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Hanan's 1980s Irish coming-of-age story is full of angst, secrets, life-and-death danger, youthful determination She questions whether she's doing the right thing, meanwhile various complications--including the discovery But when tragedy looms for Ellie, Una and the boy who broke each other's hearts must try to come back

novel Betty--set in the foothills of Appalachia and based upon her own family's stories--a young woman comes dangerous explorations they pursue for entertainment, and the endless days with only spiraling thoughts for company

gleefully 1970s-set novel, Mary Jane doesn't merely shift from emotional innocence to young adulthood, she comes character of Mary Jane doesn't merely shift from innocence to young adulthood in various ways; she comes into her own and also makes valued contributions to the complicated, loving, volatile household community

In this memoir, Ford shares how she navigated an unforgiving childhood and complicated relationships In her memoir Somebody's Daughter, Ford explores her complicated relationship with her mother, her endless loyalty to her younger brother, her complex feelings about her father and the idea of him returning These three memoirs have commonalities I didn't expect--though they offer varied voices and tones--and

premise--but I was fascinated with the character depth, explorations of grief, and the twist I never saw coming Our main protagonists are satisfyingly clever and resourceful, but they meet with plausibly complicated There was a twist that I didn't see coming, and I thought it worked beautifully.

police officer husband, and Hailey decides to disappear into the wild in the desperate hope that the community

ICYMI: thirteen-year-old Frank Dunn experiences crises of faith during the unforgettably complicated 1961, thirteen-year-old Frank Dunn is focused on following the inaugural season of The Twins, reading comic But when tragedy strikes the community (and specifically Frank's family: his minister father, artistic

faith and life; and a recent mystery about an offbeat author that's keeping me guessing and has me completely to dig in the earth, to feed an animal or cook for a stranger—these activities require no extensive commentary little bit of my recent read The Plot, but so far Maud Dixon has more twists and turns I didn't see coming

She considers the fact that no one can be completely independent of others and tests out periods of fully The characters struggle at times, and one of the things complicating their lives is mental illness.

genetic cloning, and the strong, jilted wife who's out for revenge; and Sally Rooney's heart-wrenching coming-of-age story about two young people from different worlds within the same small Irish town and how they come

Young Mungo offers a striking story of disappointment, abuse, Protestant-Catholic conflict, and a young, gay love forged in the intensely unforgiving climate of working-class Glasgow. In his second novel, Young Mungo, Douglas Stuart offers the story of a working-class Glasgow family and particularly the life of sensitive, kind, dreamy Mungo, who was named for a saint. Raised by a codependent, emotionally stunted alcoholic mother who frequently abandons the kids for days or weeks while on benders or with a new boyfriend, Mungo also lives with a tough, loving older sister who's desperate to escape to university but doesn't dare leave Mungo. His local gang leader brother consistently makes trouble, forces violence, and threatens those Mungo cares about if Mungo avoids participating in brutality such as the widespread beatings of Catholics in the area. The story of Young Mungo largely alternates between an intensely disturbing, extended situation involving abuse, neglect, and danger and the blossoming of a forbidden young love, the vulnerability of allowing one's self to be seen for the first time, overcoming lifelong Protestant-Catholic conflicts, and forging a meaningful connection. The timing of the story isn't explicitly stated, but it feels like a 1980s setting. Young Mungo explores ideas of masculinity and loyalty, a gay relationship forged in an intensely unforgiving social climate, brutality, revenge, and it offers surprises as well. Stuart uses an omniscient point of view that allows the reader to understand characters’ disparate contexts and pressures and motivations. The story is beautiful and tragic and never feels emotionally manipulative. Do you have any Bossy thoughts about this book? Douglas Stuart is also the author of Shuggie Bain.

When mother and daughter head out for a weeklong visit of east coast colleges with a touring company,

What if you woke up from a coma and felt differently about almost everything, including the person you're struggling music career would someday take off, but it didn't look as though his dreams would ever come and just as he's letting his hopes soar that this might finally be his big break, Stella falls into a coma What does commitment mean when the essence of a person within the relationship changes?

hands, Annabelle must determine what she's made of and what she's willing to do to protect those in her community The book's themes have (deservedly) drawn comparisons to some of those in To Kill a Mockingbird (and

In City of Girls, Gilbert writes about a young woman's coming of age in 1940s New York City and traces

Solomon offers a sweet, romantic young adult story with emotions that feel authentic; the book showcases competition of regaining glory would be to win the elaborate seniors' game of Howl, a challenging scavenger hunt competition I was immediately invested enough in Rowan's general competitiveness with Neil that I was disappointed romantic story that celebrates many of the essential teenage touchstones: academic achievement and competition

together the beloved nightly show (there are around 8,000 episodes), hopeful contestants' sometimes wildly competitive actively trying to separate this immersive, love-filled fictional world of Rowling's with the hurtful comments straddling the kid/adult cookbook genres, ready to take on more slightly advanced techniques and more complex large percentage of dessert and sweet recipes, something we don't personally need more of--are The Complete for Young Chefs: 100+ Recipes That You'll Love to Cook and Eat from America's Test Kitchen, and The Complete

In Admissions, Kendra James explores race, friendship, ambition, and the absurdities and rhythm of daily life during her time at a New England boarding school. Kendra James was the first Black legacy to graduate from The Taft School, an elite boarding school in Connecticut. When she later works as an admissions officer specializing in diversity recruitment for independent prep schools, she finds herself examining her high school educational experience with a more critical eye, forcing herself to delve more deeply into aspects of her years at Taft that she largely glossed over at the time--and ultimately debating whether or not she should be advising families to pursue the same precarious path she herself followed. Digging into the past often seems a difficult undertaking, and as she looks back, Kendra James explains that her main goals when she attended Taft were not bringing to light racial injustice and leading a charge toward change, but typically teenage: to escape into role-playing video games and write fan fiction, to bond with a few classmates through watching favorite movies, and, primarily, to secure a spot in a college of her choice, then to (as is the goal for many high schoolers, for various reasons) get out of high school and get on with the rest of her life. James notes repeatedly that she felt largely unseen and unknown during her boarding school years. When she attends various Taft alumni events in the years following her graduation, they cement this same feeling. Her appearance in a Taft publication that lists her incorrect graduation year (and reunion year) grates on her as more evidence of this. The majority of page time is focused on aspects of James's boarding-school life, including its rhythms and peculiarities. James received financial aid to attend Taft, then $35,000 a year, and she then attended Oberlin for college, which, by her and her parents' design, was an admissions door likely opened more widely because of her Taft pedigree. But the book is not in large part about financial or class privilege. At times James laments the absence of frank discussions about race that she might have had with her parents, and she criticizes the lack of information she received from them on the topic. She wishes she could have learned more from them before entering Taft about the many ways she might have expected race to affect her life--especially considering the vastly white, elite circles her parents had either dipped their toes into or immersed themselves in: for example, Taft, Smith, Brown, and her father's banking job. The author notes that when she was a high schooler, in that place and time in our society, she didn't have an understanding of the power of daily microaggressions nor of blatant racism--nor did she have the language and perspective she now has to talk about such things--in order to sift through the many disturbing race-based incidents in her young life. James's evaluation of events of these years--including the racism she experienced at school; diverse, acute instances of disturbing behavior, whether race-based and class- and gender-based; and the social segregation of social groups by race--feels hesitantly explored at times as she attempts to dig into her raw teenage feelings while acknowledging her youthful lack of understanding and her early, unformed grasp of the myriad social, racial, and class issues shaping her experience. Regarding a situation in which the strict rule-follower James was accused of wrongdoing while at Taft, the author acknowledges that for years she largely glossed over not only the event, but the racial issues bubbling beneath the incident and her resulting emotional trauma, pushing all of this down until her reckoning with it in young adulthood. Late in the book, James shares select portions of a disturbing article a white student wrote for the school paper while James also attended Taft, in which the article's author largely blames the school's racial divides on the students of color themselves and mentions her discomfort about the existence of programs and events that put people of color at their center. James expresses anger and frustration at Taft's ineffective response--and at the many missed opportunities she sees before and after that event for the school to have shaped an effective approach to true inclusion. In Admissions, James offer a book that is partly a social critique, partly a recounting of the absurdities she experienced, and partly simply her unique story of living away from home and often feeling lonely and alone in her experience. I received a prepublication digital edition of this book courtesy of Grand Central Publishing and NetGalley. Do you have any Bossy thoughts about this book? Kendra James was a founding editor at Shondaland, where she worked for two years. She has written articles for various publications and is the author of a romance novel, When Hearts Collide.

Or maybe it will whet your appetite for the beautiful books that might be coming your way? is a decade-by-decade look at Seinfeld's favorite notes from his career in stand-up comedy, featuring If that's your giftee's cup of tea, this book offers small doses of Lewis' comfort and wisdom that can Milk Street puts recipes and flavor combinations through an exhaustive testing process, so you know you Lewis's book) and/or books related to a specific interest of my giftee's (cooking, comedy, science).

adrift after her mother's death, and she disappears into the constant attention her ornithology research commands On certain days she finds her own way to the community center where she and other young adults with challenges Wilson's story stars combustible children and the low-key, unambitious misfit who sticks with them, making it’s a romance, but it’s really a story about loyalty and devoted friendship without easy or saw-it-coming

#comingofage, #heartwarming, #faith, #nordic, #fourstarbookreview

Word of the Day, and follows highly structured routines—on certain days she finds her own way to the community She uses Old Norse words in her speech and thoughts; she frequently mentions bravery, combat, wisdom, becomes caught up in sketchy business of her brother’s, Zelda finds that her situation is a lot more complicated than sorting out her love life with Marxy from the community center, playing matchmaker with Gert and #comingofage, #siblings, #uniquePOV, #Vikings, #heartwarming, #fourstarbookreview

The book explores the complicated implications of perception as reality when it comes to race and its Blacktop Wasteland is a fantastic blend of realistic complications, mistakes, adjustments, and spunk. #comingofage, #heartwarming, #faith, #nordic, #fourstarbookreview What have been your favorite books What should I add to my completely unmanageable master Greedy Reading List of books to read?

world over a framework of the imagined point of view of Wolfgang Mozart’s real but largely unknown composer #fantasyscifi, #historicalfiction, #siblings, #youngadult, #comingofage, #threestarbookreview

the elderly Carl Iverson at a nearby nursing home, he's eager to hear Carl's life story in order to complete With violent storms on the horizon, no line of communication open, and secrets being harbored on both

This villain business is more complicated than it seems. There's crossing, double-crossing, a wonderfully savvy and knowledgeable second-in-command, nefarious world of seers, frauds, and holy men vying for the king's favor in a competition to earn a position I love a mix of historical fiction and fantasy, and while this novel isn't as layered and complex or of her dreams have come true.

heartwarming story about determination and honoring old loyalties, and it makes clear that a happy ending is coming Christina Lynch offers a playful story of Penny, an elementary schoolteacher accused of a murder she didn't commit

Christina Lynch offers a playful story of Penny, an elementary schoolteacher accused of a murder she didn't commit

I loved the headstrong, powerful but untrained main character Nahri, the complex cultural backgrounds

Whatever contract exists between human beings, a contract of decency and common humanity, they've broken It was the right book at the right time for me: entertainment in the perfect combination of action and rather than writing a book she felt compelled to put out into the world. The mind-bending examinations of what other characters might be up to and the combat and narrow escapes

belonged to Gabriel Wolfe, Beth's childhood love, and his return to town brings back long-suppressed complications Against the straightforward, duty-driven work, Hall sets a complex, twisted set of past affections, heartbreak characters who are at times wondrously stoic, and at other times act against their best interests, complicating

Jack Troy and his oldest daughter Ronnie are coping with complicated family dynamics in their drafty, During the annual, chaotic community fair preceding this holidays, which this year is a rainy business What really shines in Time of the Child  is the power of the small-town Faha community--gossipy and desperate You can click here for my review of Sittenfeld's Romantic Comedy , here for my Bossy take on American developed SNL , his ups and downs, his vision, and how he created the institution that would change comedy

I didn’t feel compassion when classmates got hurt on the playground.

reading an upcoming mystery set in glamorous Capri by Katy Hays, Saltwater ; I'm listening to standup comedian Cloisters . 02 I'm Laughing Because I'm Crying: A Memoir by Youngmi Mayer Youngmi Mayer is a standup comedian She tracks her Korean heritage and her white GI father's complicated connection as part of the white I didn’t feel compassion when classmates got hurt on the playground.

librarian Jessie Carson, who traveled from the NYPL to war-torn France and introduced a novelty to communities real-life NYPL librarian Jessie Carson, and Charles tracks Carson's journey to work for the American Committee In France, Carson not only helps rebuild communities destroyed by war, but along with her ambitious, In Hanna Pylväinen's The End of Drum-Time , it's 1851 in the Arctic Circle, and a small community of This is compelling reading, and for all who consider The Sound of Music  sacred holiday viewing (and

I saw some plot points coming but not others, and a couple of essential details worked quite conveniently

Curtis Sittenfeld (and short-story) love You can click here for my review of Sittenfeld's Romantic Comedy

I loved the behind-the-scenes peeks at the drama, punishing hard work, sequins, and mind games of competitive willing participant, they found unlikely avenues to training, and their connection, hard work, and talent combined narrators is extensive; the many points of view used to offer varied perspectives to past events beg comparisons

It was the right book at the right time for me: entertainment in the perfect combination of action and

explosion of smartphones and social media along with the decline of play-based childhood, and he links this combination harmful effects of excessive screentime, such as distraction and harmed attention spans as well as social comparison and while it doesn't feel revolutionary, for me its greatest worth is in providing a framework for community

In his self-banishment in remote Svalbard, his only company is the haunting, beautiful Northern Lights Any Arctic explorer or common sailor can tell you this.

I received a prepublication edition of this title, published March 4, courtesy of Little, Brown and Company

interviews with various characters that illuminate the mysterious breakup as well as the characters' complexities interviews) of the meteoric rise of a 1970s band, their mesmerizing lead singer Daisy, the group's complicated thought the interview format might possibly get tiresome, but Reid skillfully builds the story, the complex

Anabin offers them a chance to compete in magical tasks in order to reclaim their lives. The teens are trying to come to terms with what their existences might look like now, and their families I wasn't completely satisfied with the ending, but I also appreciate that Link didn't take an easy way

Time of the Child feels like poetry in prose form, and Williams richly shapes a small-town Irish community's Jack Troy and his oldest daughter Ronnie are coping with complicated family dynamics in their drafty, Ronnie once kept company with a young man who's now living in America--but her father disapproved, and Unbeknownst to Ronnie (she and her father live together but rarely communicate) her father is feeling During the annual, chaotic community fair preceding this holidays, which this year is a rainy business

Fargo's novel about young ice dancing champions who dramatically split--until a documentary tell-all comes The list of narrators is extensive; the many points of view may explain some comparisons of this book

February is the shortest month, but I squeezed in some great reading: compelling historical fiction based story told in three timelines; a captivating celebrity memoir from a larger-than-life performer; a comedian's Shafak makes what could have been an unwieldy or disjointed-feeling set of complex situations into a her adoration of her grandchildren, and her big, comfortable panties. She also explores the complicated Violet-Junie dynamic, in which Junie is Violet's only company for many

the end of this installment she has made her way through the nurturing link with David Geffen, her complicated

tasks, Junie feels compelled to do so. When a potential suitor for Violet and his sister come for an extended stay, he makes known his casual Erin Crosby Eckstine balances the horrors of living in an enslaved situation with the complex interpersonal She also explores the complicated Violet-Junie dynamic, in which Junie is Violet's only company for many The slow pace of uneventful Alabama life shifts dramatically when guests come to stay, and the story's

You can click here for my review of Sittenfeld's Romantic Comedy , here for my Bossy take on American