by Michael Lewis. "Very good reportage on the financial meltdown from the viewpoint of several people who 'shorted' the housing market and made a killing while the banks imploded." "For those who want a quick read (except the middle) of what happened in the CDO market between 2007 and 2009." (NB: latter comment from contributor who is extremely well versed in financial services – she found a chunk of the book to be extremely technical, but said it not vital to understand everything to get the gist of/enjoy the book. I'm thinking it might be like the philosophical riffs in The Elegance of the Hedgehog
, some of which I found pretentious, and great chunks of which I skimmed).The Charm School
by Nelson Demille. Okay, I cheated and added this NOT NEW book after the list was published. Until this Russian spy story emerged, this book might have seemed a little dated. But hey! Cold War intrigue is BACK, baby, and suddenly this novel is not only timely, but seems weirdly prescient. If you haven't had the pleasure of reading this great old (v beachy) book, I highly recommend it. I remember when I got to the end of this book, I absolutely HAD to be somewhere, but I absolutely COULD NOT put it down. DeMille's best, I think. Maybe now that fear of Russian spies is once again in vogue, they'll finally make a movie of it.Cutting for Stone (Vintage)
by Abraham Verghese. This appeared on last year’s list, and it got rave reviews from those of you (us) who read it. In fact, I am not sure I know anyone who didn’t love this book. It’s about identical twins born to a beautiful Indian nun in Ethiopia. (Yes, really.) She dies in childbirth, leaving them to be raised by one of the most wonderful couples I’ve ever encountered in literature. I'm not going to say how long it is … read it on the Kindle
, as I did, and find out AFTER you’ve finished it. Comments: "Gorgeous writing style and story." "The book opened so many windows -- allowing a rare glimpse into Ethiopia, into surgery (NEVER thought I'd want to read all of that!), then crossing the pond with our protagonist to his life at a hospital in the Bronx."(Speaking of the Kindle
- Please see my June 13 post on this blog about why I love the thing so much. If you want one, click on the hyperlink and order from here, and support your friendly local book review and recommendation aggregator!)The Imperfectionists: A Novel
by Tom Rachman. I gather this book is like Olive Kitteridge – a bunch of stories loosely woven together. It’s gotten mixed reviews on Goodreads, but friends gave it raves: "I've been reviewing some of the books I read on Amazon and will be giving this one 5 stars once I think of a review that is worthy. Don’t read the summary on Amazon, just read the book!" and: "I raced through this book in a day, devouring the vignettes of characters who work for an American newspaper headquartered in Rome. Each chapter tells the story of a different employee at the paper. .. Between each chapter/character study is the ongoing back story of the paper's history and its founder, an American business man who leaves his wife and family in Atlanta to move to Rome and create the paper as a way to connect again with an old flame. There is nothing new about building a novel out of a series of connected short stories and the newspaper world creates a microcosm that works will with this technique. Rachman writes with a warmth and humor and an obvious affection for these ‘imperfect’ characters - his style elevates what could have been a fairly average book to something more substantial." (Ed: Just read that Brad Pitt acquired the movie rights.)Major Pettigrew's Last Stand: A Novel
by Helen Simonson. "I listened to this on audiobook, which was excellent." "What a terrific first novel. It's about a widower in a small English town who falls for a Pakistani widow who runs a shop. The writing is lovely, as is the story. This is an author who knows and plays to her strengths. Yeah, it's a little neat, but who cares? It was a delight to read, a feast for Anglophiles. Like this bit of dialogue:'But he already has a title,' said Jasmina.
'A Scottish title isn't really the same thing at all,' the Major said.
'Especially when you buy it on the Internet,' added Roger.
There were times I wasn't sure if I shared the author's sensibilities -- intentional perhaps. In the end, all who deserved my compassion had it." (Ed: I think *I* want to buy the movie rights to this one).
Stieg Larsson's Millennium Trilogy Bundle: The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, The Girl Who Played with Fire, The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest
I imagine this recommendation is not exactly a revelation – It seems that half of you have read the series, and are insisting that the other half of us must.First some general comments: "I devoured them. Inhaled them. They are page-turners for sure, but with a social conscience. Mind you, a few of the scenes are very troubling and difficult to read. But there is nothing gratuitous about them. The characters are some of the best I’ve read in a long time, I think of them often." and "Hands down MUST read is the girl with the dragon tattoo trilogy. Just finished all and now will spend the rest of the summer with end of book blues. I dare you to find something better...amazing character development. Makes you want to go get some piercings and kick some a**." (Ed: UNCLE! Alright already … I will read them! Sheesh.)
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (Vintage)
. “The first in the trilogy, this Sweden-set thriller warms up after the first third with great characters and a fascinating plot. Warning: a subplot is violence against women and some of the descriptions are quite graphic.” “It took a few chapters to get into the story, but then I was hooked! A total page turner.” “scary, but a page turner. Don't read if you're home alone!” The Girl Who Played with Fire
. "The second book in the trilogy - more exciting and polished than the first. Larsson, who died shortly before publication, was a master." "Double wow! I liked this one even better than the first." "It's as intense as the first book with a cliff-hanger ending." The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest
. "I haven’t read it yet, but only because I’m saving it for a trip to BVI later this month. Hear it’s fantastic!"Still Alice
by Lisa Genova. I wouldn’t ordinarily peg this as summer reading, but it got SO many positive reviews, and one of you even gave me a copy. (From Amazon): "In this novel, the author, a Harvard neuropsychologist, tells the story of a Harvard neuropsychologist who realizes she is suffering from early onset Alzheimers. A claustrophobic first hand account of her world as it grows ever smaller." Comments: "The most accurate account of what it feels like to be inside the mind of an Alzheimer's patient I've ever read. Beautifully written and very illuminating." "A very interesting book about a female professor who has Alzheimers. It and decribes what is happing to her as she becomes more and more disoriented. It is a fictional book, but the author went to great lengths to learn what Alzheimers patients go through as they slowly lose their memory."The Thirteenth Tale: A Novel
by Diane Setterfield. Synopsis from Amazon: Margaret Lea, a London bookseller's daughter, has written an obscure biography that suggests deep understanding of siblings. She is contacted by renowned aging author Vida Winter, who finally wishes to tell her own, long-hidden, life story. Margaret travels to Yorkshire, where she interviews the dying writer, walks the remains of her estate at Angelfield and tries to verify the old woman's tale of a governess, a ghost and more than one abandoned baby. Comments: "I LOVED this book." and "I wish I'd saved this wonderful, entertaining gothic novel for vacation. The author was artful in how she built to the revelations, much in the style of 19th century gothic novels mentioned throughout." "Very entertaining."This Is Where I Leave You: A Novel
by Jonathan Tropper. "Think back to the early days of chick lit... when it was good. Now, imagine it from a male perspective. Jonathan Tropper writes fiction from a guy's perspective that, I think, appeals to women (at least it did to me). The book opens with the main character's wife cheating on him, then leads to him joining his family in their childhood home while they all sit shiva for his dead father (who was an atheist). Forced to be in a room with four brothers and sisters day in and day out, stories unfold, hilarity ensues, and some sexual secrets are laid bare... all the chick-lit cliches, but written in a way that doesn't make you want to barf or stab someone." "Laugh out loud funny but tragic at the same time. Read it before they make the movie." "Jonathan Trooper writes compulsively readable, laugh-out-loud funny novels, and his fifth book, This Is Where I Leave You is his best yet." "I laughed out loud with this one and some things are over the top, but a delightful read."
by Neil Gaiman. “Fantasy. It's the story of all the gods American immigrants brought with them and abandoned on our shores. Imagine meeting Thor, or Zeus, or any of the pagan gods. Gaiman insists they're here, among us, and tells a great tale. Another gorgeous writer.”
by Nicholson Baker. “The title and subject matter may sound dry (an obscure writer annoys his girlfriend and himself by failing to write the introduction to a poetry anthology), but the book is hilarious. It will also make you think about poetry, and it sent me running back to Amazon to buy some books by the authors that he most admires.”
by Thomas Lynch. “Beach reads because it is short story format: Love, memory, family, set in Ohio, from a great poet. High class beach reading.”
by Jill Kargman. “All of Jill Kargman’s books are hilarious but Arm Candy is the newest. It is full of great lines which will make you laugh out loud. 
which came out last year, also by Jill, is also fun read.”
by James Collins. "I so enjoyed reading this book. It's a modern novel of manners with some satire and fairy tale thrown in, a romantic story nicely told from a male perspective. Peter is enormously likable. The main female character, Holly, was not as well-drawn, but Collins did a good job with secondary characters. (How much did I loathe Dick Montague!?!) All in all, a good summer read."
by Martha Grimes. "DC writer Martha Grimes brings back her hero Richard Jury for a moody, funny, twisty-turny mystery. I love the way she writes - it's like Dorothy Sayers meets PG Wodehouse." (Ed: Now I am wondering if Dorothy Sayers ever met PG Wodehouse. They were about the same age.)
by Marcus Zusak. "Incredible. This book is incredible. It tells the story of a young German girl during WW2 who is orphaned and adopted, has a crush on a neighbor boy, goes to school, and, oh, hides a Jew in the basement. Narrated by Death, this book is magical, gorgeous, difficult, and wonderful."
by Marian Keyes. "This book follows the relationships of all the people who live in one small apartment building for 61 days. The fun part about this book is that you have no idea who the narrator is or how he/she fits into the story until the very end, and there are a few little plot twists to keep you interested."
by Candice Bushnell. "Before Manhattan and Manolos, who was Carrie Bradshaw? In her first novel for teens, Bushnell fills in her Sex and the City star's growing-up years with this chronicle of Carrie's senior year of high school in a small New England town. Bushnell maintains believable continuity of character in this teen version of her cultural icon, and fans will enjoy watching Carrie develop her familiar adult traits." (Ed: I think that came from Amazon, but now I don't remember.)
by Diana Norman. "I didn't read much about this book prior to reading it, and no ‘in real life’ friend had recommended it. I guess I expected a tolerably written historical fiction. Perhaps because of my low expectations, I was pleasantly surprised by the quality of writing and by the story (I was up until 1 a.m. trying to get through it). I won't recite the basic story -- it helped my enjoyment to know little beyond the fact that a female tavern owner in pre-Revolutionary Boston plucks a drowning Englishman from the harbor, and that there are (as the title implies) consequences. A great read."
by Mark Dunn. "A great mother-daughter read!" Amazon’s description: "Ella Minnow Pea is a girl living happily on the fictional island of Nollop off the coast of South Carolina. Nollop was named after Nevin Nollop, author of the immortal pangram,* 'The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog.' Now Ella finds herself acting to save her friends, family, and fellow citizens from the encroaching totalitarianism of the island’s Council, which has banned the use of certain letters of the alphabet as they fall from a memorial statue of Nevin Nollop. As the letters progressively drop from the statue they also disappear from the novel. The result is both a hilarious and moving story of one girl’s fight for freedom of expression, as well as a linguistic tour de force sure to delight word lovers everywhere.
by Lorrie Moore. "An easy, enticing read, a bit odd at times, and a bit astute at most times."
by Jane Green. "This is one of those finish-it-in-two-afternoons kind of book. Family drama (nothing sinister): a divorce, an unexpected and never-before-met sister, a scandalous yoga instructor, and a reclusive older author with secrets and intrigue. Easy to get through, somewhat predictable, but nonetheless enjoyable. Jane Green's books are a secret, guilty pleasure. I totally lie about reading them. But I've read them all, and like this one better than most."
by David Cristofano. "This book is about a girl who has spent 20+ years in Witness Protection because she and her parents witnessed a brutal mob killing. During this time she lived all over the country in small sleepy towns, had eight different aliases and lost faith in the Witness Protection Program after her parents were killed twelve years into protection. The son of the mob boss finds her and a page turning series of events follows. I was hooked from page one and read this in record time. It is a perfect beach read! The twists were unexpected and the conclusion I still think about. I just learned the movie rights have been sold - it will make a great movie. The author is from DC."
by Aryn Kyle. "This is a great coming-of-age story by first-time novelist Aryn Kyle. I just bought her latest book of short stories. Anyone who loves horses will love this book." (This contributor also liked 
by this author).
by Philip Pullman. "A masterful re-telling of the story of Jesus. Imagine if the duality of Christ could be explained by the birth of twins that night in Bethlehem. A book for the broad-minded. Beautifully written."
by Neil Gaiman. "A bit dark but delicious -- where does that man get his inspiration?"
by Jeanette Walls. "This is the second memoir by Jeanette Walls, author of The Glass Castle (your runaway pick in 2007). Not quite as shocking, but equally engaging."
by Audry Niffenegger. "I loved 
by the same author so I thought I would give this a try. It does not come close to that book, but it was still a nice read." (Ed: That seemed to be the consensus on Goodreads.com – the book is a grave disappointment - pun intended - to readers devoted to 
by Jamie Ford. "A sweet book - you could read with your 12 / 13 year old."
by Jonathan Tropper. "Despite its title, this book isn't dark and depressing. Well, maybe one or two pages might be a little sad and wistful, but not the rest. Man loses young wife. Loses then regains teenage stepson. Has a whackadoo extended family. Is pressured to write a book and start dating again. Not sappy, not too tender. Great comedic writing. Easy to get through in two or three afternoons."
by Scott Turow. "LOVE IT. Page turner. The sequel to 
. Scott Turow not only crafts a brilliant plot but he writes poetically."
by Julia Orringer. I’m 60% of the way through this highly anticipated novel. It is an epic tale and love story about Jewish Hungarians before and during WWII. I'm struggling with how good the good characters are. But if you like historical fiction about this era, it is probably worth your while." Update: I finished it. Highbrow critics from the Washington Post and other outlets have insisted that Orringer could not have spared ONE WORD from the epic tale. I beg to differ. She could have spared about 100 pages of words. HOWEVER, it is still a very good book, enormously important I think, and well worth the effort. 
by Alexander McCall Smith. "Not the most profound book I've ever read, but he does a wonderful job of taking you back to what life was like in the English countryside during WWII - bittersweet. Listen to this song on YouTube just to reinforce that period of time. Most of these young men never did 'meet again....' As I said - bittersweet:
by Colum Mcann. "Follows the lives of a group of individuals immediately before and after Philippe Petit walked a tightrope between the World Trade Center on August 7, 1974. Although the book does not feature Petit as one of its central characters, the lives of all of the main characters intersect with Petit's walk in a key way, creating a neat puzzle around the event.” And, "We read this for the book group I joined. We all really liked it. It is a National Book Award Winner and a New York Times Bestseller. I'm new to the book group, but it was mentioned how unusual it was that each person had nothing but good things to say about this book.”
by Vendela Vida. "Vida co-wrote the film ‘Away We Go’ (starring John Krasinski and Maya Rudolph), and I was curious to see what her literary footprint looked like. Let the Northern Lights was a fascinating read. Vida's imagery is astounding, and you will feel both the bone-chilling cold of the story's setting (Lapland) and of the main character's mother."
by Chris Cleave. "This is great storytelling; skillful foreshadowing, the careful scattering of clues, building suspense and dread.” And “I’m not sure how I feel about this book. I’m glad I read it." (Ed: there’s some "love it v. hate it" stuff going on in the Amazon and Goodreads reviews of this book.)
by Tiffany Baker. "This is a dramatic tale about a girl who grows up enormous and an outcast even in her own family but whose kindness and forgiveness of the most detestable deeds enables her to solve a town mystery that dates back generations."
by Kim Wright. "I am currently reading this fairly well-written but kind of trashy novel. It is a total beach read!!!!"
by Marisa de los Santos. I found this book, the first novel by poet de los Santos, extremely engaging, and I stayed up way too late finishing it. (What else is new?) It's dually narrated by Clare, an 11-year-old dealing with her mother's intense emotional difficulties, and a 32-year-old lost-ish soul named Cornelia. How their lives intersect is the crux of the story. This would be an excellent beach read. Nice writing, entertaining (if improbable) tale.
by Janis Cooke Newman. My sister-in-law really enjoyed this book. From Amazon: "Mary is a novel written in the first person, comprised of notes composed by Mary Todd Lincoln when she was an inmate of a lunatic asylum. She takes up her pen to block out the screams and moans of the other inmates and to save her own sanity. According to these notes, although she held séances in the White House and drove her family deeply into debt because of compulsive shopping, she was perfectly sane. She makes a good case for herself, despite occasional manic behavior and often uncontrollable grief." From an Amazon reviewer: "It is a cracking good read; rich in detail, engrossing, and an interesting take on an historical figure who continues to be controversial. Like Margaret George's "Autobiography of Henry VIII"--another great example of looking at familiar events through the eyes of its often-maligned main character--Newman allows Mary Todd Lincoln writes her own story, this time from the asylum where her son Robert has committed her."
by Erik Emmanuel Schmitt. "Eight quirky, interesting short stories translated from French. Each is centered around strong, often charismatic (and sometimes slightly mad) women characters. An international bestseller. Good fun."
by Orhan Pamuk's. "Please give this a try, and don't listen to Virginia complaining that it is sad. By the Nobel Prize winner, and author of 
, it is sad, but it is astonishing." (Ed: Yes, I did say it was too sad. Of course, I hadn’t actually READ it, just read ABOUT it. I might, as soon as I meet my 2010 quota of happily-ever-afters).
by Bridie Clark. "A modern day Pygmalian. It takes place on Park Avenue...fast paced and full of laughs. It may be chick lit but it isn’t without character."
by Justin Cronin. I almost made this a top pick, but that would have been weird, since none of you has read it. It is SO buzzy (already in the top 10 at Amazon and front and center at bookstores) that I sense in another month it would have been a top pick. From Amazon: "You don't have to be a fan of vampire fiction to be enthralled by The Passage, Justin Cronin's blazing new novel. Cronin is a remarkable storyteller (just ask adoring fans of his award-winning Mary and O'Neil), whose gorgeous writing brings depth and vitality to this ambitious epic about a virus that nearly destroys the world, and a six-year-old girl who holds the key to bringing it back."
by Sarah Blake. "Blake is a DC writer (& Sidwell mom , as it turns out). She's read at Politics & Prose. A NC friend recommended the book to me completely out of the blue. Haven't read but it's on my list!" (Another contributor also said she hadn't read it but had it on her list.)
by Anchee Min. "Not quite a biography but this fictionalized retelling of Pearl Buck's life was reviewed as a relatively accurate retelling, augmented by some new characters and, of course, dialogue that never was recorded. Pick up this book and while you are at it get a copy of The Good Earth to re-read."
by Bryce Courtenay. "Episodic and bursting with incident, this sprawling memoir of an English boy's lonely childhood in South Africa during WW II pays moderate attention to questions of race but concerns itself primarily with epic melodrama." The New York Times: "The Power of One has everything: suspense, the exotic, violence; mysticism, psychology and magic; schoolboy adventures, drama in the boxing ring."
by Jonathan Dee. "You won't put it down. This is brilliant writing, on wealth and family, inside of New York society."
by Rick Riordan. "The first book in the new series by Rick Riordan of Percy Jackson fame . I've always been fascinated with ancient Egypt, so this one is a great fit." This is technically a children's book, but I know Drew enjoyed reading the Percy Jackson books with the girls.
by Robert Goolrick. This is a creepy tale set in early 1900s Wisconsin. A beautiful woman, having come across a newspaper ad from a wealthy businessman who needs a "reliable wife," and hatches a dastardly plan. A lot of you have been reading this. Two friends at a swim meet just told me that the "key is to stick with it."
by Chris Bohjalian. “Bohjalian got me with this one, as he has in the two other books of his I've read. It took me about 1/4 of the way into it to get hooked, but I stayed up until 1 am last finishing it. His writing is really quite nice, possibly underrated. His storytelling is incredibly compelling. There are several stories woven together in this book, the main being the plight of an aristocratic Prussian family forced to march west in the waning months of WWII. The horrors and atrocities of the war are on full display -- almost, but somehow not quite, unbearable to read about. Really good read, really good reminder.” (Ed: I also really liked Bohjalian's previous works, 
and 
.)
by Leif Enger. "Gorgeous, gorgeous writing by the author of Peace Like a River. A story about couple of fugitives, a lot of close escapes, and some fascinating secondary characters. A sympathetically written allegory similar in tone and feel to the movie ‘Oh Brother, Where Art Thou.’" (Ed: 
is one of my all-time favorite books. Please read it if you haven't already!)
by Lawrence Hill. "A book about slavery that is ‘stunning, wrenching and inspiring.’ The main character will forever be seared into my brain. I couldn’t put it down I was so mesmerized. This book to me was like watching Roots when I was a teenager."
by Charlaine Harris. "Love these books. My guilty pleasure. What's not to like about a Southern vampire mystery romance? The basis of the hit HBO series 'True Blood', these books have sex, humor, puzzles, mythology - the whole enchilada. Excellent beach reading." 
by Marjorie Hart. "Read this on a Vamoose ride to NYC. Set in NYC during the latter part of WWII, the book tells of the life changing adventures (in that 1940's kind of way) of two Iowa college students who move to Manhattan for a summer and secure jobs at Tiffany's. The cute tone is as if your 80 something year old grandmother were recounting favorite memories with that far away smile on her face. In fact, the book is a memoir, albeit quite light." (Ed: I should start a category, "Books You Can Finish in on Vamoose ride.")
by Alan Bradley. "I realized I could enjoy this book more if I pretended that the protagonist was NOT an 11 year old girl since there was no way an 11 year old would ever have this vocabulary, knowledge of poisons, or chutzpah. Once past Flavia's age (and name) I was able to relax and enjoy the mystery. I liked the setting - a small English village in the 1950's - and I liked the relationship that Flavia had with the old gardener, Dogger. Descriptions like ‘quaint’, ‘quirky’, and ‘cozy’ could be used to describe this book." (Ed: This is a first novel by a 70-year-old author. There is hope for us all!)
by Sue Monk Kidd. No specific comments, but a couple of you listed it.
by Anthony Capella. "I didn't like this as much as his other books, which really made me starving for good Italian food. The book is about a foppish English coffee trader in the late 19th century who travels to the wilds of Africa. It's a fun read while you drink a good cup of coffee, and I learned a bit in the process." (Ed: I enjoyed 
, which was on last year’s list. Raunchy but good!)
by Phillippa Gregory. "If you like this genre, this is a quick, fun read about Queen Elizabeth and Tudors v Yorks ('War of the Roses' or the 'Cousins Wars.') A summer Harlequin in that British royal history kind of way."
by Hillary Mantel. Winner of the Booker prize, a novel about Thomas Cromwell, the villain of "A Man for all Seasons" (but not of Wolf Hall). "Lovely tempo and atmospheric style of writing in an historical setting. Quite a successful combination." (Ed: I'm about 60% of the way through. It is indeed brilliant, but I have been annoyed by Mantel’s ambiguous use of the pronoun "he." I guess it's because there were too many Thomases. So here's a hint to increase your enjoyment: If she says "he," she generally means Cromwell.)
