I’m currently reading Pale Fire Nabokov
Howard’s End is on the Landing Susan Hill
The Salt Path | The Wild Silence Raynor Winn
Giving Up the Ghost Hilary Mantel
The Kamogawa Food Detectives Hisashi Kashiwai
The Frozen River Ariel Lawhon
Inheritance: A Memoir of Genealogy, Paternity and Love Dani Shapiro (audio)
Radiant Heat Sarah-Jane Collins (hate the trope: experience something traumatic then get drunk and have indiscriminate, unprotected sex)
Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow Gabrielle Zevin
The Queen of Tambourine Jane Gardam (p. 178)
Normal Rules Don’t Apply Kate Atkinson (genius!)
The Spare Room Helen Garner
Book 1: Wool | Book 2: Shift | Book 3: Dust Hugh Howey
The Deluge Stephen Markley
The Eyre Affair Jasper Fforde
Demon Copperhead Barbara Kingsolver
Orbital Samantha Harvey
The Princess Diarist Carrie Fisher (audio)
The Lost Library Rebecca Stead & Wendy Mass
Flesh and Blood Michele Roberts
The Flight of Maidens Jane Gardam
The Stories Jane Gardam
Tha Last Devil to Die Richard Osman
The Marriage Portrait Maggie O’Farrell
I Am I Am I Am Maggie O’Farrell
The Vanishing Act of Esme Lennox Maggie O’Farrell
This Must Be the Place Maggie O’Farrell
Foreign Affairs Alison Lurie
The Vulnerables Sigrid Nunez
Bad Blood Lorna Sage
Old Filth trilogy Jane Gardam (masterpiece! love her)
Instructions for a Heatwave Maggie O’Farrell
The Distance Between Us Maggie O’Farrell
After You’d Gone Maggie O’Farrell
Singled Out: How 2 million women survived without men after WW1 Virginia Nicholson
Bedside Book of Birds Graeme Gibson
A Brief History of Misogyny: The World’s Oldest Prejudice Jack Holland (audio)
Cinderella Rebecca Solnit
Hansel and Greta Jeanette Winterson
O Caledonia Elspeth Barker (intro by Maggie O’Farrell)
Pathological: The True Story of Six Misdiagnoses Sarah Fay (audio)
The Book of Dragons Edith Nesbit (audio)
Hamnet Maggie O’Farrell
The Psychopath Test Jon Ronson
All Happy Families Herve Le Tellier trans. from French Adriana Hunter
The Young Rebecca: Writings of Rebecca West 1911-1917
Melissa Come Back Patrice Keet and Melissa LaHommedieu
The Running Grave Robert Galbraith (JK Rowling)
In Memoriam Alice Winn
The Anomaly Herve Le Tellier trans. from French Adriana Hunter
Braiding Sweetgrass Robin Wall Kimmerer
The Broken Shore Peter Temple
The Romantic William Boyd
The Postcard Anne Berest trans. from French Tina Kover
Last Bus to Woodstock Colin Dexter
Old God’s Time Sebastian Barry
Birdology Sy Montgomery
West with Giraffes Lynda Rutledge
Bleeding Heart Yard Elly Griffiths
The Knitting Circle Ann Hood
Prom Mom Laura Lippman
Olga Dies Dreaming Xochitl Gonzlez
Journey of the Pink Dolphins: An Amazon Quest Sy Montgomery
The Same Ax, Twice: Restoration and Renewal in a Throwaway Age Howard Mansfield
The Covenant of Water Abraham Verghese
The Last of the Dragons E. Nesbit (audio) The princess rescues herself! pub 1901
YellowFace R. F. Kuang
The Soul of an Octopus Sy Montgomery
Charlotte’s Web E.B. White (audio)
The Last Remains Elly Griffiths (last book of Dr. Ruth Galloway mysteries)
Stranger Diaries | The Postscript Murders Elly Griffiths
Silverview John Le Carre
Silver Bay | Someone Else’s Shoes Jo Jo Moyes (audio books)
The Killers of the Flower Moon: The Osage Murders and the Birth of the FBI David Grann
One Hundred Saturdays Michael Frank, paintings by Maira Kalman
Exiles Jane Harper
Noughts & Crosses Malorie Blackman
Lessons in Chemistry Bonnie Garmus (mostly hilarious)
The Island of Sea Women Lisa See
Natural Causes: An Inspector McLean novel James Oswald
The Book of Form and Emptiness Ruth Ozeki
Selected Poems II: Poems Selected and New 1976-1986 Margaret Atwood
So Shall You Reap Donna Leon
The Copenhagen Trilogy Tove Ditlevsen
The Magic Men/Brighton mystery series Elly Griffiths
The Motion Picture Teller Colin Cotterill
The Broken Earth series N. K. Jemison
The Clockwork Angel Cassandra Clare (audio book read by Jennifer Ehle)
Rubbernecker | Snap Belinda Bauer
Dead Beat | Kick Back Val McDermaid (Kate Brannigan series)
The Paul Chowder Chronicles Nicholson Baker
The Bookshop Book Jen Campbell
Lessons Ian McEwan
Small Things Like These Claire Keegan
Shutter Ramona Emerson
Dr. Ruth Galloway Mystery series ( 16 books as of 2022) Elly Griffiths
The Last Thing He Told Me Laura Dave (audiobook)
Shrines of Gaiety Kate Atkinson
Borrowed Finery: A Memoir Paula Fox
The Forgotten Garden Kate Morton
The Lincoln Highway Amor Towles (audio book)
Women Holding Things Maira Kalman
The Man Who Died Twice | The Bullet That Missed Richard Osman
The Ink Black Heart Robert Galbraith (JK Rowling)
The Distant Echo and all the books in the Karen Pirie series Val McDermid
Magpie Murders | A Line to Kill Anthony Horowitz (or anything by Horowitz)
Family LIfe Akhil Sharma
The Cut Out Girl A Story of War and Family, Lost and Found Bart van Es
Small World Jonathan Evison
The It Girl Ruth Ware
The Power Naomi Alderman
The Man Who Saw Everything Deborah Levy
The Delightful Life of a Suicide Pilot Colin Cotterill (final book of the Dr. Paiboun series)
One-Eyed Cat Paula Fox
Caraval Stephanie Garber
A History of Present Illness Anna Deforest
The Secret Keeper | The Distant Hours Kate Morton
The Maid Nita Prose (read by Lauren Ambrose)
Send for Me Lauren Fox
The Tattooist of Auschwitz Heather Morris (read by Richard Armitage)
The Clockmaker’s Daughter Kate Morton (read by Joanne Froggatt)
The Splendid and the Vile Erik Larson
Desperate Characters Paula Fox
Sisters Dervla McTiernan (read by Aoife McMahon)
The Ruin Dervla McTiernan (read by Aoife McMahon)
The Book that Matters Most Ann Hood
The Night Circus Erin Morgenstern (read by Jim Dale)
Crimson Lake novels Candice Fox (tv series Troppo. Nicole Chamoun is amazing.)
Trio William Boyd
Chaos Walking Trilogy Patrick Ness
Cloud Cuckoo Land Anthony Doerr
The Swimmers Julie Otsuka (a masterpiece)
Sunshine Girl an unexpected life Julianna Marguilies
The Scholomance series (A Deadly Education | The Last Graduate | The Golden Enclaves) Naomi Novik
I Found You Lisa Jewell
Mr. Penumbra’s 24-Hour Bookstore Robin Sloan
Give Unto Others Donna Leon
All the Birds, Singing Evie Wyld
Love is Blind William Boyd
Ten Steps to Nanette: A Memoir Situation Hannah Gadsby (love her!)
When the Emperor was Divine | The Buddha in the Attic Julie Otsuka
Hot Milk Deborah Levy
Remain Silent Susie Steiner
The Power of the Dog Thomas Savage
My Life as a Villainess: Essays Laura Lippman
Relish: My Life on a Plate | The Gardener | The Choral Society Prue Leith
A Narrow Door Joanne Harris
The Passenger Lisa Lutz
Dream Girl Laura Lippman
The Angelotti trilogy Prue Leith (The Food of Love, The Prodigal Daughter, The Lost Son)
The Cold Millions Jess Walter
A Fine Romance Candice Bergen
Louisa May Alcott: A Personal Biography Susan Cheever
State of Terror Louise Penny / Hillary Rodham Clinton
The Long View Elizabeth Jane Howard (1956)
On Writing Stephen King
Love Toni Morrison
The Madness of Crowds Louise Penny
Elizabeth Costello J.M. Coetzee
The Searcher Tana French
Uprooted Naomi Novik
Disgrace J.M. Coetzee
The Witch Elm Tana French
The 10,000 Doors of January Alix E. Harrow
White Houses Amy Bloom
My Purple Scented Novel Ian McEwan
Whereabouts Jhumpa Lahiri
And the Pursuit of Happiness | The Principles of Uncertainty and everything else by Maira Kalman
Here We Are Graham Swift
Slipstream: A Memoir Elizabeth Jane Howard
Art Objects: Essays on Ecstasy and Effrontery Jeanette Winterson
All That Remains: A Life in Death Sue Black
The Survivors Jane Harper
Mitz: The Marmoset of Bloomsbury Sigrid Nunez (imagine the text illustrated by Maira Kalman)
For Rouenna | Naked Sleeper Sigrid Nunez
Sempre Susan: A Memoir of Susan Sontag Sigrid Nunez
FranKissStein: A Love Story Jeanette Winterson
The Last of Her Kind | Salvation City Sigrid Nunez
The Sea Change Elizabeth Jane Howard (an amazing writer) Loved this phrase: “gasping for silence”
A Prayer for Owen Meany John Irving
I always questioned virgin birth stories. Irving made me ask if a virgin birth story is a patriarchal myth to cover the act of rape. My conclusion is that the rise of patriarchy began with stories of rape that subverted the act of procreation into the power of males.
The Lying Life of Adults Elena Ferrante trans. Ann Goldstein “I stared at his prominent Adam’s apple as if behind the knob vibrated the breath of the first human being of the male sex to come into the world and not, instead, one of the infinite reproductions that crowd the planet.”
A Feather on the Breath of God Sigrid Nunez
Conviction Denise Mina
What Are You Going Through Sigrid Nunez
No Time to Spare Ursula Le Guin
The Queen’s Gambit Walter Tevis
Troubled Blood Robert Galbraith
Earthsea series Ursula Le Guin
The Tree of Water (Book 4 of the Lost Journals of Ven Polypheme) Elizabeth Haydon
The Friend Sigrid Nunez
The Brilliant Life of Eudora Honeysett Annie Lyons
Palaces for the People Eric Klinenberg
All the Devils Are Here Louise Penny
An Ordinary Lunacy Jessica Anderson
Mozart’s Starling Lyanda Lynn Haupt
Missing, Presumed | Persons Unknown Susie Steiner
Prayers for the Stolen Jennifer Clement
The Essex Serpent Sarah Perry
Born With Teeth | How to Forget: A Daughter’s Memoir Kate Mulgrew
The Last Policeman series Ben Winters
Early One Morning Virginia Baily
Queen’s Thief series Megan Whalen Turner
Tirra Lirra By the River Jessica Anderson (pub. in 1978. Amazing)
The Long Long Way Sebastian Barry
Motherhood Sheila Heti
The Petaybee series Anne McCaffrey & Elizabeth Ann Scarborough
Dry | Force of Nature | The Lost Man Jane Harper
Lying in Wait Liz Nugent
A Thousand Moons Sebastian Barry
Mendelssohn is on the Roof Jiri Weil
Border: A Journey to the Edge of Europe Kapka Kassabova
Broken For You | Language Arts Stephanie Kallos
The Muralist B. A. Shapiro
The Merry Heart Robertson Davies
Recollections of my Nonexistence Rebecca Solnit
Annie Dunn Sebastian Barry
Big Sky Kate Atkinson (most recent Jackson Brodie mystery)
The Word is Murder Anthony Horowitz
Insignficant Events in the Life of a Cactus Dusti Bowling
Trace Elements Donna Leon
The Autobiography of Alice B. Toklas Gertrude Stein with illustrations by Maira Kalman
The Black Hour Lori Rader-Day
Days Without End Sebastian Barry (a masterpiece)
Lady in the Lake or anything by Laura Lippman
Quentins | Evening Classes | Tara Road | Minding Frankie Maeve Binchy
The Vagina Bible Jen Gunter, M.D.
Deep Under Cover Jack Barsky with Cindy Coloma
The Dutch House Ann Patchett
Don’t Lets Go to the Dogs Tonight: An African Childhood Alexandra Fuller
Fighter in Velvet Gloves Anne Boochever & Roy Peratovich
The Secret Scripture Sebastian Barry
The Female Persuasion Meg Wolitzer
Why I’m No Longer Talking to White People About Race Reni Eddo-Lodge
Between the World and Me Ta-Nehisi Coates
The Color of Water James McBride
The Enchanted April Elizabeth Von Armin
Why Be Happy When You Can Be Normal? Jeanette Winterson (or anything by Jeanette)
Notes from a Coma Mike McCormack
As the Sailor Loves the Sea Ballard Hadman
A Better Man Louise Penny
Three Women Lisa Taddeo
Nutshell | Machines Like Me Ian McEwan
The Tennis Partner Abraham Verghese
Talking to Strangers Malcolm Gladwell
The Nix Nathan Hill
Unsheltered Barbara Kingsolver
This is Your Life, Harriet Chance Jonathan Evison
50 Years Below Zero Charles Brower
Transcription Kate Atkinson (or anything by Kate)
A Gentleman in Moscow Amor Towles
The Miscalculations of Lightning Girl Stacy McAnulty
Night Film Marisha Pessl
Natural Born Heroes + Born to Run Christopher McDougall
On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous Ocean Vuong
I’ll Be Gone in the Dark: One Woman’s Search
for the Golden State Killer Michelle McNamara
The Giant’s House Elizabeth McCracken
Spinning Silver Naomi Novik
Mischling Affinity Konar
Quiet Until the Thaw Alexandra Fuller (Always a special read)
A Cold Case Phillip Gourevitch
The Book of Dust Philip Pullman (more Dark Materials series)
Who is Vera Kelly? Rosalie Knecht
To End All Wars Adam Hochschild
Doris Day: Her Own Story A.E. Hotchner
The Heart’s Invisible Furies John Boyne
My Life on the Road Gloria Steinem
Saving Agnes + Outline Rachel Cusk
Middlemarch George Eliot
Asymmetry Lisa Halliday
The Good Good Pig + How to Be a Good Creature Sy Montgomery
The Far Field Madhuri Vijay
Conversations with Friends Sally Rooney
A Change of Climate Hillary Mantel
The Library Book Susan Orlean (I love all Orlean’s writing)
Cormoran Strike series Robert Galbraith (JK Rowling)
The Short History of Myth Karen Armstrong
The Signature of All Things Elizabeth Gilbert
The Rain Wild Chronicles Robin Hobb
Ragnarok: The End of Gods or anything by A.S. Byatt
The War that Saved My Life & The War I Finally Won Kimberly Brubaker Bradley
Fatelessness Imre Kertesz translated by Tim Wilkinson
The Turquoise Ledge & Ceremony Leslie Marmon Silko
Saint Judas James Wright
The Delicacy and Strength of Lace James Wright and Leslie Marmon Silko
Old in Art School: A Memoir of Starting Over Nell Irvin Painter
Warlight Michael Ondaatje (I love all Ondaatje’s writing)
Fugitive Pieces + Poems + The Winter Vault Anne Michaels
Sweet Caress + Waiting for Sunrise or anything by William Boyd
Dietland Sarai Walker
The Lonely City + To the River Olivia Laing
Artemesia Anna Banti
When You Reach Me Rebecca Stead
The Mother of All Questions Rebecca Solnit
Strange Piece of Paradise Terri Jentz
Euphoria Lily King
The Enchanted Rene Denfeld
First Fridays Tory Hartmann
The Women in the Castle Jessica Shattuck
Stones for Ibarra Harriet Doerr
West with the Night Beryl Markham
Out of Africa Isak Dinesen
The Flames Trees of Thika + The Mottled Lizard Elspeth Huxley
Flicker Theodore Roszak
The Little Prince Antoine de St. Exupery (always)
Inkheart series Cornelia Funke
The Ear, the Eye and the Arm and anything else by Nancy Farmer
Mothers, Daughters, Sisters, Wives Karen Rosenbaum
Girl Waits with Gun + Lady Cop Makes Trouble Amy Stewart
The Red Notebook Antoine Larain
Mothering Sunday and anything by Graham Swift
Dr. Siri Paiboun mysteries Colin Cotterill
The Enchanted Rene Denfeld
The Dandelion Years Erica James
The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society Mary Ann Shaffer & Annie Barrows
Lit Up David Denby
Heartless Melissa Meyer (An imagining of the Queen of Hearts origin story) (The Lunar Chronicles are also a fun read.)
Alias Grace The always insightful, imaginative, brilliant Margaret Atwood
Elena Ferrante’s Neapolitan novels:My Brilliant Friend, The Story of New Name, Those Who Leave and Those Who Stay, The Story of the Lost Child
A reviewer said to imagine Jane Austen angry. Not even close. This is one of the most brutally honest, and yes angry, depictions of the lives of two women who were born into poverty in Naples, Italy, in 1944. Get ready to abandon yourself to Ferrante.
The Waters of Eternal Youth + Earthly Remains Donna Leon
A Tale for the Time Being + My Year of Meats Ruth Ozeki
The Big Seven Jim Harrison
“Literature was against the abyss while history wallowed in it.” p. 132
Fluke + Sacre Bleu + Lamb Christopher Moore
My Name is Lucy Barton Elizabeth Strout (another recommendation by Barb)
Be Frank with Me Julia Claiborne Johnson (recommended by my good friend Barb)
Dewey: The Small-Town Library Cat Who Touched the World Vicki Myron with Bret Witter
(recommended by Broken Wheel Readers)
The Readers of Broken Wheel Recommend Katarina Bivald translated from the Swedish by Alice Menzies
Sisters In Law: How Sandra Day O’Conner and Ruth Bader Ginsburg Went to the Supreme Court and Changed the World Linda Hirshman Everyone should read this book, especially young women trying to understand how two extraordinary women have worked and sacrificed to fight for equal rights for all.
The Year of Magical Thinking or anything by Joan Didion
Negotiating the Dead: A Writer on Writing the incomparable Margaret Atwood (Always on my bedside table)