Spring Books We're Buzzing About

Novels, memoirs and more for your must-list

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The Source of All Things by Tracy Ross

Ross's raw, heartbreaking memoir chronicles the years of abuse she suffered at the hands of her stepfather and the confusing doublelife it created within her. She despised him for what he did to her, but he was also a caring, protective father figure, who instilled in her a deep love for the outdoors, the very thing she turned to when she needed to heal.

How Italian Food Conquered the World by John F. Mariani

"Go to a restaurant anywhere in the world today—even in Tokyo, Hong Kong, or Mumbai—and chances are you will see Italian dishes listed on the menu," writes Mariani in this lively, well-researched history of Italian cuisine. Chronicling how the beloved food has gone from poor man's gruel to global obsession, Mariani will leave you longing for your next bowl of pasta.

The World Beneath by Cate Kennedy

In this riveting reinvention of the Persephone myth, absentee father Rich takes his teenage daughter Sophie on a six-day hike into the Tasmanian wildernes in hopes that the journey will bring them closer together. Alone in nature, Rich finds Sophie harder to reach then ever—especially when the natural world begins to close in on them.

Of Love and Evil by Anne Rice

The second novel in Rice's Songs of the Seraphim series, set in Rome during the Italian Renaissance, is populated by a diabolical dybbuk, a former government assassin and the angel Malchiah.

The Foremost Good Fortune by Susan Conley

"China and cancer are both big countries, so there's a lot to say about each," writes Conley in the introduction to her fish-out-of-water memoir The Foremost Good Fortune. Here, she recounts the time she spent with her husband and two boys in Beijing—eating pickled tea eggs, driving along the hutong valley, learning Mandarin—and the startling, poignant discovery of her illness abroad.

The Red Garden by Alice Hoffman

Hoffman's latest magical realism offering centers on the haunting town of Blackwell, Massachusetts where a web of characters' lives are intertwined.

Fortytude by Sarah Brokaw

Here, Brokaw (daughter of Tom) encourages women to nourish five core values (grace, connectedness, accomplishment, advenutre, spirituality) within themselves as an antidote to the angst and anxiety that comes with turning 40.

I Love a Broad Margin to My Life by Maxine Hong Kingston

A memoir written in verse, Hong Kingston's latest is a reflection on aging as she turns 65:

 

"Am I pretty at 65?

What does old look like?

Sometimes I am wrinkled, sometimes not.

So much depends upon lighting."

Witches on the Road Tonight by Sheri Holman

In 1940, Eddie is living in Appalachian Virginia with his mother, a mysterious woman who's rumored to be a witch. When a couple working for the WPA comes into their lives, Eddie is inspired to take off for New York. The novel follows a grown Eddie, who's working as a TV horror movie host. He must confront his past when his daughter, Wallis, begins to feel a strange kinship to her grandmother.

Made for You and Me by Caitlin Shetterly

Wasn’t it just yesterday that we were watching Sex and the City and buying ‘fabulous’ lifestyles on maxed-out credit cards?” Shetterly wonders in this highly relatable recession memoir that grew out of the author’s blog and radio diaries for NPR. Shetterly and her husband were excited to start their lives out West. But Shetterly’s career aspirations were sidelined by a surprise pregnancy (she was too sick to work) and when the economy collapsed every gig her husband Dan had lined up was canceled. The couple decided to leave Los Angeles and move back East. As they drove, Shetterly told her story to NPR and received an amazing response. All across the country, listeners offered help and opened their homes to the family. It’s a timely, surprisingly touching story about the kindness of strangers.

Pictures of You by Caroline Leavitt

Two women running away from their marriages collide on a foggy highway--and one of them is killed. In this unsettling yet hopeful novel, Leavitt explores how well we really know the ones we love.

The Evolution of Bruno Littlemore by Benjamin Hale

This fictional memoir brilliantly chronicles the extraordinary events that led to the imprisonment of Bruno Littlemore for the murder of a man. The twist here: Bruno is a chimp.

First Published February 22, 2011

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