While I'm cranking out another short story and brainstorming outfit ideas, I thought I'd share what's in my latest book rotation. I love when people share theirs, so hopefully you'll dig it as well…
So here we go!
I currently have two page-turning sauna books that leave me toasting in the heat for longer than I should be.
The first…
An epic novel about John Wilkes Booth and his family. Wow, she is a great writer.
In 1822, a secret family moves into a secret cabin some thirty miles northeast of Baltimore, to farm, to hide, and to bear ten children over the course of the next sixteen years. Junius Booth—breadwinner, celebrated Shakespearean actor and master of the house in all ways—is at once a mesmerizing talent and a man of terrifying instability. One by one the children arrive, as year by year, the country draws closer to the boiling point of secession and civil war.
Booth is a riveting historical novel focused on the very things that bind, and break, a family.
The second…
Holy cow.
This journalist, Tom O'Neill, was hired to write a magazine piece about the Manson murders. But the trial had come and gone. He thought there was nothing new to be uncovered, it was a sort of been-there-done-that story. But... I’m 100 pages in and we’re stumbling upon evidence of a cover-up, folks! We’re talking police negligence, we’re talking legal misconduct, surveillance by the CIA—a real whodunit if I've ever read.
Okay, so we’re out of the sauna.
In the evenings, I’ve been cruising through (and recently finished)...
The Fish That Ate The Whale - Rich Cohen… Sam the Banana Man get on down here!
Though I feel this could’ve been written better, it’s a great story about Samuel Zemurray and the history behind bananas making their way into the states. He began as a penniless roadside fruit peddler, purchasing freckled bananas that no one wanted, eventually leading to the conquest of the United Fruit Company and the overthrow of the Central American government. What a guy.
So, my new bedtime book is…
Because who doesn’t love a dysfunctional family story?! It’s a fun ride…
The Barnes family is in trouble. Dickie’s once-lucrative car business is going under―but Dickie is spending his days in the woods, building an apocalypse-proof bunker with a renegade handyman. His wife, Imelda, is selling off her jewelry on eBay and half-heartedly dodging the attention of fast-talking cattle farmer Big Mike, while their teenage daughter, Cass, formerly top of her class, seems determined to binge drink her way through her final exams. As for twelve-year-old PJ, he’s on the brink of running away.
Then we have the books I pick up throughout the day when time permits…
I just cracked this open, which I’m thrilled about because it’s been on my must-read list for years now. It’s about... you guessed it, coyotes! And their five-million-year biography from origin story to apotheosis. We love it!
To bring it back to @BookishMadeline…
I actually found this book through my friend Kendall. It’s a new read, but we’re entering into portals via cacti, so sign me up!
A woman arrives alone at a Best Western seeking respite from an emptiness that plagues her. She has fled to the California high desert to escape a cloud of sorrow—for both her father in the ICU and a husband whose illness is worsening. What the motel provides, however, is not peace but a path, thanks to a receptionist who recommends a nearby hike.
Out on the sun-scorched trail, the woman encounters a towering cactus whose size and shape mean it should not exist in California. Yet the cactus is there, with a gash through its side that beckons like a familiar door. So she enters it. What awaits her inside this mystical succulent sets her on a journey at once desolate and rich, hilarious and poignant.
Journal of a Novel - The East of Eden Letters
This was a great Christmas gift from my dad that I’m still enjoying.
East of Eden is one of my favorite books. What I didn’t know was every day before sitting down to write it, Steinbeck would start with a letter to his friend Pat. Like any good writer, the first part is filled with complaints, overthinking, and procrastination. But then he delves into his ideas for "East of Eden," discussing the themes and his writing style. It’s brilliant.
And last, but certainly not least…
This weekend I went to my friend Margot’s new gallery opening with Percival Everett. Not only is he a brilliant painter, but he’s written upwards of 20 books. One of his latest, Erasure, was adapted into a little ole film, American Fiction (Oscar anyone?).
Anyway, I was very excited to order his latest book, "James." It’s a rework of "Adventures of Huckleberry Finn" from Jim’s point of view. I hear incredible things. I’ll keep you posted.
I think that’s it for now! A few recommendations as we head into a new season.
Until next week : )
Love books so I love this post with new recommendations!! I’m about 3/4 way thru Booth and you’re right, it’s a great book, extremely well written historical fiction. Thanks for new ideas!!!! Well done Nan, well done! ❤️❤️😘