February 2019

On Friday, March 8th, author and actress Kate Mulgrew sat down with LLF's Virginia Stanley to discuss her upcoming memoir, How to Forget. This is an incredible interview not to be missed.

Before you watch, please read this powerful review from Maxine Bleiweis, former Westport (CT) Library Director and current owner of Maxine Bleiweis & Associates Consulting:

"How to Forget leaves you wishing you had read it before going through the hardest role for an adult child—being witness to your parents at the end of their lives. Whether the reason is cancer, Alzheimer’s, or natural causes, this book by Kate Mulgrew left me wishing I had read this book before going through the challenge of how to be the best daughter for my parents’ last months. Mulgrew’s insight will stay with me for a long, long time and be on my recommendation list for all who are saying goodbye to their parents."

Click below to watch the interview!

Watch on  : https://youtu.be/JPYRigm3aqw

You can also listen to the interview on our podcast:

From Virginia Stanley: Who were your parents before they were your parents? How and why did they fall in love with each other? Did they measure up to each other’s expectations? What were their dreams—and what happened to those dreams? What was your unique connection to each of them? And in the final chapters of their lives, do you have a full understanding of who they inherently were, who they became and why? Can you let them go? Have all the words been said that needed saying?

Kate Mulgrew takes on these questions and so much more in her forthcoming memoir, How to Forget.  She has gone deep to deliver a beautifully written, searingly honest collection of memories of her childhood in Iowa but more specifically of her parents: who they were, what family life was like, and how she cared for them in the final chapter of their lives.

This is an entirely relatable, universal story about family. Whether you have aging parents or parental figures in your life, if you are an only child or one of eight or nine or ten, if you are the primary caregiver or dancing that emotional tightrope with siblings, this book will touch your heart. You will likely recognize moments, passages, pages in this memoir that will relate to your own life.

 

The biggest mistake a reader could make is to presume one needs to be a follower of Ms. Mulgrew’s dramatic work in order to connect to the voice in this book. That simply isn’t the case. This memoir is devoid of celebrity ego but full of pathos and hubris. It’s a reflective and at times very funny read (her parents were very quick-witted!) I wasn’t fully prepared to have this book envelop me as it did. This is a powerful look back on the lives of two of the most important people in her life—written in prose so beautiful it borders on poetic.

Every so often a book comes along that pierces my heart and introduces me to people I’m better for having known.

How to Forget is one those books.

Check out this amazing quote from author Malachy McCourt:

-Virginia

We had a fantastic line up of our exciting new Historical Fiction titles featured in the March 1st issue of Booklist. Find out more about these titles and more below!

Old Baggage by Lissa Evans

• The author of the acclaimed Crooked Heart returns with a comic, charming, and surprisingly timely portrait of a once pioneering suffragette trying to find her new passion in post-World War I era London.

America Was Hard to Find by Kathleen Alcott

• In the wake of an affair, the lives of an astronaut and a radical are forever altered by the political fault lines of the 1960s, setting off a series of events ricocheting from anti-Vietnam activism to the Apollo program to the AIDS crisis, in this sprawling multigenerational novel.

The Tenth Muse by Catherine Chung

• An exhilarating, moving novel about a trailblazing mathematician whose research unearths her own extraordinary family story and its roots in World War II.

The Confessions of Frannie Langton by Sara Collins

• A servant and former slave is accused of murdering her employer and his wife in this astonishing historical thriller that moves from a Jamaican sugar plantation to the fetid streets of Georgian London—a remarkable literary debut with echoes of Alias Grace, The Underground Railroad, and The Paying Guests.

The Dragon Republic by R.F. Kuang

• Rin’s story continues in this acclaimed sequel to The Poppy War—an epic fantasy combining the history of twentieth-century China with a gripping world of gods and monsters.

The Golden Hour by Beatriz Williams

• The New York Times bestselling author of The Summer Wives and A Certain Age creates a dazzling epic of World War II-era Nassau—a hotbed of spies, traitors, and the most infamous couple of the age, the Duke and Duchess of Windsor.

Westside by W.M. Akers

• A young detective who specializes in “tiny mysteries” finds herself at the center of a massive conspiracy in this beguiling historical fantasy set on Manhattan’s Westside—a peculiar and dangerous neighborhood home to strange magic and stranger residents—that blends the vivid atmosphere of Caleb Carr with the imaginative power of Neil Gaiman.

The Summer Country by Lauren Willig

• The New York Times bestselling historical novelist delivers her biggest, boldest, and most ambitious novel yet—a sweeping, dramatic Victorian epic of lost love, lies, jealousy, and rebellion set in colonial Barbados.

Resistance Women by Jennifer Chiaverini

• From the New York Times bestselling author of Mrs. Lincoln’s Dressmaker, an enthralling historical saga that recreates the danger, romance, and sacrifice of an era and brings to life one courageous, passionate American—Mildred Fish Harnack—and her circle of women friends who waged a clandestine battle against Hitler in Nazi Berlin.

The Song of the Jade Lily by Kirsty Manning

• Kirsty Manning makes her U.S. debut with this gripping historical novel that tells the little-known story of Jewish refugees who fled to Shanghai during World War II.

One Night in Georgia by Celeste O. Norfleet

• Set in the summer of 1968, a provocative and devastating novel of individual lives caught in the grips of violent history—a timely and poignant story that reverberates with the power of Alice Walker’s Meridian and Ntozake Shange’s Betsey Browne.

The Chocolate Maker's Wife by Karen Brooks

• Australian bestselling novelist Karen Brooks rewrites women back into history with this breathtaking novel set in 17th century London—a lush, fascinating story of the beautiful woman who is drawn into a world of riches, power, intrigue,…and chocolate.

The Lost Daughter by Gill Paul

• From Gill Paul, the author of Another Woman’s Husband and The Secret Wife, comes a powerful new chapter in her Romanov saga…a gripping journey through the decades and across the continents, a novel of eternal love, devastating loss, and courage against all odds.

The Accidentals by Minrose Gwin

• Following the death of their mother from a botched backwoods abortion, the McAlister daughters have to cope with the ripple effect of this tragedy as they come of age in 1950s Mississippi and then grow up to face their own impossible choices—an unforgettable, beautiful novel that is threaded throughout with the stories of mothers and daughters in pre-Roe versus Wade America.

Meet Me in Monaco by Hazel Gaynor and Heather Webb

• Set in the 1950s against the backdrop of Grace Kelly’s whirlwind romance and unforgettable wedding to Prince Rainier of Monaco, New York Times bestselling author Hazel Gaynor and Heather Webb take the reader on an evocative sun-drenched journey along the Côte d’Azur in this page-turning novel of passion, fate, and second chances.

The Peacock Summer by Hannah Richell

• From internationally bestselling author Hannah Richell comes this compelling story of hidden secrets, forbidden love, and a mysterious old house.

In Another Time by Jillian Cantor

• A sweeping historical novel that spans Germany, England, and the United States and follows a young couple torn apart by circumstance leading up to World War II—and the family secret that may prove to be the means for survival.

Outside Looking In by T.C. Boyle

• In this stirring and insightful novel, T.C. Boyle takes us back to the 1960s and to the early days of a drug whose effects have reverberated widely throughout our culture: LSD.

The American Agent by Jacqueline Winspear

• Beloved heroine Maisie Dobbs, “one of the great fictional heroines” (Parade), investigates the mysterious murder of an American war correspondent in London during the Blitz in a page-turning tale of love and war, terror, and survival.

The Quintland Sisters by Shelley Wood

• In Shelley Wood’s fiction debut, readers are taken inside the devastating true story of the Dionne Quintuplets, told from the perspective of one young woman who meets them at the moment of their birth.

Say No to the Duke by Eloisa James

• New York Times bestselling author Eloisa James returns with the fourth novel in her breathtaking Wildes of Lindow Castle series.

One Fine Duke by Lenora Bell

• The third book in USA Today bestselling author Lenora Bell's sexy School for Dukes series is a Dracula-Northanger Abbey mash-up, with a dash of James Bond’s Miss Moneypenny.

Brazen and the Beast by Sarah MacLean

• New York Times bestselling author Sarah MacLean returns with the next book in the Bareknuckle Bastards series about three brothers bound by a secret that they cannot escape—and the women who bring them to their knees.

The Wallflower Wager by Tessa Dare

• Another scintillating romance from USA Today bestselling author Tessa Dare. Wealthy and ruthless, Gabriel Duke clawed his way from the lowliest slums to the pinnacle of high society—and now he wants to get even.

The Duchess in His Bed by Lorraine Heath

• USA Today bestselling author Lorraine Heath delivers a scintillating story of a widow who has never known true desire—and the man who intends to show her the meaning of real passion.

To Wed an Heiress by Karen Ranney

• New York Times bestselling author Karen Ranney returns to her royally seductive and heart-stirring series as a runaway heiress and an impetuous earl fight for love against scandal, ruin, and a shadowing danger.

You can find more Historical Fiction titles in our Edelweiss catalogs here.

-Lainey

If you missed our Facebook Live video today, you can find the archived video on Facebook and Youtube.

Here's a list of titles we chatted about:

The Seven or Eight Deaths of Stella Fortuna by Juliet Grames

• Be sure check out all of the amazing Stella content we mentioned—including the lovely recipes we cooked—here.
  
• Request an egalley on NetGalley or Edelweiss.

Heirloom Kitchen by Anna Francese Gass

• Listen to the conversation with Anna and her editor on our podcast here.

Vegetables Unleashed by José Andrés & Matt Goulding

The Huckle & Goose Cookbook by Anca Toderic & Christine Lucaciu

• Read more about this book on their website here.

The Book of Pride by Mason Funk

• Learn more about additional interviews here.
• Request an egalley on NetGalley or Edelweiss.

The Song of the Jade Lily by Kirsty Manning

• Request an egalley on NetGalley or Edelweiss.

Lady in the Lake by Laura Lippman

• Request an egalley on NetGalley or Edelweiss.

Remembering Anthony Bourdain by CNN

The Perfect Fraud by Ellen LaCorte

• Request an egalley on NetGalley or Edelweiss.

Bone Appetit by Debora Robertson

After Life by Alice Marie Johnson

• Find the interview of Alice and Kim Kardashian here.

Artisan Sourdough by Casper Andre Lugg & Martin Ivar Hveem Fjeld

How to Forget by Kate Mulgrew

• Request an egalley on NetGalley or Edelweiss.

 

Finished Books Available Now:

Secrets of Great Second Meals by Sara Dickerman

Pieces of Her by Karin Slaughter

We Fed an Island by José Andrés with Richard Wolffe

Sunburn by Laura Lippman

See you next month!

-Lainey

In Pride, Prejudice, and Other Flavors, Sonali Dev introduces the Rajes—an immigrant Indian family descended from royalty, who have painstakingly built their lives in San Francisco. 

A story that is at once a compelling, heartwarming romance between two strangers from completely different worlds and a poignant exploration of cultural assimilation, identity, and the meaning of the word home.

There is a lot of spice in this modern twist on an old classic, and that's not even including all of the mouthwatering food DJ whips up!

Everyone is excited for this first in a two-book series. Check out some of the buzz:

Library Journal Prepub Alert: “Born into a distinguished Indian immigrant family, Dr. Trisha Raje seems too uppity to modestly raised DJ Caine, now a star chef. But as San Francisco’s top neurosurgeon, she alone can save his sister’s life. Here, preconceptions get ditched, even as the good doctor defies her family. From an ALA Reading List Council’s romance winner, expanding into women’s fiction.”

Included in Publishers Weekly's Top 10 Romances of Spring 2019: “Dev opens a series about an immigrant Indian family in San Francisco with this romance between a neurosurgeon and a pastry chef, exploring cultural assimilation, identity, and the idea of home.”

Bookpage included in Most Anticipated Romances of 2019: “I will admit to some Austen-update fatigue. Does the world really need yet another retelling of Pride and Prejudice? However, my fatigue instantly dissipated when I saw Dev’s name. If anyone can deliver a fresh take on the classic story, it’s her.”

Check out Sonali's book web series "Lit With Love" here!

Download an egalley on Edelweiss or NetGalley now!

-Lainey

Librarians, now is the time! Download the egalley for The Seven or Eight Deaths of Stella Fortuna by Juliet Grames, the remarkable debut novel author Lisa See called a “quintessential American immigrant story” and Publishers Weekly, in a STARRED review, praised as a “sharp and richly satisfying novel.“

BIG NEWS: We’re running a sweepstakes in celebration of a very special upcoming debut novel: The Seven or Eight Deaths of Stella Fortuna by Juliet Grames. Keep reading for full details and to find out more about this incredible novel.

 

 

SWEEPSTAKES ALERT!

Between February 25th, 2019 and March 18th, 2019, fifty public librarians will be chosen at random to win a signed first edition copy of The Seven or Eight Deaths of Stella Fortuna.

UPDATE: This sweepstakes is now closed.

***

Juliet Grames, who is also the associate publisher for Soho Press, has written a stunning debut novel about Stella, an extraordinary young woman coming of age as she immigrates from Calabria, Italy to the United States, while also tracing her fractured relationship with her sister Tina. 

In addition to the author love on the above ecard, The Seven or Eight Deaths of Stella Fortuna has garnered even MORE author and librarian praise:

“Reading The Seven or Eight Deaths of Stella Fortuna is like listening to the rollicking stories of your Italian grandmother— full of memorable characters and speckled with fascinating bits of history. This is a fantastic and timely family story.“
—Jessica Shattuck, bestselling author of The Women in the Castle
 
“I so enjoyed The Seven or Eight Deaths of Stella Fortuna. Juliet Grames has delved into the family secrets of an Italian American family and the ways in which those secrets, as well as slights and injustices, can both cross oceans and trickle down through the generations. This quintessential American immigrant story feels important right now, and I highly recommend it.“
—Lisa See, author of Snow Flower and the Secret Fan and The Tea Girl of Hummingbird Lane

“…astounding and heartbreaking. Grames has crafted an intimate, powerful tale that sounds like it was told in whispers between sips of grappa after weekend dinners when the tables are cleared of food, the kids are busy playing in the backyard, and family secrets start to come out.” —Gregg Winsor, Johnson County Library (KS)

“An engrossing debut, The Seven or Eight Deaths of Stella Fortuna is a saga of an Italian-born girl who endures a number of sometimes terrifying and slightly odd life-threatening experiences…. A joy to read, Stella’s story is moving and memorable.” —Cynthia Baskin, Arlington Public Library (VA)

“You probably won’t like Stella Fortuna, but that’s okay—she probably won’t like you either. And that’s what makes this debut family saga so bewitching. The quintessential Mediterranean migration story told with uncommon honesty and beauty.” —Stephanie Anderson, BookOps (NY)

Intrigued? Want to know more about Stella? We have you covered! Keep reading to discover what makes this novel so special!

Learn More About Stella Fortuna!

In the video below, author Juliet discusses The Seven or Eight Deaths of Stella Fortuna and her rich but complicated family history that inspired it. 

Juliet also recorded an interview for the Public Library Association’s podcast, which delves further into Juliet’s fascinating personal backstory and how the story of her own grandmother inspired the novel. Click below to listen!

The Seven or Eight Deaths of Stella Fortuna details the immigrant experience, especially the female immigrant experience, with incredible honesty and poise. Our friend Kim Racon with HarperAcademic put together the below teaser that narrates Stella’s first time seeing the Statue of Liberty. Check it out!

Cooking with Stella Fortuna

The Library Love Fest team had so much fun on our special Stella edition of Facebook Live. In addition to discussing why this book is so special, we also cooked recipes from “The Seven or Eight Recipes of Stella Fortuna,” a collection of recipes Juliet put together inspired by the The Seven or Eight Deaths of Stella Fortuna. Below, you can watch the replay on Facebook or Youtube!

Watch on  : https://youtu.be/3xr84YbKQJw

You can get a digital copy of the recipe book here.

We can’t wait to hear what you think about The Seven or Eight Deaths of Stella Fortuna. Please be sure to download the egalley on Edelweiss or NetGalley or request the physical galley by clicking one of the options below.

Remember to submit your votes for LibraryReads by April 1st!

Enjoy!

We are very excited to announce that Karin Slaughter's latest novel, Pieces of Her, will be adapted into an eight episode limited series on Netflix!

In Pieces of Her, we meet Andrea Oliver. Andrea knows everything about her mother, Laura. She knows she’s never kept a secret in her life. Because we all know our mothers, don’t we?

But all that changes when a trip to the mall explodes into violence and Andrea suddenly sees a completely different side to Laura. For nearly thirty years she’s been hiding from her previous identity, lying low in the hope that no one would ever find her. But now she’s been exposed, and nothing will ever be the same again.

The first two episodes of the show will be directed by Lesli Linka Glatter, of Homeland. Charlotte Stoudt (Homeland, House of Cards) will be the writer/showrunner/executive producer, along with Executive Producer Bruna Papandrea (Gone Girl, Big Little Lies, and Wild) of Made Up Stories, a development, production and finance company committed to creating content with compelling female figures squarely at the center and enabling female directors, writers, actors, and fellow producers to tell the stories they want to tell.

Find out more about the big news on the press release from Netflix here and read Cosmopolitan's announcement here.

We also have a Spanish version of this title! Check out ¿Sabes quién es?, available now!

Congrats, Karin!

In Etaf Rum's powerful debut novel, A Woman Is No Man, three generations of Palestinian-American women living in Brooklyn are torn between individual desire and the strict mores of Arab culture—a heart-wrenching story of love, intrigue, courage, and betrayal that will resonate with women from all backgrounds, giving voice to the silenced and agency to the oppressed.

Today, we welcome a guest post from author, Etaf Rum.

***

I never visited the library when I was growing up. I lived in Brooklyn, New York, less than a mile away from the Brooklyn Public Library, yet my parents, Palestinian immigrants, never took me. I don’t know the precise reason why, but looking back I suspect the library was not the ideal place to take two handfuls of noisy children—I am the eldest of nine. Besides this, my parents did not inhibit my love for reading, and I routinely purchased books from my school catalog, grocery stores, even yard sales.

When I was seven years old, I read Ronald Dahl’s Matilda for the first time. After that, whenever I felt most alone—most desperate to understand myself and the world around me—I always wished I could slip out our front door undetected and wander off to the library as Matilda had, bringing a bundle of new books home with me.

By the time I finally did visit the library, I was a sophomore in high school, and it was for a school project. I remember walking the short blocks to the Brooklyn Library alongside my mother and younger siblings, beaming with the anticipation of what I would find inside this magical place. As soon as we entered the mossy green building, I left my family, wandering around the shelves and scanning the spines of books, in awe and wonder. The library was the dreamiest place I’d ever seen.

It has been a little over a decade since, and now I visit the library daily with my own two children—Reyann, who’s nine, and Isah, who’s six. I’ve raised them in our hometown library, Braswell Memorial Library. The librarians at Braswell Memorial have watched my children grow up, recommending reads along the way. Under their wise tutelage we’ve read everything from Dr. Seuss and Harry Potter to Her Right Foot and The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind.

One day a librarian once asked me why I brought my children to the library so often. I wasn’t certain of the answer at the time. Perhaps I was trying to compensate for all the time I’d lost growing up—all the days I’d wished to wander off to the library in search of answers and couldn’t. Or perhaps it was because I knew that books would teach my children things I could not. Or perhaps I wanted to provide them with a sense of connection and belonging when they felt most alone.

This sense of seeking connection and understanding through stories is a theme I explore in A Woman Is No Man. Like me, my characters grew up in an insular community and felt quite isolated. In my novel books become their companions—granting them a bridge to the outside world and ultimately giving them strength. This is why I spend most days in the library with my children, surrounded by books: I want to teach them that the library is a gathering place of stories, and it is through these stories that we come to understand ourselves and the world.

***

Thank you, Etaf! Be sure to download an egalley of A Woman Is No Man now!