Fiction

The Valley: A Novel by John Renehan. “It is an "Apocalypse Now"-sort of story set in Afghanistan. I read it over Spring Break. The first two chapters were a little slow, but then it was a captivating, quick read."

Vanity Fair. “It's good, but there is no one good to pull for.”

The Various Flavors of Coffee by Anthony Capella. "I didn't like this as much as his other books, which really made me starving for good Italian food. The book is about a foppish English coffee trader in the late 19th century who travels to the wilds of Africa. It's a fun read while you drink a good cup of coffee, and I learned a bit in the process." (The Wedding Officer has also made the list. Described as "raunchy but good.")

The Various Haunts of Men (Simon Serrailler Mystery)by Susan Hill. “This is the first in the Simon Serrailler detective series. Interestingly, he is hardly in this book at all which I thought was a clever idea. Instead, Hill gives us Freya Graffham - a new young policewoman in town who has a crush on Simon and sees him as an almost mythical figure. We learn a lot about him through her eyes but he always stays a little removed, intriguing, and seductive - the desire to know more means the second book in the series is already in my TBR pile ready to go. Hill isn't writing your usual mystery. She focuses mostly on character, developing even the minor players with personalities, motivations, and back stories. Everyone has a little something going on - some of it is linked to the plot and but some of it just adds richness to the people we are starting to care about. The mystery is here but it feels secondary and doesn't kick in for quite some time. That was ok with me but I could understand if a reader was frustrated with the pace. I actually thought the mystery is the weakest part of the book with an interesting premise but an underdeveloped conclusion. Even so, this was a book that I raced through and really enjoyed.”

Vertigo 42 by Martha Grimes. “Martha Grimes is a true master of the British mystery, even though she's a resident of Bethesda, MD. In this book - her 21st Richard Jury novel - Jury investigates a suspicious death that occurred 17 years prior. It's edgy, melancholic, evocative and engaging.”

The View from Castle Rock by Alice Munro. "For those of you who like Geraldine Brooks, you can see what she has to say on Munro in the Amazon link. Nobody’s shelf is complete without Alice Munro, and this title is her latest, though any one of her books will satisfy. She writes long, novel-like stories, life stories that leave you enlightened and entertained and in awe of the everyday folk of rural Canada. She’s in some ways reminiscent of our early to mid-century Southern writers, but she digs deeper, shows us the startling and disturbing secrets of everyone around us. The first piece in The View from Castle Rock will win over only the most persistent as she lays out much of her complex family history, but the rest are vintage Munro."

From Wall Street With Love: Be Careful of What You Wish For (Volume 1)by Leigh Boyer. A "scandalous tale of bad behavior in finance" it was "Written by a PR person who used to work for BofA, or Citi, or Amex .... or so the NY rumor mill spins. Feels like thinly veiled fiction. Easy read, can do it in a day and a half."

Warm Bodiesby Isaac Marion. Inspired by Romeo and Juliet. “I’m embarrassed to admit that I discovered this book as a movie preview while watching the final installment of Twilight: Breaking Dawn. Ready to move on from tween vampire books, I easily transitioned into tween zombie books. Set in a post-apocalyptic world where zombies have taken over all countries and few humans remain, one zombie falls for a human girl and suddenly starts to feel human again. Total beach read – you’ll be done in a few hours.”

Watermelon, by Marian Keyes. “Easy summer reading.” This Irish author has written a bunch of other books, too. (Don't forget Irish novelist Maeve Binchy - also good for beach reading).

We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves by Karen Fowler. “A friend recommended I buy this book and read the first three chapters without reading the back of the book first. Definitely worth it!” Barbara Kingsolver said about this book: “A novel so readably juicy and surreptitiously smart, it deserves all the attention it can get . . . [Its] fresh diction and madcap plot bend the tone toward comedy, but it never mislays its solemn raison d’être. Monkeyshines aside, this is a story of Everyfamily in which loss engraves relationships, truth is a soulful stalker and coming-of-age means facing down the mirror, recognizing the shape-shifting notion of self.”

We Are Called To Rise by Laura McBride. “A first book, and a great one. McBride tells four intersecting stories in four different voices - so you see incidents and happenings through different eyes - and yet at the denouement, you see how connected we all are to one another and how good the world can be. It's brilliant.”

We Need to Talk About Kevin by Lionel Shiver. “Just read it. Then we'll talk about it. Get ready to examine yourself, judge the characters and, maybe, be haunted by this story.”

We the Animals by Justin Torres. “Beautifully and poetically written.”

We Were Liars by E. Lockhart. Dark. Like pitch black, dark, but a fantastic, engaging read. Do not read any more about it, just read it. Ignore that it’s shelved as young adult. “I read this in straight through in basically one sitting today. I really enjoyed the world that Lockhart creates with Beechwood Island and the Sinclair family. I may not have summered on a private island but I felt the New England island atmosphere was really believable and relatable. Lockhart nails so many of those feelings when you are young enough to still be governed by adults but old enough to run wild with your friends all day long. The foursome of The Liars will probably remind many people of their own childhood tribe - either one you were in or one you wish you'd been in. A terrific summer story - read it before you hear spoilers. I read this in straight through in basically one sitting today. I really enjoyed the world that Lockhart creates with Beechwood Island and the Sinclair family. I may not have summered on a private island but I felt the New England island atmosphere was really believable and relatable. Lockhart nails so many of those feelings when you are young enough to still be governed by adults but old enough to run wild with your friends all day long. The foursome of The Liars will probably remind many people of their own childhood tribe - either one you were in or one you wish you'd been in. A terrific summer story - read it before you hear spoilers.”

We Were the Mulvaneysby Joyce Carol Oates. This has appeared on previous lists, and now the Barnard book club has added their endorsement. “A family living in the small, rural town of Mt. Ephraim, New York, during the latter part of the 20th century, are the perfect family: four children, the owners of a successful roofing business, and a high social status. We Were the Mulvaneystells the tale of the demise of this perfect family—an incident that is hushed up in town and never spoken of again. It is this incident that shatters the family fabric with tragic consequences. On St. Valentine's night, 1976, Marianne Mulvaney, after prom, goes to a party where she becomes intoxicated and is raped by an upperclassman whose father is a well-respected businessman and friend of Mr. Mulvaney. After many years, the Mulvaneys meet once again.”

The Wedding Officer by Anthony Capella “ Total Junk Read - Reading anything by Capella will make you very hungry and leave you with a strong desire to move to Italy (I also recommend his first novel, The Food of Love). The story takes place in Italy in WWII, and based on a tiny bit of truth. But mostly it's a love story with a focus on food and cooking. A wee bit smutty as well (Amazon describes it as ‘sensuous’).”

The Weird Sisters by Eleanor Brown. Novel about “a Shakespearean expert who names his three daughters after the Bard's greatest heroines. After a variety of disappointments, these adult daughters find themselves living at home - which gives them the perfect environment to continue to grow up. If you have a familiarity with Shakespeare, you will love this book.” … “As one of 3 girls, I find birth order very telling for one's personality & role in the family. I am Bean chronologically but Rose in personality!” [Ed: This one was borderline "top pick."]

What Alice Forgotby Liane Moriarty. “A fun novel about a woman who hits her head in spin class and comes to with the last 10 years shaved off her life. She believes she is madly in love with her husband and pregnant with her first child. In reality, she has 3 kids and is in the midst of a bitter divorce. Things change as she starts seeing her real life through the more innocent and happy lens of her younger self.”

What Happened to Sophie Wilder“Described as a stunning, smart, short, and fantastic first novel written by an author wise beyond his years - it is a modern fable of faith and doubt, ambition, and love. In the novel, a young male writer deals with the reappearance and disappearance of the woman he met in college and loved. It discusses the New York publishing world, the growing pains of post- collegiate life, and THE RIGORS OF ROMAN CATHOLICISM. Sophie has converted to Catholicism, and somehow this plays largely into the plot. Hailed as one of the best of 2012, it too has been very well reviewed and received.”

What It Was George Pelacanos. Excellent crime fiction by DC writer, set in the 70s (with realistic, local touches like Thom McAnn and Hot Shoppes).

Fiction

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