Thoughtful, self-deprecating, earnest, and honest, Surrender is a captivating peek into the four decades (and counting) of U2. Bono explores his faith, family, loyalty, inspiration, and important activism efforts. I prefer listening to my memoirs read by the author, and I loved hearing U2's songwriter and lead singer Bono take us through the stumbles, pain, joy, and faith that have inspired his music and shaped his life. From treasuring friends he's had since childhood (one of whom was the inspiration for the song "Bad"), to exploring "growing up in Ireland in the seventies with my fists up (musically speaking)"; from digging into the difficult relationship with his father to sharing how he attempted to cope with the loss of his mother decades after the fact, Bono's Surrender is beautifully honest, self-deprecating, and fascinating. The framework of building the book around forty songs means some sections are shorter, some longer, but each has a key U2 song to anchor it. I loved listening to the book in order to hear each of these played. Bono (Paul Houson) is a natural at self-reflection; he considers his motivations, his missteps, his great joys--and his lofty goals for the band, but largely for his activism efforts. He is a family man and fiercely loyal to his bandmates and friends. Details of Bono's activism make up much of the second half of the book. He is interested in the potential power of his celebrity to do good, in learning about worthwhile issues, and in being actively involved in improving the lives of others. He played an important role in the push to cancel debt for African countries and in the battle to bring antiretroviral drugs to treat AIDS in African countries by speaking to Congress, working with various activist groups, making political friends on both sides of the aisle, and generally showing tenacity and stubbornness. I loved listening to Bono's story in his voice. Do you have any Bossy thoughts about this book? If you enjoy musicians' memoirs about the making of their music and their lives, you might like the books on the Greedy Reading List Six Musicians' Memoirs that Sing.

This gorgeously written postapocalyptic climate-fiction story offers up a future in which civilization buckles to the power of weather and ocean while certain species thrive in the extreme changes and shifted conditions. In Lily Brooks-Dalton's novel The Light Pirate, pregnant Frida and her husband and stepsons prepare for another catastrophic hurricane bearing down on Florida, one in a string of never-ending storms threatening to destroy the state from the outside in. Her husband Kirby disappears in the heart of the storm to locate the kids, who have run off for some ill-advised exploring. Meanwhile Frida gives birth to a child, Wanda, who she names after the storm, and who has a special gift. Experts have long offered warnings about the expected impacts of the ongoing global weather changes and the destruction to society that is possible, but few could have imagined the unraveling of society that takes place after the wind and water's devastation, compounded as additional storms continue to strike. This is a beautifully written novel with a haunting postapocalyptic tone and vivid setting. The shadow of real-life global warming and weather changes add to the power of the story, and the touch of magical realism is both essential to the plot and a lovely element. The characters of Frida and neighbor Phyllis are irresistible, and I loved the ways in which they adjust, adapt, grieve, press on, and form a makeshift family from their friendship. The way the sea persistently erodes all evidence of civilization kept reminding me of the Talking Heads song "Nothing But Flowers," and Brooks-Dalton's climate fiction descriptions of living with water, exposed to weather, and within the parameters of extreme heat and the safety of darkness were striking. The Light Pirate offers unexpected redemption, tragedy, and some beautiful resolutions. I didn't feel that the title evoked the tone or heart of the story, but I just loved this book. I received a prepublication edition of this book courtesy of NetGalley and Grand Central Publishing. Do you have any Bossy thoughts about this book? For other postapocalyptic stories I've loved, check out Six Fantastic Dystopian and Postapocalyptic Novels and Six More Fantastic Dystopian and Postapocalyptic Novels.

The Books I'm Reading Now I'm reading A Play for the End of the World by Jai Chakrabarti, my book club's first read of 2023; I'm listening to Little Fires by Inheritance author Dani Shapiro; and I'm reading Sarah Addison Allen's novel Other Birds. What are you reading these days, bookworms? 01 A Play for the End of the World by Jai Chakrabarti Chakrabarti's A Play for the End of the World takes place in 1970s New York and in rural India. A survivor of the World War II Warsaw Ghetto, Jaryk Smith arrives in New York City and falls in love with a Southern woman, Lucy Gardner. When Jaryk learns that his father has been killed under mysterious circumstances in India, he travels home to collect his ashes. But he becomes involved in the complicated politics of the time and finds himself stuck between past and present and struggling to find a promise of a future for himself and his love. 02 Signal Fires by Dani Shapiro Signal Fires begins with three teenagers drinking in 1985, a car accident, a tragedy, young doctor Ben Wilf, who comes upon the wreck, and a family's secret. Time passes, and a young family moves onto Division Street. Their young son befriends the retired Dr. Wilf, whose memories of past events come rushing back. “If only time could be seen whole, then you could see the past remaining intact, instead of vanishing in the rearview mirror.” I mentioned Dani Shapiro's fascinating memoir Inheritance in the Greedy Reading List Six More Illuminating Memoirs to Lose Yourself In. 03 Other Birds by Sarah Addison Allen "There are birds, and then there are other birds. Maybe they don't sing. Maybe they don't fly. Maybe they don't fit in. I don't know about you, but I'd much rather be an other bird than just the same old thing." Addison is a North Carolina author, and her book Other Birds is set on an island off the coast of South Carolina as Zoey comes to take ownership of her deceased mother's apartment. She befriends her mother's neighbors, and when one new friend dies suddenly, Zoey embarks on a search for answers that leads her to the heart of the island. With magical realism, romance, and a small-town setting.

The Nonfiction Book Gift Ideas I tend to give nonfiction books for holiday gifts. I'm not sure if it's because it feels easier to hone in on a loved one's particular interest (see: multiple bird books in past gift lists) or quirky curiosity (see: Strange Planet; Gastro Obscura; and Your Guide to Not Getting Murdered in a Quaint English Village, etc.) than to pin down their specific taste in fiction--or to find a novel I feel confident they haven't already read. These six nonfiction books look like excellent last-minute additions to a holiday gift list if you're still in the market for gifts for your people. Which books are on your book wish list this holiday season? You might also like to check out some of the books on my many past Bossy Book Gift Guides: Shhh! Science and Nature Bossy Book Gift Ideas Shhh! Holiday Cookbook Gift Ideas Shhh! Book Gift Ideas for the Holidays Shhh! Six More Book Gift Ideas for the Holidays Shhh! More Book Gift Ideas for the Holidays Shhh! Book Gifts for Kids and Teens Shhh! More Book Gifts for Kids and Teens Shhh! Kid and Teen Book Gift Ideas for the Holidays Shhh! Nonfiction and Hobby Book Gift Ideas for the Holidays Shhh! Books I'm Giving as Gifts This Holiday A Bossy book-buying note: If you're buying books this holiday season, please support your local independent bookstore. They need and appreciate our business! (The book covers on this site link you to Bookshop, a site that supports the beloved indies that keep us swimming in thoughtful book recommendations and excellent customer service all year round.) 01 Dickens and Prince: A Particular Kind of Genius by Nick Hornby When I first read the premise of this book, I knew I was hooked: When Prince’s 1987 record Sign o’ the Times was rereleased in 2020, the iconic album now came with dozens of songs that weren’t on the original— Prince was endlessly prolific, recording 102 songs in 1986 alone. In awe, Hornby began to wonder, Who else ever produced this much? Who else ever worked that way? He soon found his answer in Victorian novelist and social critic Charles Dickens, who died more than a hundred years before Prince began making music. Hornby explores how these two luminaries from different centuries each "lit up the world" by tracing parallels in their tragedies, inspiration, and prolific creative work. 02 Life Is Hard: How Philosophy Can Help Us Find Our Way by Kieran Setiya Kieran Setiya doesn't deny that the human condition can be challenging and that life can be hard. But in Life Is Hard, Setiya considers the toolbox of philosophy--and how it might help us navigate treacherous times, cope with pain, grieve for those lost, but also stay positive, make new friends, and find meaning in life. The author focuses largely on ways to make the best of a tough situation, acknowledging that there are no easy answers but that it is possible to live well even when life is difficult. 03 The Last Days of the Dinosaurs: An Asteroid, Extinction, and the Beginning of Our World by Riley Black Imagine you're in the Cretaceous period, in what will later be known as Montana, with Tyrannosaurus rex and Triceratops horridus ambling by in the lush landscape. In a few hours, everything around you will be on fire. Half of the world's known species will be eliminated almost overnight. In The Last Days of the Dinosaurs, Riley Black traces the events of the days, weeks, centuries, and the million years after the destructive meteor's wound that day, imagining life in that place and around the world...and how it set the stage for the environment, creatures, and world we know today. 04 Art Day by Day by Alex Johnson In Art Day by Day, editor Alex Johnson offers snapshots of important moments in art history, through interviews, accounts, and records from art historians and experts. From famous paintings and sculptures to comics and murals, from President Teddy Roosevelt's doodles to terracotta soldiers, and with thefts, murders, and mishaps included too, Johnson's Art Day by Day offers unexpected gems from art history. Perfect for flipping through or referencing, each section has key information, dates, births, deaths, and moments that have shaped our culture and our world of art. 05 The Nineties: A Book by Chuck Klosterman In the nineties, the Berlin Wall fell, Titanic was a blockbuster movie, Zima was a thing, and Seinfeld was king. In The Nineties: A Book, Chuck Klosterman explores the pivotal movies, music, events, politics, TV, and culture of the decade. Klosterman is the bestselling author of eight nonfiction books (including Sex, Drugs, and Cocoa Puffs; Eating the Dinosaur, and But What If We're Wrong?), as well as two novels and a short story collection. He served as the Ethicist for The New York Times Magazine for three years and was an original founder of the website Grantland with Bill Simmons. 06 Waypoints: My Scottish Journey by Sam Heughan Sassenach! To all who might suggest that Sam Heughan's heartthrob role as Jamie in Outlander or his rugged good looks or charming Scottish accent secured his memoir's spot on this list: How dare you! And also: You are correct! In Waypoints, Sam Heughan points out places along Scotland's ninety-six-mile West Highland Way that hold special meaning and memories for him. This personal account of his experiences digs into moments that have shaped his life, his goals, and his outlook. While emphasizing his love for the land, he reveals his vulnerabilities and his hopes and dreams. "I had to believe, because frankly, I had come so far there could be no turning back."

I was intrigued by the issues raised in Blackwater Falls--police corruption, racial conflict, religious fervor and faith, secret missions, and more--but I felt frequently jarred by uneven pacing and shifts in tone and perspective. In the Colorado town of Blackwater Falls, girls from immigrant families have been disappearing. But it takes finding the body of a golden-child student and star athlete--positioned for attention in a mosque--for the police to take action. Detective Inaya Rahman and Lieutenant Waqas "Qas" Seif work to solve the mystery of the girls' murders--running up against complications, prejudices, and roadblocks of all kinds--all the while tentatively exploring the beginnings of feelings they may be having for each other. In the thriller Blackwater Falls, Ausma Zehanat Khan explores complicated issues surrounding racial injustice, police corruption, political concerns, faith, and religious conflicts that threaten to tear apart a community. Yet I was frequently distracted by what felt like uneven pacing and tone and abrupt perspective changes, and I couldn't get past the jarring effect of these issues to feel invested in the story. Some of the characters feel almost like caricatures of bad guys, and it felt too easy to despise them. I also felt a little ill during the page time spent in the slaughterhouse. But secret missions and identities, nefarious plots, conspiracies, and manipulations add layers to the plot. Blackwater Falls is the first in a planned series. I received a prepublication edition of this book courtesy of NetGalley and St. Martin's Press. Do you have any Bossy thoughts about this book? Ausma Zehanat Khan is the author of the Esa Khattak/Rachel Getty mystery series (The Unquiet Dead, The Language of Secrets, A Death in Sarajevo, Among the Ruins, and A Dangerous Crossing). She is also the author of The Khorasan Archives fantasy series (The Bloodprint is the first book in the series). You might like some of the other mystery and suspense titles I've reviewed on this site.

The Bossy Wish List Sometimes it's tough to buy books for a greedy reader like the one writing this post. What have they already read, anyway? How reliable is their Goodreads status and list of "to-read" titles? And what are they likely already out buying for themselves? These are my current Bossy book wishes, whether because my library doesn't have a copy (Strange Gods; Charlatan; Until the End of the World), because I simply have high hopes for loving them (Babel, 454 pages; Inciting Joy, 256 pages), or just because I'm greedy about having more more more books in my possession (Under Fortunate Stars). There's a major leaning toward science fiction and speculative fiction in this list, so I am apparently in a mood. And I just came up with this wish list with Christmas just a few days away, so it looks as though I'll be buying my own perfect mix of books for myself after the holidays--which I am not at all above doing. Which books are on your book wish list this holiday season? A Bossy book-buying note: If you're buying books this holiday season, please support your local independent bookstore. They need and appreciate our business! (The book covers on this site link you to Bookshop, a site that supports the beloved indies that keep us swimming in thoughtful book recommendations and excellent customer service all year round.) 01 Babel: An Arcane History by R.F. Kuang R.F. Kuang's Babel: An Arcane History introduces the character of young Robin Swift. Orphaned in Canton by cholera and brought to London by Professor Lovell, a mysterious figure, Robin trains for years in various languages in preparation for attending Oxford University's Royal Institute of Translation, nicknamed Babel. But Babel is also the center of enchanted silver-working, and the more deeply Robin becomes entrenched in the studies and workings of Babel, the more he feels he is betraying his motherland. Kuang explores colonialism, resistance, knowledge, and power in this hefty (454-page) fantasy, published this year and on many "top fantasy" lists. 02 Inciting Joy by Ross Gay Who's in for some inciting of joy? Ross Gay's Book of Delights was a sunshiny set of thoughts and examinations, yet it wasn't overly earnest, and it was never corny. I just loved it. Gay's newest book, Inciting Joy, explores caring for each other and the human connections that make up a full, rich life. Gay turns his thoughtful eye and sensitive mind to inspiration and fulfillment in essays with topics ranging from skateboarding to masculinity to mortality. Click here to check out my full review of The Book of Delights. 03 Strange Gods by Alison Kimble In Alison Kimble's Strange Gods (published in 2021), Spooky arrives at a wilderness camp for troubled teens bracing herself for bullies, counselors ready to crush her spirit, and other kids determined to disrupt and destroy. If she can keep her head down and survive senior year, she knows she can start fresh somewhere new, and that's her only concern. But a disturbing encounter with another camper sends Spooky to hide in the woods. There she encounters an inexplicable, powerful force that can only be magic, in a form Spooky would never have imagined--and it's determined to keep Spooky in its clutches forever. 04 Charlatan by Kate Braithwaite In Kate Braithwaite's Charlatan, it's 1676. In a shack in the middle of Paris, a fortune-teller calls on dark forces to help a client retain the affections of Louis XIV. Three years later, Athenais, Madame de Montespan, the King's glamorous mistress, who has borne him seven children, is enraged when Louis takes up with a fresh-faced eighteen-year-old, Angelique de Fontanges. Paris police chief La Reynie and his young assistant Bezons have uncovered a network of fortune-tellers operating in the city, and when their extensive client lists are revealed, embarrassment and destruction seem sure to follow. 05 Until the End of the World (Until the End of the World #1) by Sarah Lyons Fleming A bookish Instagram friend is in love with this series of four books by Sarah Lyons Fleming, and it sounds like one I'm going to love as well. Cassie Forest is finally going to get her life together. Since her survivalist parents died, she's broken off her engagement to Adrian, she doesn't paint anymore, and she's been dating a major jerk. But right when Cassie is ready for redemption, it looks like the world is about to end. She and her friends may have just enough time to escape to her parents' cabin in Brooklyn before Bornavirus LX turns them into zombies. If Cassie can stand being locked up with her friend's bratty little sister and her own ex-boyfriend, she just might survive to do the one thing she really needs to before she dies: tell Adrian she still loves him. 06 Under Fortunate Stars by Ren Hutchings Just look at this gorgeous cover and listen to this excellent space-opera, time-travel premise: Fleeing the final days of the generations-long war with the alien Felen, smuggler Jereth Keeven’s freighter the Jonah breaks down in a strange rift in deep space, with little chance of rescue—until they encounter the research vessel Gallion, which claims to be from 152 years in the future. But nothing about the Gallion's crew or account seems to add up, and as the two ships begin losing power, everyone on board is in danger--and the stakes may be higher than Jereth could have imagined. Other books I've loved with ragtag space crews include Activation Degradation, The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet, and A Big Ship at the Edge of the Universe.

Harkin's fascinating debut speculative fiction considers a memory clinic that erases and reinstates memories at clients' requests, the impact of painful experiences on building the self, and potential repercussions of tinkering with your recall of the past. Jo Harkin's debut novel, her speculative fiction Tell Me an Ending, is about a tech company that erases unwanted memories--and the many potential, complicated repercussions of tinkering with (and in some cases, obliterating) key memories. Many people in Harkin's world have elected to have the company Nepenthe remove traumatic or upsetting memories through a relatively new procedure. The key memory and all connected elements are eliminated, presumably allowing these individuals to plow back into their lives unencumbered by upsetting past mistakes or experiences. "...Scientifically, nobody knows the extent to which our memory forms our idea of self and how much our idea of self forms our memory. In practice, it doesn't seem to matter. Long before Nepenthe came along, lots of people were living happy and productive lives with parts of their memory missing. Even quite large parts. Our sense of self is very resourceful. Some people cope with the loss better than others, obviously." But some clients are beginning to have flashes of their erased memory, "traces" that disturb and confuse them, and the company providing the service seems to be keeping secret some highly negative effects on some patients. Then a court order leads to hundreds of people around the world being notified that at some point they had specific memories removed--in what was termed a "self-confidential" procedure they have since been unaware of. A collective shock takes over as they consider what these disturbing memories may have been--and whether they want to opt in to the chance to restore these memories. Harkin tracks four main characters as they cope with what they may have lost, what might be gained from facing the truth, how painful experiences may have shaped them in essential ways, and whether it's best to leave forgotten pain behind. Meanwhile, a renegade psychologist at the memory recovery clinic begins reinstating memories at individuals' requests--and potentially illegally--leaving patients with significant emotional fallout as they face the confusion of suddenly facing their painful pasts. It's all out of control. What is [she] a part of? Something doing damage, harm spreading out across the world, each harm dividing and multiplying. People are booking restorations every day. People still want deletions.... The clinic rolls on, gathering money.... Sometimes their interventions make people better, sometimes they make them worse. Sometimes they destroy them. Characters grapple with the unknown, deleted pain--wondering if their past self who decided to eliminate it really knew what was best for their future self, wondering how bad the experience could have been, wondering what on earth it was. Some can't resist reinstating the crushing pain, then struggle with the sudden reintroduction of the trauma into the void where it once lived in memory. Others are haunted by what may have been lost, but may imagine far worse scenarios and higher stakes than their actual experiences. Secrets and lies swirl throughout this book and the plot zings along, and Harkin also digs into her characters and their brokenness, heartache, and mistakes, but also their love, joy, resilience and ability to transcend tragedy, and persistent hope. I love fiction about memory and how it shapes us, and I thought Harkin's Tell Me an Ending was wonderful. I was captivated by the various situations, secrets, how memory is connected to a sense of self, and the complicated web of memories, experience, personality, and hopes and dreams that make us who we are. Do you have any Bossy thoughts about this book? Still Alice by Lisa Genova and What Alice Forgot by Liane Moriarty are two other fiction titles I loved that explore memory loss and sense of self. The Rook is another one with loss of memory at its heart; it's been on my to-read list and my bedside table stack for ages. Are there other books with this element that you've loved?

The Books I'm Reading Now I'm reading Killers of a Certain Age, Deanna Raybourn's book about aging female assassins trying to evade a killer who has it in for them; I'm reading Demon Copperhead, Barbara Kingsolver's newest fiction, described as an Appalachian David Copperfield; and I'm reading Rachel Hawkins's upcoming mystery set in an Italian villa with a sinister history, The Villa. What are you reading these days, bookworms? 01 Killers of a Certain Age by Deanna Raybourn They've spent their lives as the deadliest assassins in a clandestine international organization, but now that they're sixty years old, four women friends can't just retire. The Museum is an elite killing force, but after four decades, Billie, Natalie, Helen, and Mary Alice have methods that are considered old-fashioned. When the four friends are sent on an all-expenses-paid vacation to mark their retirement, a Museum associate attempts to do them in. It's kill or be killed, and the seasoned women will have to use their years of expertise and experience to escape alive. I loved Raybourn's A Curious Beginning, the first in her Veronica Speedwell series, which I can't wait to continue reading. 02 Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver Ahhhh, a new Barbara Kingsolver book, and one that's been called an Appalachian David Copperfield! My hopes for loving this book are sky-high. "Anyone will tell you the born of this world are marked from the get-out, win or lose." Demon Copperhead is about a young boy born in a rural area--to a teenaged single mom in a single-wide trailer. His father is dead, and he has little more than a growing, fierce desire for survival, his dad's coppery hair, and his natural biting humor to see him through. Charles Dickens's David Copperfield was Kingsolver's inspiration. I can't wait to read this one! 03 The Villa by Rachel Hawkins The Villa is the upcoming novel (to be published January 3) by Rachel Hawkins, author of The Wife Upstairs and Reckless Girls. If you're a fan of the most recent season of White Lotus on HBO, the setting and tone of this book might be especially appealing. The Villa is gothic suspense set at an Italian villa, where dark mystery and wicked turns abound. Emily and Chess were childhood friends and were once as close as sisters. The stresses and pulls on their time as they've grown have caused them to grow apart, so a vacation together at Villa Aestas sounds like the perfect way to reconnect. But Emily digs into the villa's complicated and dark history, and as she delves into the past, the growing tensions between Emily and Chess threaten their bond forever. You can read my review of The Wife Upstairs here, and check out this link for my review of Hawkins's Reckless Girls. I received a prepublication copy of this book courtesy of NetGalley and St. Martin's Press.

The Coffee Table Book Gift Ideas I've been sharing some Bossy book gift ideas on Fridays leading up to the holidays. I hope you'll find a book or two in these lists to delight you or someone you love! What's better than a heavy, beautiful coffee table book to pore over in short bursts--or to settle in with on a cozy post-holiday winter day? And each of these titles could be perfect for adding to your own holiday wish list! You might also like to check out the books on some of my many past Bossy Book Gift Guides: Shhh! Science and Nature Bossy Book Gift Ideas Shhh! Holiday Cookbook Gift Ideas Shhh! Book Gift Ideas for the Holidays Shhh! Six More Book Gift Ideas for the Holidays Shhh! More Book Gift Ideas for the Holidays Shhh! Book Gifts for Kids and Teens Shhh! More Book Gifts for Kids and Teens Shhh! Kid and Teen Book Gift Ideas for the Holidays Shhh! Nonfiction and Hobby Book Gift Ideas for the Holidays Shhh! Books I'm Giving as Gifts This Holiday A Bossy book-buying note: If you're buying books this holiday season, please support your local independent bookstore. They need and appreciate our business! (The book covers on this site link you to Bookshop, a site that supports the beloved indies that keep us swimming in thoughtful book recommendations and excellent customer service all year round.) 01 The Lyrics: 1956 to the Present by Paul McCartney This year we watched (twice) the riveting Beatles documentary directed by Peter Jackson, Get Back, and I was obsessed with the behind-the-scenes 1969 footage of the band members as they convened to piece together songs for their first live concert in several years. We also watched and loved McCartney 3, 2, 1 this year, and I was fascinated by the discussions between Paul and Rick Rubin of the inspiration, influence, and techniques that shaped this pivotal music. Which is all to say that this book feels like the right book at the right time for the ongoing and also renewed Beatles zeitgeist. McCartney shares commentaries on his life and music for 154 songs and includes images from his personal archives, offering a personal look at the story behind the music from one of our greatest songwriters. 02 Our America: A Photographic History by Ken Burns Our America is a collection of some of treasured filmmaker Ken Burns's favorite photographs. Burns has been making documentaries about American history for over four decades, and his sense of the heart of our country comes through in this set of images. From captivating natural landscapes to striking wartime images, from bustling city scenes to quiet moments bridging race and class, Burns offers a selection of photos highlighting a range of experiences from our 200 years of American history. 03 The Travel Book: A Journey Through Every Country in the World by Lonely Planet The Travel Book is a 2021 stunner from Lonely Planet, and this fourth edition of the book features all-new information on featured countries, including when to visit, how to immerse yourself in the culture through food and drink, music and culture, and more. The gorgeous photos depict local people, landscapes, and striking scenes, and intricately drawn maps and details accompany the practical information. This is a 416-page book perfect for those planning to explore the world--or those who want to "travel" from their couch by dipping into these pages. 04 There and Back: Photographs from the Edge by Jimmy Chin I first learned about Jimmy Chin while watching the movie Free Solo, which he directed and for which he won an Academy Award. Since then I've also watched him in the movie Meru and in the TV series Edge of the Unknown. Chin is a National Geographic photographer and a professional "mountain athlete" (skier and climber) who has been on The North Face Athlete Team for over 20 years. There and Back offers 200 stunning photos from Chin's vast portfolio of breathtaking photographs, captured during two decades of cutting-edge expeditions on all seven continents. They including images from his experiences skiing Mount Everest, completing an unsupported traverse of Tibet's Chang Tang Plateau on foot, and making first ascents in Chad's Ennedi Desert and Antarctica's Queen Maud Land. 05 1000 Record Covers by Michael Ochs This book is a few years old, but the collection of cover art from albums from the 1960s through 1990s highlights an often-overlooked art form perfect for music lovers. Michael Ochs is a journalist, music archivist, disc jockey, and former record company publicist who has pulled pivotal albums from his vast collection to include here. The Michael Ochs Archives house millions of photographs and over 100,000 albums and singles. This selection might be the perfect coffee-table perusal for the vinyl lover in your life. 06 The Only Woman by Immy Humes The Only Woman is made up of 100 group photographs, each showing a lone woman in a male-dominated situation. In professional scenes, public life, and social situations ranging from 1860 to the present and from countries around the world, Hume highlights photos emphasizing the concept of "the only woman in the room." Visually striking, The Only Woman features unknown and famous women who are astronauts, conductors, writers, railway workers, civil rights leaders, boxing promoters, domestic workers, and more.

A.G. Riddle's time-travel story centers around reconciling the inability to change what has already occurred, but the necessity of doing so to save loved ones. With a twist! When we created Absalom, we weren't trying to build a time machine. We were trying to build a machine that saved our families. I love a time-travel book (see lists of some of my favorites, linked below). In A.G. Riddle's 450-page multiple-timeline story Lost in Time, a group of scientists have developed a device called Absalom. First intended to revolutionize shipping, its limitations and its vast possibilities lead to a new purpose: to send dangerous criminals back in time. Deals are made with governments, and criminals thought to be unredeemable are sent back to the time of dinosaurs, presumably to fight for their survival, but certainly never to be heard from again. (The moral responsibility or weight of this process is not deeply examined in the book.) When Sam, one of the creators of the system, is framed for the murder of another creator, he finds himself about to be sent back in his own creation as punishment. But his physicist friends are determined to try to get him back to the present again somehow. If only Sam had had time to do more than give himself a crash course in reading about the Triassic Period (weather, Pangea, dinosaur identification) or to hear his friends' ambitious plan for his return--but he is whisked back in time. When he arrives, he encounters murderous Absolom survivors, carnivorous dinosaurs, earthquakes, and lava flow--meanwhile he's struggling to make fire and keep the flames going for one full day, please. Ultimately, very little of Lost in Time takes place in this distant past. Most of the action occurs in more modern-day timelines. The protagonists cope with personal difficulties and desperate needs--these are key to their intense motivation to create Absalom--but the book feels more plot-driven rather than focused on character development. The characters move through interesting moments and shift their understanding of previously mysterious events, but they must keep their actions largely the same through timelines in order to avoid ruining the universe. You think about the outcome, you go search for that result, and if you find it in the past, you conduct the experiment. The book's resolution involves extensive, long-term manipulation of the past and directly affects many people's lives and deaths. (It also necessitates a gruesome, quite involved and elaborate sideline business that felt intensely creepy.) I was waiting for the characters involved to consider their inevitable squirrelly feelings about playing God or determining who lives and dies, but Riddle didn't really delve into such feelings, and the characters seemed secure in what felt likely to be impossibly morally fraught actions. I suppose I was uncomfortable with what seemed like the characters' inability to consider that human life always ends, that that is what makes it precious, and that actively manipulating outcomes related to life and death on the scale presented in the story might be problematic and irresponsible. I did not see the fascinating twist of the book coming, and it's laid bare for the reader relatively early. I spent much of the rest of the book trying to wrap my head around one of the book's key concepts, that only what has occurred in the past can occur again (but but but...characters have clearly tampered with the past, so how did that first occur without destroying the universe?). I don't pretend to have succeeded in comprehending the heart of the time-travel premise here, but it was all interesting to contemplate. Do you have any Bossy thoughts about this book? A.G. Riddle is also the author of Departure and Winter World. If you like books that play with time, you might also like the books on my Greedy Reading Lists Six Riveting Time-Travel Stories to Explore and Six Second-Chance, Do-Over, Reliving-Life Stories--or you can search this site for other Bossy reviews of books that involve time travel.

ICYMI: The second in Johnson's young adult mystery series offers growing friendships, determined sleuthing, and young detectives' inspiration and instincts. “How does this keep happening to you?” David said. “Because I look,” Stevie replied. “A lot of things happen when you go out and do them on purpose.” This is the second in Maureen Johnson's Truly Devious series (the first is Truly Devious). Stevie Bell solved one mystery last year--the mystery of her murdered classmate. But just as she's pulling closer to solving the original mystery that drew her to Ellingham Academy (and just as she's beginning to piece together her complicated feelings about David, who she kissed), her parents pull her out of school and bring her home. They've never really understood Stevie, and now they're set on having her forget all of this detective business and move on. But the longer Stevie is away from her friends, she realizes what anchors they have become for her. And far from forgetting about the decades-old mysteries of Ellingham Academy, Stevie is more obsessed than ever with figuring out what happened. “I heard about her from one of the top librarians at the public library, this girl from Avenue A who read Greek and slipped into one of the rare books rooms three times. They said she was trouble, but good trouble. Good trouble.” Johnson is a master of pacing. She kept me hooked and moved things along while not making me feel mystery-manipulated. Most importantly of all, she simultaneously developed her wonderfully complex, offbeat, and sympathetic characters and their relationships. I loved this book! Do you have any Bossy thoughts about this book? Maureen Johnson is also the author of Truly Devious, The Hand on the Wall, and the fourth book in the series, The Box in the Woods. Johnson also wrote the young adult Shades of London series, which is based on Jack the Ripper's crimes. I'd like to give that a go too; the first title is The Name of the Star. Her newest book, Nine Liars, which also features Stevie Bell, is scheduled for publication December 27, 2022.

Richardson focuses her historical fiction on Kentucky again, picking up the story of the rural book delivery, Blue People, friendship, hardship, tragedy, and triumph that she first explored in The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek. The Book Woman's Daughter is Kim Michele Richardson's stand-alone sequel to The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek, a book I listened to as an audiobook and loved. The story picks up with teenage Honey, Cussy's daughter, while Cussy and her husband are suffering persecution--leaving Honey on her own. Richardson writes about strong Kentuckians and their environment, and in The Book Woman's Daughter she delves back into the rural "book lady" route as well as remote nurses, moonshiners, fire-spotters, and other mountain folk characters who help or harm Honey as she fights for independence in a time when many don't think a young woman should make her own decisions. Multiple members of the community pitch in with support and supplies to meet Honey's needs and stand by her as her situation changes and her status becomes more tenuous. Others seek to take advantage of Honey's vulnerable, isolated position. The characters who are "bad" are truly evil here, without gray areas or complex motivations to add layers to their terrible actions. The story made me feel fairly confident that justice would be served in these matters--but some of these villains' (sometimes puzzlingly dark) efforts can't be undone. I didn't connect to the characters the way I did while following Cussy through her delivery route in The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek--or while she investigated her blue color, its causes, and her feelings about either changing her color to avoid conflict and make others more comfortable, or being her natural self regardless of others' opinions (with misogynist laws backing up frightening power). The book's biggest strengths for me were the vivid setting and Richardson's powerful exploration of women's limitations and struggles to gain autonomy. Do you have any Bossy thoughts about this book? Click here for my review of The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek. You might also like the books on the Greedy Reading Lists Six Historical Fiction Favorites, Six Historical Fiction Backlist Favorites, and Six Historical Fiction Books I Loved.

The Books I'm Reading Now I'm listening to Surrender, Bono's memoir about inspiration, faith, pain, love, and music; I'm reading Lost in Time, A.G. Riddle's twisty time-travel mind-bender that's also about responsibility and causality; and I'm listening to a stand-alone historical fiction novel that's also a sequel, The Book Woman's Daughter by Kim Michele Richardson. What are you reading these days, bookworms? 01 Surrender: 40 Songs, One Story by Bono I prefer listening to my memoirs read by the author, and I'm already hooked by hearing U2's songwriter and lead singer Bono take us through the stumbles, pain, joy, and faith that have inspired his music and shaped his life. From treasuring friends he's had since childhood (one of whom was the inspiration to the song "Bad"), to exploring "growing up in Ireland in the seventies with my fists up (musically speaking)"; from digging into the difficult relationship with his father to sharing how he attempted to cope with the loss of his mother decades after the fact, Bono's Surrender is beautifully honest, self-deprecating, and fascinating so far. I love listening to his story in his voice. 02 Lost in Time by A.G. Riddle You may already know that I love a time-travel book (see my lists of favorites below). In A.G. Riddle's 450-page dual-timeline story Lost in Time, a device called Absolom has been developed to send dangerous criminals back in time--to the time of dinosaurs, presumably to fight for their survival and never to be heard from again. When Sam, one of the creators of the system, is framed for the murder of another creator, he finds himself about to be sent back in his own creation as punishment. But his physicist friends are determined to try to get him back to the present again somehow. If only Sam had had time to do more than give himself a crash course in reading about the Triassic Period (weather, Pangea, dinosaur identification) or to hear his friends' ambitious plan for his return--but he is whisked back in time. When he arrives, he encounters murderous Absolom survivors, carnivorous dinosaurs, earthquakes, and lava flow--meanwhile he's struggling to make fire and keep the flames going for one full day, please. If you like books that play with time, you might also like the books on my Greedy Reading Lists Six Riveting Time-Travel Stories to Explore and Six Second-Chance, Do-Over, Reliving-Life Stories--or you can search this site for other Bossy reviews of books that involve time travel. 03 The Book Woman's Daughter by Kim Michele Richardson The Book Woman's Daughter is Kim Michele Richardson's stand-alone sequel to The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek, a book I listened to as an audiobook and loved. The Book Woman's Daughter picks up with teenage Honey, Cussy's daughter, as Cussy and her husband are suffering persecution--which leaves Honey on her own. Richardson writes about strong Kentuckians and their environment, and in The Book Woman's Daughter she delves back into the Pack Horse Library Project of Kentucky as well as rural nurses, moonshiners, fire-spotters, and other mountain folk characters who help or harm Honey as she fights for independence in a time when many don't think a young woman should make her own decisions. Click here for my review of The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek.

The Science and Nature Gift Ideas I'll be sharing some Bossy book gift ideas on Fridays leading up to the holidays. I hope you'll find a book or two in these lists to delight you or someone you love! I have a lot of people on my gift list who love science and nature, and these are the science and nature books I'm most excited to give as gifts this holiday season. With the exception of Sawbones, each of these books was published in 2022. You might also like to check out the books on some of my many past Bossy Book Gift Guides: Shhh! Holiday Cookbook Gift Ideas Shhh! Book Gift Ideas for the Holidays Shhh! Six More Book Gift Ideas for the Holidays Shhh! More Book Gift Ideas for the Holidays Shhh! Book Gifts for Kids and Teens Shhh! More Book Gifts for Kids and Teens Shhh! Kid and Teen Book Gift Ideas for the Holidays Shhh! Nonfiction and Hobby Book Gift Ideas for the Holidays Shhh! Books I'm Giving as Gifts This Holiday A Bossy book-buying note: If you're buying books this holiday season, please support your local independent bookstore. They need and appreciate our business! (The book covers on this site link you to Bookshop, a site that supports the beloved indies that keep us swimming in thoughtful book recommendations and excellent customer service all year round.) 01 National Geographic Stargazer's Atlas: The Ultimate Guide to the Night Sky I took a quick trip to Sedona recently, and a local astronomer in the Dark Sky area where we were showed us some amazing things through a telescope he built himself (!), including a clear view of Jupiter and also Saturn and its RINGS. I saw the RINGS OF SATURN with my eyeballs. I still can't get over this. I'm probably the perfect audience to be wowed by this book, but I have my eye on this one (published in October) for someone else I think will lurv it even more. This is a hardcover book full of gorgeous photographs, informational maps, and graphics "combining science, exploration, and storytelling" and is more of a coffee table wonder than a guide to take along stargazing. (A book I have my eye on for that purpose is the paperback National Geographic Backyard Guide to the Night Sky, 2nd Edition, which also offers photos, maps, key facts about black holes and other space phenomena--and a section about stargazing with children.) 02 Welcome to the Universe in 3D: A Visual Tour by Neil deGrasse Tyson Here's some more star-related book love for the space-obsessed people in your life--this time by the science star (see what I did there?) himself, Neil deGrasse Tyson, along with other experts. Welcome to the Universe in 3D shows the reader the universe through stereoscopic color images (a special viewer comes with the book) via cutting-edge research and fascinating astronomical observations. The book promises to take you "from the Moon through the solar system, out to exoplanets, distant nebulas, and galaxy clusters, until you finally reach the cosmic microwave background radiation (or CMB), the most distant light we can observe." The inclusion of the viewer and the science focus reminds me of a different but favorite book gift of mine for young adults and teens, This Book Is a Planetarium (listed on a past book gift idea list, Shhh! Book Gifts for Kids and Teens). 03 The Sawbones Book: The Hilarious, Horrifying Road to Modern Medicine by Sydnee McElroy and Justin McElroy This is a 2020 revision of the book that spawned the popular Sawbones Podcast and its 300+ episodes, and the text explores various medical mishaps, misunderstandings, mayhem, and myths. This paperback revision of The Sawbones Book addresses Covid-19, Parrot Fever, the Black Plague, vintage medical ads, homeopathy, bloodletting, various misguided approaches, gross and shocking methods, and much, much more as the McElroys trace the odd, amazing (and sometimes disturbing) path that has led to the modern-medicine era. Another accessible science book I love and one I've given as a gift is Bill Bryson's The Body: A Guide for Occupants, which I mentioned in Shhh! Books I'm Giving as Gifts This Holiday. 04 What If? 2: Additional Serious Scientific Answers to Absurd Hypothetical Questions by Randall Munroe Randall Munroe, the author of What If? and How To, returns with What If? 2, which offers more gross, absurd, fascinating hypothetical scenarios and their scientifically likely outcomes. What If? 2 answers more bizarre questions from readers, using the latest research and developments in science and is further explained by clarifying and sometimes horrifying illustrations and diagrams. What would happen if you rode a helicopter blade, built a billion-story building, made a lava lamp out of lava, or jumped on a geyser as it erupted? What If? 2 has the weird and wonderful answers. 05 An Immense World: How Animal Senses Reveal the Hidden Realms Around Us by Ed Yong “A moth will never know what a zebra finch hears in its song, a zebra finch will never feel the electric buzz of a black ghost knifefish, a knifefish will never see through the eyes of a mantis shrimp, a mantis shrimp will never smell the way a dog can, and a dog will never understand what it is to be a bat. We will never fully do any of these things either, but we are the only animal that can try.” An Immense World is the newest book by Ed Yong, author of I Contain Multitudes: The Microbes Within Us and a Grander View of Life. In An Immense World, Yong explores the incredibly diverse ways in which animals perceive and experience their surroundings, showcasing animal wonders from the backyard to the lab to various locations around the world. Yong's accessible narrative nonfiction style and extensive knowledge highlights the many magical, awe-inspiring aspects of his topic--and could rekindle a sense of wonder about our natural world for a recipient on your gift list. 06 Packing for Mars for Kids by Mary Roach "Who knows what strange wonders the future may hold? To explore space is to keep the door open to that future." Mary Roach (author of Stiff, Gulp, Bonk, Grunt, Fuzz, and the original Packing for Mars) is the queen of accessible science writing. With humor, offbeat curiosity, vast knowledge, and a fascination with "what ifs" (What if you vomited in your space suit helmet? How to astronauts go to the bathroom? What is it like to float in the air?), this young readers' version of Packing for Mars (originally published for adults--another great gift idea) feels like a great bet for keeping curious young people engaged with science and space.

The fourth mystery in Johnson's Truly Devious series delivers more smart, creative sleuthing from Stevie Bell and the gang, great dialogue, twisty events, unsolved elements from the past and present, and a denouement I didn't predict. “...hear me out. This whole thing is ticking a lot of the horror movie boxes. Murder at a sleepaway camp. A serial killer. A final girl. A kid who died because some teenagers were being irresponsible.” The Box in the Woods is another smart, funny, intriguing young adult mystery from Maureen Johnson. This stand-alone novel from the author of the Truly Devious trilogy (Truly Devious, The Vanishing Stair, and The Hand on the Wall) follows the irresistibly single-minded, gifted, wonderfully oddball Stevie Bell as she takes her sleuthing skills outside of Ellingham Academy for the first time. Johnson's Truly Devious series offers dark scenes, wicked mysteries, blossoming attractions, loyal and complementary friendships, and excellent banter in a combination I love. The Box in the Woods offers more of this excellent mix, with a playful and horrifying 1980s and 1990s slasher-movie campiness (see what I did there?). The story is set at a small-town summer camp (Nate repeatedly and entertainingly references Friday the 13th). Stevie is recruited by a young entrepreneur with a passion for true-crime podcasts to revisit a murder mystery surrounding decades-old events that took place at the camp in rural Barlow Corners. The details of the deaths are haunting, the stakes for poking into the past remain sky-high, everyone in town is a potential suspect, and the danger is far from over. Johnson sets up a premise in which a good number of Stevie's friends from Ellingham are reunited to work at the camp and be together. This allows for the cooperative problem-solving that I adore in the rest of the series. Her friends' talents and support buoy Stevie's unique ability to piece together details and see the truth. (And Nate might even be writing again, if his irritating young superfan camper Lucas has anything to do with it.) The secondary characters of Lucas!, Allison, Nate, Janelle, and David and their dialogue are fantastic as always. Do you have any Bossy thoughts about this book? Maureen Johnson also wrote the young adult Shades of London series, which is based on Jack the Ripper's crimes. I'd like to give that a go too; the first title is The Name of the Star. Her newest book, Nine Liars, which also features Stevie Bell, is scheduled for publication December 27, 2022.

Atkinson's newest mystery is set in vivid Roaring Twenties London as Nellie Coker struggles to hold on to her empire of clubs while mysterious dark undercurrents threaten stability throughout the city. It's 1926 in London, and recovery from the Great War inspires many in the city to dive into the wild nightlife scene and revel in the frenzy of the Jazz Age. Nellie Coker is fresh out of jail and ready to jump back into the action, masterminding moves to increase her family's power, influence, and riches. But not everyone she's paying off can be trusted, some of her six children are undermining her, and goings-on in the dark undercurrents of Soho could shake Coker's hold on her empire--and upset her ambitious dreams. On the other side of the Shrines of Gaiety story line is Detective Frobisher, an upstanding outlier in the largely corrupt police force, and his unlikely assistant in investigating Ma Coker, former librarian Gwendolen Kelling. I was particularly hooked by the intersection of Gwendolyn and Ma Coker's golden child, her eldest son Niven--along with the mystery of missing girls across Roaring Twenties London, plus deadly high stakes, the dealings of various crooks, and significant double-crossing throughout the story. Do you have any Bossy thoughts about this book? Atkinson is also the author of Case Histories, Behind the Scenes at the Museum, Life After Life, Human Croquet, When Will There Be Good News, and many more books. If you like historical fiction mysteries, you might like the books on the Greedy Reading List Six Historical Fiction Mysteries Sure to Intrigue You.

The mystery's investigative work involves the somewhat tedious examination of online messages, and the Cormoran-Robin romantic tension continues to build. I listened to The Ink Black Heart, the sixth installment in the Robert Gabraith (J.K. Rowling) Cormoran Strike series. I ran the audiobook at 1.75x speed, which significantly shortened the 32-hour, 42-minute audiobook listening time, but as the print book is over a thousand pages, it was still looooong. In The Ink Black Heart, Robin and Corm are approached by Edie Sitwell, a frantic potential client and the cocreator of a popular cartoon. She's looking to uncover the identity of Anime, an online figure who is cruelly and relentlessly harassing her. The agency doesn't take the case, but when Edie turns up dead soon afterward, Cormoran and Robin can't resist diving in--to figure out who Anime is...and to figure out who killed Edie. The book includes many detailed accounts of tracking online tweets and online message board messages, and also involved frequent shifts from one private chat room to another and the use of various online user names, all of which felt somewhat tedious. But this online focus does highlight the casual, destructive callousness and powerful mob mentality that can persist online in real life as well as in the mystery. The Cormoran-Robin emotional tension without culmination is in full force. This extended will-they, won't-they push and pull is epic in its longevity as an inconvenient-attraction, opposites-attract, workplace-romance saga. As in prior books, Strike has hair that's described as having a pubic texture, and he's overweight, a frequent smoker, and has a prosthetic leg that bothers him (yet he resists seeing medical professionals except in an emergency). He persists in determinedly unhealthy eating and drinking habits, has a gruff manner, and repeatedly displays his stunted emotional state when given the opportunity. Yet he is presented yet again as extremely desirable to beautiful women. His weaknesses and issues felt at the forefront in The Ink Black Heart, so the dichotomy felt particularly highlighted. The women who are of romantic interest in Cormoran's life are, as in prior books in the series, emotionally damaged and gorgeous. His main interest, Robin, is strong and savvy, yet even she is coping with trauma and the aftermath of a long-term, unhealthy relationship. There's an extremely disturbing scene as a climax to the mystery. But the building of the mystery is satisfying, and having spent five prior books with the main characters made me feel invested in their personal situations. Do you have any Bossy thoughts about this book? Click here for my reviews of books one through four of the Cormoran Strike series. Check out my Bossy review of Troubled Blood, book five in the series.

The Books I'm Reading Now I'm reading The Light Pirate, Lily Brooks-Dalton's upcoming novel (to be published tomorrow!) about natural disaster and new beginnings; I'm reading Twice in a Lifetime, Melissa Baron's romantic time-travel story, also to be published tomorrow; and I'm listening to 32 hours and 42 minutes of The Ink Black Heart, the newest installment in the Robert Galbraith (J.K. Rowling) Cormoran Strike series. What are you reading these days, bookworms? 01 The Light Pirate by Lily Brooks-Dalton In Lily Brooks-Dalton's upcoming (to be published December 6) novel The Light Pirate, pregnant Frida and her husband and kids prepare for a catastrophic hurricane bearing down on Florida. Her husband disappears to locate their children, and meanwhile Frida gives birth to an unusual child, Wanda, named after the storm. Experts have long offered warnings about global weather changes and the potential destruction possible, but Frida couldn't have imagined the unraveling of society that takes place after the wind and water's devastation. I received a prepublication edition of this book courtesy of NetGalley and Grand Central Publishing. 02 Twice in a Lifetime by Melissa Baron I love a time-travel book! Isla has enough to worry about. She's in rural Missouri instead of the city, in an effort to better cope with her significant anxiety. But Isla begins receiving persistent wrong-number texts from a stranger named Ewan, who says he's her husband (she's single), followed by photos of their wedding day (but...she's never been married). This is definitely a hoax...isn't it? Whoever he is, the man seems very clearly to know Isla well--and he says he's messaging her from the future in order to save her life. Isla must decide whether to believe Ewan but stay away from him in order to live, or to lose a chance at love with someone who just might be her soulmate. If you like books that play with time, you might also like the books on my Greedy Reading Lists Six Riveting Time-Travel Stories to Explore and Six Second-Chance, Do-Over, Reliving-Life Stories--or you can search this site for other Bossy reviews of books that involve time travel. I received a prepublication edition of this book courtesy of Alcove Press and NetGalley. 03 The Ink Black Heart (Cormoran Strike #6) I'm listening to the sixth installment in the Robert Gabraith (J.K. Rowling) Cormoran Strike series. Even listening at 1.75x speed is going to make this 32-hour, 42-minute audiobook a big commitment. So this had better be GOOD. When The Ink Black Heart begins, Robin and Corm's agency is approached by Edie Sitwell, a frantic potential client and the cocreator of a popular cartoon. She's looking to uncover the identity of an online figure who's harassing her horribly. They don't take the case, but when Edie turns up dead, they can't resist diving in. So far the book centers around accounts of extensive online messaging, which is feeling somewhat tedious. The Cormoran-Robin romantic tension without culmination is in full force. (This extended will-they, won't-they push and pull is beginning to rival the epic Moonlighting Bruce Willis and Cybill Shepherd inconvenient-attraction, opposites-attract, workplace-romance saga that I loved!) Click here for my reviews of books one through four of the Cormoran Strike series; and check out my Bossy review of Troubled Blood, book five.

My very favorite November reads! Here are my six favorite reads of the past month: Renaissance-set historical fiction, two historical fiction mysteries (one with magical elements at its heart), a fictionalized memoir, a story of 1980s-set fiction, and a contemporary novel about Deaf culture. If you've read any of these, I'd love to hear what you think! And I'd also love to hear: what are some of your recent favorite reads? 01 The Marriage Portrait by Maggie O'Farrell I was hooked on the captivating details of Renaissance life, masterfully paced swirling danger and paranoia, and richly developed major and minor characters in The Marriage Portrait. In The Marriage Portrait, Maggie O'Farrell turns her attention to Renaissance Italy to tell a historical fiction story of a precocious third daughter of the grand duke of Florence. Young Lucrezia is lucky enough to exist outside of palazzo scrutiny, free to follow her own imagination and inclinations and to shape her own days. But when her older sister dies suddenly before her scheduled marriage to the ruler of Ferrara, the men of the families involved and their advisors are quick to thrust the preteen Lucrezia into her sister's place. Her trusted nurse and former milk-mother Sofia does her best to delay plans to wed the slight young girl to an older duke, but ultimately Lucrezia is offered as a substitute. O'Farrell masterfully balances the reader on a tightrope, wondering how much of the potential danger Lucrezia perceives is imagined and how much is real. Lucrezia's shrinking world made me feel claustrophobic on her behalf and paranoid about everyone's potential intentions. The Marriage Portrait offers wonderful details--of food, palace life, clothing, and art--as well as a shocking ending. O'Farrell presents a fascinating Author's Note about the real figures and circumstances that inspired this book. For my full review, check out The Marriage Portrait. 02 A Study in Scarlet Women (Lady Sherlock #1) by Sherry Thomas This first book in Sherry Thomas's gender-flipped Sherlock Holmes mystery series offers not only an irresistible heroine, but a fascinating examination of gender in Victorian society--and what happens when women blow up expectations. A Study in Scarlet Women, the first in her Lady Sherlock series, presents Charlotte Holmes, a clever, forward-thinking, independent woman trapped in the Victorian age, a time in which women have little choice and even less of a voice. When she pushes against her restrictions in a brilliant yet shocking manner in order to shift her future, she goes so deeply against the standards of the time that she is shunned from society. It seems Charlotte may have created a situation in which she has fewer options than her constrained existence as a lady would have afforded. Then a series of unusual events lead to Charlotte's assuming the identity of a made-up detective, Sherlock Holmes, and putting to good use her powers of observation and her astute reading of people's motivations and secrets. Along with her scandalous elderly sidekick, the former actress Ms. Watson (who has a keen mind and an ability to play roles as well as facilitate meetings and encounters), Charlotte reimagines what a Victorian woman may be able to achieve. Click here for my full review of A Study in Scarlet Women. 03 True Biz by Sara Nović True Biz is a coming-of-age story, a beginner's primer on Deaf culture, and a captivating novel about romance, disappointment, fury, and loyalty. I happily read it in one sitting. Students at the residential River Valley School for the Deaf are trying to get through finals, maintain teenage crushes on each other, and make the most of living out from under their parents' roofs. But the hearing headmistress February (a CODA--a child of deaf adults), the rebellious new transfer student who doesn't know ASL, Charlie, and teacher's pet (and Deaf royalty in the area) Austin find that their pasts, current struggles, and priorities link them together in unexpected ways. True Biz is a coming-of-age story that also explores the importance society places on language; past and present political and social pushes concerning American Sign Language, cochlear implants, and Deaf culture; and above all, the essential role of community. The ASL-focused illustrations and information could have been dry but were illuminating instead. I learned about Deaf history, culture, and the politics that have disrupted and damaged those in the Deaf community while immersing myself in True Biz. True Biz was fascinating, and I devoured it in one sitting. Click here for my full review of True Biz. 04 A Restless Truth (The Last Binding, #2) by Freya Marske The second book in Marske's series is an irresistible queer magical mystery thriller with Edwardian England details, racy encounters, vulnerability and love, and witty banter on a ship bound for England. A Restless Truth is the second in Freya Marske's queer fantasy mystery Last Binding trilogy that began with A Marvellous Light. The character of Maud Blyth (Robin's sister, introduced in book one) expects adventure when she agrees to help save the magical world by serving as companion to an elderly magician on an ocean liner. By doing so, Maud aims to help her beloved older brother resolve a magical mystery that's been decades in the making. But when her charge drops dead on day one, Maud must identify the murderer, try to get her hands on a magical object essential to untangling the mystery at hand--and try to survive the voyage without being murdered herself. A Restless Truth is fun and quirky yet has depth, an appealingly complicated mystery, and a satisfying version of a resolution that sets up book three. Please click here for my full review of A Restless Truth. 05 The Hero of This Book by Elizabeth McCracken McCracken straddles the line between novel and memoir in a work whose heart is a love letter to her extraordinary mother. The author explores her own wonder, joy, loss, and peace as she reflects on her formidable mother after her death. After her larger-than-life mother's death, the narrator of The Hero of This Book faces the sale of the family home in New England and travels to her mother's favorite city, London. She considers whether her role as an author offers an opportunity to write about her mother and gain deeper understanding of her, or whether doing so would violate her mother's long-held, fierce desire for privacy. The Hero of This Book straddles the line between fiction and memoir, as the letter feels deeply like a love letter to McCracken's own mother Natalie, yet clearly says "A Novel" right there on the cover. The Hero of This Book is one way in which the author refuses to allow her many vivid memories of her formidable, funny, striking mother to slip away--while acknowledging that she couldn't tell the full story of her mother's life because there is too much she doesn't know. The blurred line between fact and fiction allows the true heart of the book, a daughter's wonder, grief, joy, and yearning for her lost mother, to exist. For my full review, please check out The Hero of This Book. 06 Now Is Not the Time to Panic by Kevin Wilson Kevin Wilson's wonderfully odd 1990s coming-of-age novel centers around teens Frankie and Zeke, their mysterious artistic creation, and the work's ripple effect, which reaches well beyond what they ever could have imagined. Sixteen-year-old aspiring writer Frankie is just trying to get through a late 1990s summer in Coalfield, Tennessee, where she's lived all her life. Despite her noisy, raucous household (she has triplet brothers and a busy single mom), she's used to being a loner. But then a new kid, Zeke, moves into his grandmother's house with his mom, who's in Coalfield nursing a heartbreak. Zeke is an artist, also a loner, and he's fascinating to Frankie. Frankie and Zeke want to create something--something strange, something people will notice, yet something that is all their own. They come up with an original enigmatic phrase and add attention-getting artwork, then spread mysterious posters of their creation far and wide--causing speculation, alarm, and repercussions far beyond what they could have predicted. As he did in a different way in his novel Nothing to See Here, in Now Is Not the Time to Panic, Wilson creates a fascinatingly odd situation, then offers characters' vulnerabilities and imperfections to bring the story to life. For my full review, check out Now Is Not the Time to Panic.

ICYMI: This is the first in Johnson's young adult series, set in a boarding school in rural Vermont, with compelling past and present mysteries and bright young Stevie Bell on the case(s). "...no one was going to discount Stevie Bell, who had gotten into this school on the wings of her interest in the Ellingham case, and who had been a bystander at a death that was now looking more and more suspicious.” Ellingham Academy is an elite boarding school in rural Vermont. It was founded in the early 1900s by Arthur Ellingham, a tycoon who wanted to encourage bright young thinkers and creatives and said he wanted learning to be a game. But after the school opened, Ellingham's wife and daughter were kidnapped. Decades later, mystery aficionado Stevie Bell arrives as a new student at Ellingham Academy, determined to crack the cold Ellingham case. But a new mystery emerges--and Truly Devious, who had taken credit for the original crime, seems to be back, with murder in mind. “I annoy people," he said. "Believe me. I'm aware. It's an effective way to communicate if you don't have any other options. If you can't get in through the door, throw a rock through the window. And I think maybe you're the same way." I was all in for the characters' friendships, various talents and offbeat interests, and their appealingly messy challenges (anxiety, emotional connection, problem-solving). Past newspaper articles and notes are interwoven throughout the story, along with narrative to flesh out the 1936 timeline. The wonderfully wrought rural Vermont setting, copious teen angst, and the long-ago but persistent and compelling mystery hooked me completely. But what a cliffhanger of an ending—I recommend not starting Truly Devious until you have the next book (The Vanishing Stair; the third book is The Hand on the Wall) ready to go. Do you have any Bossy thoughts about this book? You might also like the young adult mysteries One of Us Is Lying, One of Us Is Next, and the stellar A Good Girl's Guide to Murder and its sequels Good Girl, Bad Blood and As Good As Dead (I haven't yet read this one but have high hopes). If you like young adult books, you might be interested in the titles that make up the Greedy Reading Lists Six Royally Magical Young Adult Series and Six Fantastic Stand-Alone Young Adult Books.

ICYMI: Elizabeth McCracken shares her heartbreaking, gorgeous, terrible story of loss and love surrounding the loss of her baby at nine months in utero and her experience living through grief in this stellar five-star memoir. "This is the happiest story in the world with the saddest ending." Elizabeth McCracken was happily single, focused on her writing career. But then she found herself in love and married, thrilled to be expecting a child, living in rural France. Life held so many coming wonders and surprises. When McCracken loses her baby before its birth, she reels from grief and stumbles into a terrible understanding of how to go on after unimaginable loss. “I want a book that acknowledges that life goes on, but death goes on too, that a person who is dead is a long, long story. You move on from it, , but the death will never disappear from view.” McCracken recalls being a teenager living in Boston when a man on the subway shared a card saying "I AM DEAF." After her loss, she yearns for a similar exchange of information in which she owns a stack of cards explaining that her first child was stillborn. "I want people to know but I don't want to say it aloud. People don't like to hear it but I think they might not mind reading it on a card.” An Exact Replica of a Figment of My Imagination is honest, heartbreaking, beautiful, and agonizing. This is a heartrending memoir about losing a child. McCracken shares her incredible pain and explores the intense healing both in writing this book and in having another child after losing her first. Do you have any Bossy thoughts about this book? Elizabeth McCracken is also the author of The Hero of This Book, The Giant's House, An Exact Replica of a Figment of My Imagination, Here's Your Hat What's Your Hurry, and other books. I mentioned one of McCracken's short story collections, Thunderstruck & Other Stories, in the Greedy Reading List Six Short Story Collections to Wow You. You might also be interested in the books on the Greedy Reading List Six Powerful Memoirs About Facing Mortality.

McCracken straddles the line between novel and memoir in a work whose heart is a love letter to her extraordinary mother. The author explores her own wonder, joy, loss, and peace as she reflects on the formidable woman after her death. After her larger-than-life mother's death, the narrator of The Hero of This Book faces the sale of the family home in New England and travels to her mother's favorite city, London. She considers whether her role as an author offers an opportunity to write about her mother and gain deeper understanding of her, or whether doing so would violate her mother's long-held, fierce desire for privacy. The Hero of This Book straddles the line between fiction and memoir, as the book feels like a deeply felt love letter to McCracken's own mother Natalie, yet the book jacket clearly states that it is "A Novel." The narrator/McCracken states how much her mother detested memoirs, and The Hero of This Book even includes a photo of a prior McCracken book's dedication: "For Mom: who will never—no matter what she or anybody else thinks—appear as a character in my work." Perhaps you fear writing a memoir, reasonably. Invent a single man and call your book a novel. The freedom one fictional man grants you is immeasurable. Yet the novel structure feels like a way for McCracken to free herself from her lifelong promise not to write about her mother in order to share scenes from her mother's extraordinary spirit and life. In The Hero of This Book the author shares recollections and imagined current encounters with her mom, refusing to allow her many vivid memories of her formidable, funny, striking mother to slip away without documentation--while acknowledging that she couldn't possibly tell the full story of her mother's life because there is too much she doesn't know. The blurred line between fact and fiction allows the true heart of the book, a daughter's wonder, grief, joy, and yearning for her lost mother, to shine. I love how McCracken's books feel like peeks into the way her mind works; she lays bare the underpinnings of a small or a complex situation so skillfully, I highlight endless passages; her humor is wonderfully biting; she acknowledges her weaknesses and pokes fun at herself; she breaks your heart with the messy, gorgeous, complicated truth of living in the world. I received a prepublication edition of this book, published October 4, courtesy of Ecco and NetGalley. Do you have any Bossy thoughts about this book? McCracken is also the author of The Giant's House, An Exact Replica of a Figment of My Imagination (to be reviewed on this site soon), Here's Your Hat What's Your Hurry, and other books. I mentioned one of McCracken's short story collections, Thunderstruck & Other Stories, in the Greedy Reading List Six Short Story Collections to Wow You.

The Books I'm Reading Now I'm reading The Circus Train, Amita Parikh's upcoming novel set in a 1920s circus world as World War II looms; I'm reading When the Day Comes, Gabrielle Meyer's time-travel story of a woman leading two drastically different lives in two eras and forced to choose; and I'm reading The Box in the Woods, a stand-alone young adult mystery from Maureen Johnson that features smart, determined Stevie Bell from the Truly Devious series--and hopefully also includes the signature dark scenes and charming banter I loved in those books. What are you reading these days, bookworms? 01 The Circus Train by Amita Parikh In Amita Parikh's upcoming (to be published December 6) novel The Circus Train, a young woman with circus in her blood struggles to find her place in the world as World War II looms. Lena Papadopoulos is the daughter of the legendary illusionist Theo. Yet Lena, in a wheelchair after being stricken with polio, is bright and driven--and would much prefer to dive into medicine and science than the pretend world of the circus. An encounter with an orphaned boy leads to a treasured friendship, but as World War II builds around them and begins to creep into their lives in haunting ways, everything they have known and counted on seems threatened. I received a prepublication edition of this book courtesy of NetGalley and G.P. Putnam's Sons. 02 When the Day Comes by Gabrielle Meyer I loooove a time-travel book! When I was posting on my Instagram page about some of my favorite books that play with time, a fellow book lover recommended I add this one to my to-read list. Just listen to this irresistible setup: Libby lives two lives, one in 1774 Colonial Williamsburg, and one in 1914 Gilded Age New York City. In 1774, she is a printer with a husband and family, trying to protect them and prepare for the upheaval of the coming Revolution. In 1914, she's an independent single woman and suffragette, wealthy and expected to marry a man appropriate to her station. The first stirrings that will lead to World War I are taking place around the edges of her world. When Libby goes to sleep she consistently wakes in her other life, alternating her realities reliably. But she knows that when she turns 21, she must choose one life or the other, leaving the other behind forever. If you like books that play with time, you might also like the books on the Greedy Reading Lists Six Riveting Time-Travel Stories to Explore and Six Second-Chance, Do-Over, Reliving-Life Stories--or you can search this site for other Bossy reviews of books that involve time travel. 03 The Box in the Woods by Maureen Johnson The Box in the Woods is another young adult mystery from Maureen Johnson. This stand-alone novel from the author of the Truly Devious trilogy (Truly Devious, The Vanishing Stair, and The Hand on the Wall) follows Stevie Bell as she takes her sleuthing skills outside of Ellingham Academy for the first time. Johnson's Truly Devious series offers dark scenes, wicked mystery, blossoming attraction, loyal friendships, and excellent banter in a combination I loved. Maureen Johnson also wrote the young adult Shades of London series, which is based on Jack the Ripper's crimes. I'd like to give that a go too; the first title is The Name of the Star. Her newest book, Nine Liars, which also features Stevie Bell, is scheduled for publication December 27, 2022.

The Cookbook Gift Ideas This is the first of several Bossy book gift idea lists I'll share on Fridays leading up to the holidays. I hope you'll find a book or two in these lists to delight you or someone you love! I spend most of the year focusing on fiction titles, with a healthy dose of memoirs and some nonfiction mixed in. When it comes to giving books as gifts, I often focus on books that correlate with my loved ones' hobbies--and I know a lot of wonderful cooks. Here are the six cookbooks that I'm most interested in giving as gifts these holidays. All of these were published this year. Are you giving any cookbooks this year? Have you received any favorite cookbook gifts in years past? I'd love to hear! You might also like to check out the books on some of my past Bossy Book Gift Guides: Shhh! Book Gift Ideas for the Holidays Shhh! Six More Book Gift Ideas for the Holidays Shhh! More Book Gift Ideas for the Holidays Shhh! Book Gifts for Kids and Teens Shhh! More Book Gifts for Kids and Teens Shhh! Kid and Teen Book Gift Ideas for the Holidays Shhh! Nonfiction and Hobby Book Gift Ideas for the Holidays Shhh! Books I'm Giving as Gifts This Holiday 01 Tu Casa Mi Casa: Mexican Recipes for the Home Cook by Enrique Olvera I recently ran across this beautiful cookbook on a quick (and amazing!) trip to Sedona, and I immediately knew I wanted to include it in my Bossy cookbook gift guide. Olvera is the chef featured in the Netflix series Chef's Table, and in Tu Casa Mi Casa, he shares 100 recipes of core Mexican cooking to set up any home cook for success. With traditional Mexican flavors and cooking techniques as well as more modern combinations, 100 gorgeous photos, and step-by-step illustrations. Enrique Olvera opened Pujol in Mexico City in 2000. He runs three outposts of Eno, a casual eatery in Mexico City; Criollo in Oaxaca; Cosme in New York and soon Los Angeles; and Atla in New York. 02 Half Baked Harvest Every Day: Recipes for Balanced, Flexible, Feel-Good Meals by Tieghan Gerard In her newest cookbook, Half Baked Harvest Every Day, Tieghan Gerard offers 120 new recipes for "wholesome decadence," including recipes for a crowd and those sure to become everyday family favorites. Recipes include Spinach and Pesto-Stuffed Butternut Squash, Pizza Pasta with Pepperoni Bread Crumbs, Crispy Carnitas Taquitos, and Chocolate Olive Oil Cake. Gerard is creator of the popular blog and original recipe site Half Baked Harvest (and its corresponding Instagram account) and is the author of Half Baked Harvest Cookbook: Recipes from My Barn in the Mountains and Half Baked Harvest Super Simple: More Than 125 Recipes for Instant, Overnight, Meal-Prepped, and Easy Comfort Foods. 03 Smitten Kitchen Keepers: New Classics for Your Forever Files by Deb Perelman In Smitten Kitchen Keepers, Deb Perelman, creator of the Smitten Kitchen blog and corresponding Instagram account and author of The Smitten Kitchen Cookbook and Smitten Kitchen Every Day shares 100 recipes. Some are favorites from her site, and others are new meals with the Smitten Kitchen stamp of approval. With offerings like Cozy Chicken and Dumplings; Fettuccine with White Ragú; Chocolate Peanut Butter Cup Cookies; and Strawberry Summer Stack Cake, Perelman uses her signature efficiency to make sure steps (and mixing bowls) aren't wasted and tests rigorously to make sure each recipe is foolproof and delicious. 04 Love to Eat: 75 Easy, Craveworthy Recipes for Healthy, Intuitive Eating by Nicole Keshishian Modic I followed the Instagram account Kale Junkie at the recommendation of my friend Amy--and quickly fell in love with Nic's wholesome, nourishing, creative, yet accessible recipes. Nicole Modic grew up in Los Angeles with an Armenian father, and in Love to Eat she shares the influence of her heritage as well as her struggle with (and recovery from) an eating disorder. Together these key factors shaped her--and led to Modic's development of healthy yet indulgent creations in the kitchen. The book is a mix of inspirational stories and plant-focused recipes, many of which are sure to be kid-pleasers. 05 Go-To Dinners by Ina Garten Ah, a new Ina cookbook! Last year I gave Barefoot Contessa's Cooking for Jeffrey as a gift, and it's not difficult to think of multiple potential gift recipients for Garten's newest offering. Including...myself! In Go-To Dinners, Ina shares some of the delicious, comforting meals she relied upon during Covid-19 lockdown, complete with make-ahead, freeze-ahead, and simple-to-assemble recipes. From Overnight Mac & Cheese to Tuscan White Bean Soup, and Chicken in a Pot with Orzo to Hasselback Kielbasa, you'll be able to feed a crowd or simply serve up plenty for a hungry household. Garten's handy "Two-Fers" show you how to turn leftovers from one dinner into a different and delicious meal on another night. 06 Seinfeld: The Official Cookbook by Julie Tremaine and Brendan Kirby Last year I gave Jerry Seinfeld's book Is This Anything? as a gift, and because it seems that the Seinfeld obsession in this house may never subside, the first official Seinfeld cookbook caught my eye when it was published this fall. With over 60 recipes inspired by Seinfeld, including mulligatawny soup, Elaine's Big Salad, George's Bedroom Pastrami, Newman's Jambalaya, The Opposite of Tuna on Toast, and muffin tops, this cookbook might just be the perfect way to get your Seinfeld lovers cooking!

Thankful for Five-Star Bossy Favorites I've been thinking through my favorite books of the year for an upcoming year-end Greedy Reading List I'll be posting--and I'm always thankful for books and reading. So today I wanted to reshare some of my five-star reads from the past in case you need a great long-weekend read or book gift idea. I try to read books I'll enjoy, find interesting, and/or be entertained by, and a five-star read is a special one for me. It may make me feel all the feelings, and/or may be intriguing and make me think, and it's usually engaging enough that it's tough for me to put down. You might also like the books on the Greedy Reading List Six Five-Star Bossy Reads to Check Out. Or you can search the site for Five-Star Book Reviews. Which standout books have you read this year? What made them your favorites? 01 The Sparrow by Mary Doria Russell This book! This book is about everything. Family, pain, love, music, influence, trust, wonder, brutality, invention, discovery, loyalty, and most of all, faith—in some cases, lost and found again. And also...aliens. In The Sparrow, humans find proof of extraterrestrial life, and the UN begins deliberating about those on Earth should proceed. Meanwhile, a small team from the Society of Jesus quickly strikes out on its own to approach the planet first. The life they find there is wondrous and overwhelming, and it forces them to rethink their assumptions about humanity and the universe. I don’t usually read books again, but I could use a copy of my own to highlight upon rereading. The Sparrow took a little time to get going for me, but then I was blown away. For my full review of this book, please see The Sparrow. 02 Autoboyography by Christina Lauren I adored this young adult LGBTQ+ love story by Christina Lauren (the pen name for the writing team Christina Hobbs and Lauren Billings). The characters in Autoboyography are thoughtful and young and funny and defiant but good, and they make mistakes and pay for them and live within their awful messed-up moments and their painful consequences, and they try to figure out their lives as teenagers must. They feel first love and angst so deeply and talk about it so so SO much, and somehow it wasn’t insufferable to read about at all, it was just perfect and made me laugh (and at one point cry, ahem). The Autoboyography dialogue is fantastic and witty but feels effortless and like it comes from actual teenagers--a difficult tone to pin down. This is fantastic contemporary young adult fiction. Click here for my full review of Autoboyography. 03 When We Were the Kennedys by Monica Wood In 1963 the Woods were a typical Catholic immigrant family in Mexico, Maine. But when Monica's father dies suddenly, Monica and her three sisters begin to drift, and the family seems in danger of feeling unmoored forever. When We Were the Kennedys is a memoir about grieving deeply, leaning on family and community in a crisis and in common suffering, and figuring out the impossible: how to move on after devastating tragedy. Wood gorgeously evokes the many characters and unfathomable events that changed her family's existence--as well as that of her community and the entire country--in 1963. I loved this fantastic memoir! Wood's memoir is heartwarming and funny and tragic and vivid. I ate it up in a single day. For my full review, please see When We Were the Kennedys. 04 Dear Edward by Ann Napolitano Twelve-year-old Edward Adler is the sole survivor of a plane crash. He struggles to move forward, but he feels stuck, as though part of him will always be lost. Edward tries on the mantle of taking responsibility for every life lost; he wallows in the despair of others and their hopes that he will pursue their loved ones’ lost dreams and right their wrongs; then he messily works out how to create his own lucky, unshackled, truest life. Dear Edward was so much more than I expected, but thankfully Napolitano didn’t rely solely on her book’s promising premise. She wrote the hell out of this and created an irresistible and true-feeling character in Edward. Nothing is too easy here, nor is it ever melodramatic in Napolitano’s hands. I loved this book. I kept thinking about it while I was doing other things, and I just wanted to get back to Edward to find out how things were going. I read this book with my longtime book club. For my full review, please see Dear Edward. 05 The Gilded Hour by Sara Donati In The Gilded Hour, Donati shapes a historical fiction story about an eccentric family and a broad surrounding cast of characters--and it's all centered around independent women with unconventional women's roles in society in nineteenth century New York City. The Gilded Hour explores how these women's abilities and constraints intersect with women's rights of the time period, social responsibility, and conventions, all in an immensely readable book rich in period detail, great dialogue, and satisfying elements of love, mystery, and searches for justice. I felt that a couple of important underlying plot lines remained oddly unresolved at the end--even keeping in mind that there's a second book in Donati's Waverly Place series, Where the Light Enters. However, I just loved this story and Donati's storytelling too much to let it cloud my gleeful reading experience. I loved digging into this 750-page historical fiction wonder. For my full review, please see The Gilded Hour. 06 Maybe You Should Talk to Someone by Lori Gottlieb I was going to be happy with a light, surface-level peek at therapy and at the ins and outs of a therapist's providing and receiving therapy. But Maybe You Should Talk to Someone quickly grows into a network of sometimes interconnected and consistently meaningful searches for purpose and peace that surprised me. Gottlieb says therapy is about asking, "Who am I? What do I want? What's in my way?" She also says "Everyone needs to hear that other person's voice saying, 'I believe in you. I can see possibilities that you might not see quite yet. I imagine that something different can happen, in some form or another. ' In therapy we say, 'Let's edit your story.'" I loved that, and this "editing of the story" is apparent in Gottlieb's own therapy experience and in her experiences with her patients. There's beautiful exploration in Maybe You Should Talk to Someone: A Therapist, Her Therapist, and Our Lives Revealed of dying, death, appreciating the beauty of the impermanence of our lives, planning for loved ones after our death, and living life fully. For my full review, please see Maybe You Should Talk to Someone.

True Biz is a coming-of-age story, a beginner's primer on Deaf culture, and a captivating novel about romance, disappointment, fury, and loyalty. I happily read it in one sitting. Students at the residential River Valley School for the Deaf are trying to get through finals, maintain teenage crushes on each other, and make the most of living out from under their parents' roofs. But the hearing headmistress February (a CODA--a child of deaf adults), the rebellious new transfer student who doesn't know ASL, Charlie, and teacher's pet (and Deaf royalty in the area) Austin find that their pasts, current struggles, and priorities link them together in unexpected ways. True Biz is a coming-of-age story that also explores the importance society places on language; past and present political and social pushes concerning American Sign Language, cochlear implants, and Deaf culture; and above all, the essential role of community. Nović occasionally shifts points of view from key characters Charlie, Austin, and February in order to provide additional perspectives. At first I feared this would dilute my connection to the main characters, but the ventures into others' heads were brief and illustrative. The forays into others' views also felt fitting; Nović highlights the way in which ASL gracefully allows for the indication of different speakers and points of view. The ASL-focused illustrations and information could have been dry but were illuminating instead. I learned about Deaf history, culture, and the politics that have disrupted and damaged those in the Deaf community while immersing myself in True Biz. There isn't a clean resolution to each of the large-scale (and infuriating) issues Novic raises, but a clean wrap-up to such an immensely complex situation would have likely felt disingenuous. True Biz was fascinating. I devoured this in one sitting, on a plane. Do you have any Bossy thoughts about this book? Sara Nović is also the author of Girl at War and the illustrated nonfiction work America Is Immigrants.

Kevin Wilson's wonderfully odd 1990s coming-of-age novel centers around teens Frankie and Zeke, their mysterious artistic creation, and the work's ripple effect, which reaches well beyond what they ever could have imagined. Sixteen-year-old aspiring writer Frankie is just trying to get through a late 1990s summer in Coalfield, Tennessee, where she's lived all her life. Despite her noisy, raucous household (she has triplet brothers and a busy single mom), she's used to being a loner. But then a new kid, Zeke, moves into his grandmother's house with his mom, who's in Coalfield nursing a heartbreak. Zeke is an artist, also a loner, and he's fascinating to Frankie. Frankie and Zeke want to create something--something strange, something people will notice, yet something that is all their own. They come up with an original enigmatic phrase and add attention-getting artwork, then spread mysterious posters of their creation far and wide--causing speculation, alarm, and repercussions far beyond what they could have predicted. As he did in a different way in his novel Nothing to See Here, in Now Is Not the Time to Panic, Wilson creates a fascinatingly odd situation, then offers characters' vulnerabilities and imperfections to bring the story to life. By tracking the fictional course of events as they spiral out of control, exploring Zeke and Frankie's potential responsibility as the creators of the original artwork, then following them to a much later point in their lives, when the truth about the work's origins begins to emerge, Wilson paints a full picture that spans the characters' coming-of-age young adoration as well as their separate adult lives--and how "the poster" unequivocally shaped them into who they are today. Wilson's Author's Note, which precedes the novel, explains the phrase from the story's poster and what it meant to him in real life. He shares the way in which the concept of the novel grew from hearing the utterance of this phrase in his youth, and explores the circumstances surrounding it. I received a prepublication edition of this book courtesy of Ecco and NetGalley. Do you have any Bossy thoughts about this book? Check out this link for my review of Kevin Wilson's Nothing to See Here. Wilson is also the author of Baby, You're Gonna Be Mine, The Family Fang, Perfect Little World, and Tunneling to the Center of the Earth: Stories.

The Books I'm Reading Now I'm reading Blackwater Falls, a recently published thriller by Ausma Zehanat Khan about the mystery of missing immigrant girls in Colorado; I'm reading True Biz, Sara Novic's coming-of-age story set in a boarding school for deaf students; and I'm reading Tell Me an Ending, Jo Harkin's speculative fiction about the purposeful erasing of memories--and what might happen if someone who wanted to forget suddenly remembers all of their past pain. What are you reading these days, bookworms? 01 Blackwater Falls by Ausma Zehanat Khan In the Colorado town of Blackwater Falls, girls from immigrant families have been disappearing. But it takes finding the body of a golden-child student and star athlete--positioned for attention in a mosque--for the police to take action. Detective Inaya Rahman and Lieutenant Waqas Seif work to solve the mystery of the girls' murders--running up against complications, prejudices, and roadblocks of all kinds. Khan explores racial injustice, police corruption, and the implications of American politics in this recent thriller. I received a prepublication edition of this book courtesy of NetGalley and St. Martin's Press. 02 True Biz by Sara Novic Students at the residential River Valley School for the Deaf are trying to get through finals, have typical teenage crushes on each other, and make the most of living out from under their parents' roofs. The hearing headmistress (a CODA--a child of deaf adults), the rebellious new transfer student Charlie, and teacher's pet Austin find that their struggles link their lives in unexpected ways. True Biz, by the author of Girl at War, is a coming-of-age story that also explores the importance society places on language and the crucial role of community. 03 Tell Me an Ending by Jo Harkin Jo Harkin's speculative fiction Tell Me an Ending is about a tech company that erases unwanted memories. When people around the world are notified that they have requested and have had specific memories removed, a collective shock takes over. Harkin tracks four characters as they cope with what they may have lost, and whether it's best to leave forgotten pain behind. Meanwhile, a psychologist at a memory recovery clinic begins reinstating memories at individuals' requests--and dealing with the significant emotional fallout as people face the pain and confusion of facing their pasts.

Book club love! These are my favorite book club reads from the past year. We also read Betty, We Are Not Like Them, All Her Little Secrets, Cultish, Beautiful Country, and These Precious Days by Ann Patchett. I haven't read that last one yet, and it could turn this list upside down, because I do love me some Ann Patchett! For my favorite book club reads from the past, check out the Greedy Reading Lists Six Book Club Books I Loved Last Year and Six Book Club Books I Loved in 2021. 01 The Memoirs of Stockholm Sven by Nathanial Ian Miller "I’d long since learned that if you plan to survive in the Arctic, you must choose one of two paths: emulate the bear...by holding fast to yourself as the last reliable chunk of ice.... Or choose the fox instead: ...learn fast. Dig a hole and cling tightly to those who can stand you." It's 1916, and Sven Ormson has left the bustle of his life in Stockholm for solitude and quiet in the Arctic. In his self-banishment in remote Svalbard, his only company is the haunting, beautiful Northern Lights. Letters from family and friends get him through multiple winters--until an unexpected visitor changes everything, opens up Sven's world, and shows him a life and a future he could never have imagined or hoped for. The pacing of The Memoirs of Stockholm Sven is measured, as befits a story that is largely about daily life in the unforgiving, brutal cold and wild. There's a minor, secondhand, yet powerful focus on the brutality and destruction of war, but also significant attention to unspoken bonds, deep and unorthodox friendships, makeshift families, legendary dogs, and strong emotional ties to nature and the rhythms of the seasons. If you like books set in the unforgiving cold, you might also like the books on the Greedy Reading List Six Books with Cold, Wintry Settings to Read by the Fire. For my full review of this book, see The Memoirs of Stockholm Sven. 02 The Lincoln Highway by Amor Towles As the young men in The Lincoln Highway face challenge after challenge, they grow, learn, and fight for resolutions to difficult situations. It's June 1954, and eighteen-year-old Emmett Watson has just served fifteen months on a juvenile work farm for involuntary manslaughter. The family farm in Nebraska has been foreclosed upon, his mother is gone, and his father has recently died. Emmett's planning to pick up his eight-year-old brother Billy and head west to start a new life. But when the warden drops him off at home, Emmett discovers that two friends from the work farm hitched a ride in the trunk, and they're set on having the group of boys light out for New York City instead. The boys and the members of their entourage each fight to tie up loose ends in their lives, explore new paths they might take, and learn about themselves. Click here for my full review of The Lincoln Highway. 03 The Maid by Nita Prose Nita Prose offers a surprising amount of heart and a unique main protagonist in this lighthearted murder mystery, her debut novel. In Nita Prose's novel The Maid, main protagonist Molly finds a hotel guest dead in his room, and her access to the room, her eccentric manner, and other's manipulations of her innocent vulnerability may mean that she's the prime suspect. Prose has built an interesting premise with Molly as an unreliable main protagonist. She's naive, she struggles with social cues and unplanned interactions, her way of speaking is formal, and her habits are rigid and inflexible. While Molly herself frequently misses the implications of the details she meticulously observes, the reader sees the truth of the various circumstances she witnesses. I was concerned that Molly's unique set of idiosyncrasies might be too central of a plot point in that it might allow for too-easy deception, and that seeing others take advantage of her innocence would make for nerve-racking, uncomfortable reading. But Prose offers some surprises, and Molly seems more than capable of extricating herself from suspicion by using the many personal qualities that have led others to underestimate her. The shifts in point of view and the revelations that were made possible by the bit-by-bit unveiling of information were intriguing. For my full review, see The Maid. 04 Doctors and Friends by Kimmery Martin Through various doctors' and medical experts' points of view, Martin paints a picture of a worldwide pandemic, crises and impossible situations, and powerful, sustaining friendships. Kimmery Martin's Doctors and Friends begins with a group of seven women, friends since medical school, reuniting in Spain. But as they catch up on each other's careers and personal lives, explore, eat, drink, and celebrate, a global pandemic begins to take shape. I was hooked on the medical details and the behind-the-scenes medical experiences of the experts. The various ways Martin made the pandemic feel personal to the story--as with the account of Patient Zero's experience and his two degrees of separation from the main characters--added to the urgent feeling. Doctors and Friends was written before the Covid-19 pandemic and published in the fall of 2021. In her author's note, Martin explains her extensive research into pandemics, and clarifies that her experiences with the real-life pandemic shaped only minor edits to her story (for example, she added Zoom as a meeting structure). For my full review, check out Doctors and Friends. 05 Our Woman in Moscow by Beatriz Williams Williams's historical fiction mystery--based on real-life double agents in the Cambridge Spy Ring--is vividly set in Europe and Russia and was a rare five-star read for me. In Beatriz Williams's historical fiction, Our Woman in Moscow it's 1948 and Iris Digby, her American diplomat husband Sasha, and their two children have disappeared overnight. Those who knew and worked with them are shocked. Were the Digbys abducted by Soviet agents...or did they make their way by choice behind the Iron Curtain with a suitcase of American secrets to trade? The mystery skips back and forth in time, and four years later, Iris's twin sister Ruth finally receives a postcard from her estranged sister. Ruth is soon on her way to Russia to try to extricate Iris from danger--but the truth about Iris's marriage and past is more complicated and fraught than Ruth could have imagined. I loved this. Every heart-stopping moment; every exquisite detail; the characters' growth, emotional distance, and unforeseen connections to each other; the trick of teasing out what was actually happening; the characterization; the machinations--all of it. onderful lights in the (significant) darkness here. Click here for my full review of Our Woman in Moscow. 06 Cloud Cuckoo Land by Anthony Doerr Doerr's Cloud Cuckoo Land was a complex, heartbreaking, hope-filled, surprising, fascinating read. Young Anna lives in fifteenth-century Constantinople with her sickly sister, frustrated with endlessly stitching priests' robes--and secretly learning to read stories from the past. In twentieth-century Idaho, Zeno has lived a long life filled with yearning, war, and unexpected late-in-life academic satisfaction. He is directing a precious group of children in a farcical, heartbreaking play based on the stories Anna read five centuries earlier. And far in the future, Konstance is in a vault on the spaceship Argos, destined for a distant planet. She largely lives in a vivid virtual world but leaves to scribble scraps of information about the same ancient stories that touched the lives of Anna and Zeno. The stories in Cloud Cuckoo Land (which is the name of the book-within-a-book) connect these characters across space and time. Doerr's characters persist, each in their own way, in trying to make a positive mark on the world and in preserving what is precious to them--and what they imagine will be important to future generations. Even when all hope should be lost, each character in its own way continues to press on. "But what's so beautiful about a fool...," the text says at one point, "is that a fool never knows when to give up." Cloud Cuckoo Land was consistently beautiful, always interesting, and sometimes heartbreaking. Check out my full review of Cloud Cuckoo Land here.

ICYMI: Graham Moore tells a historical fiction tale based on real events surrounding the rise of the light bulb--with compelling conflicts, spying, details of high society, and various characters' exploration of the billion-dollar question: Who can rightfully claim to have invented this life-changing invention? The Last Days of Night is a fictionalized account based on the dramatic Edison-Westinghouse-Tesla conflicts during the rise of the light bulb and major developments in electricity. It's 1888 in New York City, and gas lamps shine and flicker throughout the city. Thomas Edison is suing George Westinghouse in the billion-dollar matter of who actually invented the light bulb in order to determine who will make their fortune powering New York City with electricity. The story also showcases the rise of Paul Cravath as the creator of the modern law firm model, as Cravath is shown to manage the egos, claims, fame, and legal rights of the various players. With spying, jaunts to the opera, appearances by J. P. Morgan, closed-door deals, and peeks into the lives of those in high society of New York, The Last Days of Night was a fascinating jaunt into a pivotally evolving time. The pacing of the the first 100 pages felt slow, but after that I was totally hooked on this very compelling story. Do you have any Bossy thoughts about this book? Graham Moore is also the author of The Holdout, The Sherlockian, Mortal Coil, and others. You might also like the books on the Greedy Reading Lists Six Historical Fiction Favorites, Six Historical Fiction Backlist Favorites, Six Historical Fiction Books I Loved This Year, and Six Historical Fiction Books I Loved in the Past Year. You can find others by searching "historical fiction" on this blog.

The second book in Marske's series is an irresistible queer magical mystery thriller with Edwardian England details, racy encounters, vulnerability and love, and witty banter on a ship bound for England. A Restless Truth is the second in Freya Marske's queer fantasy mystery Last Binding trilogy that began with A Marvellous Light. A Marvellous Light was full of details of life in Edwardian England, gay love, mystery, magic, wonderful dialogue, and plenty of heart. I adored it. In A Restless Truth, the character of Maud Blyth (Robin's sister, introduced in book one) expects adventure when she agrees to help save the magical world by serving as companion to an elderly magician on an ocean liner. By doing so, Maud aims to help her beloved older brother resolve a magical mystery that's been decades in the making. But when her charge drops dead on day one, Maud must identify the murderer, try to get her hands on a magical object essential to untangling the mystery at hand--and try to survive the voyage without being murdered herself. Maud and each of her unlikely allies are fantastic characters. The mystery element kept me hooked, and details of proper Edwardian etiquette and clothing were wonderful. Marske doesn't skimp on presenting multiple magical elements, which I loved--and she includes many detailed, saucy, passionate encounters between our main characters. I was struck by the drastic manner in which Violet attempted to free herself from the shackles of marriage and the subsummation of a woman to her husband that was expected at the time. (This reminded me of the measures taken by the main protagonist in another book I recently read, A Study of Scarlet Women, in order to secure freedom from a stifling marriage.) A Restless Truth is fun and quirky yet has depth, an appealingly complicated mystery, and a satisfying version of a resolution that sets up book three. I received a prepublication edition of this book courtesy of Macmillan-Tor/Forge, Tordotcom, and NetGalley. Do you have any Bossy thoughts about this book? The third book in the Last Binding series will be titled A Power Unbound. Its publication date has not been announced.

ICYMI: Geraldine Brooks crafts a historical fiction story of 1666, a year in which disease, fear, and loss make way for redemption, unexpected joys, and inspiration in a remote English village. I recently read Geraldine Brooks's newest book, Horse, and I realized that I haven't posted a Bossy review of another Brooks favorite of mine, Year of Wonders: A Novel of the Plague. In 17th century England, an infected bolt of cloth carries the plague from London to a small town. Anna Frith emerges as an unexpected healer when her isolated village faces the terrors of suffering, death, superstition, and suspicion as the plague decimates its population. But through the pain, witch-hunting, loss, and confusion of the year, the community finds unexpected surprises, joys, and inspiration. In Year of Wonders, Brooks shapes a vivid world that comes to life because of the author's painstaking research and the engrossing details she includes of life at the time. Brooks's story was inspired by the true story of Eyam, an isolated village in English hill country. I was fascinated by this one. Do you have any Bossy thoughts about this book? Brooks is also the author of Horse, People of the Book, March, Caleb's Crossing, and others. Other powerful books I've loved that have to do with plagues, disease, and pandemics include The Dog Stars, Station Eleven, Doctors and Friends, Lucy by the Sea, The Pull of the Stars, Hamnet, and How High We Go in the Dark.

The Books I'm Reading Now I'm reading Kate Atkinson's newest book, historical fiction set in 1926 jazz-era London; I'm reading Kevin Wilson's newest, Now Is Not the Time to Panic, about two teenage misfits; and I'm reading the recently published heart-warmer Meredith, Alone, a debut novel from Claire Alexander. What are you reading these days, bookworms? 01 Shrines of Gaiety by Kate Atkinson It's 1926 in London, and recovery from the Great War inspires the city to dive into a wild nightlife scene and to revel in the frenzy of the Jazz Age. Nellie Coker is shamelessly thrusting her six children into the forefront of the social scene in Soho, but a dark undercurrent and competition for the limelight could shake Coker's hold on her empire--and upset her ambitious dreams for her children. Atkinson is also the author of Case Histories, Behind the Scenes at the Museum, Life After Life, Human Croquet, When Will There Be Good News, and many more books. 02 Now Is Not the Time to Panic by Kevin Wilson Sixteen-year-old aspiring writer Frankie is just trying to get through summer in Coalfield, Tennessee. She's used to being a loner--but then Zeke comes to town and moves into his grandmother's house. He's an artist, also a loner, and he's fascinating. Frankie and Zeke come up with an enigmatic phrase and attention-getting artwork, and they spread the mysterious posters far and wide--causing speculation, alarm, and repercussions far beyond what they could have imagined. Check out this link for my review of Kevin Wilson's Now Is Not the Time to Panic. I received a prepublication edition of this book courtesy of Ecco and NetGalley. 03 Meredith, Alone by Claire Alexander Meredith has a job that she works remotely, and a cat, Fred. She's working to cope with her childhood trauma, and she's got an online support group to help her. Her best friend comes to visit with her kids, and in the meantime Meredith has her jigsaw puzzles, her books of poems, her recipes--she has all she needs. But then two new friends come into Meredith's life. And her long-estranged sister makes contact. Suddenly Meredith's safe, cozy, self-contained haven is expanding--and Meredith isn't so alone anymore. I received a prepublication edition of this book courtesy of Grand Central Publishing and NetGalley.

Do you love memoirs like I do? I love digging into the story of someone's life--notable because of chance, circumstance, or choice--and escaping into an eye-opening and fascinating memoir. If you love memoirs, you might also like the titles I listed on these Greedy Reading Lists: Six Fascinating Memoirs to Explore Six More Fascinating Memoirs to Explore Six Illuminating Memoirs to Dive Into Six Illuminating Memoirs I've Read This Year Six More Illuminating Memoirs to Lose Yourself In Six Foodie Memoirs to Whet Your Appetite Six Powerful Memoirs about Facing Mortality A few other memoirs on my to-read list that I'm particularly excited about are: Pretty Baby by Chris Belcher; Raising a Rare Girl by Heather Lanier, Sometimes You Have to Lie: The Life and Times of Louise Fitzhugh, Renegade and Author of Harriet the Spy by Leslie Brody, Uncultured by Daniella Mestyanek Young, and Solito by Javier Zamora. I'd love to hear: What are some of your favorite memoirs? 01 Here For It by R. Eric Thomas In Here for It: Or, How to Save Your Soul in America, R. Eric Thomas, the creator of Elle's sassy and smart daily column "Eric Reads the News," shares his thoughts, experiences, and reflections about life and the world around us with honesty and humor. In essays that are sometimes heartbreaking, often inspiring, and that frequently made me laugh out loud, Thomas explores his sheltered youth, his growing realizations that he was different than most of the people he knew, his shame and fear about living as his authentic self, and his meandering path toward his current satisfying life circumstances. I listened to this as an audiobook, and I adored hearing Thomas's voice take me through his essays. His voice and delivery are fabulous. Here For It is refreshing and playful yet thoughtful. I loved spending time with the uproariously funny Thomas as he recounts how he's navigated situations large and small in his life. Thomas is also a host of The Moth storytelling podcast in D.C. and Philadelphia--and he certainly knows how to craft a compelling and full story out of a momentous moment. For my full review of this book, see Here For It. 02 Notes on a Silencing by Lacy Crawford Crawford thought the trauma of her assault at St. Paul's boarding school decades earlier was behind her. It had shaped who she was in many senses, but now she was a grown woman with a full life, and she was not regularly reliving the crushing weight of it as a vivid horror any longer. But when evidence of extensive sexual assault and new allegations at St. Paul's School came to light, she added her voice to the throng of the attacked and abused, opening her own long-closed (and hitherto unknown to her) file and seeing for the first time the brutal facts of her own attack, as well as the ensuing, elaborate efforts to keep secret the events surrounding her situation. Crawford's memoir lays bare systemic lies, gross injustices, horrifying abuses of privilege and power, and longstanding patterns of unprosecuted assaults at elite St. Paul's boarding school--as well as the persistent tragic, infuriating, shaming treatment of assault victims. The topic is crushing, but Crawford's writing is wonderful in its honest and unflinching reflections on society, her own experiences, the horrifying power of privilege, and the abhorrent treatment of assault victims. She tries to imagine the points of view of everyone involved, and she treats her young self with empathy. For my full review of this book, see Notes on a Silencing. 03 In Pieces by Sally Field Here's the list's celebrity memoir! I found Sally Field's discussion of her "craft" and how she grew and changed as an actor to be the most compelling aspect of the book--along with the politics of getting roles and how she finally began listening to her inner voice in all aspects of her life. Therapy (and acting, which also served as a sort of therapy) eventually allowed Field to come into her fully realized adult self, and this journey is satisfying to watch after living through the page time of her languishing and struggling for so long. I listened to this as an audiobook, and I loved hearing Field tell her story. I appreciate when a celebrity provides brutal honesty, and I also admit to sometimes becoming impatient with the navel-gazing necessary to create a memoir. Aaaand I realize that this is unfair since I chose to read this person's life story. For my full review of this book, see In Pieces. 04 Blood by Allison Moorer "I'm still trying not to be the daughter of a murderer. I'm still trying to redeem [my parents]. I carry the structure of their bones around my insides...and try to tell the world, '...They were more than that.'" Allison Moorer is a Grammy- and Academy Award-nominated singer-songwriter whose father killed her mother when Allison and her sister were young. A longtime musical storyteller, Moorer examines her parents, her youth, and that pivotal tragedy, considering how it has shaped her into her adult self and how much of her identity is separate from that horrifying event and its endless repercussions. There's a lot of pain here. But Blood doesn't read as though Moorer is flogging her significant sorrow and anger or highlighting dramatic events for memoir or record sales. I felt like I was following her on her honest, zigzagging, messy journey toward gaining more of an understanding of the people her parents were and the forces that shaped their lives (and their daughters' lives)--as though I was witnessing her step-by-step movement toward something that more closely resembles peace. The foreword was written by Allison's sister, singer and songwriter Shelby Lynne. Regarding their talking through their past together, Moorer says: "So many memories we share and purposely keep well-oiled. We keep them alive even if they hurt us and suck up all the air in the room. They are all we have of our folks and the family we were." For my full review of this book, please see Blood. 05 Sorry I'm Late, I Didn't Want to Come by Jessica Pan Jessica Pan was an introvert out of a job. Her closest friends had moved away, and she found herself lonely, living in another country, and feeling too reliant on her husband for her entire social life. Pan decided to deliberately put herself into extremely uncomfortable social situations for a year, and she fully commits. She does improv, approaches strangers on the Tube, goes on friend dates, attends networking events, takes a vacation alone (to a destination she doesn't learn until she's at the airport), and more. She regrets her one-year plan almost instantly but feels compelled to continue her terrifying exercises. Her interviews and experiences with others who mentor her journey in different ways could have felt disruptive or jarring but didn't; they added a layer to her story that I found interesting and often revelatory. Pan is wonderfully honest, appealingly thoughtful, and often so so funny. I was so happy spending time in her point of view throughout this book. I loved it and I'd read another book by her in a second. For my full review of this book, please see Sorry I'm Late, I Didn't Want to Come. 06 Wild Life by Keena Roberts Keena Roberts grew up splitting her time between a primate research camp in Botswana, where she felt at home, and an elite Philadelphia girls' school, where she did not. Wild Life's subtitle, Dispatches from a Childhood of Baboons and Button-Downs, felt whimsical and light. But Roberts's memoir doesn't merely explore her culture shock, as interesting as that is. She reflects upon her identity in a raw and genuine way that I found gripping. Her disparate life experiences ultimately led her to think deeply about her place in the world, her responsibility to humans and animals, and how she might better the lives of others. This memoir was more than I'd hoped for. I love a peek at wildlife and living in the wild, and I adored reading Roberts's account of her journey, from acting in a supporting role for her parents' research to discovering her own challenging, meaningful, and important career and calling. For my full review of this book, please see Wild Life.

I was hooked on the captivating details of Renaissance life, masterfully paced swirling danger and paranoia, and richly developed major and minor characters in The Marriage Portrait. “You need a plan,” she hears—or seems to hear—her old nurse, Sofia, say, from a place near her elbow. “To lose your temper is to lose the battle.” In The Marriage Portrait, Maggie O'Farrell turns her attention to Renaissance Italy to tell a historical fiction story of a precocious third daughter of the grand duke of Florence. Young Lucrezia is lucky enough to exist outside of palazzo scrutiny, free to follow her own imagination and inclinations and to shape her own days. She is considered odd and emotional, and her siblings exclude and tease her, pushing her further into largely contented isolation and a life that centers around painting and observing the natural world. But when her older sister dies suddenly before her scheduled marriage to the ruler of Ferrara, the men of the families involved and their advisors are quick to thrust the preteen Lucrezia into her sister's place. Her trusted nurse and former milk-mother Sofia does her best to delay plans to wed the slight young girl to an older duke, but ultimately Lucrezia is offered as a substitute. Wearing an enormous gold dress meant for her now-deceased sister, Lucrezia marries a stranger, immediately facing a swirl of emotions, fears, and pressures. Suddenly not only is Lucrezia's freedom curtailed, but her future is in jeopardy--unless she can produce an heir. Constricted by the clothes, behavioral expectations, and duties of her new station, Lucrezia struggles to get to know her new husband--and to figure out how to exist in this new world. O'Farrell masterfully balances the reader on a tightrope, wondering how much of the potential danger Lucrezia perceives is imagined and how much is real. Lucrezia's shrinking world made me feel claustrophobic on her behalf and paranoid about everyone's potential intentions. The skips through time wonderfully shape the story and create fascinating pacing as Lucrezia enjoys moments of safety and periods in which she is in crisis. Even minor characters are richly developed and captivating. Sofia, Emilia, and Jacobo aren't given extensive page time but serve pivotal roles in the story and in Lucrezia's life. The Marriage Portrait offers wonderful details--of food, palace life, clothing, and art--as well as a shocking ending. O'Farrell presents a fascinating Author's Note about the real figures and circumstances that inspired this book. Do you have any Bossy thoughts about this book? Maggie O'Farrell is also the author of Hamnet, I Am, I Am, I Am: Seventeen Brushes with Death, The Vanishing Act of Esme Lennox, Instructions for a Heatwave, This Must Be the Place, and others.

I was interested in both of Martin's World War II storylines. The author's historical fiction romance-writing is evident here, in contrast to the tone of The Last Bookshop in London. As World War II explodes, Ava is safe and cozy in her job at the Library of Congress. But a surprise job offer from the US military leads her to Lisbon--opening her eyes to wartime difficulties and instilling a passion in her to help European refugees. Meanwhile, Elaine, who is French, is doing what she can to help those in need--including giving away her own papers and ration cards to a hungry Jewish woman. She futilely urges her husband to join the Resistance--but when he disappears, she seeks out the rebel leaders herself, offering her assistance passing messages and printing underground papers. Ava and Elaine become linked through coded messages and a shared urgency to save the lives of those in danger. I very much enjoyed the French Resistance storyline, with its details of safe houses, document drops, near misses, and quick thinking--and resistance members' fervor, often inspired by personal tragedies at the hands of the Nazis. Ava's inexperience is essential to her storyline, and her limited perspective creates a mystery regarding who can be trusted and what's really going on, yet I couldn't help feeling impatient with her naiveté. For example, the reader may very early on see the truth behind what ends up being a shocking surprise to Ava late in the book regarding others' true wartime jobs. Some of the story is summarized rather than shown, and I felt that I could see evidence of Martin's historical fiction romance style in certain dramatically written moments. Ava's experience as a librarian is the reason she is recruited for work in Lisbon, but the work she does upon arrival (capturing periodicals on microfiche) is somewhat dry and isn't given significant page time in the book. I listened to The Librarian Spy as an audiobook. Do you have any Bossy thoughts about this book? You might also like the books on my Greedy Reading Lists Six Great Stories about Brave Women During World War II, Six Great Books about Brave Female Spies, and Six More Great Books about Brave Female Spies. Madeline Martin is also the author of The Last Bookshop in London, a book I absolutely loved. In addition, Martin is the author of the series Mercenary Maidens, Highlander, Wicked Earls' Club, Wedding a Wallflower, Borderland Ladies, The London School for Ladies, Enduring Legacy, and more.

This first book in Sherry Thomas's gender-flipped Sherlock Holmes mystery series offers not only an irresistible heroine, but a fascinating examination of gender in Victorian society--and what happens when women blow up expectations. I listened to the audiobook of Sherry Thomas's A Study in Scarlet Women, the first in her Lady Sherlock series. The story presents Charlotte Holmes, a clever, forward-thinking, independent woman trapped in the Victorian age, a time in which women have little choice and even less of a voice. Charlotte will go to almost any length to avoid being married off to an eligible bachelor of her parents' choosing and become stuck in society's ridiculous, boring web of manners and expectations. When she pushes against her restrictions in a brilliant yet shocking manner in order to shift her future, she goes so deeply against the standards of the time that she is shunned from society. It seems Charlotte may have created a situation in which she has fewer options than her constrained existence as a lady would have afforded. Then a series of unusual events lead to Charlotte's assuming the identity of a made-up detective, Sherlock Holmes, and putting to good use her powers of observation and her astute reading of people's motivations and secrets. Along with her scandalous elderly sidekick, the former actress Ms. Watson (who has a keen mind and an ability to play roles as well as facilitate meetings and encounters), Charlotte reimagines what a Victorian woman may be able to achieve. Charlotte is strong-willed and an irresistible character. She is bristly yet caring, and her risky rejection of limitations for women is captivating. The necessity of keeping the identity of Sherlock secret leads to all manner of outrageous schemes in which: Charlotte presents herself as a male Sherlock's sister, conveying messages back and forth to his "sickbed"; Mrs. Watson pretends to be the maid in a hastily set-up false household; and Charlotte is both followed and surveils others. Because a Victorian woman could not independently travel to visit witnesses--nor could she openly question males in the forthright manner necessary--a trusty male investigator pursues suspects while communicating via letter with Sherlock. While I liked the inspector character, I was disappointed at having less page time to spend with Charlotte because of this structure. Yet the lack of autonomy and status for a woman in the time necessitates this approach; a woman simply couldn't insert herself into certain situations and receive cooperation to advance the investigation or the case. Using a nonexistent brother and a made-up identity for him as shields, Charlotte cleverly crafts a makeshift situation in which she is able to solve puzzles, use her quick thinking, ask questions, and solve mysteries. A slow-burn romantic spark between Charlotte and a longtime friend, Lord Ingram, offers a different angle to the story that I loved. I love that the title is a play on the Arthur Conan Doyle Sherlock Holmes story A Study in Scarlet. The "scarlet women" theme is fascinating. The intersection of scandal, virtue, power, and perception in the place and time in which the story takes place lead to interesting complications and examinations of important societal issues. I can't wait to read more in this series! Do you have any Bossy thoughts about this book? This is the first of seven (and counting?) books in the Lady Sherlock series, with the seventh, A Tempest at Sea, scheduled for publication in 2023. Sherry Thomas also writes young adult fantasy books as well as historical romances.

The Books I'm Reading Now I'm listening to Sherry Thomas's Victorian mystery (the first in a hefty series) starring an independent young woman who invents an alternate identity of Sherlock Holmes, A Study in Scarlet Women; I'm reading Less Is Lost, the second in Andrew Sean Greer's series (the first book was Less) about the character of author Arthur Less and the lengths he'll go to to try to avoid coping with the difficulties of life; and I'm listening to The Librarian Spy, World War II historical fiction by the author of The Last Bookshop in London. What are you reading these days, bookworms? 01 A Study in Scarlet Women by Sherry Thomas I'm listening to Sherry Thomas's A Study in Scarlet Women, which presents Charlotte Holmes, a clever, forward-thinking, independent woman trapped in a Victorian age in which women have little choice and even less voice. Charlotte will go to almost any length to avoid being married off to an eligible bachelor of her parents' choosing--but when she pushes against the restrictions of the time, she goes against societal expectations and may be left with even fewer options than her constrained existence as a lady afforded. Then a series of unusual events lead to Charlotte's assuming the identity of a made-up detective, Sherlock Holmes, and putting to good use her powers of observation and her reading of people. With her scandalous elderly sidekick, the former actress Ms. Watson, adding her own ability to play parts and facilitate meetings and encounters, Charlotte reimagines what a Victorian woman is able to achieve. Charlotte is strong-willed and an irresistible character so far. I love that the title is a play on the Arthur Conan Doyle Sherlock Holmes story A Study in Scarlet. 02 Less Is Lost (Arthur Less #2) by Andrew Sean Greer In Andrew Sean Greer's Less, Arthur Less is about to turn fifty and is a novelist of limited acclaim. When his ex sends him a wedding invitation, Arthur panics. He can't attend, but feels that he can't stay home, either. He decides to accept all of the random literary event invitations he's received and to put together a makeshift tour of the world, putting thousands of miles between him and his problems. In book two, Less Is Lost, Arthur faces the death of a former lover and a financial crisis--and again turns to the comforting schedule and constant movement of a literary tour to cope (or run from coping). Check out this link for my review of Andrew Sean Greer's Less. 03 The Librarian Spy by Madeline Martin As World War II explodes, Ava loves her job at the Library of Congress. But a surprise job offer from the US military leads her to Lisbon--and instills a passion in her to help European refugees. Meanwhile, Elaine is French and is doing what she can to help those in need there--including giving away her own papers and ration cards to a hungry Jewish woman. She urges her husband to join the Resistance--but when he disappears, she seeks out the leaders herself, offering her assistance, regardless of the danger. The two women become linked through coded messages and a shared urgency to save the lives of those in danger. I'm listening to The Librarian Spy as an audiobook. Madeline Martin is also the author of The Last Bookshop in London.

It's time for the foooood books! The shout-out: this Greedy Reading List theme was suggested by my lovely longtime friend, fellow book lover, and stalwart Bossy Bookworm supporter, Judy! Let's all hear it for Judy! :) I love a memoir, I love reading about people doing what they love, and I also love eating. I therefore love memoirs written by chefs and by people who are obsessed with food, and the books listed here are some of my favorites in this category. I included two books by Ruth Reichl here. (Frankly I could have included a third, making this a 50 Percent Ruth Reichl List, but that felt a little aggressive.) If you've read Reichl's books, you may understand why this had to happen. If you like memoirs, you might want to also check out these Bossy Bookworm Greedy Reading Lists: Six Fascinating Memoirs to Explore Six More Fascinating Memoirs to Explore Six Illuminating Memoirs to Dive Into Six Illuminating Memoirs I've Read This Year Six More Illuminating Memoirs to Lose Yourself In Six Powerful Memoirs about Facing Mortality Have you read any of these books? I'd love to hear what you thought! And which other books should I add to my food memoir to-read list? 01 Garlic and Sapphires: The Secret Life of a Critic in Disguise by Ruth Reichl Garlic and Sapphires may be my favorite foodie memoir of all. Ruth Reichl was editor in chief of Gourmet and a world-renowned food critic for The New York Times, and her tenure there is the focus of this book. Staying unrecognized as a food critic was essential to Reichl's ability to properly assess the level of service and the food quality everyday patrons would receive at any given restaurant, and she resorted to various disguises and decoy ploys to guard her anonymity. Her costuming and taking on of alternate personalities felt farcical, but I adored it. Reichl explores how one's appearance affects how others treat you--not a revolutionary concept, but I found it fascinating when applied to the class and financial factors involved with fine dining. She takes the snobbery out of food criticism, however, regularly visiting low-key restaurants as well. Reichl comes across as incredibly appealing and unassuming. She reveals absurdities and excesses in the restaurant world while clearly remaining the head of the Food Fan Club (I made that up, but she is a big food fan) and unfailingly celebrating the deep joy that good food, friendly company, and an appealing restaurant atmosphere can inspire. 02 The Language of Baklava by Diana Abu-Jaber "It’s so hot that it steams in your mouth, and at first you eat it with just the tips of your teeth. Then the layers of crisp and sweet and soft intermingle, a series of surprises. It is so rich and dense that you can eat only a little bit, and then it is over and the knaffea is just a pleasant memory—like a lovely dream that you forget a few seconds after you wake." In The Language of Baklava, Abu-Jaber explores her heritage through describing in poetic terms meals and foods that are important to her. She reflects on what it means to be Jordanian-American, and through recounting her own journeys as well as her father's life, she comes to find peace with who she is and where she's been. Abu-Jaber made me hungry while drawing me into her history, with recipes special to her placed strategically throughout. Each of the foods she showcases is directly linked to her life in some way. The author writes beautifully, whisking the reader off to Jordan, to upstate New York, and back again, illustrating the melding of her cultures. The tone of the book is joyful and vibrant, and Abu-Jaber intermingles thoughts on faith and family (and conflicts related to both) by using food as the touchpoint for many of her life events. 03 Kitchen Confidential: Adventures in the Culinary Underbelly by Anthony Bourdain I love behind-the-scenes books, especially those about food. I wondered at first if Bourdain's "I'm tough, I've been pretty screwed up at times, and I'm also sometimes shocking, so take me or leave me" (I'm paraphrasing) attitude was going to overshadow the meat (see what I did there?) of the book, in which case I might have been tempted to abandon it. Bourdain does have sordid tales to tell, but he seems less puffed up over his kitchen war stories after the first section of the book, and that's when I felt I could settle into taking in his rich, attention-getting experiences. I found the sections about a day in the life of Bourdain's kitchen and a day in the life of a three-star kitchen to be the most captivating. I pledged after reading this book I wasn't going to forget to not eat fish on Sunday or Monday because of supply and delivery patterns (I did forget this, but now after rereading my original review I'm reminded again). I also had the post-book goal of trying to block from my mind most of the gross-out kitchen tales Bourdain told--and that plan of mine did work, because I can still bring myself to eat at restaurants. I find myself retroactively feeling greater affection for this book than I did when initially reading it. I read Kitchen Confidential thirteen years ago, well before I spent endless evenings happily watching multiple television series featuring Anthony Bourdain traveling the world, inserting himself into both familiar and previously unknown-to-him food stalls, restaurants with Michelin star ratings, and everything in between. I really fell for Bourdain watching him in action on television--witnessing his bristly manner and his unabashed adoration for the chefs and the kitchen staffs aiming to bring culinary magic to the plate. I found his framework of knowledge along with his wonder about the foods and cultures he was exploring irresistible. This book may have felt a little unpolished to me--but Bourdain himself was unabashedly rough around the edges too. 04 A Homemade Life: Stories and Recipes from My Kitchen Table by Molly Wizenberg "When Molly Wizenberg's father died of cancer...she went to Paris, a city that held vivid memories of a childhood trip with [him]. She was supposed to be doing research for her dissertation, but more often, she found herself peering through the windows of chocolate shops, trekking across town to try a new pâtisserie, or tasting cheeses at outdoor markets, until one evening when she sat in the Luxembourg Gardens reading cookbooks until it was too dark to see, she realized that her heart was not in her studies but in the kitchen." Wizenberg started out as a food writer who wrote about home cooking, the meaning of food in the home, and its significance in relationships. This book made me love Molly Wizenberg. I was fascinated by her life, and I found her writing voice endearing and real and funny. Her manageable yet unusual recipes looked delectable. Wizenberg has more recently written a memoir about marriage, unexpected yearnings, and the messy process of finding herself again after losing her way; for my review of that book, see The Fixed Stars. Between these two books she wrote Delancey, about owning a restaurant with her husband. 05 Animal, Vegetable, Miracle: A Year of Food Life by Barbara Kingsolver "Author Barbara Kingsolver and her family abandoned the industrial-food pipeline to live a rural life—vowing that, for one year, they'd only buy food raised in their own neighborhood, grow it themselves, or learn to live without it." I like that Kingsolver is careful to lay out the baby steps of her shifting views of food and of her process for growing or obtaining her family's sustenance. Her tone seems useful for readers who may not have gardens, much less farms, and who may looking to live vicariously through the details of her experience but also come away with simple steps they might take in their own lives. Kingsolver provides ideas for not only how to eat conscientiously (without being too rigid) but also for how to become more aware of issues surrounding local eating and how to effect change. I found her teenage daughter's sections somewhat irritating, but it must be tough to be a teenager drawn into Famous Author Mom's whirlwind. 06 Tender at the Bone: Growing Up at the Table by Ruth Reichl Here's the second Ruth Reichl title on this short list, but please recall from my introduction to the list that I really could have included three of her books and not have been sorry about it. So this second listing is actually evidence of my restraint. Reichl traces the roots of her interest in food, cooking, connecting, family, and the intersections of each of these elements. She credits those who shaped her culinary journey: the Queen of Mold (her mother, a notorious food poisoner); the chefs who introduced her to the indelible tastes and experiences that shaped her cooking and her culinary views; and those involved in the organic food movement and its 1970s beginnings. Reichl includes her own photographs and some of her favorite recipes, which together make the book feel like a special peek into both her personal and professional influences. Reichl is appealingly imperfect, down-to-earth, and a wonderful storyteller--when she's writing about her life and about food, I'm always glad to be along for the ride.

The twist in The Other Side of Night is fascinating, but I wanted to feel more for the characters, who experience extensive trauma, feel frequent suspicion, and resignedly accept deep tragedy. In Adam Hamdy's The Other Side of Night, the lives of a young boy, a respectable citizen, and a disgraced police officer are intertwined through connections to a series of mysterious deaths. A novel written to explore real-life tragedies, an enigmatic note written in a copy of the novel, a seeming suicide, a disappeared body, and other mysterious circumstances tie together the characters of Elliott Asha, Harriet Kealty, and Ben Elmys. But one of them may be a murderer. Much of the page time in The Other Side of Night is spent with characters who exhibit odd, unexplained behavior, who seem untrustworthy and whose accounts feel unreliable, and in a grim, twisted, mysterious world without resolution or answers. The pacing felt uneven to me, and shifts in mood and manner sometimes seemed abrupt, so that it was tough to pin down a scene's tone. Because of this setup and structure--the reason for which becomes clear late in the book--I didn't feel particularly connected to Hamdy's characters, despite their tragedies, yearnings, lost love, and desperate desire for answers. I didn't fully believe that the book's love obsession was warranted--I didn't see enough to understand its intensity or strength. Another element that didn't add up for me: the inexplicable oversight (which is absolutely essential to the plot) on the part of multiple characters. This lack of recognition regarding an essential point didn't feel at all plausible, especially when such close, extended contact took place. The Other Side of Night offers an intriguing, dramatic twist that I definitely didn't expect as it edges toward its ending. The Twist and the fascinating concept backing it up was a highlight. Yet for me, the text that follows The Twist feels like a "here's what happened; see, it really does make sense" summary, more than storytelling to get lost in. I found myself wanting to finally feel for the story's characters--who have really been through unprecedented trauma and drama by this point--but ultimately I never really did. I received a prepublication copy of this book courtesy of Atria Books and NetGalley. Do you have any Bossy thoughts about this book? Adam Hamdy is also the author of the Scott Pearce series, the Pendulum trilogy, Battalion, and Out of Reach. If you're into books with twists, check out these Bossy Bookworm-reviewed titles.

Geraldine Brooks's Horse digs into issues of race across three timelines, linked by a special bond between an enslaved man and a horse in 1850s Kentucky. He wants to think he’s from the best breeding. He wants to think himself brave. Can he win against all comers? And if not, does he have self-mastery to take a loss, stay cool in defeat, and try again undaunted? Those are the qualities of a great racehorse and a great gentleman. A gentleman likes to have a horse that gives the right answers to those questions, then he can believe that he will give the right answers too. In Geraldine Brooks's newest novel, Horse, she links three periods in time: 1850 Kentucky, where an enslaved groom and a foal forge a bond and an itinerant painter captures their likenesses; 1954 New York City, in which a gallery owner becomes obsessed with the mid-nineteenth-century painting; and 2019 Washington, DC, when two historians are linked by their interest in a record-breaking stallion from the past. Horse takes place primarily in the 1850s timeline, as we see Jarrett grow up enslaved and dedicated to his horse Darley (later renamed Lexington in a change of control--of both horse and man). Jarrett builds a complex sense of self, linked to the horse and enjoying moments of autonomy related to training and care, yet ultimately trapped without any say in his present or future and subject to all manner of cruelties, both careless and intentional. But Brooks also builds rich stories in each of the other interconnected timelines, as we see privileged Martha Jackson dive into the art world and, decades later, the fraught attraction between Jess and Theo. Horse is, on the surface, about the deep bond between Jarrett and Lexington. But issues of race and their inextricable involvement in our nation's history are really the bedrock for the book--Jarrett is an enslaved man who suffers greatly yet experiences moments of respect due to his insight and talent; Martha's link to her Black maid is also her link to a key painting and therefore the other timelines here; and Jess and Theo struggle to understand each other's contexts across a racial divide. Painter Scott presents himself as a forward-thinking liberal, but through Jarrett's eyes we see his faulted approach to expressing this. Theo is frequently frustrated by Jess's lack of understanding and off-the-cuff remarks that showcase her white privilege. Jess's modern-day expertise and Smithsonian access were one of the most captivating elements of the book for me. Based on the true story of the thoroughbred Lexington, Horse delves into fascinating, complicated aspects of science, art, and race as it spans decades. Do you have any Bossy thought about this book? Geraldine Brooks is also the author of The People of the Book, March, Year of Wonders, Caleb's Crossing, and The Secret Chord.

Sink into this light-fiction escapism; Nora Goes Off Script is romantic and satisfying in its outlandishly satisfying resolutions, convenient events, and happy endings. In Annabel Monaghan's light fiction Nora Goes Off Script, Nora Hamilton is a scriptwriter for a Hallmark-style romance channel--and an expert in crafting the perfect romantic storylines and happy endings, according to her tried-and-true formula. Meanwhile, her own love life is a mess and she's reluctant to be vulnerable again (her ex was a selfish, immature, entitled jerk who isn't involved in the kids' lives anymore). Nora's focused on her work, her small-town life, her kids' sports and their school play, and her longtime friends. But when the movie of her latest script is filmed at her house (side note: I'm not clear on how that sequence of events was meant to make sense), handsome and insufferable movie star Leo Vance shows up--and upends everything Nora thought she knew about love. Nora's ex is presented as such a full-on loser, it's hard to believe in their dating-to-marriage story ever occurred, but this black and white, good and bad view of the characters and their blame dramatically simplifies a reader's expected loyalties. Is it too silly and nitpicky to suggest that the most unlikely element of the whole book was not that a movie star falls in love with a lovely small-town mom, but that Nora's (and others') duties related to the looming, extremely involved school play (wrangling children, lines/blocking/rehearsals, creating costumes, juggling schedules) seem so effortlessly achieved? Sink into this glorious escapism, because (spoiler alert!) you can be sure that if, for example, something outlandishly amazing might happen, it will (a nomination for a Major Award; a celebrity romance; a monetary windfall; a face-saving, revenge-worthy, incredible success story). Nora Goes Off Script is fun redemption for mom readers (movie stars want what we've got: roasted chickens, Taco Tuesdays, weekend sports schedules, and more!) and is joyfully satisfying in the happy endings Monaghan provides. Do you have any Bossy thoughts about this book? Annabel Monaghan is also the author of Sometime Next Summer and other books. Two other light fiction books I've reviewed that involve the celebrity-love trope are Very Sincerely Yours and The Bodyguard. If you like light fiction, you might also like the books on my Greedy Reading Lists Six Great Light Fiction Stories and Six More Great Light Fiction Stories. Or you can search for light fiction reviews on the site.

The Books I'm Reading Now Happy Halloween, bookworms! I'm reading The Marriage Portrait, Maggie O'Farrell's newest historical fiction, about a young duchess in Renaissance Italy; I'm listening to Nora Goes Off Script, Annabel Monaghan's light fiction about a divorced scriptwriter and mom who starts a relationship with a bona fide movie star; and I'm reading Kate Manning's Gilded Mountain (to be published tomorrow), historical fiction about a strong young woman and her mining community in 1900s Colorado. What are you reading these days, bookworms? 01 The Marriage Portrait by Maggie O'Farrell In The Marriage Portrait, Maggie O'Farrell, author of Hamnet, turns her attention to Renaissance Italy to tell a story of a precocious third daughter of the grand duke. Lucrezia is lucky enough to exist outside of palazzo scrutiny, free to follow her own pursuits and shape her own days. But when her older sister dies suddenly before her scheduled marriage to the ruler of Ferrara, the men involved are quick to thrust Lucrezia into her sister's place. Suddenly her freedom is curtailed and her future is in jeopardy--unless she can produce an heir. Constricted by the clothes, behavioral expectations, and duties of her new station, Lucrezia struggles to get to know her new husband--and to figure out how to exist in this new world. 02 Nora Goes Off Script by Annabel Monaghan In Annabel Monaghan's light fiction Nora Goes Off Script, Nora Hamilton is a scriptwriter--an expert in crafting the perfect romantic storylines and happy endings, according to her tried-and-true formula. Meanwhile, her own love life is a mess and she's reluctant to be vulnerable again (her ex was a selfish, immature, entitled jerk who isn't involved in the kids' lives anymore). Nora's focused on her work, her small-town life, her kids' sports and their school play, and her longtime friends. But when the movie of her latest script is filmed at her house (side note: I'm not clear on how that sequence of events was meant to make sense), handsome movie star Leo Vance shows up--and upends everything Nora thought she knew about love. 03 Gilded Mountain by Kate Manning Kate Manning's Gilded Mountain (to be published November 1) is set in 1900s Colorado. Sylvie Pelletier leaves her family's mountain cabin to work for the affluent Padgetts, who own the marble-mining company that employs her father. Sylvie is quickly shocked by the excesses she sees--and by the sometimes stark disconnect between what the family members say and what they do. The Padgetts' abominable treatment of their workers draws the attention of union organizers, a brutally honest newspaper editor, and Sylvie herself. With her own family's livelihood--and the local industry--in the Padgetts' hands, tensions threaten to explode the community. I received a prepublication edition of this book courtesy of Scribner and NetGalley. If you like stories like this, you might also enjoy the books on the Greedy Reading List Six Great Historical Fiction Stories Set in the American West.

My very favorite October reads! Here are my six favorite reads of the past month: a bitingly funny, poignant book of essays; a candid memoir of abuse and inner strength; two fascinating historical fiction stories; an unorthodox friendship story about the meaning of life; and nonfiction about how to do the right thing by the creator of The Good Place. If you've read any of these, I'd love to hear what you think! And I'd also love to hear: what are some of your recent favorite reads? 01 Happy-Go-Lucky by David Sedaris In and among Sedaris's oddball, incisive, skewering observations are poignant, funny, heartfelt, complicated moments from his personal life that add heart to the dark humor in this collection of essays. I like to listen to my David Sedaris books, and I listened to his newest, Happy-Go-Lucky--his first book of new essays since Calypso--as an audiobook as well. Here, Sedaris shares offbeat moments from living in Paris and Sussex, reflects on living in New York City during the height of the Covid-19 pandemic, and, as always, pokes fun at himself and hilariously skewers others for various affronts. In and among these scenes, Sedaris shares strange, sweet, funny, pivotal moments with each of his living sisters, discusses his sister Tiffany, who died of suicide, and faces the decline of his nonagenarian father, with whom he has always had a complicated relationship. I love to laugh at Sedaris's darkly funny reflections about the world and society--and at his recognition of his own absurdities, strongly held views, and exacting expectations. But what offer depth to his work, and Happy-Go-Lucky is no exception, are Sedaris's unflinching observations of moments in time, desperate scenes, and emotionally charged issues in all of their gritty, messy, poignant, and sometimes hilarious glory. He takes the reader on a roller coaster of emotions, and I love every bit of it. For my full review, check out Happy-Go-Lucky. 02 I'm Glad My Mom Died by Jennette McCurdy Former child actress McCurdy's account of her mother's narcissistic, harmful, abusive behavior and how it has shaped the author's life is disturbing, yet McCurdy's tone is wry and appealing in its brutal honesty. I wasn't familiar with McCurdy when I began listening to her memoir, I'm Glad My Mom Died, although I have a vague recollection of the existence of the Nickelodeon TV shows she was on, iCarly and Sam and Cat. Jennette became a child actress at age six in order to please her mother, pushing down her own anxiety and disinclination to be the center of attention--and eventually committing to her mother's idea of "calorie restriction," which started McCurdy on a path of constant struggling with food and eating disorders that lasted decades. Her mother's volatile emotions; upsetting and controlling actions; pushy manner; mental, emotional, and physical abuse; and disturbing codependence with her young daughter make for an uncomfortable read. Yet McCurdy is witty, often funny, and candid. She's most often matter-of-fact, because while she now has the benefit of age and increased wisdom, therapy and perspective, and distance from the situation, the various methods of constant abuse and control her mother exerted over her until her death were McCurdy's everyday life; for McCurdy, all of this was an unhappy but normal set of circumstances. Click here for my full review of I'm Glad My Mom Died. 03 Hester by Laurie Lico Albanese Hester is richly imagined historical fiction with connections to themes and characters from The Scarlet Letter. It's magical and intriguing, and I loved it. They say witch, but what do they mean?... Witch is a reason to kill you; witch might be someone to heal you; witch can be the Devil, or witch can be a woman so beautiful she makes you lose your sense. They've got so many ways of calling you a witch, they just change it to how it suits them. In Hester: A Novel, Laurie Lico Albanese imagines the woman who inspired Nathaniel Hawthorne's Hester Prynne in The Scarlet Letter as recent Scottish immigrant Isobel Gamble. Isobel's needlework and the colors she sees in the world are captivatingly described, and the tenuous situation for a woman at the time without a man in the household is conveyed in chilling fashion. I loved the connections to The Scarlet Letter and the book within a book, the witchy focus, the renegade feminism, and the details of life at the time. Click here for my full review of Hester. If you're interested in books about witches, you might like the books on the Greedy Reading Lists Six Wonderfully Witchy Stories and Six More Wonderfully Witchy Stories to Charm You. 04 The Fire and the Ore by Olivia Hawker Hawker offers irresistible details of daily life and historical elements that add vivid layers to this story of Utah Territory, Mormonism, and strong women in the mid-nineteenth century. In The Fire and the Ore, Olivia Hawker tells a tale of the interconnected lives of three women in Utah Territory in 1857 and of the burgeoning Mormon faith in that place at that time. The story is inspired in part by Hawker's own ancestors' experiences. Much of the story is set on the unforgiving trail west to Utah (and if you're looking for a reason to feel thankful for comforts like shelter, clothing, and food, this section should do the trick). Tamar, Jane, and Tabitha become linked by complicated connections to one man. When the US Army invades Utah and challenges Mormon leaders late in the book, the women must flee into the desert to survive. While carving out an existence in the stark landscape, they take stock of where their lives might lead them--whether banded together or seeking their own individual luck. The author's note explains the historical events at play and illuminates the ways in which Hawker's historical fiction explores aspects of real-life religious beliefs, plural marriage, governmental involvement, community resistance, and more. Click here for my full review of The Fire and the Ore. 05 A Psalm for the Wild-Built (Monk and Robot #1) by Becky Chambers Chambers's slim book explores a man's search for meaning--and how a robot's simple questions about maintaining the status quo might open up a world of new possibilities. The robots vanished from Panga centuries ago, and accounts of a world where they existed are beginning to feel more and more like folklore. But tea monk Dex finds himself wandering and yearning--for long-lost crickets' nighttime noises, and for some deep connection he can't quite identify. Dex is searching for a purpose, for solitude, and for clarity. The robot's appearance and his observations and questions upends many of the ideas Dex had taken for granted about the world and about himself. The wilderness experience and the conversations he shares with the robot shock Dex--but letting go also frees him. A Psalm for the Wild-Built is full of heart and strange, captivating details of Chambers's imagined world--and of an unorthodox friendship that could save both monk and robot. For my full review, please check out A Psalm for the Wild-Built. 06 How to Be Perfect: The Correct Answer to Every Moral Question by Michael Schur Filled with sometimes playful, sometimes weighty questions, scenarios, and ideas, How to Be Perfect is nonfiction that makes considering ethics and morality fun. Schur, creator of the television series The Good Place, explores various schools of thought about ethics and morality to consider more complex issues, including how much one should give to charity; whether rigidity to rules such as "no lying" will win a person friends; and when and why to help others or to do the "right" thing--even if you don't receive any credit for doing so. Schur comes across as intelligent and kind, thoughtful, and self-deprecating. I'm watching The Good Place for the third time, this time with my youngest, and I love hearing his references to the inspiration for the show and hearing his references to specific scenes, currently fresh in my mind I listened to this as an audiobook. With sections read by stars of The Good Place, Schur's How to Be Perfect is funny, interesting--and a heartwarming reminder that there are thoughtful, kind, well-meaning people out there spending time reflecting on how best to be a human in today's world. That in and of itself is a comfort. For my full review, check out How to Be Perfect.

Marcellus the octopus is the very deserving star of the show here, and being able to predict much of where the story was headed didn't affect my enjoyment of this big-hearted tale. Shelby Van Pelt's Remarkably Bright Creatures centers around a widow who makes an unlikely friend. After Tova Sullivan's husband died, she began working the night shift at her local aquarium as a custodian. She's always felt that keeping busy helps her cope--she tried the same approach when her son disappeared from a boat in Puget Sound decades earlier. Then Tova forms a connection with Marcellus, a giant Pacific octopus who heretofore has been unwilling to cooperate with his captors. Is it possible that Marcellus somehow holds the key to finding answers about her son's mysterious disappearance? I felt somewhat impatient with the amount of page time in the book spent on tedious matters such as filling out forms and attempts to track down lost luggage. And I didn't find Cameron particularly sympathetic, as he seems to have blown all opportunities through laziness and then blamed his failure on his circumstances--and on others' inability to be flexible or understanding. When it's revealed later in the book that he considers himself a genius, I felt even less likely to empathize with his dead-end job options in a mess that feels of his own making. I loved Marcellus the octopus, and I decided not to spend time considering the potential issue of the anthropomorphism in the story (he needed to understand English in order for the story to work, after all). In fact, I wanted more more more Marcellus--and I loved his voice in the audiobook version of this book. He was my absolute favorite element, and I adored every scene that involved him. An overly convenient situation and moment of chitchat pushes the main mystery of the story to a head-- although the reader has seen various layers of situations in the story that are leading us there--but again, I didn't mind. Remarkably Bright Creatures has a lot of heart, and I felt cozy in my confidence that all present situations would ultimately, in a fashion, work out. Do you have any Bossy thoughts about this book? Remarkably Bright Creatures is Shelby Van Pelt's debut novel. If you like stories with heart, you might want to check out other books I've reviewed as heartwarming reads.

Filled with sometimes playful, often weighty questions, scenarios, and ideas, How to Be Perfect makes considering ethics and morality fun, and Michael Schur's tone is self-deprecating and thoughtful. The best thing about Aristotle’s “constant learning, constant trying, constant searching” is what results from it: a mature yet still pliable person, brimming with experiences both old and new, who doesn’t rely solely on familiar routines or dated information about how the world works. In How to Be Perfect, Michael Schur, the creator of Parks and Recreation and The Good Place, relies upon takeaways from morality and ethics writings and lessons to craft this guide to how to behave in the world. What does being a "good" person mean? What do we owe to each other? What is our duty to our fellow humans in different situations? Schur begins the book, which is largely made up of distilled concepts and highlights of 2,500 years of writing about ethics, with a simple question to consider: "Should I punch my friend in the face for no reason?" He builds to more complex scenarios, touching on the popular trolley problem and its variations, morality and intersections with money, friendship, and knowledge, and, in the words of Samuel Beckett, how we might continue to "Try again. Fail again. Fail better." “Virtue comes about...not by a process of nature, but by habituation.… We become just by doing just actions, temperate by doing temperate actions, brave by doing brave actions.” He explores various schools of thought about ethics and morality to consider more complex issues, including how much one should give to charity; whether rigidity to rules such as "no lying" will win a person friends; and when and why to help others or to do the "right" thing--even if you don't receive any credit for doing so. Schur comes across as intelligent and kind, thoughtful, and self-deprecating. I'm watching The Good Place for the third time, this time with my youngest, and I love hearing his references to the inspiration for the show and hearing his references to specific scenes, currently fresh in my mind. With sections read by stars of The Good Place, Schur's How to Be Perfect is funny, interesting--and a heartwarming reminder that there are thoughtful, kind, well-meaning people out there spending time reflecting on how best to be a human in today's world. That in and of itself is a comfort. Do you have any Bossy thoughts about this book? Michael Schur is the creator of the television shows The Good Place and Parks and Recreation. The acknowledgments section of this book is so funny, generous, specific, thanks-filled, and lovely, these pages alone are enough to make me feel confident that Michael Schur is a gem of a human being.

Chambers's slim book explores a man's search for meaning--and how a robot's simple questions about maintaining the status quo might open up a world of new possibilities. You keep asking why your work is not enough, and I don’t know how to answer that, because it is enough to exist in the world and marvel at it. You don’t need to justify that, or earn it. You are allowed to just live. That is all most animals do. The robots vanished from Panga centuries ago, and accounts of a world where they existed are beginning to feel more and more like folklore. But tea monk Dex finds himself wandering and yearning--for long-lost crickets' nighttime noises, and for some deep connection he can't quite identify. When Dex wanders into the forest and encounters a robot, the traditional exchange must occur, of checking in, and the robot asks: What do humans need? Dex can't imagine being able to answer this enormous question, but the robot wonders if the matter is really so complicated after all. Repeating history that had left living memory was an all-too-human tendency... Dex is searching for a purpose, for solitude, and for clarity. The robot's appearance and his observations and questions upends many of the ideas Dex had taken for granted about the world and about himself. The wilderness experience and the conversations he shares with the robot shock Dex--but letting go also frees him. This is a slim book that's full of heart and strange, captivating details of Chambers's imagined world--and of an unorthodox friendship that could save both monk and robot. Do you have any Bossy thoughts about this book? Chambers is also the author of the Wayfarers series; click here to read my review of The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet. If you're interested in books about robots, you might also like the books on the Greedy Reading List Six Great Stories about Robots, Humans and Alien Life, and AI.

Hawker offers irresistible details of daily life and historical elements that add vivid layers to this story of Utah Territory, Mormonism, and strong women in the mid-nineteenth century. If she still felt any shame, then shame was a distant thing. It was hung far above, among the stars, and Tamar had no use for it now. In The Fire and the Ore by Olivia Hawker, the author tells a tale of the interconnected lives of three women in Utah Territory in 1857 and of the burgeoning Mormon faith in that place at that time. The story is inspired in part by Hawker's own ancestors' experiences. Much of the story is set on the unforgiving trail west to Utah (and if you're looking for a reason to feel thankful for comforts like shelter, clothing, and food, this section should do the trick). The strenuous trip is inspired by religious fervor. Shared reminders of their new but unflinching, unquestioning faith help drive Tamar Loader, her family, and others in their group into ill-advised situations, brutal weather, dangerous river crossings, snow-covered mountain passes, and more in order to reach the promised land. The reader is able to ascertain the repeated and immense failures of human planning that pushed the pilgrims into often-deadly situations, and to feel fury at the multiple layers of negligence that compromised their journey. (The author's note at the end of the book spells out more of the historical background regarding the shift to the forced use of handcarts rather than wagons, for example, due to cost, as well as the deadly lack of supplies and support, the origins of European inspiration to explore the new faith of Mormonism, and more.) Meanwhile, reassuring religious visions appear to several members of the group, spurring them on when their physical exhaustion, threatened starvation, and various impairments threaten to stop their progress, and inspire unquestioning adherence to Mormon leadership's plans for the journey and for the structure of the pilgrims' lives upon arrival. Jane (the character is inspired by the author's own ancestor of the same name) is a tough young woman in Utah Territory. She is no Mormon, nor does she know much about the faith. But due to family deaths and illnesses, she's desperate for stability, and she knows that her younger sister may not be able to survive without better shelter and care. When a local Mormon man offers a marriage in name only (and pledges financial support), she's inclined to consider taking advantage of what seems to be his foolish generosity. Tabitha is a healer in Utah, married to an up-and-coming brother of the Mormon faith. She takes Jane under her wing, encouraging her natural affinity for understanding the power of herbs and for caring for those who are ill. Tamar, Jane, and Tabitha, recently strangers, become linked by complicated connections to one man. When the US Army invades Utah late in the book, the women must flee into the desert to survive. While carving out an existence in the stark landscape, they take stock of where their lives might lead them--whether banded together or seeking their own individual luck. "Each of us came into this marriage for reasons of our own.... We have our separate feelings about our circumstances, but we find ourselves standing where we stand. None of us can change what has transpired. We are in this together, by God's will, for better or for worse." Hawker is skilled at using well-researched details to bring to vivid life a place and time in history (see my mentions of two other books of hers, below), and these daily-life gems were a highlight for me while reading The Fire and the Ore. The author's note explains the historical events at play and illuminates the ways in which Hawker's historical fiction explores aspects of real-life religious beliefs, plural marriage, governmental involvement, community resistance, and more. ("The majority of Mormons who immigrated to America came from factory-working families.... Mormonism offered these people hope--for, during that time, the church espoused its great dream of building Zion, a cooperative community where all who worked would have an equal share.... Mormonism shone before these desperate families as a real hope for a good life.") Do you have any Bossy thoughts about this book? Hawker is also the author of The Ragged Edge of Night, which I mentioned in Six Historical Fiction Books I Loved Over the Past Year. Hawker also wrote One for the Blackbird, One for the Crow, which I listed in the Greedy Reading List Six Great Historical Fiction Stories Set in the American West.

Hester is richly imagined historical fiction with connections to themes and characters from The Scarlet Letter. It's magical and intriguing, and I loved it. They say witch, but what do they mean?... Witch is a reason to kill you; witch might be someone to heal you; witch can be the Devil, or witch can be a woman so beautiful she makes you lose your sense. They've got so many ways of calling you a witch, they just change it to how it suits them. In Hester: A Novel, Laurie Lico Albanese reimagines the woman who inspired Nathaniel Hawthorne's Hester Prynne in The Scarlet Letter as recent Scottish immigrant Isobel Gamble. Talented needleworker Isobel and her husband leave Scotland for America in the early 1800s. But when her addict of a husband abruptly leaves her penniless and alone, jumping on a ship departing Massachusetts shortly after they arrive, Isobel is desperate and must make her way in an unfamiliar country all alone. As she hides the vivid colors she has always seen associated with letters, voices, and emotions--which she has always been told to ignore, for fear of being branded a witch like her great grandmother, also named Isobel--she encounters Nathaniel Hathorne, a romantic, aspiring author who is struggling to cope with his family's dark legacy of having sent suspected witches to the gallows in generations past. The two enchant each other within an unconventional, unacceptable relationship and a swirl of irresistible connection. The heart-healing hawthorn flower stitched upon a white handkerchief with a tiny red A, for Abington. Keep your powers hidden and use them when it's your time. Race issues are explored through Isobel's lifesaving Black neighbors--who share resources, offer advice, and otherwise keep to themselves--and their mysterious goings-on, which Isobel suspects may be related to the runaway slaves she hears tell of in town. Often in Albanese's Salem, classes who are underestimated or dismissed may be achieving hidden changes in the community, while families who are upheld as upper-crust may be involved in darkness and corruption. What's true is often hidden from sight--religious fervor disguises cruelty, dark desires hide behind a mask of conformity. What else is slipping through the spaces that I don't see? What other dark secrets is the city hiding? Isobel's needlework and the colors she sees in the world are captivatingly described, and the tenuous situation for a woman at the time without a man in the household is conveyed in chilling fashion. I loved the connections to The Scarlet Letter and the book within a book, the witchy focus, the renegade feminism, and the details of life at the time. I received a prepublication copy of this book courtesy of St. Martin's Press and NetGalley. Do you have any Bossy thoughts about this book? Laurie Lico Albanese is also the author of Stolen Beauty. If you're interested in books about witches, you might like the books on the Greedy Reading Lists Six Wonderfully Witchy Stories and Six More Wonderfully Witchy Stories to Charm You.

The Books I'm Reading Now I'm reading A Restless Truth, the second book in Freya Marske's historical fiction fantasy mystery duology; I'm reading Remarkably Bright Creatures, Shelby Van Pelt's novel about a widow's unlikely connection with a giant Pacific octopus; and I'm listening to How to Be Perfect by Michael Schur (creator of The Good Place), nonfiction that explores how to be a "good" human being and what duty to our fellow persons might look like in various situations. What are you reading these days, bookworms? 01 A Restless Truth (Last Binding #2) by Freya Marske A Restless Truth is the second in Freya Marske's queer fantasy mystery Last Binding series that began with A Marvellous Light. A Marvellous Light was full of Edwardian England detail, gay love, mystery, magic, wonderful dialogue and banter, and plenty of heart. I adored it. In A Restless Truth, the irresistible character of Maud Blyth expects plenty of adventure when she agrees to serve as companion to an elderly woman on an ocean liner (so she can help her beloved older brother resolve a magical mystery decades in the making). But when her charge drops dead on day one, Maud must identify the murderer, try to get her hands on a magical object essential to untangling the mystery at hand--and try to survive the voyage without being murdered herself. 02 Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt Shelby Van Pelt's Remarkably Bright Creatures centers around a widow who makes an unlikely friend. After Tova Sullivan's husband died, she began working the night shift at her local aquarium as a custodian. She's always felt that keeping busy helps her cope--she tried the same approach when her son disappeared on a boat in Puget Sound decades earlier. Then Tova forms a connection with Marcellus, a giant Pacific octopus who heretofore has been unwilling to cooperate with his captors. Is it possible that Marcellus holds the key to finding answers regarding her son's mysterious disappearance? 03 How to Be Perfect: The Correct Answer to Every Moral Question by Michael Schur In How to Be Perfect, Michael Schur, the creator of Parks and Recreation and The Good Place, uses 2,400 years of morality and ethics thinking to craft this guide to how to behave in the world. What does being a "good" person mean? What do we owe to each other? What's our duty to our fellow humans in certain situations? With sections read by stars of The Good Place, Schur's How to Be Perfect is funny, interesting--and a heartwarming reminder that there are thoughtful, kind, well-meaning people out there spending time reflecting on how best to be a human in today's world. That in and of itself is a comfort.