Good Reads & Views

Small Mercies by Dennis Lehane
Fiction

What it’s about: It’s summer in 1974 Boston—the weather is hot and so are tempers. On the eve of forced integration, a young Black man is found dead in the wrong neighborhood, a girl goes missing and is feared dead, and her mother, Mary Pat Fennessey, is out for revenge. Add a sensitive Irish cop, and Mary Pat’s relationship with Irish mob leaders, and you get Lehane at his best in this gritty historical thriller.

Why you might like it: Lehane writes taut suspenseful crime dramas that are also deeply emotional. The strong sense of time and place that transports the reader to Southie Boston of 50 years ago is immersive, and the characters express deeply felt and genuine emotions. As a stand-alone novel, the reader knows that all bets are off—anything can happen to the characters you’ve quickly learned to care about.

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Chain-Gang All-Stars by Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah
Fiction

For readers interested in: Pro wrestling, the 13th Amendment, Bryan Stevenson's Just Mercy, and Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins.

What it’s about: In a near-future America, the country's most popular form of sports entertainment is the Chain-Gang All-Stars, a modern form of the gladiator system. Incarcerated people have one way out of a brutal private prison system—to survive three years of deathly combat while on camera for all the country to see. The story focuses on two women who are “Links” in one of these chain gangs: Loretta Thor, who is only two battles away from reaching freedom, and her lover, Hamara “Hurricane Staxx” Stacker. As they contemplate freedom, one of them learns of new rules that will change everything. The incisive satirical commentary on capitalism and the prison industry is humanized by fully realized characters and enlivened by non-stop action; the result is a harsh yet lyrical political allegory.

Critics say: “Some of his best fight sentences sound as if Joe Rogan had fallen into a trance and assumed the diction and rhythms of Toni Morrison. If you recoil at that unholy fusion, that’s kind of the point; and the author keeps pulling off this shock, page after page” (Giri Nathan, The New York Times Book Review).

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Crip Up the Kitchen by Jules Sherred
Nonfiction

What it is: Food photographer and journalist Sherred’s first book will bring the joy back into cooking for folks whose disabilities make getting great meals on the table a challenge. More than a cookbook, this volume is filled with tips and tricks to make preparing delicious meals easier, safer, and more accessible. Recipes are organized by the amount of energy they take to prepare and represent varied cuisines from around the world with a focus on taste, nutrition, and efficiency. Sherred includes lists of must-have and optional items to “crip up” your kitchen; suggestions for organizing the kitchen, pantry, and grocery lists; and solid advice for meal planning, for meal prep (preparing ingredients and meals in advance), and for cooking safely when disabled.

Why you should check it out: As disability advocate Maria Town reminds us, "Everyone will become disabled if they're lucky enough.” Even if you don’t have a disability, the time and energy saving strategies Sherred discloses are welcome. A guide to planning/meal prepping for surgery recovery would be useful to anyone, whether recovering from knee surgery or welcoming a new baby. The tips for using using three key tools—the multicooker, the air fryer, and the bread machine—will aid anybody who wants to learn more convenient ways to prepare meals.

Recipes featured: Butter chicken, Thai winter squash soup, roast chicken, several different curries, hamburger stew, sweet potato and butternut squash hash, paczki, cornbread, lemon pound cake, and more.

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Eight Bears: Mythic Past and Imperiled Future by Gloria Dickie
Nonfiction

What it is: This “ursine odyssey” travels the globe, providing a portrait of each of the eight bear species of the world. Dickie begins in the cloud forests of Ecuador & Peru with the shy spectacled bear, threatened by deforestation, then moves on to the sloth bear of India, whose proximity to humans has endangered both the people and the bears. Next, she travels to Asia and meets China's charming and clumsy panda, once nearly extinct and now resurging in population, but only in captivity--and the moon bears and sun bears of Vietnam, living in horrific conditions on bile farms. Finally, Dickie chronicles North America's three great bears--the American black bear, the brown bear, and the polar bear. An engaging and revealing study of the wonder and awe of these creatures, the threats they face in the world, and the humans who are working to save them.

Details please: The book is filled with fascinating tidbits of ursine biology. For example, mama bears are only pregnant for about 2 months due to delayed implantation of the fertilized egg (or blastocyst). And the bear bile that is so in demand has true healing properties—it staves off cell death during hibernation and has promise for reducing brain and heart injuries—but it can be synthesized from cow gallbladders. Dickie also reminds us of all the ways the bear is embedded in our culture, from Greek mythology and Indigenous folklore to Paddington, the ubiquitous toy teddy bear. As Dickie notes, “Without bears, our woods and our stories would be empty.”

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Soil: the Story of a Black Mother’s Garden by Camille T. Dungy
Nonfiction

What’s inside: A thoughtful and rambling memoir of a Black mother and poet developing a biodiverse garden in Ft. Collins, Colorado. Unlike naturalists before her--Thoreau, Abbey, or Muir--Dungy relates the mundane and the everyday of her life to the natural one she is growing around her home. The narrative is outwardly connected despite the forced isolation of early 2020, where much of the story is centered; it also reflects on the connections between racial and environmental justice, and on motherhood, current events, and history. Dungy calls it a story of a "Black mother finding peace in the wider-than-human world."

Reviewers say: “Fans of Dungy’s poetry will delight in her sparkling prose, and the wide-ranging meditations highlight the connections between land, freedom, and race. It’s a lyrical and pensive take on what it means to put down roots” (Publishers Weekly); “A poignant portrait of life and its challenges, told through the beauty of nature” (Library Journal).

You might also like: For more nature writing that explores the relationship between women, race and the environment, try World of Wonders by Aimee Nezhukumatathil, Wild Girls by Tiya Miles, and We Are Each Other’s Harvest by Natalie Braszile. For additional lyrical and reflective narratives about nature, read Late Migrations by Margaret Renki, Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer, or Vesper Flights by Helen MacDonald.

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Good Night, Irene by Luis Alberto Urrea
Fiction

What it’s about: This historical novel, spanning World War II from D-day to the liberation of Buchenwald, is based in part on the experiences of Urrea's mother, revealing the little-told story of the women of the American Red Cross Clubmobile Corps service. It’s a loving portrait of two of the “Donut Dollies” (but don’t call them that!) —Irene Woodward, a city girl escaping an abusive fiancée and Dorothy Dunford, a farm girl who lost her family and home—supporting the men on the battlefront, serving coffee, donuts, smiles, and a last word of encouragement before they enter the fray. Irene and Dorothy go where they are most needed, and that can land them in harrowing and dangerous situations—in the middle of a village bombing, running from foxhole to foxhole delivering mail, being chased by a German with a bayonet. There are also moments of quiet as the women’s friendship deepens, and as they develop friendships with the servicemen who flit in and out of the story. Powerful, uplifting, and heartfelt.

Reviewers say: “WWII fiction fans, who have an abundance of options, should embrace Urrea's vivid, hard-hitting novel about the valiant achievements of these unsung wartime heroines” (Booklist); “there’s plenty of grit, detail, and twists that make for both a fine page-turner and an evocation of war’s often cruel randomness. Top-shelf historical fiction delivered with wit and compassion” (Kirkus).

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Warrior Girl Unearthed by Angeline Boulley
YA Fiction

What is it? A riveting page-turner featuring an Indigenous teen dealing with issues of predatory colonialism, Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women (MMIW), first crushes, and family secrets.

What it’s about: Boulley returns to Michigan’s Sugar Island and the Firekeeper family ten years after the action of her hit thriller Firekeeper’s Daughter in this gripping stand-alone YA novel. A jeep accident wrecks Perry’s plans to spend the summer fishing; she owes her Aunt Daunis for car repairs and now she’s stuck working a summer internship at the tribal museum. Despite her original resistance, Perry becomes engrossed in issues related to the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA) when she learns that a local collector is using legal loopholes to unjustly retain Anishinaabe artifacts and remains. A daring plan to repatriate these artifacts takes a dangerous turn and leads to a connection to local missing and murdered women.

Why you might like it: Characters are vividly drawn--Perry is delightfully snarky and self-aware and supporting characters are experiencing realistic, complicated life challenges. Critical issues like MMIW, sexual assault, grooming, and cultural heritage ground this fast-paced yet thought-provoking heist narrative.

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Light from Uncommon Stars by Ryka Aoki
Fiction

Read this if you like: Genre blending, the movie Everything Everywhere All at Once, and stories about chosen family, music, and the L.A. food scene, especially donuts.

Featuring: Katrina Nguyen, a runaway trans girl who is an untrained but naturally gifted violinist; Shizuka Satomi, an infamous violin teacher--dubbed the Queen of Hell--who made a nasty bargain with a demon and is searching for a seventh soul to turn in for her own, and Lan Tran, the matriarch of a space alien family running a donut shop that's also a star gate.

What happens? Shizuka discovers Katrina and becomes her mentor with the intention of using Katrina as her final sacrificial soul. But Shizuka’s heart is softened when she develops a crush on Lan, who is simply trying to protect her children from the ravages of a galactic war. Katrina wants to be safe, play her violin, and be herself. An adventurous blend of science fiction and fantasy that’s a hopeful story about identity, acceptance, and understanding.

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Nettle & Bone by T. Kingfisher
Fiction

What is it? This fairy tale with a feminist twist features all the required elements: three princesses ripe for marrying off to the nearest prince; three impossible tasks; a witch, a fairy godmother, and an errant knight, and like all fairy tales it has a sliver of darkness running through it.

What happens? Princess Marra is content to work and learn in the convent, but when her two older sisters suffer at the hands of a powerful and abusive prince, she sets out on a journey of revenge and rescue. Along the way she assembles a rag tag crew to aid her mission—a bone dog, a grave witch and her demonically possessed chicken, a disgraced ex-knight, and a reluctant fairy godmother whose wishes sometimes become deadly curses. A funny, sweet, and deeply satisfying romp.

Critics say: “The plot snaps along as quickly as a good joke, and beneath the whimsy, there’s an underlying sympathy and sincerity that enables Kingfisher to handle tricky issues like domestic violence with great compassion and care” (Publishers Weekly); “…clever and bold-hearted...Marra's hard-fought journey from third-string princess to hero will delight fantasy readers” (Jaclyn Fulwood, Shelf Awareness).

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Last Summer on State Street by Toya Wolfe
Fiction

What it’s about: Building 4950 of the Robert Taylor Homes, where 12-year-old FeFe Stevens lives with her family, is next in line to be torn down by the Chicago Housing Authority. FeFe and her best friends Stacia, whose family gang rules the building, and Precious, a church friend, plan to spend their last summer on State Street double-dutch jump roping and exploring the deteriorating projects. When FeFe welcomes a new girl, Tonya, to the group despite Stacia’s dislike of her, the dynamics of the friendship change, altering their lives forever. Compassionate and tragic, this tender and uplifting chronicle of Chicago girlhood is reminiscent of Jacquelyn Woodson’s work.

Critics say: “This is a powerful novel about injustice, the institutional racism that is the foundation of the projects and their policing, and survival... Tragic, hopeful, brimming with love, Wolfe’s debut is a remarkable achievement” (The New York Times); “Wolfe’s deeply compelling characters, sharply wrought settings, and tightly choreographed plot create a concentrated, significant, and unforgettable tale of family, home, racism, trauma, compassion, and transcendence” (Booklist).

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