Reported by Kristin
The Story of Arthur Truluv by
Elizabeth Berg was enjoyed by a couple of Nevermore readers. Arthur Moses
recently lost his wife, but rides a bus to visit her in the cemetery every day.
Maddy Harris is a teen who never knew her mother, and doesn’t fit in with the
other kids. They form an unlikely friendship, and draw Arthur’s neighbor
Lucille into their group. One Nevermore member enjoyed Arthur’s story, with
another jumping in to say how much she also liked it along with other Berg
titles such as The Confession Club and The Art of Mending.
Fiction discussion then turned a bit spooky, as the next
reader picked up The Cabin at the End of the World by Paul Tremblay.
Eric and Andrew and their seven-year-old daughter Wen are enjoying their New
Hampshire lake vacation when all chaos breaks loose. When a man appears on
their doorstep he seems to be a friendly visitor, but he has a warning which
will change all their lives forever. Our reader was impressed with the social
commentary amid the terror and suspense.
On the lighter side, our next Nevermore member picked up Evvie
Drake Starts Over by Linda Holmes. Set in a small town, this is the tale of
a woman whose husband was about to leave her, but was in a car accident before
he could. This may sound dreadful, but our reader said that it was a warm and
funny story about the value of the friendships which surrounded Evvie in a
difficult time.
Dumpty: The Age of Trump in Verse by John
Lithgow brought laughter to the table. A satirical poetry collection, our
reader found it true to 2020 political life. While she found it a bit scary,
she also found moments of poignancy amid the humor.
In more serious non-fiction, our next reader picked up Bullwhip
Days: The Slaves Remember: An Oral History by James Mellon. Written in the
1930s when there were still living people who were born into slavery, this
Works Progress Administration project captured the culture of that sad period
of time. The author used dialect straight from his subjects, which might be a
little difficult for modern readers, but added so much color and flavor of
life. Our reader noted that this volume gave her so much and changed her own
attitude from growing up in southern Louisiana.
Finally, our next reader found a common theme in two mysteries,
and it went far beyond the cold, snowy titles. In the Bleak Midwinter by
Julia Spencer-Fleming introduces newly ordained Episcopal priest Clare
Fergusson. The parish soon experiences a brutal murder and an abandoned baby.
Strong characters make this a series debut worth reading.
The Boy in the Snow by M. J.
McGrath has been compared to popular Scandinavian thrillers. Alaskan Native
Edie Kiglatuk is supporting her husband as he begins the Iditarod dog race but the
discovery of an infant corpse soon turns the scene grisly. Our reader found the
scenery descriptions great, and revealed that the common theme she had found in
these two titles was that the heroines did not allow themselves to play the
victim.
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