Woman

The American History of an Idea

by Lillian Faderman

The title of this excellent book tells a reader just what to expect. This is an academic title that will talk about the concept and history of women over the course of 400 years of American history.

This title explores women’s experiences and the ways in which expectations for them could often be defined by others. Readers will also discover when and how women began to define their lives and experiences for themselves.

The author is a professor and she knows her subject well. She is also able to engage the reader and does so, right from the introduction, when she talks about her JHS, her sexual identity, and her having been raised by an unmarried mother. Professor Faderman notes the disconnect between her experience and the 1950s woman as portrayed on TV in the personage of a June Cleaver or a Donna Reed.

When Professor Faderman made her way into a PhD program, she chose to study women in America. One result of that decision is this book. Professor Faderman examines the ways in which women have been defined by both men and women and notes that, while some women wanted more (the vote, for example), others did not.

This is an engaging, interesting and absorbing study that moves from the seventeenth century to the present day. I highly recommend it.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher. All opinions are my own.

This book will be published on 15 Mar 2022.

Editorial Reviews

Review

“A comprehensive and lucid overview of the ongoing campaign to free women from ‘the tyranny of old notions.’”—Publishers Weekly

“An intelligently provocative, vital reading experience. . . . This highly readable, inclusive, and deeply researched book will appeal to scholars of women and gender studies as well as anyone seeking to understand the historical patterns that misogyny has etched across every era of American culture.”—Kirkus Reviews

A Penguin Adventure

by Caryn Rivadeneira

#EdwardandAnnie #NetGalley

A student whom I tutor loves ks about the natural world and its creatures. She would be so delighted by this title that also delighted me.

Here is the Shedd Aquarium, a place that must be amazing in real life but that is also fun to visit in this book. As it is set during Covid, there are no people but the hope is that they will be back soon. Meanwhile, an employee travels all over the aquarium with our two penguin friends.

With vivid illustrations and helpful text, readers get to see and know many sea critters. Such a nice and informative (virtual) field trip.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher. All opinions are my own.

The above two are from The Short List and under ten dollars

The Maid by Nita Prose

The Maid has garnered so much praise both before and after publication. It is a book that is definitely worth reading. Those who enjoy The Thursday Murder Club and Ruth Galloway mysteries are certain to love this novel with it quirky, idiosyncratic and (morally) good protagonist.

Molly sees the world in her own way. She appears to be “on the spectrum,” though I hate to use that term and do not want to make Molly anything other than the unique woman that she is. Molly has trouble reading social cues and people’s facial expressions. This can lead to her being naively trusting. Molly speaks with a beautifully old fashioned syntax and sometimes makes rhymes as, for example, “a tissue for your issue.”

Molly lives with her grandmother who works as a domestic. Molly is herself a maid, working at the Grand Hotel. It is a job that suits her orderly personality and Molly takes great pride in her work. (She will hopefully leave readers with more respect for those who toil in hotels for the benefit of the guests).

Molly becomes involved in a series of events that leave her in over her head. There were times when I wanted to yell “stop” to Molly when she trusted some of the hotel staff and guests but, of course, could not do so. The fact that I wanted to is a tribute to the author’s ability to create characters for whom readers will care.

Who will protect Molly? Will she get out of this mess? Will she or the hotel ever be the same? Read this charming, heartfelt novel to find out. To use one of Molly’s favorite words, it is “delightful.”

I sincerely hope that the author’s next book is published soon. I give this first novel of hers five stars.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher. All opinions are my own.

greenwich park by katherine faulkner

Greenwich Park is the London neighborhood that readers get to know well over the course of this domestic thriller. This is the first novel by Katherine Faulkner but I feel that she has done her research on how to write this type of popular book.

Readers get to know a number of women in this story that is told in alternating voices. That, of course, does not tell readers who is truthful or what exactly will happen. There are:

Helen-She finally seems to be having a successful pregnancy after heartache. Her husband seems to work late an awful lot of nights. Keep an eye out for his computer.

Serena: She is also pregnant with a baby due not so long after Helen’s. She is married to one of Helen’s brothers. What is the meaning of the note that is secreted in a cupboard and that has the initial W?

Katie: She is a reporter covering a rape case in which the accused are public school boys. She is involved with Helen’s other brother, Charlie.

These characters all know and interact with one another. Into this mix comes Rachel.

Rachel attaches herself to Helen in an ante-natal group and soon insidiously makes her way into Helen’s life. Who is her baby’s father? Rachel is portrayed as manipulative, presumptuous and able to insinuate her way into other’s lives. Why does she want to be with this group?

Helen, Serena and their respective partners all went to Cambridge together. What happened when they were there? How will that resonate in the present day? Readers know from the first chapter’s first sentence that someone is in jail but who is it and why? Pick up the novel to find out.

I enjoyed this book. I was taken in by its sense of menace, often finding myself wanting to warn the characters. I thought I knew what would happen. Will you feel this way? Will you be right?

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this title. All opinions are my own.

#TheGreatPassion #NetGalley

I am a great fan of James Runcie’s Sidney Chambers books. Sidney is such a wonderful character and a good, interesting man. I highly recommend the series. Loving those stories as I do, I was delighted to receive an ARC of this novel by Mr. Runcie. Thank you Bloomsbury. (All opinions will be my own.)

The same qualities that flow through the Chambers novels are in play here as well. These include an ability to create well rounded and very human portrayals of the characters. In addition, in this historical novel, Runcie skillfully recreates a time, place and culture. Time is spent in Liepzig, in a rather cold boarding school and in the world of the church and its music. Readers also get to intimately know the Bach family and witness the creation of Bach’s seminal work.

I very much enjoyed this novel and recommend it to those who enjoy the very best quality historical fiction. This book offers insight and heart as readers spend time with one of Bach’s students, with the great man and with his family. There are issues of loss, faith and music in these pages. The book will resonate for readers.

Again, many thanks to Bloomsbury and NetGalley.

WARNING: This book covers some difficult issues.

Jennifer Weiner is a perennially popular author. In That Summer, she is in top form, delivering exactly the novel that her fans want. It is immersive and takes on a social issue. The book also has well developed characters, settings that come to life, complex relationships and…food!

It is difficult to review this title without spoilers. Readers will want to see the plot unspool for themselves. The set up of centers on two women Diana and Daisy who have similar addresses on line. This leads to their getting together and spending a good amount of time in each other’s company. What will be revealed as they become better acquainted? What will happen to them as truths are revealed? How do the events of THAT SUMMER influence all that takes place? Read the novel to find out.

I both read and listened to this title. The narration was pitch perfect and provided by Sutton Foster.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this title. All opinions are my own.

Martin Walker has been writing about Bruno (Chief of Police) through fourteen books with a fifteenth coming later this year. So many enjoy his novels and will be delighted by this collection of short stories.

There are so many things to love in Bruno and his world. There is, of course, Bruno’s personality. I also very much like how the settings and people come to life. I do think, though, that one of the greatest joys comes from all of the food and drink. All of these favored elements are present in these stories.

I truly recommend this collection. It makes me want to go back to read all of the titles in the series.

This title will be published on 15 Mar 2022.

Give unto Others is the next title in this author’s marvelous Guido Brunetti series. Leon is a mistress of place and character. Readers will feel that they are in Venice as they watch characters move around the city both on land and water. The effect of the “pandemia” on “Venezia” is also part of the story.

Readers will also (I hope) enjoy spending time with the ethical, good and warm Brunetti and those around him. Readers will be happy to see Elettra (the clever!) and the others who make up Brunetti’s team. Of course, any moments with the Bruetti family are also quite a treat.

In this novel, Brunetti hears from Elisabetta, the daughter of a woman who was always kind to Brunetti’s mother. Along the way, readers meet a number of characters including one with Alzheimer’s who are entangled in Elisabetta’s situation. The toll of Alzheimer’s disease is made quite clear. Readers learn that Brunetti’s mother was also challenged by this illness.

A bonus in this story is that readers learn something more about Brunetti’s childhood and parents. For series fans this will be especially welcome.

As is always true, Leon is a genius at titles. Is the “giving” meant to be about Brunetti’s desire to help someone from his childhood? Is it to do with the charity or funds that people use for pleasure even though not entitle to do so? It is left to the reader to decide.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher. All opinions are my own.

From the Publisher

	Trace Elements	Transient Desires	Unto Us a Son is Given	The Temptation of Forgiveness	Willful Behavior

FROM THE PUBLISHER:

The New York Times 100 Notable Books of 2021
The New York Times Book Review Best Historical Fiction of 2021
Washington Post Best Books of 2021: 50 Notable Works of Fiction
TIME 100 Must-Read Books of 2021

The critically acclaimed and Whiting Award–winning author of We Love You, Charlie Freemanreturns with Libertie, an unforgettable story about one young Black girl’s attempt to find a place where she can be fully, and only, herself.

Coming of age in a free Black community in Reconstruction-era Brooklyn, Libertie Sampson is all too aware that her purposeful mother, a practicing physician, has a vision for their future together: Libertie is to go to medical school and practice alongside her. But Libertie, drawn more to music than science, feels stifled by her mother’s choices and is hungry for something else—is there really only one way to have an autonomous life? And she is constantly reminded that, unlike her light-skinned mother, Libertie will not be able to pass for white. When a young man from Haiti proposes to Libertie and promises she will be his equal on the island, she accepts, only to discover that she is still subordinate to him and all men. As she tries to parse what freedom actually means for a Black woman, Libertie struggles with where she might find it—for herself and for generations to come.

Inspired by the life of one of the first Black female doctors in the United States and rich with historical detail, Kaitlyn Greenidge’s new and immersive novel will resonate with readers eager to understand our present through a deep, moving, and lyrical dive into our past.

“An elegantly layered, beautifully rendered tour de force that is not to be missed.” 
—Roxane Gay, author of Hunger

#Libertie

More from the publisher:

From the Publisher

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Gr 9 Up-The question of freedom in all its varied senses weave throughout this stunning historical novel. Libertie, a dark-skinned girl, was born free in post-Civil War Brooklyn. Her light-skinned mother (based on a real-life figure) worked to help with the Underground Railroad and as a doctor, a practice she expects Libertie to take over. But after spending time at an all-Black girls school, Libertie finds herself drawn away from science and towards music. Searching for a freedom to call her own, Libertie agrees to marry a Haitian man who claims that in Haiti, she will be treated as his equal. However, she is startled to discover that even there, she is expected to be subordinate. She struggles with this new life for herself, questioning her decision to give up the potential for a more independent life alongside her mother in Brooklyn. Woven through Libertie’s coming of age is her growing understanding of colorism, classism, racism, and patriarchy as she struggles to define what being free means for a Black woman. This engaging novel immerses readers in a world rich with historical detail that brings to life lesser-known aspects of post-Civil War American history, such as Black women in medicine and the relationship between Haiti and the United States. VERDICT This will appeal to teenage fans of adult authors like Toni Morrison, Brit Bennett, and Yaa Gyasi.-Ann Foster, Saskatoon P.L., Sask.α(c) Copyright 2011. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.–This text refers to an alternate kindle_edition edition.

About the Author

Kaitlyn Greenidge‘s debut novel, We Love You, Charlie Freeman, was one of the New York Times Critics’ Top 10 Books of 2016 and a finalist for the Center for Fiction First Novel Prize. She is a contributing writer for the New York Times and the features director at Harper’s Bazaar, and her writing has also appeared in Vogue, Glamour, the Wall Street Journal, and elsewhere. She is the recipient of a Hodder Fellowship from Princeton University’s Lewis Center for the Arts, as well as fellowships from the Guggenheim Foundation, the Whiting Foundation, the National Endowment for the Arts, Substack, and the Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study. Greenidge lives in Massachusetts. Her second novel, Libertie, is available now.