Good Reads & Views

You Are a Badass: How to Stop Doubting Your Greatness and Start Living an Awesome Life by Jen Sincero
Nonfiction

Jen Sincero is authentic, witty and real about what it takes to realize the greatness within you and create a life you love. She takes self-improvement to a whole new level of entertainment! If you've read a lot of self-help literature, you won't find much in this book that you haven't heard before, but Sincero has such a funny, powerful, and personal writing voice that it will make you remember that you are, deep down, a true badass!

The Bees by Laline Paull
Fiction

This surprising and imaginative dystopian fantasy will have you thinking of bees and the intricate social rituals of a hive in a whole new way. Sanitation worker Flora 717, born to the lowest social order of the hive, is excessively large, and unlike her sister sanitation workers, Flora 717 can speak. She is a variation and not a deformity, and so is permitted to live and even become part of the priestess Sister Sage's private experiment. This gives her permission to move among the different social strata, where she witnesses much of the beauty and mystery of the behavior rituals of bees. She works in the nursery, becomes a forager, and fights off enemies. When Flora breaks one on the hive's sacred laws, and lays an egg of her own, her secret pits her against the hive. Much of the information about life in the hive and social structure is accurate, but Paull does take some liberties with science. Even so, after reading this, I feel even more compelled to avoid using pesticides.

The Supremes at Earl’s All-You-Can-Eat by Edward Kelsey Moore
Fiction

The Supremes - aka Odette, Clarice, and Barbara Jean – have known each other for decades, just about as long as they have met at Earl’s Diner in Plainview, Indiana. The book covers their lives and tribulations and the endurance of their friendship, above all. It also includes appearances by a boozing Eleanor Roosevelt, believe it or not. I laughed, I cried, and I sure hope someone turns this book into a movie, and soon. If you enjoyed The Help and Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe, or other books that deal with female friendship, give this one a try.

Miracles Happen: The Life and Timeless Principles of the Founder of Mary Kay, Inc. by Mary Kay Ash
Nonfiction

It could be said that her legendary status comes from creating a brand that's a household name, or from the incredible marketing expertise by which she virtually owns the color pink. She could be hailed as one of the greatest executives to ever lead a company. Indeed, all of those accolades would be true. But what endears the late Mary Kay Ash far beyond cosmetics, business genius, or financial success is her role as a champion of women. It is a role now celebrated by five generations of women on five continents who are part of an independent sales force family that numbers more than one million. In 1963, Mary Kay Ash embarked on a journey to change women's lives for the better. In 1981, she wrote this autobiography to provide a personal perspective on that remarkable journey. Not only was it a bestseller but today there are more than two million copies in print.

The Good Girl by Mary Kubica          
Fiction 

A daughter of a well-known Chicago judge is kidnapped one evening but her kidnapper has a change of plans.  Colin Thatcher follows Mia, gets to know her routine, and then one night after she is stood up by her boyfriend at a bar, moves in and they leave the bar together.  Colin Thatcher drives her to MN instead of delivering her to the men that hired him to kidnap her.  They spend their time together in a remote cabin while Colin figures out his next move.   Back in Chicago Mia’s mother and a detective, Gabe Hoffman, spend their time gathering clues and information in order to find out where Mia has been taken.  A suspenseful books that leads you down an unexpected path.  Recommended on audiobook. 

Better Than Before: Mastering the Habits of Our Everyday Lives by Gretchen Rubin
Nonfiction

Well-researched and remarkably light in tone, this inspiring self-improvement book provides an encouraging, positive path to building better habits. The author of The Happiness Project looks at how we form habits and why we often break them. The good news is that regardless of the stumbling blocks we each encounter, we can use specialized techniques customized for our own personality type to make it easier to establish and keep good habits.

Shane by Jack Schaefer
Fiction

Even if you’re not into Westerns, this 119-page gem provides a quick visit to the West that you’ll long remember. In a swift-moving tale filled with plainspoken people, tension, and bursts of violence, a hero and anti-hero team up against a cattle driver who threatens the homesteaders’ way of life. An adolescent boy narrates the story of his honorable father, who takes in a mysterious, dangerous drifter as a ranch hand—a simple act that has serious consequences. An excellent choice for a book discussion.

Case Histories by Kate Atkinson
Fiction

The first in a series, this darkly humorous mystery is told from multiple perspectives, and shimmers with witty dialogue and complex, stylish prose.
Private detective Jackson Brodie investigates three cold cases: using newly discovered clues to explain the disappearance of a beloved 3 year old girl more than 30 years ago; solving the violent workplace murder of a devoted daughter; and tracking down the daughter of a convicted ax-murderer. Recently divorced, Brodie is in mourning for his lost family life and he feels his clients’ grief, using it as fuel to help his clients resolve their own losses.

River of Doubt: Theodore Roosevelt’s Darkest Journey by Candice Millard          
Nonfiction  

The true story of Theodore Roosevelt’s incredible journey down one of most dangerous rivers on earth.  After losing his third bid for the presidency in 1912 he is asked to take a trip to South America that will challenge him physically.  With his son Kermit, the famous explorer Brazilian Candido Rondon, American naturalist George Cherrie and a party of men, Roosevelt and his team face starvation, rushing rapids, natives with poison arrows, disease carrying insects and even murder.  It is an unbelievable tale of exploration and incredible hardship as he and his men discover an unmapped tributary of the Amazon River.  It is known as the Roosevelt-Rondon Scientific Scientific Exploration of 1913-1914.  It’s a fascinating and dramatic biography filled with adventure.

All the Old Knives by Olen Steinhauer
Fiction

Think: Gone Girl with spies. In this short, twisty espionage thriller, a man and a woman—once a couple—meet for dinner to discuss old times. They had begun their relationship when working together as spies overseas, and old habits die hard; the conversation quickly devolves into a game of deception, power plays, and covert alliances. As the narrative ricochets between his voice and hers, the reader learns each person’s secrets. But who to trust…?