Weekly book reviews in most genres, including classics and not-to-be-missed. Books selected and reviews written by a librarian specializing in readers’ advisory.
Heart-breaking, hopeful, and filled with humanity— Robert Kolker shares one family suffering several kin with frontotemporal dementia (FTD). Best nonfiction of 2026.
Read MoreA plot with the layers and complexity of a rich piece of classical music, Kingsolver has written a beautiful novel of aching, tragic loss, followed by the promise of hard-won redemption.
Read MoreChinese American Ivy Leaguer Lilly learns many life lessons during her Immersive Language program in Taipei, including the limits of understanding others’ lives. Funny, sensitive, worth your time.
Read MoreThe Icelandic setting is the big appeal in this author’s inaugural effort. Traumatized protagonist, trying to remember her past before tragedy can ruin her present.
Read MoreA punk, futuristic novel that explores particle physics? Diaz creates a scary, realistic future, and places the greatest mystery at its center. Dense, challenging, but very interesting.
Read MorePatchett forwards her study of love, human relationships, and the grief that must follow, with this novel. She knows how to pull in the reader, and provides worthwhile insights along the way.
Read MoreTelling the story of the generation surviving the potato blight, colonial rule, and diaspora, this novel will call out to your Irish soul. Highly recommended.
Read MoreAmongst the grotesque carnage of No Man’s Land in World War I, Cyril Bagger finds an angel, struck down, trapped in a nest of barbed wire. So begins a life-changing mystery, a fascinating novel by Daniel Kraus.
Read MoreWhere’s the son of a single mom to look for lessons in how to be a man? JR Moehringer’s memoir tells the story of his neighborhood bar, and how that community of hard drinkers gave him those life lessons.
Read MoreLove her or hate her, our media and culture cannot ignore this one. Odell gives a well-researched, insightful treatment to another complicated female icon, Gwyneth Paltrow.
Read MoreContemporary fiction addressing, with humor and a touch of seriousness, societal issues of aging and abortion, with an extraordinary set of circumstances. Biased, but still a worthwhile attempt at debating these issues.
Read MoreSuspenseful historical fiction, set in nineteenth century northern Newfoundland. Three contemptable characters circle one another, vying for power over this remote, forgotten land.
Read MoreIf you loved North Woods, you will really enjoy Mason’s new novel. A tongue-in-cheek homage to the country people of New England, who transform a California family. Loved it.
Read MoreA novel that asks big questions about what motivates our dangerous, expensive explorations in space, with a likeable, decent protagonist. An honest questioning, wrapped in a good story.
Read MoreA history-mystery! Jennifer N. Brown takes a genuine mystery from the tumultuous period of Tudor England and Henry VIII, and spins a tale of mystery, murder, and suspense. Great to take along on vacation.
Read MoreA well-mannered, friendly, discreet elderly gentleman visits the town of Golden, bringing kindness, friendship, and an appreciation for art and nature to this community. The mystery of who Theo is, and why he comes to Golden, is the center of this feel-good novel.
Read MoreMust-read this summer! This might be Strout’s best yet. Be sure to check out my previous reviews of her work—you might be tempted to read all her novels.
Read MoreLearn about Emanuel Nobel, a captain of industry and innovation who should be remembered as easily as Rockefeller— but isn’t. Why? Reads like a thriller, fascinating.
Read MoreA well researched and beautifully written novel to break your heart, uplift your soul, and be one of the best novels you will read in 2026.
Read MoreThe story of two motherless young women, seeking a way forward in life, in spite of their emotional wounds, in the Jim Crow South. Reconciliation with their loss is inevitable. A tragedy with a Shakespearean tone.
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