September 2.0

The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle by Stuart Turton
This is one of the most creatively plotted books I have read in years...Agatha Christie meets Stephen King on an Alfred Hitchcock set. The premise is unique: the main character has eight days, in eight different bodies, to find out who killed Evelyn Hardcastle, a young privileged woman newly returned to the family estate in England. The consequences of failure are severe - being stuck in the loop of time forever. The wide variety of characters is impressive: the likable drug peddler, the overweight brilliant aristocrat, the devious artist, the shockingly complex maid, etc. - and they all have their roles to play. Be forewarned that this book takes a little time to quash the frustration and confusion, but be patient. By page 50, you will be beyond hooked, unable to put down this clever, well-written book until you know all the "whodunnits." This is the perfect book for a stormy day, nestled in a cozy chair with a cup of tea. In a word, it is brilliant.

Heartland:A Memoir of Working Hard and Being Broke in the Richest Country on Earth by Sarah Smarsh
For those of you who loved My Name is Lucy Barton, or Nickled and Dimed, or Hillbilly Elegy, you will need to add this book to your TBR pile. Debut author Sarah Smarsh chronicles her life, and generations of her family, as they try and survive living and toiling in Kansas during the past century. The difference in this story for me was the fact that it is told from a female perspective, as well as focusing on the matriarchal struggles of generations of teenage motherhood, abusive marriages, and the lack of education. The idea that one can pull oneself up by the bootstraps is turned upside down when one does not even own any boots. This is an engrossing book that I read voraciously in just 24 hours, unable to put it down, unable to relate in many ways, and also seeing many of my former students in her stories. I wish I had known years ago what I have spent the last few years learning: that the chance of skin color, economic class, and geography has more to do with a person's ability to 'make it' than just about anything else. Yes, there are those anomalies, the poor kid who hits it big like Andrew Carnegie, but they are fewer and fewer than in years past. This book will provide any book club with some provocative conversation and food for thought in our own communities.

Rising Out of Hatred: The Awakening of a Former White Nationalist by Eli Saslow
Powerful. Crushing. Frightening. Inspiring. This is the power of a new book by the Pulitzer prize-winning Washington Post journalist. More than just a treatise on escaping a powerful belief, it is a tale of the rise of white supremacism in the very midst of the American experiment with democracy. Following the life of Derek Black, son of the creator of StormFront, an infamous Neo-Nazi website as well as the godson of David Duke, we see the incredible power of this movement. Derek was steeped in hate, in racism, in anti-semitism literally from his birth and groomed to be the next big leader of the movement. However, at his small Florida liberal arts college, Derek is surrounded by a small group of friends, who hate his beliefs, love him anyway, and show him through their lives and their words a way out. Saslow's story also shows us the blatant manner in which the Neo-Nazi movement has infiltrated the common political world of today, as well as mainstream media. Well-written with detailed investigative reporting, this book has a heart as well as a warning.

The Brain's Way of Healing: Remarkable Discoveries and Recoveries from the Frontiers of Neuroplasticity by Norman Doidge, M.D.
After ten months of chronic pain due to shoulder surgery and frozen shoulder, my physical therapist recommended this book; it has changed my life. Based on the many studies of how our brains can morph, change, and heal, the area of neuroplasticity is a whole new world. I actually listened to this book first, and then bough a paper copy as it contains so much information that I want to refer back to over time. The chapters deal with a variety of medical research and studies on Parkinson's disease, multiple sclerosis, chronic pain, learning disabilities, tinnitis, autism, stroke recovery, and pretty much anything involved in neural pathways. I found it utterly fascinating, well-researched, and full of solutions that can change lives. I cannot recommend this book highly enough.

Transcription by Kate Atkinson
I loved Life After Life and A God in Ruins by Atkinson, but this latest book left me disappointed. I wasn't sure if it was supposed to be a straight historical fiction or a farce, which is problematic. The premise of the book is a story of a young British girl who goes to work in WWII for MI5, the domestic spy group. As Juliet is dragged from a secretarial role of transcribing secret recordings of Nazi sympathizers in London into actually being a spy, the story rolled off the tracks for me. Characters that just did not make sense to me, plot twists that were so contrived they were laughable, and an ending that was a complete let down all combined to make this book a big "miss" for me. Thanks to Net Galley for a free book in exchange for an honest review.