Hot Milk

Advantage. Every page of Deborah Levy’s novel, Hot Milk is packed with rich, luscious prose. The narrative can seem to disconnect from reality on occasion, and as a reader I sometimes lost my bearings, just like protagonist Sofia. She has spent her life caring for her mother, Rose, who has a mysterious and debilitating illness. While her mother is in Spain under the care of a new doctor, Sofia visits her father. Levy uses this separation as a way for Sofia to come into her own identity and detach from an unhealthy linkage to Rose. Levy leads Sofia to explore the issue raised by her father’s young wife: why would we do anything other than to what is to our own advantage. In one way or another, most novels lead us to ask questions of ourselves about what it means to be a living, vibrant person. Fans of literary fiction who enjoy finely written prose are those most likely to enjoy this novel. Rating: Four-star (I like it) Click here to purchase Hot Milk from amazon.com.

The Invoice

Accounting. What’s in your wallet? What makes you happy? Jonas Karlsson explores the subject of happiness in his novel titled, The Invoice. An entity named World Resources Distribution has sent invoices to every citizen. The amount due reflects an accounting of the individual’s experienced happiness quotient. The happier one’s life has been, the larger sum that is due. The protagonist in the novel has received a huge bill and he has no ability to pay the bill. When he protests the invoice, an examination of his life leads to a new computation, reflecting that his happiness has been so great that his invoice was originally too small, not too large. Readers of this novel will never again think of the cost of living in the same way. Most readers will also reflect on one’s own happiness long after the last page of the novel has been turned. I found this novel to be clever, thought-provoking and compact enough to read in one or two sittings, and I highly recommend it to any reader who enjoys a blend of creativity, humor and profoundity. Rating: Five-star (I love it) Click here to purchase The Invoice from amazon.com.

Hillbilly Elegy: A Memoir of a Family and Culture in Crisis

Authenticity. So many of us Americans live in our self-selected homogeneous communities. We can go months or years without any meaningful encounters with individuals whose lives are very different from our own. Some books can help us gain insight into lives different from our own, and one such book is J.D.Vance’s memoir titled, Hillbilly Elegy: A Memoir of a Family and Culture in Crisis. Vance provides a clear voice about a marginalized subculture in American society. His personal story is inspiring and offers great insight into the obstacles that class differences can create and that inhibit or restrict many individuals who are trying to cross boundaries from one subculture into another. Rating: Four-star (I like it) Click here to purchase Hillbilly Elegy from amazon.com.

Manitou Canyon

November. In the fifteenth novel of the Cork O’Connor series by William Kent Krueger, it’s pretty clear that this protagonist has plenty of reasons to dislike November. Titled Manitou Canyon, this novel draws readers more deeply into the remote Boundary Waters area between Minnesota and Canada. The weather is turning foul, but Cork feels an obligation to take on a case, despite coming close on his daughter’s wedding date. Fans of the series will enjoy all the familiar characters. The past, especially November events, has a strong influence on the present. The case is packed with tense action, the plot is engaging, the characters complex and interesting, and the overall novel highly entertaining. Rating: Four-star (I like it) Click here to purchase Manitou Canyon from amazon.com.

A Great Reckoning

Grief. The 12th Chief Inspector Gamache novel by Louise Penny is titled, A Great Reckoning. There’s a lot of reckoning in this novel, but the great reckoning is both great and unexpected. Fans of the series will be delighted by the return of this interesting cast of characters led by Armand Gamache. We even learn more about Three Pines in this installment. There are plenty of twists, surprises and dogs. Much of the novel centers around grief and its long lasting effects. Penny keeps readers interested in solving the mysteries, while she proceeds at her own pace. Rating: Four-star (I like it) Click here to purchase A Great Reckoning from amazon.com.

The Hopefuls

Friendship. For those readers looking for an escape through fiction from the polarized reality of a presidential election season, consider reading Jennifer Close’s novel, The Hopefuls. Close presents two political couples, and explores their friendship and their marriages. While often funny, stress and tension drive the plot, and the presentation of both marriage and friendship rings true. Set in D.C. and Texas, both settings anchor the action with a strong sense of place, and proximity to power and the use of ambition as fuel felt perfect. Rating: Four-star (I like it) Click here to purchase The Hopefuls from amazon.com.

Grunt: The Curious Science of Humans at War

Questioning. Whenever questions enter Mary Roach’s fertile mind, she searches for answers, then shares them with readers, to our great benefit. Her latest book titled, Grunt: The Curious Science of Humans at War, explores the science of how the military tries to keep its members healthy and safe. Any given topic could become a comprehensive book-length study, but Roach contains herself as she chooses to distill lots of observations into cogent anecdotes that both inform and entertain. She explores such diverse topics as heat exposure, shark repellent, sleep, and diarrhea. On these topics and others, readers can count on lively writing, interesting anecdotes and some sating of Roach’s curiosity and ours. Rating: Four-star (I like it) Click here to purchase Grunt from amazon.com.