You Bring the Distant Near by Mitali Perkins is an interesting story of a family that emigrated from India to London and then to the U.S. in the ’70s. The story’s focus is on three generations of women and their experiences while trying to find their place in a new home. Hopes, dreams, relationships – it’s all there! The e-audio format is a lovely way to experience the story.
Have you taken up this summer’s challenge of Reading Takes You Everywhere? Enjoy this book for any one of the following categories:
D. Read or listen to a digital book.
K. Read a book set in two different time periods.
W. Read a prize-winning book.
Y. Read a book from the Young Adult collections.
Popping the question to her boyfriend of ten years was part of Delia’s plan; seeing his panicked text to another woman that same night was…not. It’s Not Me, It’s You is a darkly comic journey of self-discovery through misadventure. Witty, sometimes wacky, but also pointedly real, Mhairi McFarlane’s story is one to cheer.
Have you taken up this summer’s challenge of Reading Takes You Everywhere? Enjoy this book for any one of the following categories:
A. Read a book written by a new-to-you author.
C. Read a book set in a different country. (England)
G. Read a romance. (of sorts)
There’s no denying the timeliness of Meg Wolitzer’s The Female Persuasion. It resonates with our current political climate, taking an empathetically incisive look at inter-generational feminism. With Wolitzer’s talent for prose, she captures emotion with just a single image. If a novel could be derived from the #MeToo movement, this is it.
Have you taken up this summer’s challenge of Reading Takes You Everywhere? Enjoy this book for either of the following categories:
O. Read a book with a character near retirement age
Z. Read a book about a world-changer
The Civil War… with zombies? Dread Nation by Justina Ireland combines fantasy storytelling and the dark history of racial oppression in the U.S. in this genre-blending YA novel that’s a little bit historical fiction, a little bit steampunk, and only sort of about zombies.
When the dead walked at Gettysburg, all thoughts of rebuilding the nation fell away. A new law declared that young people of color must attend combat school to learn how to defeat the dead. Fresh from combat school, Jane finds herself in the clutches of powerful enemies who see her as less than human. In the war against the dead, she never expected that the living might turn out to be her biggest danger.
Have you taken up this summer’s challenge of Reading Takes You Everywhere? Enjoy this book for either of the following categories:
Q. Read a book of fantasy or magical realism.
Y. Read a book from the Young Adult collections.
A young man elegantly sketches out the consequences transitioning from poverty to wealth has had upon his close-knit family in contemporary India. Quirky humor mixed with delicious Indian food descriptions mixed with musings on the role money plays in our lives makes Ghachar Ghochar by Vivek Shanbhag a captivating read.
Have you taken up this summer’s challenge of Reading Takes You Everywhere? Enjoy this book for either of the following categories:
C. Read a book set in a different country. (India)
E. Read a book of 150 pages or less. (118 pages)
X. Read a book translated from a different language. (Kannada)
The Hunchback of Neiman Marcus: A Novel about Marriage, Motherhood, and Mayhem by Sonya Sones is referred to as “chick lit” in poetry format by a 50ish-year-old woman going through a tough time. I read this in two hours and had my own epiphany. Life changing? Maybe not for all, but definitely an interesting voice for those in the “sandwich generation”.
Have you taken up this summer’s challenge of Reading Takes You Everywhere? Enjoy this book for either of the following categories:
A. Read a book written by a new-to-you author.
P. Read a collection of poetry.
C.J. Box is an award-winning author whose works have been translated into 27 different languages. His Joe Picket mystery series follows the life of a game warden in the modern West. The latest one isThe Disappeared, in which a female British executive disappears during a vacation at a four-star dude ranch. Was she kidnapped or just on a longer vacation?
Have you taken up this summer’s challenge of Reading Takes You Everywhere? Enjoy this book for either of the following categories:
A. Read a book written by a new-to-you author.
I. Read a book involving travel.
An ideal gateway into fantasy for crime story fans, Skin Game by Jim Butcher is a thrilling heist adventure with Chicago’s only professional wizard leading the gang. Narrator James Marsters is nothing short of spellbinding in telling the smart, twisty, and witty tale of a motley crew under duress breaking into the vault of Hades for the literal Holy Grail.
Have you taken up this summer’s challenge of Reading Takes You Everywhere? Enjoy this book for any one of the following categories:
A. Read a book written by a new-to-you author.
D. Read or listen to a digital book.
L. Read a book set in the Chicagoland area.
Q. Read a book of fantasy or magical realism.
From long days reading under a hot sun to curling up in the corner of a chilly library with a new book to trying to sneak a few extra pages in while you’re in line at the grocery store, we all approach reading a little differently in the summer! However, one thing remains the same. Summer is a great time for books, especially when you can win prizes for reading through your library’s adult summer reading program! Sign-up to embark on your next reading adventure today.
Want ideas for your own summer reading list? Take a look at what MPPL staff is hoping to read this summer!
A Selfie as Big as the Ritz drew me in with its brilliant title and mesmerizing cover art. I loved reading the clever stories packed into this slim collection, which is Lara Williams’ debut. She captures her characters at various points in their lives, with sharply observed details that feel simultaneously unique and familiar.
You Bring the Distant Near by Mitali Perkins is an interesting story of a family that emigrated from India to London and then to the U.S. in the ’70s. The story’s focus is on three generations of women and their experiences while trying to find their place in a new home. Hopes, dreams, relationships – it’s all there! The e-audio format is a lovely way to experience the story.
