BOOK GROUP NEWSLETTER
APRIL 2021

Unbearable Wait Times:

The wait between the time when you order the pizza and when it gets to your house. You tell yourself you’ll order it early- maybe just before you think you’ll be hungry. You can do this- you’ve been eating meals and planning mealtimes for as long as you can remember! But no. Despite all good intentions, time snuck up on you, and now you’re starving and there’s an hour estimated delivery time that you didn’t know about until the order had gone through. 

Basically all of March in Wisconsin. March should have like 5 holidays and 12 Fridays to help us all get through the month. I envy people whose birthdays are in March because at least they have the potential promise of cake to look forward to. The rest of us just slog through waiting with gritted teeth for the 10 inches of snow or potential ice storm, WITHOUT CAKE while hoping no one notices that we filled out our March Madness bracket according to teams with the best facial hair styling. 

The wait for the end of a pandemic. Remember last April, back when staying in felt like the job of a hero? When we were all in it together, and we could do anything for a couple wee- oh what? Oh, ok, through Easter, and wait, now the end of the school year, but at least we’ll have summe- ahh right. Longer then. Well, things will be back to normal by trick or treating… Thanksgiving? 2021? At least we’re all correctly wearing masks and trying our best to keep the whole community safe while we wait for the widespread distribution of a vaccine and the gradual reintroduction of normalcy. Clears throat. 

The point is, these are all waits that make time s l o w d o w n unfairly. This month’s newsletter could have ended up just like that- waiting for Ken’s next batch of wonderful books to dive into, to become new favorites, to finish and immediately lend out to the perfect reader. Lucky for you, we have a lovely bunch of recommendations from other booksellers to make this wait go a little faster than the pizza delivery. 


Happy Reading!
Chloe


Stay tuned- Ken will be back in May with some wonderful picks for your reading groups!
by Nadia Hashimi

This is one of bookseller Lynn's favorite novels. Lynn says "An ancient custom of Afghanistan, Bacha Posh, allows young Rahima, a daughter in a family with no sons, to dress and be accepted as a boy. She is allowed all the freedoms and privileges of a boy... until she reaches puberty. Then she must return to the life of a girl." Afghan-American Nadia Hashimi's literary debut novel is a searing tale of powerlessness, fate, and the freedom to control one's own fate that combines the cultural flavor and emotional resonance of the works of Khaled Hosseini, Jhumpa Lahiri, and Lisa See. Though it's been out for a while, it is a great choice to bring back into the book group rotation. Bookseller Kristen read it on Lynn's recommendation and loved it!
by Bess Kalb

This book recommendation comes off of Bookseller Toni's staff favorites shelf. Toni says "This memoir had me laughing out loud one minute and in tears the next. Bess has saved all her voicemails and texts from her grandmother Bobby and has crafted them into a superb book honoring 4 generations of the women in her life. This memoir had me missing my grandmother deeply! Every grandmother, mother, and daughter needs to read this gem!" It was Bobby and Bess who always had the most powerful bond: Bobby her granddaughter’s fiercest supporter, giving Bess unequivocal love, even if sometimes of the toughest kind. This will make for a different kind of book group discussion, maybe one featuring fond memories of grandmothers passed.
by Rye Curtis

Kingdomtide is an intense, gripping story of survival. When the small plane Cloris and her husband are on crashes in the Montana wilderness, she is the sole survivor. Being that she is 72 years old, no one except Ranger Deborah Lewis expects her to last long, if she even made it through the crash. Lewis is a Park Ranger struggling with her own demons including alcoholism and the aftermath of a divorce. In alternating chapters, the story unfolds as Cloris wanders deeper into the wilderness blindly trying to survive and Lewis struggles to keep the search going and her own issues at bay. Throw in a ghost legend, a fugitive, and the forbidding Montana wilderness and you have an unforgettable story. Bookseller Katrina says "The voices of the characters are so genuine and authentic. I could not stop reading or thinking about this book, it was so well written. Curtis has an exceptional gift and the fact that this is a debut novel is even more impressive. If you need a book to get you out of a reading slump, this is it!" Lynn loved it too!

 Trần Diệu Lan, who was born in 1920, was forced to flee her family farm with her six children during the Land Reform as the Communist government rose in the North. Years later in Hà Nội, her young granddaughter, Hương, comes of age as her parents and uncles head off down the Hồ Chí Minh Trail to fight in a conflict that tore apart not just her beloved country, but also her family. Bookseller Kristen says "This is a beautiful family saga set in Vietnam. I learned so much about Vietnam from reading this book. If you liked Pachinko, you will love this book." Vivid, gripping, and steeped in the language and traditions of Việt Nam, The Mountains Sing brings to life the human costs of this conflict from the point of view of the Vietnamese people themselves, while showing us the true power of kindness and hope.
BOOKS & COMPANY BOOK GROUPS
Open to the Public

BOOK GROUPS ARE RESCHEDULED
AS VIRTUAL MEETINGS VIA ZOOM

CHECK WWW.BOOKSCO.COM FOR UPDATES
AND REGISTRATION LINKS!
Wednesday, April 28th
1:00 p.m.
by Laura Morelli
ZOOM Meeting


Wednesday, May 26th
1:00 p.m.
by Rachel Joyce
ZOOM Meeting
registration coming soon
Sunday, April 25th
PART TWO DISCUSSING:
by Joe McGinniss
by Jerry Allen Potter
ZOOM MEETING
Wednesday, April 21st
6:30 p.m.
by Maureen Johnson
ZOOM Meeting


Wednesday, May 19th
6:30 p.m.
by Adam Silvera
Zoom Meeting
registration coming soon
Tuesday, April 27th
6:00 p.m.
by Teresa Dovalpage
ZOOM Meeting
UPCOMING VIRTUAL EVENTS!
AMY E. REICHERT
in Conversation with
Daniel Goldin & Lisa Baudoin
Monday, April 19
7:00 p.m.
Via ZOOM

 
Join us for a lovely evening for our April Readings from Oconomowaukee! Local favorite Wisconsinite Amy Reichert will be in conversation with Boswell Books' Daniel Goldin and Books & Company's Lisa Baudoin for Reichert's newest novel, The Kindred Spirits Supper Club! 
 
 
Preorder today for 10% off list price from Boswell Books or Books & Company!
(on sale 4/20/21)
KATHERINE HEINY
in conversation with
Daniel Goldin & Lisa Baudoin
Thursday, May 6th
7:00 p.m.
via Zoom

 
Join us for the May Readings From Oconomowaukee featuring Boswell Books' Daniel Goldin and Books & Company's Lisa Baudoin in conversation with Katherine Heiny for her new novel Early Morning Riser- A wise, bighearted, boundlessly joyful novel of love, disaster, and unconventional family.

Preorder Early Morning Riser from Boswell Books or Books & Company and receive 20% off!
(on sale 4/13/21)