5 BOOK PICKS FOR THE NEW YEAR
As we start off the New Year, let’s look back at some of the top-reviewed books that were published in the past few months. These books may not have been on everyone’s radar. I hope that by showcasing these titles, you’ll include them in addition to your usual fare. All of these titles can be checked out at the Albert L. Scott Library with a Shelby County Library card.Carol Smith | Public Services Librarian | Albert L. Scott Library
Manhattan Beach
By Jennifer Egan | Adult Fiction Anna Kerrigan, nearly 12 years old, accompanies her father to visit Dexter Styles, a man who, she gleans, is crucial to the survival of her father and her family. She is mesmerized by the sea beyond the house and by some charged mystery between the two men. Years later, her father has disappeared and the country is at war. Anna works at the Brooklyn Naval Yard, where women are allowed to hold jobs that once belonged to men, now soldiers abroad. She becomes the first female diver, the most dangerous and exclusive of occupations, repairing the ships that will help America win the war. One evening at a nightclub, she meets Dexter Styles again, and begins to understand the complexity of her father’s life, the reasons he might have vanished.
artemis
By Andy Weir | Adult Fiction Augmenting her limited income by smuggling contraband to survive on the Moon’s wealthy city of Artemis, Jazz agrees to commit what seems to be a perfect, lucrative crime, only to find herself embroiled in a conspiracy for control of the city. From the author of The Martian.
little fires everywhere
By Celeste Ng | Adult Fiction An intricate and captivating portrait of an eerily perfect suburban town with its dark undertones not-quite-hidden from view and a powerful and suspenseful novel about motherhood…Ng explores the complexities of adoption, surrogacy, abortion, privacy and class, questioning all the while who earns, who claims, and who loses the right to be called a mother…an impressive accomplishment.
the power
By Naomi Alderman | Adult Fiction In The Power, the world is a recognizable place: there’s a rich Nigerian boy who lounges around the family pool; a foster kid whose religious parents hide their true nature; an ambitious American politician; a tough London girl from a tricky family. But then a vital new force takes root and flourishes, causing their lives to converge with devastating effect. Teenage girls now have immense physical power – they can cause agonizing pain and even death. And, with this small twist of nature, the world drastically resets.
the floating world
By C. Morgan Babst | Adult Fiction When a fragile young woman refuses to leave New Orleans as Hurricane Katrina approaches, her parents are forced to go without her, setting off a chain of events that leaves their marriage in shambles and their daughter catatonic, the victim – or perpetrator of some unknown violent act.
