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DISCUSSION GUIDES
- 1.
I'll Come to YouSummary:"Rebecca Kauffman writes like a sunbeam, strong and warm on whatever lands in her path. This book only looks short--in reality, it reveals a family so richly drawn, so deep and complex, that it contains the whole world." --Emma Straub
- 2.
Still See You Everywhere (A Frankie Elkin Novel, 3)Summary:A young girl kidnapped in Hawaii twelve years ago. A female serial killer awaiting execution in Texas in just three weeks’ time. And a recovering alcoholic with more regrets than belongings determined to find justice. Three women on one terrifying trajectory, where the sins of the past and the secrets in the present all have the power to kill.
- 3.
The Verifiers (Claudia Lin)Summary: ONE OF THE WASHINGTON POST'S BEST MYSTERY BOOKS OF THE YEAR - Introducing Claudia Lin: a sharp-witted amateur sleuth for the 21st century. This debut novel follows Claudia as she verifies people's online lives, and lies, for a dating detective agency in New York City. Until a client with an unusual request goes missing....
"The world of social media, big tech and internet connectivity provides fertile new ground for humans to deceive, defraud and possibly murder one another.... Well rendered and charming.... Original and intriguing." --The New York Times Book Review
Claudia is used to disregarding her fractious family's model-minority expectations: she has no interest in finding either a conventional career or a nice Chinese boy. She's also used to keeping secrets from them, such as that she prefers girls--and that she's just been stealth-recruited by Veracity, a referrals-only online-dating detective agency. A lifelong mystery reader who wrote her senior thesis on Jane Austen, Claudia believes she's landed her ideal job. But when a client vanishes, Claudia breaks protocol to investigate--and uncovers a maelstrom of personal and corporate deceit. Part literary mystery, part family story, The Verifiers is a clever and incisive examination of how technology shapes our choices, and the nature of romantic love in the digital age. - 4.
The Invincible Miss Cust: A NovelSummary:SheReads Best Historical Fiction of 2022 Finalist!
"Inspiring, heartwarming, and ultimately triumphant." --Lisa Wingate, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Book of Lost Friends
"What a remarkable woman--and what an enthralling story!" --Janet Skeslien Charles, New York Times bestselling author of The Paris Library
Must-read historical fiction for fans of Marie Benedict and Tracey Enerson Wood, based on the real life of Britain's first woman veterinary surgeon.
Aleen Cust has big dreams. And no one--not her family, society, or the law--will stop her.
Born in Ireland in 1868 to an aristocratic English family, Aleen knows she is destined to work with animals, even if her family is appalled by the idea of a woman pursuing a veterinary career. Going against their wishes but with the encouragement of the guardian assigned to her upon her father's death, Aleen attends the New Veterinary College in Edinburgh, enrolling as A. I. Custance to spare her family the humiliation they fear. At last, she is on her way to becoming a veterinary surgeon! Little does she know her biggest obstacles lie ahead.
The Invincible Miss Cust is based on the real life of Aleen Isabel Cust, who defied her family and society to become Britain and Ireland's first woman veterinary surgeon. Through Penny Haw's meticulous research, riveting storytelling, and elegant prose, Aleen's story of ambition, determination, family, friendship, and passion comes to life. It is a story that, even today, women will recognize, of battling patriarchy and an unequal society to realize one's dreams and pave the way for other women in the face of seemingly insurmountable odds.
More Praise for The Invincible Miss Cust:
"The Invincible Miss Cust is an absolute delight, an exceptional, immersive work of historical fiction set amid the beautifully detailed landscapes of Ireland and England." --Jennifer Chiaverini, New York Times bestselling author of Switchboard Soldiers
"A skillfully told story of an extraordinary woman's grit, determination, and devotion to her dream. Detailed and evocative, The Invincible Miss Cust is an engrossing read." --Shana Abé, New York Times bestselling author of The Second Mrs. Astor
"I loved this gripping and inspirational book! Her courage and independence of spirit shine through on every beautifully-written page as she faces life's triumphs and tragedies." --Fiona Valpy, bestselling author of The Dressmaker's Gift
"An amazing story! Haw's descriptive prose and deft characterizations lead us through Cust's remarkable life, setbacks and triumphs, and leaves us in awe of her perseverance, determination, and loyalty." --Katherine Reay, bestselling author of The London House and The Printed Letter Bookshop
- 5.
Lessons: A novelSummary: NEW YORK TIMES BEST SELLER - A NEW YORKER ESSENTIAL READ - From the best-selling author of Atonement and Saturday comes the epic and intimate story of one man's life across generations and historical upheavals. From the Suez Crisis to the Cuban Missile Crisis, the fall of the Berlin Wall to the current pandemic, Roland Baines sometimes rides with the tide of history, but more often struggles against it. A BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR: Vogue - The New Yorker "Masterful.... McEwan is a storyteller at the peak of his powers.... One of the joys of the novel is the way it weaves history into Roland's biography.... The pleasure in reading this novel is letting it wash over you." --Associated Press When the world is still counting the cost of the Second World War and the Iron Curtain has closed, eleven-year-old Roland Baines's life is turned upside down. Two thousand miles from his mother's protective love, stranded at an unusual boarding school, his vulnerability attracts piano teacher Miss Miriam Cornell, leaving scars as well as a memory of love that will never fade. Now, when his wife vanishes, leaving him alone with his tiny son, Roland is forced to confront the reality of his restless existence. As the radiation from Chernobyl spreads across Europe, he begins a search for answers that looks deep into his family history and will last for the rest of his life. Haunted by lost opportunities, Roland seeks solace through every possible means--music, literature, friends, sex, politics, and, finally, love cut tragically short, then love ultimately redeemed. His journey raises important questions for us all. Can we take full charge of the course of our lives without causing damage to others? How do global events beyond our control shape our lives and our memories? And what can we really learn from the traumas of the past? Epic, mesmerizing, and deeply humane, Lessons is a chronicle for our times--a powerful meditation on history and humanity through the prism of one man's lifetime. - 6.
The Sweetness of ForgettingSummary: The "beautifully complex" (Woman's Day) classic that made Kristin Harmel a superstar follows a woman who must travel from Cape Cod to Paris to uncover a family secret for her dying grandmother that could change everything. Updated with a new author's note and recipes for this 10th anniversary edition!At thirty-six, Hope McKenna-Smith is no stranger to bad news. She lost her mother to cancer, her husband left her, and her bank account is nearly depleted. Her own dreams of becoming a lawyer long gone, she's running a failing family bakery on Cape Cod and raising a troubled preteen. Now, Hope's beloved French-born grandmother Mamie is drifting away in a haze of Alzheimer's. But in a rare moment of clarity, Mamie realizes that unless she tells Hope about the past, the secrets she has held on to for so many years will soon be lost forever. Tantalizingly, she reveals mysterious snippets of a tragic history in WWII Paris. Armed with a scrawled list of names, Hope heads to France to uncover a seventy-year-old mystery. What follows is "an immersive and evocative tale of generations struggling to survive" (Publishers Weekly) as Hope pieces together her grandmother's past bit by bit. Uncovering horrific tales of the Holocaust, she realizes the astonishing will of her grandmother to endure in a world gone mad. And to reunite two lovers torn apart by terror, all she'll need is a dash of courage, and the belief that God exists everywhere, even in cake. "Kristin Harmel is a powerful and dazzling voice in historical fiction." --Patti Callahan, New York Times bestselling author of Surviving Savannah - 7.
The All-Girl Filling Station's Last Reunion: A NovelSummary: NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER - Look for special features inside. Join the Random House Reader's Circle for author chats and more. The one and only Fannie Flagg, beloved author of Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe, Can't Wait to Get to Heaven, and I Still Dream About You, is at her hilarious and superb best in this new comic mystery novel about two women who are forced to reimagine who they are. Mrs. Sookie Poole of Point Clear, Alabama, has just married off the last of her daughters and is looking forward to relaxing and perhaps traveling with her husband, Earle. The only thing left to contend with is her mother, the formidable Lenore Simmons Krackenberry. Lenore may be a lot of fun for other people, but is, for the most part, an overbearing presence for her daughter. Then one day, quite by accident, Sookie discovers a secret about her mother's past that knocks her for a loop and suddenly calls into question everything she ever thought she knew about herself, her family, and her future. Sookie begins a search for answers that takes her to California, the Midwest, and back in time, to the 1940s, when an irrepressible woman named Fritzi takes on the job of running her family's filling station. Soon truck drivers are changing their routes to fill up at the All-Girl Filling Station. Then, Fritzi sees an opportunity for an even more groundbreaking adventure. As Sookie learns about the adventures of the girls at the All-Girl Filling Station, she finds herself with new inspiration for her own life. Fabulous, fun-filled, spanning decades and generations, and centered on a little-known aspect of America's twentieth-century story, The All-Girl Filling Station's Last Reunion is another irresistible novel by the remarkable Fannie Flagg. Praise for The All-Girl Filling Station's Last Reunion "A beautifully told tale, world-class humor, and characters who live forever in a grateful reader's world. Fannie Flagg keeps getting better and better. The All-Girl Filling Station's Last Reunion proves it."--Pat Conroy "If all the self-help books that promote ways to 'find yourself' were stacked in an enormous pile . . . none would approach the sweet wisdom with which Flagg infuses The All-Girl Filling Station's Last Reunion."--Richmond Times-Dispatch "It's Flagg's pleasure to hit her characters with several happy endings, but the real happiness is that she's given us another lovable--and quirky--novel."--The Washington Post - 8.
The Elegance of the HedgehogSummary:The phenomenal New York Times bestseller that "explores the upstairs-downstairs goings-on of a posh Parisian apartment building" (Publishers Weekly).
In an elegant hôtel particulier in Paris, Renée, the concierge, is all but invisible--short, plump, middle-aged, with bunions on her feet and an addiction to television soaps. Her only genuine attachment is to her cat, Leo. In short, she's everything society expects from a concierge at a bourgeois building in an upscale neighborhood. But Renée has a secret: she furtively, ferociously devours art, philosophy, music, and Japanese culture. With biting humor, she scrutinizes the lives of the tenants--her inferiors in every way except that of material wealth.
Paloma is a twelve-year-old who lives on the fifth floor. Talented and precocious, she's come to terms with life's seeming futility and decided to end her own on her thirteenth birthday. Until then, she will continue hiding her extraordinary intelligence behind a mask of mediocrity, acting the part of an average pre-teen high on pop culture, a good but not outstanding student, an obedient if obstinate daughter.
Paloma and Renée hide their true talents and finest qualities from a world they believe cannot or will not appreciate them. But after a wealthy Japanese man named Ozu arrives in the building, they will begin to recognize each other as kindred souls, in a novel that exalts the quiet victories of the inconspicuous among us, and "teaches philosophical lessons by shrewdly exposing rich secret lives hidden beneath conventional exteriors" (Kirkus Reviews). "The narrators' kinetic minds and engaging voices (in Alison Anderson's fluent translation) propel us ahead."--The New York Times Book Review "Barbery's sly wit . . . bestows lightness on the most ponderous cogitations."--The New Yorker - 9.
The Let Them Theory: A Life-Changing Tool That Millions of People Can't Stop Talking AboutSummary: #1 New York Times Bestseller
#1 Sunday Times Bestseller
#1 Amazon Bestseller
#1 Audible Bestseller A Life-Changing Tool Millions of People Can't Stop Talking About What if the key to happiness, success, and love was as simple as two words? If you've ever felt stuck, overwhelmed, or frustrated with where you are, the problem isn't you. The problem is the power you give to other people. Two simple words--Let Them--will set you free. Free from the opinions, drama, and judgments of others. Free from the exhausting cycle of trying to manage everything and everyone around you. The Let Them Theory puts the power to create a life you love back in your hands--and this book will show you exactly how to do it. In her latest groundbreaking book, The Let Them Theory, Mel Robbins--New York Times bestselling author and one of the world's most respected experts on motivation, confidence, and mindset--teaches you how to stop wasting energy on what you can't control and start focusing on what truly matters: YOU. Your happiness. Your goals. Your life. Using the same no-nonsense, science-backed approach that's made The Mel Robbins Podcast a global sensation, Robbins explains why The Let Them Theory is already loved by millions and how you can apply it in eight key areas of your life to make the biggest impact. Within a few pages, you'll realize how much energy and time you've been wasting trying to control the wrong things--at work, in relationships, and in pursuing your goals--and how this is keeping you from the happiness and success you deserve. Written as an easy-to-understand guide, Robbins shares relatable stories from her own life, highlights key takeaways, relevant research and introduces you to world-renowned experts in psychology, neuroscience, relationships, happiness, and ancient wisdom who champion The Let Them Theory every step of the way. Learn how to: - Stop wasting energy on things you can't control
- Stop comparing yourself to other people
- Break free from fear and self-doubt
- Release the grip of people's expectations
- Build the best friendships of your life
- Create the love you deserve
- Pursue what truly matters to you with confidence
- Build resilience against everyday stressors and distractions
- Define your own path to success, joy, and fulfillment
. . . and so much more. The Let Them Theory will forever change the way you think about relationships, control, and personal power. Whether you want to advance your career, motivate others to change, take creative risks, find deeper connections, build better habits, start a new chapter, or simply create more happiness in your life and relationships, this book gives you the mindset and tools to unlock your full potential. Order your copy of The Let Them Theory now and discover how much power you truly have. It all begins with two simple words. - 10.
The Last Animal: A NovelSummary: A NATIONAL BESTSELLER "Whip-smart and compulsively readable. . . both a wildly entertaining adventure story and a meditation on what it means to love your children--fiercely and imperfectly."--Oprah Daily
"Springs alive to explore questions that stump scientists and families, problems of the head and the heart."--Ron Charles, The Washington Post "A full-hearted portrait of sisterhood, family and the ways we process grief. Charming, wry, and original." --People
TWO SISTERS, ONE MOM, AND ONE WOOLLY SECRET. Teenage sisters Eve and Vera never imagined their summer vacation would be spent in the Arctic, tagging along on their mother's scientific expedition. But there's a lot about their lives lately that hasn't been going as planned, and truth be told, their single mother might not be so happy either. Now in Siberia with a bunch of serious biologists, Eve and Vera are just bored enough to cause trouble. Fooling around in the permafrost, they accidentally discover a perfectly preserved, four-thousand-year-old baby mammoth, and things finally start to get interesting. The discovery sets off a surprising chain of events, leading mother and daughters to go rogue, pinging from the slopes of Siberia to the shores of Iceland to an exotic animal farm in Italy, and resulting in the birth of a creature that could change the world--or at least this family. The Last Animal takes readers on a wild, entertaining, and refreshingly different kind of journey, one that explores the possibilities and perils of the human imagination on a changing planet, what it's like to be a woman in a field dominated by men, and how a wondrous discovery can best be enjoyed with family. Even teenagers.
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