Looking for your next favorite read? Why not try one of these? Check out these recommendations from the staff in Adult and Youth Services!
Looking for more? Check out Part 1 of this post!
Rebecca (Youth Services) recommends: We Ride Upon Sticks by Quan Barry
Category: Adult Fiction
Set in the town of Danvers, MA (where the accusations for the Witch Trials began), We Ride Upon Sticks follows the 1989 Danvers High School hockey team, who will do anything to get into the state championships, even if it means tapping into some dark powers. Beautifully written and surprisingly funny, this is a fun modern take on the Salem Witch Trials.
Jamie (Youth Services) recommends: The Paris Architect by Charles Belafoure
Category: Adult Fiction
In 1942, architect Lucien Bernard accepts a job that could earn him a ton of money–but also get him killed. But, if he does it just right, there should be no trouble at all. All he has to do is build a hiding place for a rich Jewish patron, so perfectly designed that no one will be able to find it. Lucien needs the money (and relishes the idea of fighting back against the Germans invading his city), so he agrees. But, when one of his hiding places fails horribly, the problem of hiding a Jew becomes very personal and Lucian can no longer ignore what’s at stake.
Erin (Adult Services) recommends: A Year Down Yonder by Richard Peck
Category: Juvenile Fiction
Erin says: I have not laughed this hard at a book in a long time! Thanks to the Depression, Mary Alice’s parents are having trouble taking care of her, so they send her to live with her highly eccentric (and honestly a little frightening) grandmother. Grandma Dowdel has quite a reputation around the town, and for good reason, too. She’s not one to suffer fools, and she’s always cooking up some sort of scheme. This book is hilarious, and sweet, and full of heart. I had such a hard time putting it down, and was so sad when it was over!
Aaron (Youth Services) recommends: The Vinyl Underground by Rob Rufus
Category: Young Adult Fiction
Aaron says: I wish this book was around when I was in High School. I used to be one of those ‘history is so boring’ people…then I started reading better books. The Vinyl Underground tells the story or four friends, the Vietnam war, rock & roll, draft dodging, southern racists, segregated schools and good ol’ fashioned youth rebellion – all centered in a record shop in 1968. History can be riveting and so is this book.
Chad (Adult Services) recommends: The Fighter by Michael Farris Smith
Category: Adult Fiction
Chad says: I don’t get to read as much fiction as I’d like. So, when I read a blurb about Michael Farris Smith’s latest release (Blackwood) I thought about his earlier story, The Fighter, and decided to give it a try. Set in the Mississippi Delta, Jack “The Butcher” Boucher, a bare-knuckle fighter struggling with addictions and concussions that leave him with intense headaches, is trying to pay off Big Mama Sweet, a crime boss who controls the local vice rings, and save his adopted mother’s family home. A potential angel, Annette, comes into his life and just may be able to save him. One last fight could solve his problems or kill him. This Southern Gothic story is an intense satisfying read and Smith’s prose will thrill readers.
