2021 Spring Reading: Fiction

“Starting with one of the best first sentences of a novel that I've ever read, Infinite Country is a moving portrait of the lengths a daughter will go to in an effort to reunite her family. Engel gives an intimate look into the challenges of a Colombian family that has been separated after emigrating to America. She also provides a unique view of what it's like to be an outsider in multiple different settings and her comparisons of the violence (and possible opportunities) in both countries are fascinating. With a very emotional ending, I highly recommend this title composed in an undoubtedly distinct voice.”

“This year is overflowing with phenomenal debuts — including this one from Abi Daré. It tells the story of Adunni, a young girl in Nigeria whose dreams and ambition focus in on one thing: education. In a city where girls like her are looked down upon and considered unworthy, she comes to find that change can begin with even the smallest of voices. This story is the kind that makes you itch: you’ll ache for Adunni, bristle at the people who treat her so unjustly, and yearn for her to succeed. This is a stunning, important, and fascinating first novel.”

“The Seed Keeper shimmers like the horizon in the summer heat—depending on how you look at it, it is a stunning historical novel, a paean to the land and the plants that people it, a prayer to Dakota women wading through generational trauma. It is all of these things, and so much more. Wilson deftly weaves together multiple voices to bring the original relationship of reciprocity between people and Earth into the present day. This is a clarion call to think about seeds as much more than commodities: Seeds are stories; seeds are possibilities; seeds are past and future generations. Powerful and compelling, The Seed Keeper will be treasured by readers who enjoy Robin Wall Kimmerer's lyricism, Barbara Kingsolver's activist bent, and Louise Erdrich's historical fiction.”

“Oona Out of Order is the mind- bending, time travelling story of a young woman, Oona Lockhart, who is turning 19 on New Years Eve, 1982, only to wake up 32 years in the future as a 19 year old in the body of her 51-year old self. Each year, Oona ages one year internally, but in her altered reality, she bounces around from age to age, not knowing what year of her life will come next. At its heart, Oona Out of Order is about the quest to fully know oneself, the enduring power of love, and the lasting bond of family.”

“This was a highly enjoyable read in that it was both romance and yet totally different than your usual romance ilk. A sweet love story unfurls in a reverse while paralleling to Grace's late coming-of-age and self realization.Grace's whole character arc was spot on, learning how to discover what she actually wants vs what her father wants, learning to center that, and then learning to take care of her mental health. I also loved the love story between Yuki and Grace. Obviously, they got off to a kind of rocky start but I loved that they got to fall in love all over again after that first night. Yuki's fascination with monsters and the unknown was so fun and I loved their lyrical characterizations of each other. York Whitaker was the perfect narrator with a voice of pure silken magic. I loved hearing Yuki's radio snippets in the audiobook format as well. I honesty did not know what to expect with this book but was generally swept away by Rogers' writing, characterizations, and LAYERS! She does so much in this book and it was all SO GOOD. Perfect for those that like a little romance with a side of self discovery and that need some LGBTQIA+ stories in their lives.”

“An amazing debut novel from Syed M. Masood. The narration brought the words to life, and I found myself playing parts of it to my coworkers because I was laughing so hard. Masood takes an engaging, insightful look into the Muslim-American community in the 90's by following two very different families in the move to the United States. It's a great look into the meaning of faith and family. ”

“We Begin at the End is dramatic storytelling at its best, full of layers of intrigue and complex personalities set around the murder of the book’s most vulnerable character. The stoical, 13-year-old Duchess Day Radley takes center stage, and her heartbreaking life unleashes a hero within: self-proclaimed outlaw, bold and courageous, though to her peril not always wise beyond her years. Chris Whitaker has created a character for the ages and an extraordinary reading experience. By turns amusing, frightening, and exhilarating.”

“This book has stuck with me in a way that I know can only be attributed to masterful storytelling. In The Vanished Birds, Earth becomes uninhabitable and humankind spreads out into space using technology that is all of our capitalist, designer-baby, smart-everything, social-media-age fears realized. But this new world is also beautifully poetic — enormous space stations have been designed to mimic specific birds but have outlived their namesakes for lifetimes. I am dizzied by this world Jimenez has created and the characters that live in it. I find myself thinking about Nia and the people in her orbit — their thoughts, their motives, their choices — and going over mistakes and minutiae as if they were my own. This is literary science fiction at its most effective and affective.”

“Once again delivering us a highly entertaining science fiction novella, Okorafor hits all the right notes with Remote Control. Okorafor weaves a very powerful and sad tale, combining the ancient feelings of folklore with a not-too-distant future (the comment about a new plague worse than the one in 2020 made me guffaw). You feel for Sankofa, who had her childhood stolen from her. While she feels powerful when she gets food and clothes easily from people, all she wants is to love and be loved and to just be a kid but even when she thinks she finds a safe place, the people slowly begin to turn against her. The public will always be scared of things they cannot explain and despite Sankofa being a child, this mysterious gift and curse that has been bestowed upon her frighten them. They want to use her when it benefits them but belittle and attack her when their feelings shift. The audiobook was brilliantly narrated by Adjoa Andoh, whose voice is so beautiful I almost listened twice. She gives such gravity to Sankofa while also making it clear that she is a child. Okorafor has mastered the novella—a quick but powerful story from end to end that often feels (in a good way) that it is is longer than it's 160 pages. It's truly a talent!”

“Upon first reading the publisher's marketing for this title my thoughts were, ‘That sounds really messed up...I want to read it.’ The events that unfold are filled with suspense, moments of horror, and bring to light the ever recurring question: What makes us human? Upon finishing this title my thoughts rang true to my expectations: ‘That was really messed up,’ but it is well worth the read.”

“Peter Swanson is one of my favorite authors. His books just keep getting better. Eight Perfect Murders is my favorite so far. It opens introducing Malcolm, who is a widower and owner of a book store in Boston. An FBI agent enters one snowy day and introduces herself as Gwen and asks him if she can speak to him for a few minutes. Gwen says that she believes a recent murder is connected to a blog that Malcolm wrote several years ago. The post details eight mystery novels that stage the perfect murder. She hasn't read many and Mal is happy to give her a few from the list. They meet the next day and discuss each book and why the particular murder is perfect. They keep in touch and in days another murder happens. There is a multitude of hair-raising twists and turns. The story is well-crafted and oh so clever. Malcolm is the sole narrator and he is positively mesmerizing. I highly recommend this page-turner. The book narrator has a crisp voice and reads with his heart and soul.No doubt about it - Eight Perfect Murders will be on my top five best books of 2020.”