It took me awhile to get into the rhythm of this book, but then….wow…total page turner. The atmospheric writing is intense and the twists and turns were really good. The plotting is clever and yet so simple as to be totally believable

Are you a big book nerd? Have you always wanted to know how people become librarians or booksellers? Then this collection of interviews might be perfect for you! My lament…I wish it had more interviews of truly independent bookstore owners and employees. It felt like the majority of interviews were from bookstore chains … and those stores are super important to the book economy!….i just wanted more of the one off, mom and pop stores!

A story of family and the sometimes complex relationships that come from emotional drama and too much time together. There are multiple protagonists. The author does a beautiful job of intricately weaving together the saga. I kept double checking the year…mostly the early 80s…because dang if the characters don‘t seem straight out of the 1950s. I cried a bit at the end.

This book has important lessons for surviving and resisting America‘s arc toward authoritarianism. And with the second election of Trump, this is more important than ever. It‘s a quick read but don‘t mistake that for shallow or uninformative. The narrative, the art, and the historical lessons will leave you ready to participate in resistance and wanting to learn more from Snyder.

Sometimes the crassness and addiction was a bit too much for me. But there are a lot of things about this story that kept me turning the pages... undiagnosed ADHD, and a lot of the scenes are places I know well. While I don't always subscribe to his brand of humor, I appreciate that he tried to tell his story with brutal honesty. It helps to know that he eventually figures it out, gets the support he needs, and moves forward with his life.

“A cluster of interweaving narratives,” is how one blurb described it. The stories take place in New England and while they‘re all about the choices people make and how those play out they‘re also very much about place. You‘re never quite sure how one story will twist and turn nor how it‘s mate will pivot and surprise you. It‘s about love and loss and the transformation of people, and the landscape over multiple generations.

This memoir shines a light not just on the chef‘s life, but on the cooking and restaurant world. From NYC to rural Nigeria, the Texas gulf, and DC. He‘s hustled everything from candy bars on the subway, weed in his short stint at college, and his externship at Per Se. A little bit Kitchen Confidential, a lot of credit to author Joshua David Stein who tells Chef Onwauachi‘s story in this compelling story of family, self reliance, and perseverance

A book of family, a week on Cape Cod, loss, joy, and processing a little or bit of everything. I love that there‘s a 50 something protagonist. I loved that it takes place in a week on the Cape. I love that there‘s some family genealogy. I love that some of the less central storylines felt so central to understanding the family. I loved that it‘s a shorter book (pssst, agents… shorter books can be successful!).

I enjoyed this memoir in essays about an interesting assortment of foods. The author, a poet, has a beautiful way of writing about her family, her career, her marriage, and culture. In some ways the structure reminded me a bit of Kate Lebo‘s first collection of essays, The Book of Difficult Fruit: Arguments for the Tart, Tender, and Unruly (with Recipes).

Such a sweet story. The big story is about training a rescue donkey, Sherman, to run in the world championship of pack burro racing in the mountains of Colorado. But, as you might imagine, it‘s about a heck of a lot more. It‘s about community, it‘s about all kinds of broken and healing, it‘s about athleticism, and teamwork. It‘s a quick read and it almost makes we want to start running again, especially if there might be a team of rescue donkeys.

I‘m not exactly a tree collector, but I do have six non fruit bearing cherry trees in my front yard. And while I have no plans to become a tree collector, I loved reading about all these super interesting people. Some collect trees, some document trees, some save pine cones, some are stealthy planters of trees in urban spaces.

I really enjoyed this book. It‘s about the author navigating his own soon-to-be blindness as well as an examination of the language, politics, and attitudes about the community of blind individuals. It‘s told from the heart and with a quirky sense of humor about it.

I started and stopped this book a bunch of times. I have a weird curiosity about the Pacific Crest Trail. Weird because I‘m really not a hiker. I did finish the book and I do think much of it is worthwhile, but he tells other people‘s very personal stories in ways that didn‘t always sit well with me…

This book is an incredible way to spend time with the canyon. I‘ll probably never hike down into it and I‘m unlikely to do a rafting trip, so this is the next best thing. Besides, after reading this book, I‘m not sure I‘d ever be capable of hiking any piece of it! There is no through trail, but veteran hikers have figured out ways to navigate the canyon, and this book does a beautiful job sharing just how incredibly difficult it is.

My friend, author Gretchen Anthony, has a new book out!

June 1972. Attacked by killer whales, their forty three foot schooner sank in 60 seconds. They survived on a raft and then just a dinghy for 37 days. This is their story.

The publisher gifted me this book. My great grandfather painted in the interwar years and artist Toby Knobel Fluek painted (and wrote) her story after the war. But there are connections between the two stories - primarily the impulse to document the Polish Jewish community. The paintings are a lovely ode to Fluek‘s family and even the depressing wartime paintings beautifully illustrate and bear witness to history in an emotionally important way.

At first I wasn‘t so sure, but I very much enjoyed this charming story about a rather clever and articulate giant Pacific Octopus, and a motley collection of lonely characters trying to sort out questions about their past. It‘s a sweet page turner.

I very much enjoyed this interwoven tale of the history of ice cream and the author‘s obsession in tasting and understanding the world of ice cream. I somehow connected years ago with Amy on social media which is why I was sad to recently learn from her husband‘s posts that she had passed away. I only wish I had gotten to her book sooner. It‘s a lovely tale well told.

Olivetti is marketed as a children‘s book and I get why, but it‘s a delightful read for anyone who loves typewriters, a bit of adventure, and the stories we tell. A boy‘s mother is missing. Her Olivetti was the last one to see her before she disappeared.

This sweet murder mystery follows a grandmother-mother-daughter trio as they try to solve a California coastal whodunnit. For me, the compelling part of it all are the family dynamics and not so much the final solution. And now I want to go on the Elkhorn Slough Safari (not in the book, but definitely a real boat tour!).

As his new book hits stores, I‘ve finally gotten around to reading There There. I enjoyed the book for its structure - first person multiple POV. Plus, it takes place in Oakland and so it‘s always interesting to read stories that take place in my own neck of the woods.

The only hikes I ever do are day hikes which end with a hot shower, but I love compelling stories of outback adventures, and this book did not disappoint. Traveling 4,000 miles on foot, by canoe, on skis, and in a raft… the author and her husband travel across the Pacific coast and Arctic lands and sea. It‘s a beautiful story of stunning vistas, natural dangers, birds, bears, caribou, and her experience of sharing the journey with her husband.

I liked Oh, William! so much that I went back to read this book, which came first. I don‘t feel like I read them out of order. It didn‘t really matter. It‘s a quiet book. It‘s not so much about plot as it is about family and the unspoken issues families navigate as they try to come to terms with themselves, each other, and their shared histories.

I‘ve particparticipated in 1000WordsofSummer a few times because I appreciate the camaraderie of the writing community. If you missed the social media collective experience, this really is the next best thing. If you‘re struggling with a writing project and wish you had an author friend who might offer a bit of wisdom, insight, and encouragement, you‘ll want this book on your desk.

I loved this book! It‘s funny and clever. Kathleen‘s marriage falls apart (not so funny!) and when she moves to a cute and quaint beach town to start a new chapter in her life she discovers that everything is NOT as she expected. Kathleen shares her candid insights about town gossip, beach town life, and friendships in a cantankerous and humorous style. In the end it‘s the story of housing, bad neighbors, zoning regulations, and second chances.

the blurbs say this book is funny. I didn‘t find it funny at all. But there is something about her voice and journey that I found compelling. Her marriage is over and she struggles at being single. I did find the self deprecating insights about dating, work, relationships, friendships, and family both totally depressing and insightful to the very real heartaches of a younger generation.
P.S. does that make me sound ridiculously old?! Probably.

Really well written. Engaging and fast paced chapters. But, dang, this story is depressing. A prolific art thief, an addict really, and a crime spree that eventually ended but so much of the art was damaged or destroyed. I knew a lot of this story from newspaper reports, but this absorbing story definitely fleshes it out in a riveting story of the most prolific art thief of all time.

I wish I could remember where I heard about this book. Anyway, I gulped it down. I wanted to read it because of the structure - it‘s told like an interview- but I loved it because the poignant voice of the protagonist waxes honestly and eloquently about a hard but full life. There is tragedy, and heartache, but in the end it‘s a beautiful tale of community and resilience.

Patchett so effortlessly toggles between timelines and characters. The voice and pace somehow reminds me a bit of Elizabeth Strout‘s own Lucy Barton. It a story of family, what it means to be happy, and young love. It‘s about looking backwards, retracing our steps, and understanding how our choices shape us and the stories we tell.

A family memoir and investigative journalism about Chagas, the kissing bug disease that eventually caused the death of the author‘s aunt. Kind of a two for one book. The first half is the family history. In the second portion, Hernandez writes of other patients, doctors, epidemiologist, and how the lack of information in the US medical system about the parasite and disease disproportionately impacts the Latinx community

I‘m not an opera aficionado, but I do love stories about art, hope, and resilience, and this story has all of that - a messed up childhood, a volatile home life, and a few people who believed in a boy who didn‘t even really know he liked to sing.
Ironically (at least to me) is that this is an ARC and I see that this book was published in September 2016 - the same month and year Chasing Portraits was published.

Yes, a memoir, but really more a collection of all his best stories. And he is an engaging storyteller. My biggest takeaway… make the best of all your opportunities, even the ones that seem less than compelling.

Both a memoir and sort of how-to story of how a grassroots movement to enact gun safety legislation has made an impact at the local, state, and federal level. Quick read with great personal stories, words of wisdom about running a sprawling volunteer organization, and a lot of upbeat notes about accomplishments and how we can all contribute to seeing the change we crave.

I have never listened to the WTF Podcast. I picked up this book because I love interviews and I love the idea of a collection of interview snippets. Every chapter is a different topic - parenting, childhood, mental health - and a wide range of guests wax poetic about their successes, failures, and dreams. There‘s a lot of solid hard won wisdom in these pages.

BUZZ was a re-read. While reading ADHD: What Everyone Needs to Know, I felt sort of amazed about how much of it my family has navigated. The challenges and suggestions the book addresses brought up memories of therapies tried, special camps, meetings with “professionals.” Sigh. It‘s been (and continues to be) a journey. And BUZZ is interesting the second time around because I‘m in a better space with my own son and so had some useful perspective.

Humor writer Wendi Aarons, whose work appears frequently in The New Yorker and McSweeney's, takes a look at aging and of life after 50.
I‘m a Gen Xer, roughly the same age as the author and I think that played into the moments where I enjoyed her brand of humor. The story underneath the humor? A memoir of self-acceptance, second chances, and celebrating the weird, wild, and wonderfully whacky moments in life.

So clever. A book about writers, the publishing industry, jealousy, and secrets. A story within a story about a book, the literary world, and cultural appropriation. Total page turner.

This “boots on the ground,” story of a female firefighter‘s experiences is eye opening and compelling. The writing is very much in the moment and incredibly candid. She offers a mix of awe and responsibility along with a heavy dose of scandal, trash talking, and dark humor. I didn‘t love the structure of the storytelling. At times I felt a bit lost, but her life at the firehouse and beyond, it‘s the real deal.

I picked this up because I love memoirs and I‘d heard good things about the book. I may be Gen X but I‘m not much of a Nirvana fan and I had to Google Foo Fighters to recognize their music. That said, these stories are interesting and I‘m glad I read the book but I think this book is best for Grohl‘s fans. I missed a lot of the musical references and wish the photos had been labeled because the only person I recognized was Kurt Cobain.

A novel from Michael Ondaatje (The English Patient) that‘s meant to be a lyrical mystery of family, adventure, and intrigue. With the end of World War II as the backdrop, Nathaniel Williams, and his sister, Rachel, learn that their parents are bound for newly liberated Singapore and then life becomes increasingly odd. A female spy story, yet nothing really happens and yet you‘re left wondering how everything happens and it is all connected.

Rising housing prices and homelessness… everyone has an opinion and few have solutions that everyone loves. Dougherty explores the political and personal in this journalistic telling of the crisis. The central premise: We need more housing, but how we get there, well, there are lots of conflicting opinions.

Peskin, a clinical neurologist, writes about how the molecules that make our brains work can also hijack our brain (and nervous systems). Written as a blend of science and case studies, Peskin traces the history of the disease, the scientific thinking, and the impact of the unruly molecules on patients (and their families). I loved the human interest stories and I confess to not always understanding the science.

I‘ve watched a docfilm short and heard several interviews with Jason Reynolds, but this is the first of his books that I‘ve read. A YA story of home struggles, school difficulties, and a track coach who is there to inspire, motivate, and dispense love to kids in need of all of his wisdom and the team camaraderie he provides these young kids trying to find their way in the world.

A memoir, yes. But a poem, too. Short stanzas interspersed with vignettes. I appreciate her instinct to lay forth the messiness of it all and her dexterity with language. It‘s the story of a divorce, and an ode to the power of finding beauty in sorrow. It makes me believe there are spaces in which grief can be beautiful.

A beautiful (and sad!) story of friendship and the importance of celebrating each other. Sometimes the friends we make in our 20s are the ones that understand us the best. In the Celebrants, Rowley visits a lifetime of hopes, dreams, and transitions and the ways we shape and are shaped by friendship.

It could be easy to hate the Stockton family, they‘re the characters at the center of this tale of multi generational wealth, wills, trusts, and prenups, but I very much enjoyed it. Jackson‘s characters are more complicated than you might expect and although they are “high net worth Wasp buccaneers of New York real estate,” (NYT) there‘s something hopeful about their collective trajectory. Certainly a fun summer read.

When Michelle Dowd was 7, her family moved to a campsite of sorts in Angeles National Forest. Leased by her grandfather, who claimed to be a Christian prophet who would live to be 500 (surprise? He doesn‘t) the apocalyptic cult had patriarchal rules and a religious doomsday mentality. It‘s vaguely reminiscent of Tara Westover‘s memoir, Educated,” but it‘s rhythm and ending feel different.

An astonishing story of her plunge into madness and the lifesaving diagnosis that almost didn‘t happen. If you‘re a fan of medical stories, be sure to add this to your pile.

Braitman digs into her early experiences with loss to investigate and understand the ways in which grief shaped her. I found the first half page mesmerizing and I hurried through the second half to see how she‘d end the book. The author is both relatable in many ways but also intimidating in her accomplishments. If you enjoy memoirs that explore the ways in which loss gives us wisdom, add this on to your to be read list!