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Updated April 2007
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The
Double Bind
by Chris Bohjalian |
Withdrawing into her photography and a job at a homeless shelter
after being attacked while riding her bike, student Laurel Estabrook
encounters Bobbie Crocker, a man with a history of mental illness
and a box of secret photos, but when Bobbie dies suddenly, Laurel
is certain that the photos hide a dark family secret and embarks
on an obsessive, potentially dangerous search for the truth.
If
you are a fan of Jodi Piccoult, you should enjoy this novel of
twists and turns and a surprise ending.
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Devotion
by Howard Norman
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An eloquent study of love, hate, human relationships, and emotional
upheaval examines the causes of a violent quarrel between David
Kozel and his new father-in-law, William, a gentle man who cares
for a Nova Scotia estate and its swans, as well as David's new wife
Maggie's belief that David has been unfaithful to her on their honeymoon.
Small
literary gem for fans of Norman's other novels, The
Bird Artist and The
Museum Guard.
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Black
Girl, White Girl
by Joyce Carol Oates |
Black Girl / White Girl is a searing double portrait of "black"
and "white," of race and civil rights in post-Vietnam
America, captured by one of the most important literary voices of
our time.
For
readers of The
Way the Crow Flies by Ann-Marie MacDonald and Prince
Edward by Dennis McFarland.
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The
Girls
by Lori Lansens
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One of the world's oldest living craniopagus conjoined twins at
the approach of her thirtieth birthday, bookish Rose Darlen attempts
to pen her autobiography while remembering the joys and challenges
of her life with sister Ruby, with whom she shares friendships in
their small hometown. By the author of Rush Home Road.
Fans
of The
Miracle Life of Edgar Mint by Brady Udall, or Feather
Crowns by Bobbie Ann Mason should enjoy reading The
Girls.
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On
Agate Hill
by Lee Smith |
Discovered in the ruins of a North Carolina plantation, an old box
containing the mementos of a young girl's life--including letters,
poems, newspaper clippings, court records, toys, and an 1870s diary--bring
to life the world of young Molly Petree, an orphan growing up in
the smoldering remains of the post-Civil War American South.
If
you enjoyed this book, you might also enjoy other works of historical
fiction including March
and Year
of Wonders, by Geraldine Brooks.
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Gentlemen
& Players
by Joanne Harris
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For generations, privileged young men have attended the elite St.
Oswald's School for Boys, but as the new term gets under way, a
number of increasingly devastating incidents occurs, including murder,
leaving the unraveling school in the hands of the only person who
can save it, Roy Straitley.
If
you enjoyed this book, you might also enjoy, The
Little Friend, or The
Secret History by Donna Tartt.
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Abide
With Me
by Elizabeth Strout
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In the wake of the tragic death of his beautiful and independent
young wife, Reverend Tyler Caskey, a New England minister, struggles
to hold together his own life, his family, and his town, while dealing
with his personal anger, grief, and loss of faith.
If
you enjoyed this book, you might also enjoy Elizabeth Strout's
first novel, Amy
and Isabelle.
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The
Space Between Us
by Thrity Umrigar
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Captures the delicate balance of class and gender in contemporary
India as witnessed through the lives of two women--Sera Dubash,
an upper middle-class housewife, and Bhima, an illiterate domestic
hardened by a life of loss and despair.
If
you enjoyed this book, you should also try The
Kite Runner by Khaled
Hosseini.
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Zorro
by Isabel Allende
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Witnessing the injustices against Native Americans by European settlers
from childhood, Diego de la Vega, the son of an aristocratic Spanish
landowner and a Shoshone mother, returns to California from school
in Spain to reclaim the hacienda on which he was raised to seek
justice for the weak and helpless.
If
you enjoyed this book you should also try Daughter
of Fortune by Isabel Allende; Wild
Girl by Jim Fergus; and Painted
Drum by Louise Erdrich.
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The
Tender Bar
by J.R. Moehringer
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A vivid memoir of growing up and coming of age with a single mother
describes how the author received valuable life lessons and friendship
at the neighborhood bar, an old-time New York saloon populated by
a colorful assortment of characters who provided him with a kind
of fatherhood by committee.
If
you enjoyed this book, you should also try This
Boy's Life by Tobias Wolff and All
Over But the Shoutin' by Rick Bragg.
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