Monthly Archives: May 2022

Between Two Kingdoms: A Memoir of a Life Interrupted by Suleika Jaouad

16 Monday May 2022

Posted by in 20th century, meaning of life, memoir, Non-fiction, United States

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Just after graduating college and starting a new job in Paris, Suleika Jaouad is diagnosed with leukemia. This beautifully written, powerful memoir explores her illness, treatment, and the loneliness of being a young person battling cancer, along with how it impacts her relationships with her family and friends.

“When the life we had is snatched away, how do we find the conviction to live another? Between Two Kingdoms will resonate with anyone who is living a different life than they planned to live. This is a propulsive, soulful story of mourning and gratitude—and an intimate portrait of one woman’s sojourn in the wilderness between life and death.”—Tara Westover, author of Educated

“A beautiful, elegant, and heartbreaking book that provides a glimpse into the kingdom of illness . . . Suleika Jaouad avoids sentimentality but manages to convey the depth of the emotional turmoil that illness can bring into our lives.”—Siddhartha Mukherjee, author of The Emperor of All Maladies

“Jaouad does a beautiful job of writing from this place of ‘dual citizenship,’ where she finds pain but also joy, kinship, and possibility.”—Library Journal (starred review)

“This is a deeply moving and passionate work of art, quite unlike anything I’ve ever read. I will remember these stories for years to come, because Suleika Jaouad has imprinted them on my heart.”—Elizabeth Gilbert, author of Eat Pray Love

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True Biz by Sara Novic

09 Monday May 2022

Posted by in 20th century, Fiction, United States

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This novel takes place at a boarding school for the deaf and follows three main characters: two teens attending the school, and the headmistress. Each has their own history and experience in the deaf community, and while the book is a novel, it includes lots of diagrams and information about ASL. A page-turner that taught me a lot about an interesting topic.

“Goodness, I can’t even begin to put into words all the feelings this book provoked! . . . An eye-opening and heartfelt story about human connection and the beauty and adversity woven into the deaf community and culture. It is both an educational and electrifying peek into a family’s life as they fight to forge connections even as the outside world threatens to close the door on them. I loved this story so much, it is not one to miss.”—Reese Witherspoon (Reese’s Book Club April ’22 Pick)

“Part tender coming-of-age story, part electrifying tale of political awakening, part heartfelt love letter to Deaf culture, True Biz is wholly a wonder.”—Celeste Ng, New York Times bestselling author of Little Fires Everywhere

“Sara Nović’s gifts for character, story, and language are evident from the first page. True Biz feels like the discovery of a new written form, a love letter to language itself.”—Liz Moore, New York Times bestselling author of Long Bright River

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Black Cake by Charmaine Wilkerson

02 Monday May 2022

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Bereft at their mother’s death, Benny and Byron have the shock of their lives when the lawyer tells them their mother left a voice message revealing a heartbreaking story that they never knew.  The instructions to them were to share the family traditional black cake when the time was right.  A mother’s wisdom: we can’t choose what we inherit … but we can choose who we become?

“Fans of family dramas by Ann Patchett, Brit Bennett, and Karen Joy Fowler should take note. Black Cake marks the launch of a writer to watch, one who masterfully plumbs the unexpected depths of the human heart.”—BookPage (starred review)

“Wilkerson uses one Caribbean American family’s extraordinary tale to probe universal issues of identity and how the lives we live and the choices we make leave ‘a trail of potential consequences’ that pass down through generations.”—Booklist (starred review)

“Exquisite and expansive, Black Cake took ahold of me from the first page and didn’t let go. This is a novel about the formation and reformation of a family, and the many people, places, and events that can shape our inheritances without our knowing. A gripping, poignant debut from an important, new voice.”—Naima Coster, New York Times bestselling author of What’s Mine and Yours

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