Ashland Books @ Noon December 2019 Picks

Author

Notes

Someone said they just read Pachinko...and we remembered that we talked about it last month when Wendy brought Free Food for Millionaires...which is linked next.

Formats:

Book, Audiobook CD, Book - Hardback, eAudiobook, eBook, Kindle

Description

Click to view

"A new tour de force from the bestselling author of Free Food for Millionaires, for readers of The Kite Runner and Cutting for Stone. PACHINKO follows one Korean family through the generations, beginning in early 1900s Korea with Sunja, the prized daughter of a poor yet proud family, whose unplanned pregnancy threatens to shame them all. Deserted by her lover, Sunja is saved when a young tubercular minister offers to marry and bring her to Japan....

2) Miracle Creek

Author

Kim, Angie

Notes

Kristin threw out this as a title she enjoyed with courtroom drama and a family story. Pat has talked about it at a past meeting.

Formats:

Book, eAudiobook

Description

Click to view

"A literary courtroom thriller about a mother accused of murdering her eight-year-old autistic son"-- Provided by publisher. In rural Virginia, Young and Pak Yoo run an experimental medical treatment device known as the Miracle Submarine-- a pressurized oxygen chamber that patients enter for therapeutic 'dives' with the hopes of curing issues like autism or infertility. When the Miracle Submarine mysteriously explodes, killing two people, a dramatic...

3) The Huntress: A Novel

Author

Quinn, Kate

Notes

Cathy thought this was a good novel but cautioned that the main character is definitely not sympathetic at all!

Formats:

eAudiobook, eBook, Kindle

Description

Click to view

Don't miss the thrilling new novel from Kate Quinn, The Briar Club, coming July 9th!

"...compulsively readable historical fiction...[a] powerful novel about unusual women facing sometimes insurmountable odds with grace, grit, love and tenacity." - Kristin Hannah, The Washington Post

Named one of best books of the year by Marie Claire and Bookbub

"If you enjoyed "The

...

4) The library book

Author

Orlean, Susan

Series

Thorndike Press large print popular and narrative nonfiction

Notes

Jane is now a Library Book convert...this is one of those titles that has come up time and again within the group to much acclaim...I think that a group of folks who meet monthly at the library to talk about the books they've read is probably the exact target market for this book!

Formats:

Book, Audiobook CD, Book - Hardback, eAudiobook, eBook, Kindle, Large Print - Hardback

Description

Click to view

"On the morning of April 28, 1986, a fire alarm sounded in the Los Angeles Public Library. As the moments passed, the patrons and staff who had been cleared out of the building realized this was not the usual false alarm. As one fireman recounted later, "Once that first stack got going, it was 'Goodbye, Charlie." The fire was disastrous: it reached 2000 degrees and burned for more than seven hours. By the time it was extinguished, it had consumed...

5) The whisper man

Author

North, Alex

Notes

Kristin recently finished this titles...which is one of those "is it a mystery or is it horror" titles that can be a lot of fun to figure out.

Formats:

Book, Audiobook CD, eAudiobook, Large Print - Hardback

Description

Click to view

"In this dark, suspenseful thriller, Alex North weaves a multi-generational tale of a father and son caught in the crosshairs of an investigation to catch a serial killer preying on a small town. After the sudden death of his wife, Tom Kennedy believes a fresh start will help him and his young son Jake heal. A new beginning, a new house, a new town. Featherbank. But the town has a dark past. Twenty years ago, a serial killer abducted and murdered...

6) The Best American short stories

Series

Best American short stories

Notes

This is the record for the 2018 Best American Short Stories...but Claudia talked to us about the 2019 volume. We do not seem to have that one yet. Stay tuned.

7) And the stars gave us names: poems

Notes

Carolyn met a local poet at the book store and read her poetry as a result. This is the book she discussed and, yes, we do have it in our collection!

8) science fiction hall of fame volume two b the grea

This entry no longer exists in the catalog

9) The Science fiction hall of fame

Notes

Bill has been re-reading early science fiction and he discovered this volume (and the one linked next). The first is short stories and the second volume is novellas. He particularly singled out Flowers for Algernon and Nine Billion Names for God as stories worth checking out.

10) This tender land

Author

Krueger, William Kent

Series

Thorndike Press large print basic

Notes

Cathy said this was "about the Depression but was not depressing" and described it as "Water for Elephants meets Huckleberry Finn."

Formats:

Book, Audiobook CD, eAudiobook, eBook, Kindle, Large Print - Hardback

Description

Click to view

"1932, Minnesota--the Lincoln School is a pitiless place where hundreds of Native American children, forcibly separated from their parents, are sent to be educated. It is also home to an orphan named Odie O'Banion, a lively boy whose exploits earn him the superintendent's wrath. Forced to flee, he and his brother Albert, their best friend Mose, and a brokenhearted little girl named Emmy steal away in a canoe, heading for the mighty Mississippi and...

11) The guest book

Author

Blake, Sarah

Series

Thorndike Press large print core

Notes

The real book Jane brought to talk about was this one. While it was a good book, my notes remind me that Jane talked about the WASP-y characters and the amount of privilege the family at the center of the novel experienced...including their refusal to welcome those with marginalized identities into their family.

Formats:

Book, Audiobook CD, eAudiobook, Large Print - Hardback

Description

Click to view

"A novel about past mistakes and betrayals that ripple throughout generations, The Guest Book examines not just a privileged American family, but a privileged America. It is a literary triumph. The Guest Book follows three generations of a powerful American family, a family that 'used to run the world.' And when the novel begins in 1935, they still do. Kitty and Ogden Milton appear to have everything--perfect children, good looks, a love everyone...

12) cold mountain

This entry no longer exists in the catalog

13) Cold mountain

Author

Frazier, Charles

Notes

Our newest member, Kathy, brought Cold Mountain...which she declared to be better than the movie and reminiscent of The Odyssey. I've linked the movie in case you want to decide for yourself which was better! I have reminded myself that I do need to go back and read it...I'm embarrassed to admit that I've only seen the movie.

Formats:

Book, Book - Paperback, eAudiobook, eBook, Kindle

Description

Click to view

Inman, a young Confederate soldier, who is injured during the explosive 1864 battle of Petersburg, Virginia, is struggling to make his way home to Cold Mountain, NC, where his beloved Ada awaits him. In Inman's absence, Ada befriends Ruby, who helps her keep up her late father's farm. Meanwhile, in his travels, Inman encounters a menagerie of interesting and colorful characters.

14) Girl, woman, other

Author

Evaristo, Bernardine

Notes

Kristin mentioned that The Testaments shared the Booker Prize this year with this title. Awarding 2 Booker prizes in a year is highly unusual, and also has received some blow-back. There is an article below about this issue.

Formats:

Audiobook CD, Book - Paperback, eAudiobook, eBook, Kindle

Description

Click to view

"Girl, Woman, Other is a celebration of the diversity of Black British experience. Moving, hopeful, and inventive, this extraordinary novel is a vivid portrait of the state of contemporary Britain and the legacy of Britain's colonial history in Africa and the Caribbean. The twelve central characters of this multi-voiced novel lead vastly different lives: Amma is a newly acclaimed playwright whose work often explores her black lesbian identity; her...

15) The Handmaid's Tale

Author

Atwood, Margaret

Series

Handmaid's tale volume 1

Notes

Here is the introduction of the world in which the Testaments is set. If you haven't read it yet, you should.

Formats:

Book, Audiobook CD, Book - Paperback, eAudiobook, eBook, Kindle

Description

Click to view

Now a Hulu series starring Elizabeth Moss. The Handmaid's Tale is an instant classic and eerily prescient cultural phenomenon, from "the patron saint of feminist dystopian fiction" (New York Times)

The Handmaid's Tale is a novel of such power that the reader will be unable to forget its images and its forecast. Set in the near future, it describes life in what was once the United States and is now called the Republic of Gilead,

...

16) Salt to the sea: a novel

Author

Sepetys, Ruta

Notes

Kristin mentioned that this is the book that made Sepetys a "must read" author for her.

Formats:

Book, Audiobook CD, eAudiobook, eBook, Kindle

Description

Click to view

Winter, 1945. Four teenagers. Four secrets. Each one born of a different homeland; each one hunted, and haunted, by tragedy, lies... and war. As thousands of desperate refugees flock to the coast in the midst of a Soviet advance, four paths converge, vying for passage aboard the Wilhelm Gustloff, a ship that promises safety and freedom. Yet not all promises can be kept.

17) The fountains of silence: a novel

Author

Sepetys, Ruta

Notes

Kristin came with cross over teen fiction today. This book gave her an opportunity to learn about Francoist Spain. Previously if asked about this period in Spanish history, she probably would have said something vague about bull fighting and Hemingway, which is clearly not a very well-formed understanding of the period. Through storytelling, Sepetys does an excellent job of illustrating the complexities of this unique region and period. Sepetys is really good at setting!

Formats:

Audiobook CD, Book - Hardback, Book - Paperback, eAudiobook, eBook, Kindle

Description

Click to view

At the Castellana Hilton in 1957 Madrid, eighteen-year-old Daniel Matheson connects with Ana Moreno through photography and fate as Daniel discovers the incredibly dark side of the city under Generalissimo Franco's rule.

18) 92

This entry no longer exists in the catalog

19) The station master's wife: a novel

Author

DeMarinis, S.K

Notes

Carolyn read this book by a local author and really enjoyed the setting and the drama. This led to a conversation about the upcoming library Local Author Fair, which will be 12/8/19. I've linked details below...please join us. Yes, Ms. DeMarinis will be there!

Formats:

Book, Book - Paperback

Description

Click to view

"1887, Ashland Oregon" - Alice's family story reveals secret passions, the grit of a single mother, and betrayals by men. Set amoung true historical events that span half a century.

We are aware of issues with patron notices, including holds pick-up, not being received. Please check your library account online or the JCLS app to view account updates. We apologize for the inconvenience and appreciate your patience as this issue is being addressed.

Navigation

Ashland Books @ Noon December 2019 Picks