Happy April! I’ve been wearing shirts and dresses in floral prints all week because I want flowers to be bloomin’ on my body if nowhere else. Hope spring is happening where you are.
To help brighten your day, here are our book recommendations this month.
From Jen at Brown Dog Solutions:
Big Guns by Steve Israel (Simon & Schuster, April 17)
Ex-New York Congressman Steve Israel couldn’t have been more timely with his sophomore novel, Big Guns. A major gun manufacturer is threatened by a call for a national ban on handguns, so the company brings in its top lobbyist to convince the government that every citizen should be legally required to own a firearm.
Israel’s experience lends to the novel’s authenticity, and the current political climate makes the themes especially powerful. This satire is witty, thought-provoking, and shrewd.
Mommy’s Khimar by Jamilah Thompkins-Bigelow, illustrated by Ebony Glenn (Salaam Reads, April 3)
This heartwarming picture book is beautiful in every respect. The young girl narrating the story finds empowerment wearing her mother’s headscarves. The acceptance of those around her—her friends, teachers, and especially her grandmother who isn’t Muslim—encourages the child to be proud of her identity.
The stunning illustrations compliment the endearing prose, making the whole package one to treasure. This should be a staple of every child’s library. Seeing the wonder and complete absence of threat in diversity is something that can’t be experienced too often or too early.
From Lauren at Malcolm Avenue Review:
The City Where We Once Lived by Eric Barnes (Arcade Publishing, April 3)
Set in a semi-apocalyptic future in the town of West End, Barnes paints a haunting portrait of a town stripped to its bones and the lives of its few remaining residents. Residents of the bordering town of South End may seem better off, but their existence is filled with traffic, plastic homes, and a hunger for material things.
When a weather-related catastrophe brings the towns together in an unexpected way, the haves are forced to rely on the have-nots. Taut with timely themes of climate change, waning empathy and lack of community, the story hits scarily close to home.
No Way Home: A Memoir of Life on the Run by Tyler Wetherall (St. Martin’s Press, April 3)
By age nine, Tyler Wetherall had lived in thirteen houses in five countries on two continents, yet she still believed her father simply had “business problems.”
In her thrilling and gutting memoir, Wetherall recounts life on the run and how she and her siblings began to clue in to the family secret: her criminal father was a fugitive, wanted by the FBI and Scotland Yard.
Wetherall’s journals inform the first half of the book, a child’s narrative filled with the kind of details that can be found in great spy fiction. The second half, a present-day look at what followed her father’s capture, lacks the emotional touchstone of what came before but is no less compelling.
From Patti at Patti’s Pens & Picks:
Women in Sunlight by Frances Mayes (Crown, April 3)
I love books where women reinvent their lives in some way and emerge strong or stronger.
Three women in their sixties meet on a tour of a retirement community and become friends, traveling to a cottage several times. This evolves into spending a year sharing a house in Tuscany, Italy.
All three women confront demons while becoming their best selves, working on life goals they never thought they’d tackle. The village nearby helps on aspects of each woman’s changes. One of their neighbors is also confronting an unexpected life obstacle while working on an exciting project. I really enjoyed the adventure taken by the women.
PCN recommends:
Paris by the Book by Liam Callanan (Dutton, April 3)
When Leah married Robert, an author, she agreed to let him take a sabbatical from home whenever he needs to focus on writing. The only requirement is that he leaves a note, which he always does, until one day he doesn’t. And doesn’t return.
Clues lead to Leah moving with her two daughters to Paris, where “[o]nce a week, I chase men who are not my husband,” i.e. she follows men who look like Robert around the city.
Callanan’s insightful prose captures what it’s like to be a creative person and to live with one, the sacrifices that are made. Too often we love a movie or book but don’t give much thought to what it took to create it. I especially liked the many tributes to the French classic The Red Balloon by Albert Lamorisse, a childhood favorite of mine.
Which April releases are you looking forward to?
2 Comments
Eirego
April 6, 2018 at 11:04 amWow, props to Jen for showcasing two books from opposite ends of the spectrum! My age, and my lack of kids, compel me to only read Big Guns though. Not that I’m in any way a fan of the NRA or lobbyists, but I feel the need to try an understand this mentality.
Eirego
April 6, 2018 at 5:17 pmi did not mean to leave the selections by Lauren (very strong. Loved the description “waning empathy” because it taps into the current tide of emotion sweeping this country. At least I think so), Patti (strong women exactly what we need to sustain us), and PCN (almost too heartbreaking to pick up).
Thanks!