Klein narrates it and her delivery is perfection. I’m sure the book is equally great, but I enjoy laughing out loud while walking my dog, and making all the neighbors look at me like I’m a little off.

Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi

Effia and Esi are half-sisters born into different villages in eighteenth-century Ghana. Effia marries an Englishman while her sister is captured and sold into slavery. Homegoing follows the descendants of each sister; one family in Africa and one in America.

The chapters alternate between a descendent of Effia and a descendent of Esi, and a handy family tree makes it easy to keep each branch’s legacy in mind as the reader moves through time. Each chapter is a mini-novel, often stark in prose and emotionally raw.

Both the story and the images Gyasi creates with her thoughtfully chosen words affected me deeply. It is a book you won’t soon forget, and one that you will want to share with a fellow reader. 

Small Great Things by Jodi Picoult

I received an Advanced Reader Copy from NetGalley; this novel is set for publication on October 11, 2016.

I knew this was going to be a tough novel to read, and there were certainly parts that made me uncomfortable. But it was also a complex, thoughtful exploration of race and privilege.

Ruth is a labor and delivery nurse; Turk is a white supremacist. When Turk’s wife delivers their baby, he demands that Ruth not touch their son. The baby goes into cardiac arrest when Ruth is alone in the nursery, and she hesitates before acting. 

When Ruth is charged with a serious crime, white public defender Kennedy McQuarrie takes her case. The novel follows all three individuals as the trial begins, and the alternating narration allows Picoult to present multiple perspectives. While I found the handling of Turk’s story a bit forced, the book is an intriguing and real examination of what it means to be white and black in this country. It would make for excellent book club discussion, although I think the discussions should go beyond a small gathering of women.

This is my only four star rating, but it’s still a great read.

Faithful by Alice Hoffman

I received an Advanced Reader Copy from NetGalley; this novel is set for publication on November 1, 2016.

I loved this novel, and I’m not sure why. It was well-written and compelling, but it was not earth-shattering. It is the quiet, brooding story of a young woman who has no idea where she fits into this world.

Shelby is seventeen when she and her best friend are in a car accident. Shelby walks away, and her friend is left in a vegetative state. How does Shelby go on living a normal life? She doesn’t, and the reader walks beside her through the next decade as she struggles to make sense of who she is and why she is still here.

Shelby is odd, quirky, and damaged. I fell in love with her, despite these traits. Or maybe because of them. I can’t really articulate why I loved this book, I just did. It was one of those rare books that made me sigh when I came to the end – a sigh of contentment for time well-spent on an excellent read.

Which books sounds most interesting to you? What are you reading?