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Category Archives: Fiction

The Berry Pickers by Amanda Peters

27 Saturday Jan 2024

Posted by Weston Public Library Staff in detective, Fiction, Historical Fiction, mystery, United States

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family secrets, immigrant workers, Maine, Micmac Indians, missing children

“The thing about picking a handful of berries is that each one is different—some are sweet, some sour, some extra juicy. The Berry Pickers is just like a handful of berries. It’s an unassuming novel filled with so much sweet, so much sour, so much juice. Reading this book, I was only ever hungry when it ended.” —Morgan Talty, author of Night of the Living Rez

“The strength of Amanda Peters’s novel lies in its understanding of how trauma spreads through a life and a family, and its depiction of the challenges facing Indigenous people . . . [A] powerful message about truth, forgiveness and healing.” —Marion Winik, The Washington Post

“A harrowing tale of Indigenous family separation . . . [Peters] excels in writing characters for whom we can’t help rooting . . . With The Berry Pickers, Peters takes on the monumental task of giving witness to people who suffered through racist attempts of erasure like her Mi’kmaw ancestors.—Eric Nguyen, The New York Times Book Review

“Peters beautifully explores loss, grief, hope, and the invisible tether that keeps families intact even when they are ripped apart. A poignant debut from a writer to watch.” —Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

“A marvelous debut. The Berry Pickers has all the passion of a first book but also the finely developed skill of a well-practiced storyteller. …The Berry Pickers is a triumph.” —Katherena Vermette, author of The Strangers

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Anxious People by Fredrik Backman; translated by Neil Smith.

19 Friday Jan 2024

Posted by Weston Public Library Staff in Fiction, Humor

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bank robberies, black humor, hostages, married people, real estate agents, Sweden

This funny, thoughtful novel follows a group of people thrown together during an attempted crime, and the police trying to figure it all out. I loved all the characters in this unusual story.

“Wry, wise and often laugh-out-loud funny, it’s a wholly original story that delivers pure pleasure.” —People

“A deeply funny and warm examination of how individual experiences can bring a random group of people together. Backman reveals each character’s many imperfections with tremendous empathy, reminding us that people are always more than the sum of their flaws.” —BookPage

“[A] tight-knit, surprise-filled narrative… the brisk, absorbing action prompts meditation on marriage, parenting, responsibility, and global economic pressures. Comedy, drama, mystery, and social study, this novel is undefinable except for the sheer reading pleasure it delivers. Highly recommended.”—Library Journal (starred review) 

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Little Monsters by Adrienne Brodeur

27 Wednesday Dec 2023

Posted by Weston Public Library Staff in Fiction, United States

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Cape Cod Bay (MAss), dysfunctional families, family secrets, people with bipolar disorder, siblings

Author of her own family story, Wild Game : My Mother, Her Secret, and Me, Brodeur is no stranger to family secrets.  This is her debut novel and I found it absorbing.  She knows Cape Cod nature so intimately that it is absolutely a character in the book –  a soothing backdrop to the events.

“A juicy portrait of a wealthy family on the brink of disaster. . . Little Monsters simmers with tension as secrets explode out into the open. . . Tensely constructed and absorbing. . . A consummate summer read, which somehow evokes smooth beach glass and hot pink sunsets with nary a mention of either.” —The Washington Post

“[An] engaging and neatly plotted novel. . . Little Monsters is so alluring, with its sense of looming familial implosion within a cultural implosion. . . Brodeur is very deliberately examining a small family horror story within a larger political context.” —The New York Times

“Shimmering. . . With this intricate story, Brodeur distinguishes herself as a novelist of the first rank.” —Publishers Weekly, *Starred Review*

“This smart, page-flipping novel has more secrets than you could successfully hide from your Sunday school teacher. . . [with] shades of Succession. . . Little Monsters offers the pleasures of a smart, absorbing debut novel.” —The Boston Globe

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The Westing Game by Ellen Raskin ; with an introduction by Mac Barnett

06 Wednesday Dec 2023

Posted by Weston Public Library Staff in Comedy, detective, Fiction, mystery

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apartment houses, Chicago (IL), detective and mystery stories, humorous stories, inheritance and succesion

I was in a bookstore shopping for a gift for a middle school relative and a young girl who was the same age told me this was her favorite book. I bought a copy for my niece, my mother, and for me. It’s a classic (first published in 1978) and a great mystery for readers of all ages.

“Great fun for those who enjoy illusion, word play, or sleight of hand.”—The New York Times Book Review

“A fascinating medley of word games, disguises, multiple aliases, and subterfuges—a demanding but rewarding book.”—The Horn Book


“A supersharp mystery…confoundingly clever, and very funny.” —Booklist, starred review 

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Shark Heart: A love story by Emily Habeck 

27 Monday Nov 2023

Posted by Weston Public Library Staff in Fiction, romance

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grief, magic realism, marriage, metamorphosis, romance, white shark

This is bizarre and clever – a romance unlike any other. Habeck’s language is descriptive and beautiful. 

“Habeck’s debut explores the nature of grief through deft and beautiful writing… Poetic interludes and play-like vignettes punctuate the lyrical prose”—Booklist (Starred Review)

“A bit Shakespeare, a bit Kafka, and a bit Disney… [this] debut stands out from the pack.”—Kirkus Reviews

“Raw, powerful, and delightfully unusual… [Shark Heart] is structurally and lyrically daring, so much so that its pages quickly envelop readers in its emotional challenges and magic… While it begs readers to contemplate what it means to be human, it also challenges them to look at their circumstances carefully and reminds them to be grateful for what they have at hand rather than dwelling on what they may have lost. Shark Heart is an unforgettable and much needed love story for a new, uncertain, and rapidly changing era.”–Southern Review of Books

“Beguiling… Habeck’s setup allows her to grapple with big questions… [and] imbues the smallest interactions and moments with poetic weight… Surprising and pleasurably uncategorizable. Shark Heart is wild, in every sense of the word.”—New York Times Book Review

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Beyond That, the Sea by Laura Spence-Ash 

20 Monday Nov 2023

Posted by Weston Public Library Staff in 20th century, Fiction, Historical Fiction

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Boston (Mass), children, evacuation of civilians, families, Great Britain, historical fiction, World War 1939-1945

As World War II begins, a young English girl is sent to live in Boston for her own safety. She forms close bonds with her adoptive family, but knows she’ll return to London and her parents eventually. Following these characters over several years and countries, this is a beautifully written story with a New England connection.

“What a wonderful novel! I loved Beatrix as a girl, discovering America, and perhaps even more as a young woman, back in post-war London. Spence-Ash writes with such insight about her characters on both sides of the Atlantic and she is a mistress of suspense. I was deeply sorry to reach the last page.”―Margot Livesey, author of The Boy in the Field

“A young’s woman’s family loyalties are divided as she leaves her London home for Boston during WWII in Spence-Ash’s magnetic debut… Readers will be riveted.”―Publishers Weekly, STARRED Review

“This gorgeous novel, about the profound impact on children and families of even the most benign forms of displacement, marks the debut of a very gifted writer. I adored Laura Spence-Ash’s characters and deeply admired her precise, resonant prose. Beyond That, the Sea is a marvel.”―Ann Packer, author of The Dive from Clausen’s Pier and The Children’s Crusade

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Happy Place by Emily Henry 

13 Monday Nov 2023

Posted by Weston Public Library Staff in Fiction, Humor, romance

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friendship, interpersonal relationships, Maine, man-woman relationships, separation (Psychology), truth and falsehood, vacation homes, vacations

A group of college friends gathers for one last summer trip to Maine, including Harriet and Wyn, who are keeping their recent breakup a secret from everyone else. This is a great romantic summer read with a little more depth than the typical beach book.

“As always, Henry’s dialogue is sparkling and the banter between characters is snappy and hilarious. Wyn and Harriet’s relationship, shown both in the past and the present, feels achingly real. Their breakup, as well as their complicated relationships with their own families, adds a twinge of melancholy, as do the relatable growing pains of a group of friends whose lives are taking them in different directions. A wistfully nostalgic look at endings, beginnings, and loving the people who will always have your back.” —Kirkus

“This sexy and profoundly romantic novel will satisfy fans of best-selling Henry’s thrilling trademark mix of witty banter and intensely emotional storylines.” —Library Journal(starred review)

“Blur[s] the lines between women’s and literary-leaning commercial fiction, departing from the fantasy spaces of bodice rippers and misty moors to depict a world that looks a lot more like, well, our own…Henry operates at the top of her—and her readers’—intelligence, telling sophisticated, heartfelt stories that are conscious of the romantic comedy conventions without being overly meta about them…Henry’s dedicated readers know what to expect: wit, charm and heart, satisfying to the last page.”—The Washington Post

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Tom Lake by Ann Patchett

18 Wednesday Oct 2023

Posted by Weston Public Library Staff in Fiction, United States

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actors, man-woman relationships, mothers and daughters, northern Michigan, storytelling

While they are all home working on the family’s cherry orchard, a mother tells her daughters the story of an important summer in her past. I always love Ann Patchett’s writing, and her new novel does not disappoint, with interesting characters and beautiful descriptions of Northern Michigan.

“Patchett’s intricate and subtle thematic web…enfolds the nature of storytelling, the evolving dynamics of a family, and the complex interaction between destiny and choice….These braided strands culminate in a denouement at once deeply sad and tenderly life-affirming. Poignant and reflective, cementing Patchett’s stature as one of our finest novelists.” — Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

“As this spellbinding and incisive novel unspools, Patchett brings every turn of mind and every setting to glorious, vibrant life, gracefully contrasting the dazzle of the ephemeral with the gravitas of the timeless, perceiving in cherries sweet and tart reflections of love and loss.” — Booklist (starred review)

“Meryl Streep…is ideal for narrating Tom Lake…. Streep delivers with her signature whimsy, her cadence lilting from wide-eyed innocence to winking wisdom, blurring the nostalgia for small-town Americana with dashes of big-city dreams.” — New York Times Book Review

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Happiness Falls by Angie Kim

11 Wednesday Oct 2023

Posted by Weston Public Library Staff in Fiction

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I read this in one weekend unable to put this down –  a brainy thriller both a page-turner and a meditation on a loving, close Korean American family in crisis. It is fiction with footnotes!  – and each one offers fascinating tangents as entertaining as the main story. Excellent read.

“Brilliant . . . amazing . . . the claim that a book will change your life often seems like exaggeration. Here the potential is real.”—Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

“Kim uses the parallel investigations of police and family to explore the complex dynamics of interracial marriage, Asian and biracial identity in America, and the nuances of raising a child with special needs. You’ll want to savor every word as Kim plunges the depths of human action and finds love at the center.”—CrimeReads

“Happiness Falls is on the one hand a profound meditation on the meaning of life and the nature of happiness, while on the other hand a riveting mystery replete with suspense.”—Chris Pavone, author of Two Nights in Lisbon

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Yellowface by R.F. Kuang 

26 Tuesday Sep 2023

Posted by Weston Public Library Staff in Fiction

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Asian Americans, authors, authorship, Chinese American authors

June and Athena have known each other since college. Both aspiring writers, Athena has found great success, while June has not. When Athena dies unexpectedly, June takes one of her manuscripts and publishes the book as her own. Chaos ensues! This is a darkly funny, cynical take on race, the publishing world, and cancel culture.

“Her magnificent novel uses satire to shine a light on systemic racial discrimination and the truth that often hides behind the twisted narratives constructed by those in power.” — Booklist (starred review)

“At once a brilliant satire that mixes horror and humor; a nuanced exploration of race, heritage, identity, and diversity in publishing; and an honest look at the hell that is social media, this might just be Kuang’s best.” — Boston Globe

“This is a great read. Crime, satire, horror, paranoia, questions of cultural appropriation. Plenty of nasty social media pile-ons, too. But, basically, just a great story. Hard to put down, harder to forget.” — Stephen King, #1 New York Times bestselling author

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