Fiction:2015-2019
Fates and Furies by Lauren Groff. Riverhead Books 2015. Lotto, a Florida mama's boy who is heir to a magnificent inheritance is immediately taken with Mathilde, a fellow student attending his college. Much to the surprise of his friends, Lotto and Mathilde marry soon after graduation. He was one of the most popular men on campus, known for his sexual adventures and affable personality. Mathilde was more aloof with few friends, and attractive in an unusual way. They move to New York, where Lotto struggles to find work as an actor, and Mathilde works as his main financial support. Although their core friend group visits them, Mathilde remains somewhat apart and does not share Lotto's intimate history with with them. Mathilde eventually discovers one of Lotto's plays, and monitors his path to becoming a successful playwright. The plot is subsidiary to the real pith of the novel: character development and relationships. The author is a ingenious puppeteer: we subtly learn about the characters background and how they deftly hide their pasts from each other. The characters develop in a slow, unassuming fashion: the reader will uncover unexpected twists about their lives. The novel was chosen by Amazon.com as the #1 book of 2015. It was one of the Library Journal's top ten books of the year, and a National Book Award Finalist in 2015. The author has written The Monsters of Templeton, which was shortlisted for the Orange Prize for new writers, Delicate Edible Birds, a collection of short stores, and Arcadia, which was awarded the Medici Book Prize in 2013. Her web site is http://laurengroff.com/
The Diver's Clothes Lie Empty by Vendela Vida. Harper Collins: 2015. A newly divorced woman from Florida travels alone to Morocco. Unexpectedly, the backpack containing her valuables and passport is stolen shortly after at her hotel during check-in. Having no passport or other identification will lead her to a bizarre path of adventure as a person with multiple identities, including a part as a stand-in for a celebrity actress in a movie. As the whirlwind of her adventures progresses, the story of her entangled past slowly unfolds. She assumes new identities while escaping further from the past of her former life. The reader will be immersed in this highly original novel. The author has written four books, including The Lovers and Let The Northern Lights Erase Your Name, which was awarded a Sundance Institute/Mahindra Global Filmmaking Award when developed into script. She is a founding editor of Believer Magazine.
Find Me by Laura Van Den Berg. Farrar,Straus, and Giroux : 2015. Joy is immune to the "sickness" raging in the U.S. and has volunteered to live in a hospital researching its cure. No one leaves the hospital- it is a sci-fi environment where the staff wear hazmat suits and patients are clothed in hospital scrubs. The U.S. is in a state of near anarchy. Joy, who was abandoned as an infant, seeks to escape the hospital and find her birth mother, who is a famous scientist. The novel focuses on the bizarre state of affairs in the U.S.- the economic system has decayed- there is constant news of the sickness abating and then raging again as an epidemic. This is a haunting futuristic novel depicting an eerie future scenario. The reader will be drawn to the author's storytelling gift. Her first collection of stories, What the World Will Look Like When All The Water Leaves Us, was a Barnes & Noble Discover Great New Writers selection, and a finalist for Frank O'Connor Short Story Award . Her second collection of stories, The Isle of Youth, was an NPR Best Book in 2013. Find Me is her first novel. Her web site is lauravandenberg.com.
Problems By Jade Sharma Coffee House Press An Emily Books Original: 2016. Maya is an aspiring writer currently working in a bookstore. She comes from a middle class family, constantly badgered by her mother to improve her life and finish her non-existent thesis. Secretly, Maya is a heroin user. She goes on and off the drug, taking enough to satisfy her habit while remaining functional. Her marriage is unraveling as she pursues an unstable affair with her professor. Eventually, Maya's life takes a difficult downward spiral to the point of unmanageability where she is using more heroin and survives daily for her next fix. The novel is captivating, raw, and could be a realistic depiction of a contemporary person caught between conventional wisdoms and a struggle for a singular personal identity. The late author earned an MFA from the New School. This is her debut novel.
Perfume River by Robert Olen Butler. Atlantic Monthly Press: 2016. Robert, a Vietnam veteran, is now 70 years old and history professor. He has undisclosed personal secrets from his service in Vietnam which alienate him from both his wife and his father, a veteran of World War ll, who mistakenly believes that Robert's military desk job shielded him from combat. Robert's life is further anguished by his estrangement from his brother, Jimmy, who avoided the military by fleeing to Canada. Robert meets an mentally ill homeless man, Bob, at a restaurant. Bob has an anguished relationship with his own father, a Vietnam veteran. Robert's presence brings Bob's inner complexities to the surface, leading him to behave in a heightened delusional manner. Jimmy's Canadian life and his tenuous relationship with his American wife add a parallel narrative to the difficulties of Robert's life. This is an intense, simmering story penned in the author's vivid and sobering style. He received the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction for A Good Scent for a Strange Mountain in 1993. The author received the F Scott Fitzgerald Award for Outstanding Achievement in American Literature in 2013. He currently teaches creative writing at Florida State University.
All Grown Up by Jami Attenberg. Houghton, Mifflin, Harcourt: 2017. The author of "The Middlesteins" brings us another engaging and provocative novel about a young single woman who struggles to sort out her personal identity in the midst of the emotional turmoil surrounding her. Andrea Bern is a failed artist who works in a main stream job in order to support herself. She is nearing 40, a product of a home where her late father was a drug addict. Her mother has been involved in an endless string of relationships, and there is constant tension between them. Andrea's brother, a musician, is married to a striking, high-powered former editor; together they cope with a severely disabled child. One of her good friends is married to a successful businessman, and their marriage is beginning to show signs of strain. Andrea goes through a number of temporary hookups: none eventually work out. She attempts to sort out her own life, even as she is confronted by relational instability. She seeks emotional stability in a crazy relational world. Funny, witty, and a very contemporary look at the 21st century urban relationships- parents, friends, and lovers.The author has written five best selling novels, including The Middlesteins and Saint Mazie. Her web site is jamiattenberg.com
The Man Who Never Stopped Sleeping by Aharon Appelfeld. Penguin Random House :2017. A Jewish boy growing into early manhood has survived the concentration camps of World War ll. He was known as "the sleeping boy" by fellow survivors who helped keep him alive after liberation. Erwin would sleep for long periods of time and no one knew when he would awake. Both his parents were killed in the Holocaust, yet in his sleep he revisits them. In his family home he converses with them about his current life. Erwin is eventually recruited in Italy to emigrate to Palestine and trains as a soldier where he is wounded in his first engagement. Erwin aspires to be an author, and during his long convalescence, he begins to master Hebrew, while struggling with his past. While dreaming, Erwin continues to converse with his mother who guides him towards fulfilling his goal. Eventually, he will recover from his wounds and he prepares himself for a life as an Israeli writer. A sense of longing pervades the novel- the transition from the past of the Holocaust to the founding of a Jewish State has sundered the characters live from the past. The survivor's lives have irrevocably changed, and Erwin, the main character, must release himself from his past, while clinging to a remnant from which he will rebuild his new life. The author has written more than forty works of fiction and non-fiction. Iron Tracks, and; Until the Dawn's Light won the National Jewish Book Award. Blooms of Darkness won the Independent Foreign Fiction Prize in 2012, and short-listed for the Man Booker Prize in 2013.
My Year Of Rest and Relaxation by Ottessa Moshfegh. Penguin Random House 2018. The latest novel from a highly-talented literary voice. The narrator is a young woman living in early 21st century New York who is supported by an inheritance from her two deceased parents. She has recently broken up with her boyfriend and struggling with purposelessness. The narrator seeks the aid of a rogue psychiatrist who she finds in the Yellow Pages. She begins a wild experimentation with prescribed drugs which induce her to sleep for the greater part of the day. Her only friend, Reva, often visits her for mutual comforting and continuously complains about her own ambivalent social life. The narrator is thin, well-dressed, and very attractive- Reva is overweight and perpetually on a diet. Eventually, the narrator will be confronted about relinquishing her current psyche and plunging into a new identity. The denouement is shocking. A crazed, blackly comic novel recommended for readers who enjoy an alternative literary direction. Eileen, the author's first novel, was shortlisted for the National Book Critics Circle Award and the Man Booker Prize, and won the PEN/Hemingway Award for debut fiction. She is the author of a short story collection Homesick for Another World. Her stories have been published in The Paris Review, The New Yorker, and Granta.
The Mars Room by Rachel Kushner. Simon and Schuster 2018. Romy Hall is imprisoned in a Central Valley California women's correctional facility for two life sentences. Her crime: murdering an obsessive stalker who was her customer in a San Francisco strip club. Romy has a son who was taken from her after her sentencing and is seeking a way to contact him. Romy did not have a severe criminal past, but she had a history of drugs and befriending people with drug problems. The author presents the reader with a grim and raw narrative embedded in a continuous state of irresolution. Rachel Kushner's previous novels, FlameThrowers, a national best seller and Telex from Cuba were finalists for the National Book Award. Her web site is rachelkushner.com.
A Woman is No Man by Etaf Rum. Harper Collins An encompassing debut novel. Isra emigrates from Palestine after she marries Adam. The couple settle in a traditional Muslim enclave in Brooklyn. Isra is a teenager when she marries and continues to live a traditional Muslim life. Her mother-in-law harassed her and criticizes her for not giving birth to a son. Isra's husband is often absent from the house and is abusive. She is resigned to her life, and takes refuge in books, which she hides. Her ally in the household is Sarah, Adam's sister, who introduces her to Western literature. Eventually, Sarah supposedly marries and lives in Palestine. Isra and Adam mysteriously die, and their daughters are left in the care of their grandmother. When it is time to marry, Isra's daughter, Deya, is ambivalent. She would like to go to college against the wishes of her grandmother. A family connection meets Deya and becomes an integral part of the novel. A compelling story, and a window that focuses on the conflicts of a traditional Muslim lifestyle in America. Highly recommended. Etaf Rum was born and raised in Brooklyn, New York, by Palestinian immigrants. She taught college English literature in North Carolina, where she lives with her two children. She also runs the Instagram account @booksandbeans. An interview with the author about her background in March 2019 is a good introduction to the novel.
Florida by Lauren Groff. Penguin 2018. The gifted author of the novel, Fate and Furies, has presented us with a new compelling, sinuous collections of short stories set in Florida. A cast of unusual characters beset by unique circumstances, who are subject to the tempestuous whims of the Sunshine State. Florida is a force of nature- its history, wildlife and weather all consort to mold the characters of the stories whose unusual circumstances play out in a singular fashion. The author has written the novels Arcadia, Delicate Edible Birds, The Monsters of Templeton and her short stories are included Best American Short Stories collections. Her web site is laurengroff.com
The Testaments by Margaret Atwood. Penguin Random House:2019. The companion novel to the Handmaid’s Tale. The first generation of Gilead children are now teens, and the Commanders and their lieutenants- the Aunts, retain a firm grip on this Puritans like dictatorship. We learn of the Aunt’s lives prior to the establishment of Gilead. Political manipulation of secrets is the Aunt’s weapon for establishing their own personal power and insinuating themselves into the Gilead Commanders favor. One of the more powerful Aunts, Lydia, is one of the main character’s whose holograph reveals her own past, and the inner workings of Gilead. The novel is comprised of alternating chapters of Lydia’s holograph and the Transcript of Witness 369B , written by two teens living in Gilead. As we learn of their conflicted, and unsettling lives in Gilead, there is a sense that the country no longer exists, and their transcript is a historical document, similar to Aunt Lydia’s holograph. One can read The Testaments as a companion book or separate novel from The Handmaid’s Tale, but familiarity with the latter and the TV show will enhance one’s reading experience. The novel is a gripping and enlightens us to the dangers of the encroachment of religion into secular government. The author has written more than 50 books of poetry, fiction and critical essays. In 2019, she was became a member of the Order of The Companions of Honor for her work in literature. Her web site is margaretatwood.ca/
Dominicana by Angie Cruz. Flatiron Books:2019.Dominicana Ana Canción is offered a chance to live in New York by agreeing to marry Juan Ruiz-opening up an opportunity for her family to also emigrate from the Dominican Republic. Ana is sequestered in Juan’s sixth floor walkup in Washington Heights, with little company and no knowledge of English. Juan travels to the Dominican Republic to protect his family’s assets during this politically unstable period. Left alone in New York with Juan’s brother Cesar, Ana slowly explores the world outside of her apartment- learning English at a local church, going to the beach at Coney Island, and dancing with Cesar. A relationship develops between them, and Ana must decide between the stability of her marriage when Juan returns or fleeing New York for a new life with Cesar. A wonderful coming of age story about the realities of a young Latina emigrating to New York in the 1960’s. The author has written two novels: Soledad and Let it Rain Coffee. She was a finalist in the 2007 International Dublin Literary Award, and currently a professor of English at the University of Pittsburg. This novel is inspired by her mother’s story. The author’s webpage is angiecruz.com.
Adele by Leila Slimani Penguin Random House: 2019. Adele is a journalist living in Paris and is married to Richard who is a surgeon. Richard and Adele have a young son, Lucien. Adele is leading a double life. Her husband supports her with a high standard of living, but she is tormented by her isolation from him and her son. This isolation is deep-seated and stems from early teenhood. Adele is constantly having affairs-some one night stands, others for a short time, including an affair with her husband's colleague. She shows no emotional attachment to her lovers- however, they are entranced by her. Richard has no idea that Adele is unfaithful. Their sex life is infrequent. Eventually, her double life unravels, and her husband must deal with a wife who is emotionally absent from him. A fast moving, gripping, and deeply sad novel which has no resolution. Highly recommended. The author's previous novel is The Perfect Nanny. She is a journalist and commentator on women's and human rights The author won the Mamounia Prize for Adele. The author was born in Morocco, and she was the first Moroccan woman to France's most prestigious literary prize, the Goncourt.
The World We Knew by Alice Hoffman. Simon and Schuster: 2019.
The latest novel by the popular American author is fast-paced and intriguing. Hanni’s daughter’s, Lea and Ava, are in imminent danger in Berlin from the Nazis. Their family is secular, but Hanni seeks the help of an Orthodox Rabbi- to no avail. However, the Rabbi’s daughter, Ettie, colludes with Hanni and creates an unthinkable mythical Jewish Golem, Ava which will protect her daughters. The daughters escape Berlin with Ava, and are in constant danger. They seek refuge in France where they will have relatives. Eventually, their lives coincide with Ettie, who escapes to France. A mystical page turner which will be enjoyed by a wide readership, especially the fans of the author, who has written more than 30 works of fiction including The Rules of Magic, and the Oprah Book Selection Here On Earth. The author’s web site is alicehoffman.com