Can you believe it's May already? The spring semester at the university is quickly winding down and this weekend we will begin our summer hours. Friends have been telling me about their summer holiday plans (nothing in the works for me as yet so my traveling will be via the pages of some hopefully very good books), the weather is slowly improving. My lawn is greening up (am enjoying it while it lasts--the prettiness that is as soon the weeds will take over) and someday soon I hope I can open my windows and let in some warm breezes and sunshine. And you know what a new season means . . . new book releases, too. I have been adding to my wishlist and requesting new titles here and there. I think it is time to share a few forthcoming books I am very much looking forward to.
Kiss Carlo: A Novel by Adriana Trigiani -- "Told against the backdrop of some of Shakespeare’s greatest comedies, this novel brims with romance as long buried secrets are revealed, mistaken identities are unmasked, scores are settled, broken hearts are mended and true love reigns. Trigiani’s consummate storytelling skill and her trademark wit, along with a dazzling cast of characters will enthrall readers. Once again, the author has returned to her own family garden to create an unforgettable feast. Kiss Carlo is a jubilee, resplendent with hope, love, and the abiding power of la famiglia." This sounds utterly delightful and it puts me in mind to read my most recent Trigiani bookstore find (sooner than later).
Things That Happened Before the Earthquake by Chiara Barzini -- "Welcome to LA? Nineties' Hollywood gets an Italian makeover in this poignant and ruefully funny coming-of-age novel featuring a teenage girl who's on shaky ground—in more ways than one."
Refuge: A Novel by Dina Nayeri -- "Refuge charts the deeply moving lifetime relationship between a father and a daughter, seen through the prism of global immigration. Beautifully written, full of insight, charm, and humor, the novel subtly exposes the parts of ourselves that get left behind in the wake of diaspora and ultimately asks: Must home always be a physical place, or can we find it in another person?"
Footsteps: From Ferrante's Naples to Hammett's San Francisco, Literary Pilgrimages Around the World, The New York Times -- "Based on the popular New York Times travel column, Footsteps is an anthology of literary pilgrimages, exploring the geographic muses behind some of history's greatest writers. From the "dangerous, dirty and seductive" streets of Naples, the setting for Elena Ferrante's famous Neapolitan novels, to the "stone arches, creaky oaken doors, and riverside paths" of Oxford, the backdrop for Alice's adventures in Wonderland, Footsteps takes a fresh approach to literary tourism, appealing to readers and travel enthusiasts alike." (This is one way to travel!).
Cocoa Beach: A Novel by Beatriz Williams -- "The New York Times bestselling author of A Certain Age transports readers to sunny Florida in this lush and enthralling historical novel—an enchanting blend of love, suspense, betrayal, and redemption set among the rumrunners and scoundrels of Prohibition-era Cocoa Beach." I'm reading The Secret Life of Violet Grant at the moment and totally digging Williams's stories, so I am sure I will get her newest, too.
A Fortune Foretold: A Novel by Agneta Pleijel -- "The story takes place in the 1950s in the suburbs of Stockholm, in the university town of Lund, and in the United States. Neta’s childhood is in disarray. She reads—words give form to the vagueness of existence—and is busy thinking about the female sex, family, and the stupendous diversity of people in the world. Her father, a mathematician, and her mother, a musician, are in constant conflict, but she loves them both. Gradually Neta realizes that she’s grown up in a lie and that she must step carefully through the war zone of her parents’ marriage."
The Nakano Thrift Shop by Hiromi Kawakami -- "Objects for sale at the Nakano Thrift Shop appear as commonplace as the staff and customers that handle them. But like those same customers and staff, they hold many secrets. If examined carefully, they show the signs of innumerable extravagancies, of immeasurable pleasure and pain, and of the deep mysteries of the human heart." I am eagerly awaiting the release of this one next month!
A Girl Walks into a Book: What the Brontes Taught Me about Life, Love, and Women's Work by Miranda Pennington -- "A Girl Walks Into a Book is a candid and emotional love affair that braids criticism, biography and literature into a quest that helps us understand the place of literature in our lives; how it affects and inspires us."
This Side of Murder by Anna Lee Huber -- "England, 1919. Verity Kent’s grief over the loss of her husband pierces anew when she receives a cryptic letter, suggesting her beloved Sidney may have committed treason before his untimely death. Determined to dull her pain with revelry, Verity’s first impulse is to dismiss the derogatory claim. But the mystery sender knows too much—including the fact that during the war, Verity worked for the Secret Service, something not even Sidney knew." The first in a new mystery series that sounds right up my alley!
Mrs. Fletcher: A Novel by Tom Perrotta -- "From one of the most popular and bestselling authors of our time, a penetrating and hilarious new novel about sex, love, and identity on the frontlines of America’s culture wars. Sharp, witty, and provocative, Mrs. Fletcher is a timeless examination of sexuality, identity, parenthood, and the big clarifying mistakes people can make when they’re no longer sure of who they are or where they belong.
So, what are you looking forward to reading this summer?