pickFull disclosure, this is a pandemic book set in New York City, which was one of the most COVID-19-wracked cities in the USA. Jodie P did her research, as per usual. It wasn‘t your typical Jodi P book, tho, in that it‘s told from a single POV. I read it in two days. It fully immersed me. It‘s a book about finding hope in a dark time and finding yourself along the way.
so-soAlex Fletcher is an ex-Marine and is now a pharmaceutical rep with a bit of paranoia about flu pandemics. The year is 2013, and he has a vivid memory of the Swine Flu outbreak. Alex‘s paranoia has led him to stockpile food, water, power supplies, and plenty of guns and ammo. His plan is a simple one: isolate himself and his family from everyone throughout the flu outbreak, even as the world they know crumbles around them…
Read more at: FictionLux
pickI‘ve been wanting to read Louise Erdrich for a while now and I went into this blind. It took a bit to sort out who/what the story was about but once I got into it, I really enjoyed it. Might be worth a reread in 10-20 years to relive 2019/2020. I currently have 2 books going with ghosts involved in the plot which is quite unusual for me 👻
pickI‘m so glad @merelybookish pointed me toward this book! I agree with you that it definitely has Ducks, Newburyport vibes. 🩵 I was surprised at how much I enjoyed this story about marriage, life, getting older, finding meaning, and yes, Melville. With poignant pandemic moments throughout, which felt timely as I read this almost exactly four years later. A #TOB long list gem this year for sure.
pickSo beautiful in its seemingly simple premise: a mom telling her 3 grown daughters a story of her youth while they‘re all home at the family farm during the pandemic. I loved it so much. A bookseller put this in my hands and I‘m glad she did! 💗
The House on the Hill was in a tizzy.
#firstlinefridays
@ShyBookOwl
pickAbsolutely loved this book. Despite the fact that I have not loved some of the author's prior novels, and despite the reviews that make valid points about the simplistic tokenism of the one Black supporting character, I nevertheless read this book voraciously and was all in for the whole ride.
@Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks @eggs
#springskies #bookclubread
The last book I enjoyed with a bookclub sticker
pickThe first sentence of the book blurb hooked me immediately: “A small independent bookstore in Minneapolis is haunted from November 2019 to November 2020 by the store‘s most annoying customer.” But this wasn‘t at all what I expected—I‘m not sure why I thought it would be cozy and lighthearted (bookstore ghost story!). Somehow I didn‘t pick up on the setting/timing and the difficult topics that would of course entail. But my expectations aside…⬇️
so-soIt‘s 1918 and we‘re on the maternity ward of a hospital in Ireland, right in the middle of the flu epidemic. We spend three days with Nurse Julia Powell, Dr Kathleen Lynn, and Bridie, an orphan who comes to volunteer. Nurse Powell narrates a very detailed story of births and deaths, hope and despair. I love nurses as much as the next person, but I might be a little tired of them after the nurses in The Women.
