Good Reads & Views

The Woodcutter by Reginald Hill
Fiction

Wolf Hadda has it all: money, success, prestige, a beautiful wife and a daughter he dotes on. Then the police arrive at his doorstep with a search warrant and arrest him. Trying to escape from custody, he ends up in a traffic accident that leaves him badly injured and in a coma. After serving years in jail for pedophilia and financial shenanigans, and having lost his business, his money, and his wife, he convinces the prison psychiatrist that he should be released. Back in his father’s house in Cambria, Wolf plots revenge on the people who put him in jail and destroyed his life. This suspenseful stand-alone psychological thriller - by the author of the Dalziel and Pascoe detective series – might appeal to fans of Minette Walters and PD James.

Forks Over Knives: The Plant-Based Way to Health by Gene Stone
Nonfiction

This guide - companion piece to the critically acclaimed documentary film of the same title - provides practical advice on how the change to a whole-foods, plant-based diet could save you from heart disease, diabetes and cancer. Included are 125 recipes for a diet rich in unprocessed fruits, vegetables, legumes and whole grains, and entries on how this diet benefits not just humans, but animals, the environment, and our future. Contributors include T. Colin Campbell (Professor Emeritus of Nutritional Biochemistry at Cornell), Dr. Caldwell Esselstyn (Director of the cardiovascular prevention and reversal program at The Cleveland Clinic Wellness Institute), Dr. Neal Barnard (founder and president of the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine) and others also featured in the film.

Once Upon A River by Bonnie Jo Campbell
Fiction

Free spirited 16 Year old Margo Crane suffers the death of her beloved grandfather, abandonment by her mother and rape by a relative. After the violent death of her father in which she is complicit she loads her boat with supplies and her rifle and leaves her rural Michigan river community to find her mother. The river has always been her sanctuary yet it is a dangerous place for a young woman traveling alone and Margo has to use all her skills to survive. This is a violent but inspiring story of survival.

Chop Suey: a Cultural History of Chinese Food in the United States by Andrew Coe
Nonfiction

Chinese food has been present in the U.S. for two centuries, but initially stereotypes were common (such as the consumption of rats) and early travelers to China were averse to eating even the most formal ceremonial meals. By the mid-1800s Chinese immigrants arrived because of the Gold Rush and to work on the railroads, and they were immediately subject to prejudice, including American revulsion towards their food. Eventually, the cultural elite of New York and other large cities developed an appreciation of “exotic” ethnic cuisine, and eating a bowl of “chop suey” was equated with sophistication. While Chinese food continued to be “Americanized,” President Nixon’s 1972 visit to China and televised banquet with Premier Zhou Enlai helped to broaden our palates. Coe provides an engaging culinary history of the integration of two cultures, including the foggy origin of “chop suey” – often incorrectly considered to have originated in the U.S. – in Cantonese seaports.

Before I Go to Sleep by S. J. Watson
Fiction

Before starting to read this book, clear your schedule—it’s hard to put down! Each morning, Christine wakes up and cannot remember anything about her past, due to a brain injury. In order to avoid having to re-learn everything about her life each day, Christine begins writing in a journal, so she can remind herself of the facts she discovered. One day she awakens to find that she has written, “Don’t trust Ben”—which is a terrifying statement, because Ben is her husband. As Christine, a highly imperfect narrator, tells her story, it’s impossible to know who to trust and what to believe. A fantastic psychological thriller.

Confucius from the Heart: Ancient Wisdom for Today’s World by Yu Dan, translated by Esther Tyldesley
Nonfiction

University Professor Yu Dan, who is also a media advisor to many of China’s regional television stations, set out to present the wisdom of Confucius (Kong Fuzi, 孔夫子) in a less scholarly and more accessible way to the Chinese people – her book started as a series of lectures on Chinese Central Television – but it became an unexpected bestseller, selling over 10 million copies. Although Confucius’ Analects are often interpreted as maxims of behavior, Yu Dan interprets them in a more personal way, focusing on developing integrity and wholeness (the Chinese word for heart, xin (心), can also be interpreted as “heart-mind” or “being”). Because Confucian thought has had such an overwhelming influence on Chinese society, culture, and government for more than two millennia, it is particularly relevant as China is evolving in a more materialistic fashion and forging new relationships with the West.

Bad Intentions by Karin Fossum
Fiction

A depressed young man takes a leave from a mental hospital to spend a weekend with his lifelong friends at a lakeside cottage. They go out for a late night boat ride and the young man suddenly jumps out of the boat and drowns. His friends seem to know why he was upset and feel the need to cover their tracks. They tell the police that he wandered away during the night and must have fallen into the lake. Inspector Sejer senses something is wrong but finds no solid evidence of wrongdoing.  When one of the young men is reported missing his suspicions deepen and matters quickly culminate in an unexpected way. A deeply moving story about how hard it is to hide from the truth and the power of guilt to destroy a person.