Wednesday, September 7, 2022

Nevermore: Cleopatra, Girl in Duluth, Best American Science and Nature Writing, Bean Trees, Pigs in Heaven

 


Reported by Garry

Cleopatra: A Life by Stacy Schiff is the biography of one of the most famous women in history. Cunning, ambitious and utterly cutthroat in her pursuit of power (she waged a civil war against one brother, poisoned another and had her sister killed), she was one of the most powerful women in the Middle East, forging ties with the Roman Empire that still echo today. Schiff utilizes classical sources to reconstruct the life (and death at age 40) of this fascinating icon of history.  SH


The Girl in Duluth by Sigrid Brown tells the harrowing story of June Bergeron – an 18 year old whose mother has disappeared. Fearing the worst, June investigates the disappearance and is pulled into the dark, violent underbelly of northern Minnesota, and her own family’s dark secrets. This tight-paced thriller really captivated our reader who stated that the characters are particularly well-written and relatable.  MS

The Best American Science and Nature Writing 2021 edited by Ed Young. “Excellent. Absolutely excellent.” was the review by our reader. In this compilation of the best science and nature articles written in the US in 2020, editor Ed Young has curated a collection that spans three broad topics: Contagion, Connection, and Consequences. Our reader has been a fan of this series of compilations for quite some time and states that this collection of articles ranks up there with the best.  CD


The Bean Trees and Pigs in Heaven are a duology by Barbara Kingsolver that follow the story of Missy, a spirited young lady from poor, rural Kentucky, who decides to get away and change her life. Changing her name to Taylor is the first step. Driving to Tucson, Arizona is the second. Life has other plans for her, though, as within hours of arriving in Tucson, she is handed a 3-year-old Cherokee girl named Turtle. Taylor adopts the young girl and settles in Tucson, setting roots where she did not intend. When a lawyer for the Cherokee nation starts to investigate the (highly unorthodox) adoption of Turtle, Taylor and Turtle’s new life begins to crumble.  MH

Also mentioned:

Just Came for the Donuts – NH    (   :D   )

Valley of the Amazons by Noretta Koertge

Why Nations Fail:  The Origins of Power, Prosperity and Poverty by Darren Acemoglu and James Robinson

A Single Thread by Tracy Chevalier

Out of Istanbul:  A Journey of Discovery along the Silk Road by Bernard Ollivier

Picking Cherries

Surviving the White Gaze: A Memoir by Rebecca Caroll

Switchboard Soldiers by Jennifer Chiaverini

The Heart is a Lonely Hunter by Carson McCullers

Roadside Picnic by Arkady and Boris Strugatsky

Annihilation by Jeff VanderMeer

The Regulators by Richard Bachman (Stephen King)

The Sweet Remnants of Summer by Alexander McCall Smith

Out of the Easy by Ruta Sepetys

The Women’s House of Detention: A Queer History of a Forgotten Prison by Hugh Ryan

Nine Parts of Desire: The Hidden World of Islamic Women by Geraldine Brooks

Trashlands by Alison Stine

The Lioness by Chris Bohjalian

Properties of Thirst by Marianne Wiggins

The Codebreaker’s Secret by Sara Ackerman

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