New for Book Clubs: There There, The Mars Room, and The Tea Girl of Hummingbird Lane

Meet three more thought-provoking titles newly added to the 2020 Book Discussion collection. These are hand-picked reads ideal for personal enrichment or for group conversation. Don’t miss part one, and watch for additional announcements each week!

There There by Tommy Orange

dramatic, engrossing, multiple perspectives, strong sense of place
for fans of Louise Erdrich, Leslie Marmon Silko, and Sherman Alexie

In a wondrous and shattering portrait of an America not many know, twelve Native Americans attend the Big Oakland Powwow for different and very personal reasons. A multi-generational story that grapples with the plight of the urban Native American including violence and recovery, hope and loss, identity and power, dislocation and communion, and the beauty and despair woven into the history of a nation and its people.

PEN/Hemingway Award
Indie’s Choice Book Award for Best Adult Debut Fiction
New York Times Notable Book

The Mars Room by Rachel Kushner

unflinching, stylistically complex, compelling, heartbreaking
for fans of Just Mercy, An American Marriage, and Alias Grace

A woman begins serving two life sentences at Stanville Women’s Correctional Facility deep in 2003 California’s Central Valley, reflecting on the San Francisco of her youth and her relationship with her young son while navigating the harsh realities of a bare-essentials life of casual violence at the hands of the guards and her fellow inmates.

New York Times Notable Book
Booklist Editors’ Choice for Best Fiction
Goodreads Choice Nominee Best Fiction

The Tea Girl of Hummingbird Lane by Lisa See

sweeping, character-driven, evocative details
for fans of Amy Tan, Jean Kwok, and Secret Daughter

Explores the lives of a Chinese mother and her daughter, who has been adopted by an American couple, tracing the very different cultural factors that compel them to consume a rare native tea that has shaped their family’s destiny for generations.

LibraryReads Favorite
Goodreads Choice Nominee Best Historical Fiction