Nevermore: Secret Sisters, Invisible Man, At Risk, You Never Forget Your First

 

Reported by Garry

 

We had a great mix of historical fiction, thrillers, fantasy and non-fiction brought to the table and Zoom screen this week!

Secret Sisters by Joy Callaway is a fictionalized look at the founding of the first sororities in the United States. In 1881 Illinois, sophomore Beth Carrington is the sole female student in the physician program. Determined to start a fraternity for women, Beth faces withering sexism from both her fellow students and the college itself. Turning to the head of the most powerful fraternity on campus, Beth puts her career and that of others on the line in order to get the recognition and standing taken for granted by the male-oriented fraternities. Our reader thought that this captivating story about trail-blazing women was very well written and informative, and she highly recommends it. 

 

Our next reader took on Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison. Set in 1927 and first published in 1952, this book addresses many of the racial issues faced by African Americans in the early part of the 20^th century, and is now widely recognized as an American classic and one of the most influential novels of the past century. The story revolves around an unnamed Black man who recounts his life in both the South and in Harlem, and the struggle for Black identity, autonomy and equality. Our reader was impressed and touched by this novel and states that even though it is 70 years old, many of the themes and struggles in it are still relevant today.

At Risk by Alice Hoffman tells the story of Amanda, an 11-year-old girl who contracts HIV from a blood transfusion. Written in 1988, before the time of the drugs that can keep HIV in check, this novel portrays the fear and resulting hostility from Amanda’s small town community when her illness becomes public. Our reader praised Hoffman’s elegant prose, and stated that that even though HIV/AIDS is viewed much differently now, fear, grief and ignorance are universal emotions and so this book remains relevant today.

 

You Never Forget Your First by Alexis Coe is an irreverent but extremely well researched look at the life and times of George Washington. Our reader said that this book is not only extremely funny, but that it takes George Washington off of the pedestal that he so often fought against, and re-casts him as a real-life person whose life happened to be world-changing. She noted that this book provides great historical information without being dry and clinical – quite the opposite as it made her laugh out loud multiple times.

 

Also mentioned:

Dog On It by Spencer Quinn

Someone We Know by Shari Lapena

The Final Girl Support Group by Grady Hendrix

Little Fires Everywhere by Celeste Ng

Dante’s Equation by Jane Jensen

The Border of Paradise by Esmé Weijun Wang

Hummingbird Salamander by Jeff VanderMeer

Wildland by Rebecca Hodge

Where the Dead Sit Talking by Brandon Hobson

The Removed by Brandon Hobson

The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame

Mama’s Last Hug by Frans De Waal

Radar Girls by Sara Ackerman

Subtle Acts of Exclusion by Tiffany Jana and Michael Baran

The Best American Science and Nature Writing 2019 edited by Sy Montgomery

Fallout: The Hiroshima Cover-Up and the Reporter Who Revealed it to the World by Leslie M.M. Blume

Zero Fail: The Rise and Fall of the Secret Service by Carol Leonnig

The Wonder Boy of Whistle Stop by Fannie Flagg

Tapestry of Fortunes by Elizabeth Berg

When I Fell from the Sky by Juliane Koepcke

How to Raise an Elephant by Alexander McCall Smith

Drunk Chickens and Burnt Macaroni by Mary Smith