Nevermore: Lost Garden, Sensitive Crimes, Heart Goes Last, We Fed An Island

Reported by Christy

In Helen Humphreys’ The Lost Garden, Gwen Davis is put in charge of the farming of potatoes for the war effort. The women she is supervising, however, are much more interested in the Canadian soldiers stationed at the estate. In order to gain control, Davis arranges frequent evening dances where her girls can mingle with the soldiers. In doing so, she discovers feelings she’s never felt before, and she also stumbles on a hidden, forgotten garden with its own secrets. Our reader found this book “pleasant” and a “quick read."

In Alexander McCall Smith’s The Department of Sensitive Crimes, no case is too small or weird to tackle for a Swedish team of criminal investigators. Cases include a stabbing of a man in the back of the knee and a woman’s missing imaginary boyfriend. Our reader enjoyed this novel, calling it “too fun.”

Margaret Atwood’s The Heart Goes Last tells the story of Stan and Charmaine who are living in their car and trying to survive amidst societal collapse. The couple decides to participate in the Positron Project where they will have jobs, food, and a nice, clean house for alternating months. Every other month they will become prisoners in the Positron prison system. The couple is fine with this arrangement until Charmaine makes a decision that will ultimately put Stan’s life in danger. Our reader found this book to be “frightening.”

Mere days after Hurricane Maria ravaged Puerto Rico, Chef Jose Andres traveled to the island to help the only way who knew how: by feeding people. Andres tells his story in We Fed an Island: The True Story of Rebuilding Puerto Rico, One Meal at a Time. Our reader called Andres “passionate” and found his story “inspiring.”