Staff Picks

Looking for some reading inspiration? Here are some of the books and media we've recently enjoyed.

Alaina's picks: 


The Guncle Abroad by Steven Rowley

I read The Guncle a few years ago and loved it with my whole heart. A lot of time has passed since I spent time with Patrick, Grant, and Maisie, though, so I was nervous I wouldn't be as "into" this sequel after such a long time away from this story and this family. How foolish of me! Right from the start I was reminded why Patrick is someone I love so dearly. He is extremely arrogant and a sassy jerk, but he is also kind, loving, and hilarious. 

I loved that the first book tackled grief after losing a parent/friend/wife, which is a topic I don't think we can ever explore enough. I wasn't sure how this book, which centers around a wedding, could have the same impact as the first. I was quite surprised at how moving this book ended up being. Like the first book, this story tackled grief, but the kind of grief that stays with you for a lifetime after losing someone, not the initial pain of that loss. All the characters are learning how to celebrate their memories of their loved one(s) while making space for memories with new people who enter their lives. As Patrick describes it, this story is not about moving on, but moving forward.

This was such a beautiful and joyful book. If you enjoyed The Guncle, you will definitely want to pick this one up. Fingers crossed we get more stories with this delightful little family. 


The Last Murder at the End of the World by Stuart Turton

This post-apocalyptic mystery is set on an island inhabited by 122 villagers and three scientists. They are all that's left in the world after a deadly fog has swept over the planet, an AI security system named Abi the only thing keeping the fog from taking over the island. When one of the scientists is murdered, it triggers Abi to lower the security system around the island, dooming the island to be overrun by the fog in just a few days. Abi will only turn the security system back on if the villagers can solve the murder of the scientist. The only problem is that Abi has also wiped everyone's memories of the night of the murder, which means anyone on the island could be part of the murder and they wouldn't even know it. 

If I'm being honest, everything about this book is outside my typical reading preferences. Adult fiction? Not my favorite. Post-apocalyptic? No interest. Murder mystery? Only if it's the cozy kind and has recipes sprinkled throughout the story. Despite all that, the plot for this book sounded so intriguing that I couldn't resist giving it a shot. It took me a few chapters to get into this story, but, once I did, I'm surprised how much I ended up enjoying it. I can't say I was overly invested in figuring out who was the murderer, but I found all the mysteries surrounding the island and its inhabitants to be interesting enough that it made me want to keep reading. Was this a phenomenal 5-star read that I recommend everyone pick up? No, but it was a fast and fun book that was out of my comfort zone and made me say "whoa, I didn't see that coming" a few times, and that's good enough for me.

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Sara's picks:


What Cats Want: An Illustrated Guide for Truly Understanding Your Cat by Yuki Hattori


Keeping Up Appearances
 

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Shilo’s picks:

Adult book:


Emily Wilde's Encyclopaedia of Faeries by Heather Fawcett


Picture books:


What Does It Mean to Be American? by Rana DiOrio


Our Pool by Lucy Ruth Cummins


Maddi's Fridge by Lois Brandt


The Girl and the Bicycle by Mark Pett


No Cats in the Library by Lauren Emmons
 
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Gina's picks:

Fiction:


The Searcher by Tana French

This book and the one below are both mysteries, but otherwise they're polar opposites. Tana French is a master of the slow burn. The Searcher is very much a character-driven story. It takes 80 pages to get to the actual plot — that a teenager is missing and his younger sibling wants the protagonist, Cal Hooper, to find him. The plot takes its time, mostly focusing on the everyday life of Cal, a former Chicago cop who moved to a small village in Ireland after his divorce. The "Irishness" is the real draw, and I loved soaking up Tana French's landscape and dialogue. She has the most beautiful descriptive voice. A patron said her sequel to this book, The Hunter, is even better, and it's on my list to read next. But if you're someone who has gotten used to our era of every chapter needing to end on a cliffhanger — like just about every modern TV episode — then French's novels probably won't be for you. Freida McFadden, on the other hand, may be right up your alley...



The Housemaid by Freida McFadden

Do you remember when The Da Vinci Code first came out, and it seemed like everyone was devouring Dan Brown's book? It was called "unputdownable." A large part of that was the subject matter, but it was also his bite-size chapters teasing you along from major event to major event. You could probably time yourself finishing a new chapter every minute. Freida McFadden's books are sort of like that, but without the religious symbolism and historical topics. Her world is very much a domestic space. I read The Teacher last month and it annoyed the heck out of me, so of course I dove right back in with The Housemaid. This is the first book in a trilogy, and the third just came out in June. I think I'm done after this first one, but I'd be lying if I said I didn't fly through each chapter. I don't think the twists here are that shocking; it all feels like a cross between Colleen Hoover's Verity and The Other Woman by Sandie Jones. It's that kind of psychological thriller. I just started reading Lisa Jewell's None of This Is True, which seems like it's going to fit right in with that group. Very different from The Searcher. But sometimes you need a slow burn and sometimes you need a juicy page-turner.



Agatha Raisin series by M.C. Beaton

I just finished my 27th Agatha Raisin book. I think it was this time last year that I ended up reading the first book, or the first two books since Berwick's copy has the first two stories in the same volume. I don't remember what made me start, but I took a break at one point and now I'm back in Aggie's world for a bit. She's like comfort food. That's why they call these mysteries "cozies." Even after 27 books, Agatha hasn't aged or even really matured one bit. And I love that for both of us. 


Non-fiction:


The Situation Room: The Inside Story of Presidents in Crisis by George Stephanopoulos

I just checked this out from the South Berwick library on June 28th and I'm already hooked. I love stories from political insiders and this has just the right balance of historical information and behind-the-scenes drama. 



Spare by Prince Harry

This isn't the kind of thing I would normally read, but 1) the book I thought was coming in the interlibrary loan got stuck in this infernal van delivery suspension, and 2) Prince Harry was staring out at me from our book sale wall. So I decided to "spare" (hilarious!) $2 and buy Spare to read between other titles. I'm not exactly a royal watcher, but I do have a clear memory of my shock watching the news when Princess Diana was declared dead. Like everyone else, I thought about her sons. I was in college when Diana died and feel like I watched Harry grow up. So seeing him not only get married, have his own kids, and infamously exit the royal family, but also write a book about it all — dang, I feel old! So far, though, his memoir seems very engaging and astonishingly open for someone born into such an obsessively private family. It's also only slightly self-pitying. It's a tall order to earn sympathy when you're a rich, handsome prince, but considering how the press and his own family have treated him — and of course the fact that he lost his mother at age 12 — I can spare some compassion.


Movies:


Dune: Part Two

Berwick should have a film club to discuss movies based on books. Like this one. Dune: Part Two is still based on Dune and it would be fun to have a double feature showing both movies, followed by a discussion on the book changes. I'm obsessed with Rebecca Ferguson in general and her Lady Jessica is perfection. I enjoyed the rest of this new movie, and the first one, but I'd be comfortable nitpicking big and small details. I don't care as much about faithfulness to the text as loyal Dune-lovers, I just want to watch a well-told story. We have a copy of this movie at the Berwick library, although I suspect it will be checked out frequently, since it's one of the most popular movies of the year.