Fiction
Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell. “Matryoshka dolls with one inside the other and then pulling back out to our original story. Mitchell is such a fantastic writer. As I would start each story I was thinking ‘damn, I was really getting into that other story - I don't care about a spoiled music student/reporter/old age home captive/futuristic clone/apocalyptic hillbilly’ but then I found myself caring very much about each of these new stories to the point where I was so frustrated when they would abruptly change to the next. Each story takes on a new voice and a new technique (journal, letters, interview, 3rd person and 1st) that give each a completely different feel and perspective from the previous story.”
Cluny Brown by Margery Sharp. You might recognize the author’s name, because she is best-known for her children’s books, especially the Rescuers series. However, she also wrote several charming, engaging adult novels. In 1930s Britain, Cluny Brown’s uncle ships her off to an estate in Devon to “go into service,” because he doesn’t know what to do with her. Cluny is wonderfully unconventional and struggles to find her place in the world. It’s engrossing and funny – a wonderful antidote to our charmless age.
Cocoa Beach by Beatriz Williams. An American nurse and a British soldier fall in love in France during WWI. Upon their return to England, however, the charming soldier appears to be a master manipulator. She flees to the States but remains trapped by his manipulations. What is real and whom can she trust? Many twists and turns make this a fun read to the end.
The Cold Song by Linn Ullman. “Part murder mystery, part examination of family relationships. Written by Ingmar Bergman’s daughter.”
The Collectibles by James J. Kaufman. “In his award winning debut novel, James J. Kaufman delivers a gripping and unforgettable story of two strong men from separate worlds - one touched by tragedy, the other by greed - brought together with unexpected results. In chronicling how their lives and those they touch are dramatically changed by their encounter, Kaufman reveals the power of relationships, the nature of love, and ultimately the meaning of life.”
Colony by Anne Rivers Siddons. Beachy -- SOOO beachy. But no surprise, that's what Siddons writes - beach books, (many are actually set on beaches). This one is about a summer colony in Maine. Lots of family melodrama, very page turney. Was a runaway bestseller when it was released in 2002.
Come, Thou Tortoise by Jessica Grant. “A great, unintended airport discovery. A really offbeat story that features an opinionated tortoise and an IQ-challenged narrator who find themselves in the middle of a life-changing mystery. Audrey (a.k.a. Oddly) Flowers is living quietly in Oregon with Winnifred, her tortoise, when she finds out her dear father has been knocked into a coma back in Newfoundland. Despite her fear of flying, she goes to him, but not before she reluctantly dumps Winnifred with her unreliable friends. Poor Winnifred. When Audrey disarms an Air Marshal en route to St. John’s we begin to realize there’s something odd about her (more than keeping a tortoise). And we soon know that Audrey’s quest to discover who her father really was – and reunite with Winnifred – will be an adventure like no other. May be one of the only books you read this year with perspectives from a tortoise!”
Come West and See by Maxim Loskutoff. I found it on a NYT list of 10 summer reads you wouldn’t normally read. It’s a series of short stories about list in the U.S. West from frontier days to modern times. Excellent. Don’t read in the car with children. Some of the stories are surprisingly sexual. This book really gives you a sense of the Western mentality and Western values.
Comfort & Joy
The Commonerby John Burnham Schwartz. “Interesting fictional account of the life of Empress Michiko. I love this type of story, romance, contemporary and historical fiction of a fascinating culture all in one. Well written too!”
Commonwealth by Ann Patchett. From the back cover: "One Sunday afternoon in Southern California, Bert Cousins shows up at Franny Keating’s christening party uninvited. Before evening falls, he has kissed Franny’s mother, Beverly—thus setting in motion the dissolution of their marriages and the joining of two families. Spanning five decades, Commonwealth explores how this chance encounter reverberates through the lives of the four parents and six children involved. Spending summers together in Virginia, the Keating and Cousins children forge a lasting bond based on a shared disillusionment with their parents and the strange and genuine affection that grows among them.When, in her twenties, Franny begins an affair with the legendary author Leon Posen and tells him about her family, the story of her siblings is no longer hers to control. Their childhood becomes the basis for his wildly successful book, ultimately forcing them to come to terms with their losses, their guilt, and the deeply loyal connection they feel for one another."
The Complete Stories of Truman Capote “A newly issued volume.”
The Confession by John Grisham. “I hadn’t read a Grisham book since his first few, but the Washington Post surprised me by giving the Confession a good review. Plus I had occasion to be exposed to the particulars of the ‘Norfolk Four’ case and how coerced confessions of the sort depicted in this novel can so thoroughly corrupt justice. The book was very suspenseful with a fairly well crafted story, and I finished it in a day. It was also better written than I remember Grisham being (should I read something he's written in the past fifteen years?). The negative was that I felt clubbed over the head with his caricatures. The novel is “advocacy fiction” (I think I’m making up that phrase, but you know what I mean) -- everyone is either angel or devil, depending on which side they are on. The innocent are perfect and pure and the pro-capital punishment characters are either: 1) corrupt and evil (anyone in an official role) or 2) ignorant, vengeful Texas rubes (all the rest). Shades of gray might have helped him Grisham deliver his message more effectively. I kept thinking of Tom Wolfe's book, I am Charlotte Simmons, where characters were so gratuitously cruel as to lack credibility. But again ... I read it in a day, so it obviously made a perfect beach read.”
Confessions of a Shopaholic by Sophie Kinsella: “This and other books in the Shopaholic series are total beach reading; I just bought my fifth one.” Another reader recommended Undomestic Goddess.
Cost by Roxana Robinson "This carried my book club through two meetings. No one could put it down, and we couldn't stop talking about it. Problem is, if I tell you too much of what it's about, you won't want to read it. But here's the basic premise: a mother of two grown sons finds herself sandwiched between their tremendous problems and her aging parents' aches and dementia. The tension runs so high in this novel that after every page you want just one more... a little like what drug addiction must be. Very well done, and deeply interesting as it explores the bonds between parents and children, and how they're broken."
The Couple Next Door by Shari Lapena. Although the story is about a couples missing child it is a mystery that keeps you turning the pages quickly!
Crazy Rich Asians, China Rich Girlfriend, Rich People Problems by Kevin Kwan. A super fun trilogy about the unimaginably wealthy people of Singapore. Unbeknownst to her, a very down-to-earth American is dating the highly eligible son of the most private, dynastic family in Singapore. She is thrown into his world on a summer trip to meet his parents and hilarity ensues. Just thinking about people having so many billions of dollars to throw around is hard to conceive. Kwan is from Singapore, and though clearly fiction, the novels have a ring of potential truth to them. Coming out in film soon, read the books first!
Crossing to Safety by Wallace Stegner. "A charming, stroll through friendship, marriage and family. This book is like taking a bite off of a bitter sweet apple." From Amazon: "Tracing the lives, loves, and aspirations of two couples who move between Vermont and Wisconsin, it is a work of quiet majesty, deep compassion, and powerful insight into the alchemy of friendship and marriage." Cozy settings - academia and a summer place in Vermont.
Crow Lake by Mary Lawson. "Four children living in northern Ontario struggle to stay together after their parents die in an auto accident in Lawson's fascinating debut, a compelling and lovely study of sibling rivalry and family dynamics in which the land literally becomes a character. Kate Morrison narrates the tale in flashback mode, starting with the fatal car accident that leaves seven-year-old Kate; her toddler sister, Bo; 19-year-old Luke; and 17-year-old Matt to fend for themselves. At first they are divided up among relatives, but the plan changes when Luke gives up his teaching college scholarship to get a job and try to keep them together."
Cry, The Beloved Country (Paperback)