The Real, Honest, Word on Books
By Lawrence Wright This book is about a pandemic that starts in Asia and takes over the world quickly and with almost complete devastation. It was actually written before the onslaught of COVID-19, but the present pandemic makes it all the more real. I think Wright’s tale emphasizes what can happen when governments refuse to…
By Elisabeth Thomas This book is about a very selective college whose alums go on to be ridiculously successful, rich and famous. It has a stringent application and interview process, with very few potential students being accepted. Once accepted, everything is paid for in exchange for your dedication of three entire years to the school…
By Lucy Foley This book is about a destination wedding weekend. The event occurs on a remote, unpopulated island off the coast of Ireland. Haunted and inhospitable to locals, Freddy and Aoife are determined to make it The wedding destination. Their first booking is The couple, Jules Keegan, internet influencer extraordinaire, and Will Slater, rugged…
By Brit Bennett This book is about black twins born in the 1940’s in Louisiana. The girls are noted in their town for the lightness of their skin, a highly-valued trait in the area known as Mallard, Louisiana. Mallard is so small, and not so official as to be found on any maps, and is…
By CS Harris This book is about a man falsely accused of murder and then framed for another attack by the police. That man is Sebastian St. Cyr, who will become the Earl of Hendon when his prominent father dies. What Angels Fear is the first of his mystery series, and references the quote by…
By Dean Atta This book I admittedly would not have picked up if not for my following B&N YA Book Club, but I am so glad I did! This became a very timely choice as well, as we who are not black need to keep shouting on behalf of black people, drawing attention to black…
By Oyinkan Braithwaite This book is about a woman in Africa who seems to always come in second to her beautiful sister. Her sister, Ayoola, can get any man she wants, and any thing from that man, because of her obscene beauty. People never really notice Korede, a dedicated nurse at the hospital who is…
Dorothy West I wanted to introduce a new part of my blog highlighting authors, and perhaps revealing interesting facts most of us did not know. For my first author, I wanted it to be a woman, and specifically a woman of color, as the brutality and injustice happening in our nation is vile and a…
By TJ Klune This book is about a social worker who visits different orphanages to ascertain if the conditions and protocols meet the standards set by the government. Linus Baker is also called to investigate any “incidents” where a child may be in danger or have put others in danger. The twist? The children are…
By Grady Hendrix This book is about the battle between a true crime book club of Southern Ladies vs. the vampire that moves into town. These five ladies get tired of reading “great literature” in the established Book Club in town, and informally break off to read the books that interest them: Helter Skelter, In…