The author, having recently lost her son to suicide, transcends all the ordinary rules of grieving and constructs a timeless world in which she can speak with her son again. Their imagined conversations are so honest, yearning and specific that you feel as if they are in fact sitting in a room together once more. This is a gorgeous meditation on loss and the funny things it does to a person, reminding us that there is no "ordinary" way to grieve after all.
Solomon is a master at slow burn young adult romance. Her characters pine, miscommunicate, and overanalyze; I love it. So all of that plotted against time loops, set on the first day of college, with realistic yet impulsive youthful choices? It turned my heart to mush and I'm not really even into "Groundhog Day". Wish fulfillment, second chances (so many second chances), and mysteries of the universe: that's See You Yesterday.
I love everything Chris Pavone has written, but because he doesn’t release a new title frequently, I sometimes forget how terrific he is. Then I pick up his latest, open it, read a couple pages and I remember, this is possibly the best thriller author writing today.
The latest book in my "quit lit" have-reads, McKowen's memoir gives us an up-close view of her dark experiences under addiction. She then showcases the joys and hardships of sobriety, which those of us who suffered with alcoholism (or any other addiction), can attest to. A raw and emotional, yet beautiful, memoir, We Are the Luckiest is sure to impact you!
Dying is, to most, an uncomfortable topic. Even more taboo is assisted dying. Hannig approaches this topic in a sensitive and accessible way, shedding light on a conversation that we as a society should have.
I've long been an admirer of Hustvedt's refinement and sophistication. Both cerebral and intimate, her work is always the perfect amalgamation of solace and stimulation.
Mothers, Fathers, and Others brings together a fantastic selection of Hustvedt's more recent essays: from familial legacies to misogyny, the violence borne of groupthink to Jane Austen, each is an absorbing triumph in its own right.
A striking debut novel equal parts art history and narrative, Activities of Daily Living juxtaposes the protagonist's study of performance artist Tehching Hsieh and her father's cognitive decline. This is a riveting work of fiction scrutinizing the possibility of art/meaning versus the inevitable slow squeeze of time and how one simply cannot exist without the other.
Truly exceptional.
This absurdly clever and funny graphic novel, told entirely in palindromes, is created by World Palindrome Champion Jon Agee, author of Go Hang a Salami! I'm a Lasagna Hog!
It's been over 20 years since Weidensaul's previous work on migration,and it's hard to think much more can be added. Well, he does, and he does it in that evocative and immersive way that us bird lovers know Weidensaul for. The past two decades of technology have deepened our understanding of migration and, even moreso, how our species' impact on the planet puts the avian world in peril.
Nestled within the nucleus of motherhood literature comes Linea Nigra, written in aphorism and anecdote that intersect over and over again in beautiful orbits. Barrera writes about childbirth, breastfeeding, and care through her mother’s artwork and her grandmother’s experience as a doula, as well as the author’s own extensive reading notes and frustrations with healthcare. Barrera’s seriousness and intelligence is punctuated by expressions of delight in parenthood.
