Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro “A dystopian love story centered around three friends from childhood as they come of age. Wonderfully written and full of twists that will keep you wanting more.” –Cait, Meadows Get more staff reading recommendations
The Bridge Ladies: A Memoir by Betsy Lerner “The daughter of one of the titular “ladies”, who has played bridge for many years with the same group, observes, plays, and writes about her mother and these women she has known all her life. The author’s observations over time improve her opinion of her mother, her […]
The House of Broken Angels by Luis Alberto Urrea “This excellent novel, about a dying Mexican immigrant who throws one last blow-out party to celebrate both his birthday and his life, proves that happy families can be as interesting as unhappy ones. It’s also a solid choice for those looking to add a little diversity […]
Next Year in Havana by Chanel Cleeton “Growing up in South Florida, I had many friends and neighbors of Cuban heritage, so this book not only offered a great historical perspective but was a particularly relevant read for me. The author does a wonderful job re-creating the place of Havana a few years before Fidel Castro […]
Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi “In this sweeping epic that spans seven generations and extends from West Africa to the United States, Gyasi takes readers on an emotional, heartbreaking, and ultimately affirming journey. Told in alternating verses, the story follows the lineages of two half-sisters whose family histories connect in unexpected and surprising ways The ending that […]
Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers by Mary Roach “While probably not a topic you thought you’d ever read about, what happens to bodies donated to science is a fascinating subject. From practice for plastic surgeons to studies on decomposition, there seems to be nothing you can’t do with a cadaver.” -Kristina, Meadows Branch Get more Staff […]
Who Killed the Fonz? by James Boice “Boice reinvents sitcom as noir, recounting the fictitious fate of Richie Cunningham and the rest of the ‘Happy Days’ gang following the demise of the show. In the process, he entertainingly wraps the reunion of some of our beloved ’70s sitcom characters in with the title mystery. A quick […]
Invisible City by Julia Dahl “Months after Rebekah Roberts’ birth, her mother, a Hasidic Jew from Brooklyn, abandoned her Christian boyfriend and baby to return to her religion. After college, Rebekah moves to New York City, dreaming of becoming a big-city reporter and maybe learning more of her mother. I don’t normally read mysteries, but I […]
Born a Crime: Stories from a South African Childhood by Trevor Noah“This is a fascinating book about the end of apartheid written by someone who lived through it. Trevor Noah is one of the funniest comedians of our time, and this story of his childhood reveals truths about apartheid, change, and some of the universal […]
Spying on Whales: The Past, Present, and Future of Earth’s Most Awesome Creatures by Nick Pyenson “This is a wonderful book by the curator of fossil marine mammals at the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of Natural History. Pyenson explores the evolution of whales, fossil sites, whale anatomy, and new technologies used to research whales in […]