Category: Books Other Recommendations

The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down: A Hmong Child, Her American Doctors, and the Collision of Two Cultures by Anne Fadiman Non-fiction suggested by Sharon From Goodreads: Lia Lee was born in 1981 to a family of recent Hmong immigrants, and soon developed symptoms of epilepsy. By 1988 she was living at home […]

Stiff: Curious Lives of Cadavers by Mary Roach Non-fiction from Verna Dead bodies, donated body

The Stories of John Cheever by John Cheever Fiction suggested by Barbara The Stories of John Cheever is a 1978 short story collection by American author John Cheever. It contains some of his most famous stories, including “The Enormous Radio,” “Goodbye, My Brother,” “The Country Husband,” “The Five-Forty-Eight,” and “The Swimmer.” Barbara recommends that we […]

The Story of a Marriage: A Novel by Andrew Sean Greer Fiction suggested by Barbara A book about love, an indirect and devastating exploration of the mystery at the heart of every relationship, how we can ever truly know another person. From Amazon –  “We think we know the ones we love.” So Pearlie Cook […]

The Story of a New Name by Elena Ferrante Fiction suggested by Anca The 2nd book in her Neapolitan quartet, the sequel to “My Brilliant Friend”, it continues the story of the two friends growing up in post-WWII Italy. Several book group members have read and enjoyed all four books in this series.

The Stranger by Albert Camus Through the story of an ordinary man unwittingly drawn into a senseless murder on an Algerian beach, Camus explored what he termed “the nakedness of man faced with the absurd.”

Sweet Tooth by Ian McEwan Fiction from Shirley During Cold War, woman joins the British equivalent of CIA. (Fun book)

Talk to the Hand by Lynn Truss Non-fiction from Verna Demise of decent manners, rise of rudeness

Tulipomania by Mike Dash Non-fiction suggested by Romy 1630’s Netherlands speculation on tulip bulbs runs rampant until single flowers were being sold for more than the cost of a house.

Uncanny Valley: A Memoir by Anna Wiener Non-Fiction suggested by Barbara In her mid-twenties, Anna works at a big-data startup in the early Silicon Valley bubble: a world of surreal extravagance, dubious success, and entrepreneurs hell-bent on domination, glory, and progress. From Amazon – In her mid-twenties, at the height of tech industry idealism, Anna […]