In this edition, we recommended five new books, including a progressive story of race, gender politics, and white wokeness in America, an empowering novel on discovering your true identity, the murder mystery that ranked at number one of The New York Times Fiction Best Sellers for 30 weeks, a will-they-or-won’t-they romance novel, and a powerful read about the choice between conformity and community.
Such A Fun Age – Kiley Reid
Such A Fun Age focuses on topics relevant today, such as institutional racism, performative activism, and privilege. The novel follows two characters, mother and businesswoman, Alix Chamberlain, and her black 25-year-old babysitter Emira Tucker. During a visit to the grocery store, Emira is confronted by the store’s security guard while watching the Chamberlains’ daughter and accused of kidnapping the child. As Alix resolves to make everything right again, Emira is determined to find a “real job” with health-insurance and holidays, and start her adult life.
Red, White, and Royal Blue – Casey McQuiston
Red, White, and Royal Blue is an LGBTQ+ romance centered around sworn enemies Alex Claremont-Diaz, the First Son of the United States, and British royalty, Prince Henry. After an altercation at a royal wedding, Alex and Henry are forced into a fake friendship to appease the press. What began as an Instagrammable form of damage-control leads to a secret romance between the two that could lead to controversy and scandal in British and American politics.
Where the Crawdads Sing – Delia Owens
What seems to be the story of a lonely girl coming-of-age in the marshlands of North Carolina, becomes a thrilling murder mystery that topped the charts of The New York Times Fiction Best Sellers. The novel jumps back and forth between Kya Clark as she grows up alone in a shack in the marshlands, and the murder of the town’s beloved Chase Andrews. Navigating life alone after her mother, siblings, and drunken father left her, Kya turns to study the ways of nature to avoid complete solitude. She is self-sufficient and lives off the land, which earns her the title of “marsh girl” from the town. Despite her isolation, Kya gains the attention of two young men from town and wanting to be accepted and loved, Kya opens herself up to a new world away from the marsh.
Normal People – Sally Rooney
Adapted into a Hulu miniseries, Sally Rooney’s Normal People was a vulnerable look at a relationship between two Irish teens. Marianne Sheridan is a private, lonely, and independent woman who is an outcast in her high school, while Connell Waldron is a popular straight-A student, as well as the star of the high school soccer team. An intense relationship, complicated by secrecy, mental health, and miscommunication, forms between the two when Connell picks up his mother from a job at Marianne’s house. The novel tracks four years of their lives, and the ups and downs of their on-again, off-again relationship.
Little Fires Everywhere – Celeste Ng
Little Fires Everywhere is an entertaining novel that explores race, privilege, parenting, and the consequences of defying the status quo. Set in the suburbs of Cleveland, Elena Richardson’s picture-perfect life is flipped on its head when unconventional Mia Warren and her daughter Pearl rent a house from the Richardson’s. When lines are drawn between creative, non-conformist Mia and the moms of Shaker Heights, Elena decides to uncover Mia’s sketchy past. When the subplot regarding the custody battle between Elena’s family friends and the adopted child’s biological mother erupts, the town becomes even more divided.