August 2023/ July 2024 Book Club list

The Storied Life of AJ Fikry,

by Gabrielle Zevin, 2014

“In this sweet, uplifting homage to bookstores, Zevin perfectly captures the joy of connecting people and books . . . Filled with interesting characters, a deep knowledge of bookselling, wonderful critiques of classic titles, and very funny depictions of book clubs and author events, this will prove irresistible to book lovers everywhere.” —Booklist

Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine,

by Gail Honeyman, 2017

The 2017 debut novel by Gail Honeyman, and the winner of the 2017 Costa Debut Novel Award. The story centres on Eleanor Oliphant, a social misfit with a traumatic past who becomes enamoured with a singer, whom she believes she is destined to be with. The novel deals with themes of isolation and loneliness, and depicts Eleanor's transformational journey towards a fuller understanding of self and life.

Mad Honey,

by Jodi Picoult and Jennifer Kinney Boylan, 2022

“MAD HONEY has all of the things: alternating narratives, suspense, courtroom drama, and a love story at its core. It’s about authenticity, identity, and it explores the secrets we keep and the risks we take in order to become our true selves.”

—Jodi Picoult

The Nature of Fragile Things,

by Susan Meissner, 2021

April 18, 1906: A massive earthquake rocks San Francisco just before daybreak, igniting a devouring inferno. Lives are lost, lives are shattered, but some rise from the ashes forever changed.

Lady in Waiting: My Extraordinary Life in the Shadow of the Crown,

by Anne Glenconner, 2012

Discover untold secrets with this extraordinary memoir of drama and tragedy by Anne Glenconner.
Anne Glenconner has been at the center of the royal circle from childhood, when she met and befriended the future Queen Elizabeth II and her sister, the Princess Margaret. Though the firstborn child of the 5th Earl of Leicester, who controlled one of the largest estates in England, as a daughter she was deemed "the greatest disappointment" and unable to inherit. Since then she has needed all her resilience to survive court life with her sense of humor intact.

Born in District Six: Fictional short stories, Cape Town, South Africa

by Ruth Alexander, 2023

Ruth Alexander was born in fairyland District Six, Cape Town, South Africa. She resides in Monte Sereno, California, USA. The fictional short stories are mainly written about District Six (D6). It was a vibrant, diverse community of all colors who lived there, went to segregated divided schools, played, and grew up together as an extended family unlike any other. Furthermore, touching briefly on the apartheid era that affected an entire community of D6, there is greater depth within the story. Delving into how the land was redeveloped after bulldozing and people refusing to touch the land, the stories seek to divulge the complexities of this area.

Interior Chinatown

by Charles Yu, 2020

From the infinitely inventive author of How to Live Safely in a Science Fictional Universe comes a deeply personal novel about race, pop culture, immigration, assimilation, and escaping the roles we are forced to play.

Playful but heartfelt, a send-up of Hollywood tropes and Asian stereotypes–Interior Chinatown is Charles Yu’s most moving, daring, and masterful novel yet.