BookBrowse Highlights
Hello,
In First Impressions this week, we bring you Daughters of the Flower Fragrant Garden, Zhuqing Li's nonfiction account of her two aunts' separation during the Chinese Civil War.

Our book club members are currently discussing Maggie O'Farrell's Hamnet, a work of historical fiction focusing on Shakespeare's wife Agnes and the illness of the couple's young son.

We also recommend novels reflecting on reproductive rights and have copies to give away of Delia Owens' bestseller Where the Crawdads Sing ahead of the upcoming movie release.

And in Editor's Choice, Mieko Kawakami's novel All the Lovers in the Night is another book featuring a woman dealing with circumstances out of her control: Fuyuko Irie, a freelance proofreader, struggles to make changes to her isolated life.

With best wishes,

Davina Morgan-Witts
BookBrowse Publisher
First Impressions
Each month we give away books to BookBrowse members who live in the U.S. to read and review. Members who choose to participate receive a free book about every 3-4 months. Here are their opinions on one recently released title.
Daughters of the Flower Fragrant Garden by Zhuqing Li

"Daughters of the Flower Fragrant Garden is the beautifully told story of two very close sisters from a respected Chinese family who found themselves geographically separated at the beginning of the Chinese Civil War – a separation that lasted for over 30 years. On their very different paths, these two smart, resilient, hard-working women were committed to being the best that they could be in the face of extreme challenges. One remained loyal to Taiwan and the Nationalist cause, while the other embraced the goals and ideas of the Communist Party to protect herself and her family. The author, Zhuqing Li, who is their niece, places their stories and her family history in the context of the civil war and the many cultural and economic changes that took place in China in the 20th century. I think this would be a great book club choice. The themes of war, endurance and strong family ties could spark an interesting discussion." - Ellen H. (Leonia, NJ)

"When I read the premise for linguist and East Asian scholar Zhuqing Li's Daughters of the Flower Fragrant Garden...I knew this was a book I would want to read...On the surface, this may seem like simply a story of two sisters separated by war, but much deeper than that, it is also an insightful look into Chinese history, culture, politics, and much more." - Lee L. (Los Angeles, CA)

"I found it fascinating to actually read the details of people who lived during this time. The writing is excellent, even though this is true history it almost reads like a novel. I will definitely recommend this book to my book club and other friends." - Doris K. (Mountain Iron, MN)
BookBrowse Book Club
Hamnet
by Maggie O'Farrell

From the Jacket

"Of all the stories that argue and speculate about Shakespeare's life … here is a novel … so gorgeously written that it transports you." - The Boston Globe

Agnes is a wild creature who walks her family's land with a falcon on her glove and is known throughout the countryside for her unusual gifts as a healer, understanding plants and potions better than she does people. Once she settles with her husband on Henley Street in Stratford-upon-Avon she becomes a fiercely protective mother and a steadfast, centrifugal force in the life of her young husband, whose career on the London stage is taking off when his beloved young son succumbs to sudden fever.

From the Discussion

"Achingly beautiful, grief-laden, resounding with love, and ultimately uplifting! Hamnet is by far the best, most beautiful book I have read this year and one of my 10 favorite books of my lifetime of reading. Maggie O'Farrell's writing is enchanting and captivated me from the first page." - BuffaloGirl

"This was a great read. The writing is remarkably poetic (which is just like Shakespeare's writing: always poetic)...Just as much fun as Tom Stoppard's Shakespeare in Love (movie). You can argue that it's not factual or you can sit back and plunge into the beauty of the author's imagination." - lesleyf

"I love this novel. I agree with what others have already said about the superb writing, it is so well done it just carries you away deep into the story. I particularly liked how she was able to bring to life the female characters. Regardless of the fact that they were confined to strict gender roles she was able to reveal how each was unique." - KathyT
6 Novels for Book Clubs That Reflect on Reproductive Rights
If your book club arranges conversations and reading materials around current issues, it's likely that you're focusing on reproductive rights, or soon will be.

Regardless of legality, reproductive health care is already effectively out of reach for many, and issues of reproductive justice include not just abortion access but access to contraceptives, involuntary sterilization and forced or coerced adoption, all of which are historically intertwined with racism, gender discrimination and eugenics.

Here are six contemporary novels that reflect this reality. Most have reviews, reading guides and/or other accompanying material available on BookBrowse. We've also included some general resources that we hope will be helpful for your book club discussions. ...continued
Editor's Choice
All the Lovers in the Night
by Mieko Kawakami

Review and article by Rachel Hullett

All the Lovers in the Night follows Fuyuko Irie, a woman in her mid-30s who doesn't have nearly as many lovers as the novel's cryptic title may suggest; instead, she has almost no one in her life. Having recently quit her job at a publishing house, Fuyuko has become a full-time freelance proofreader, working from home. She has no connection to her family, who live in a remote village in the countryside; she has no partner, no friends, and now, no colleagues, except for her editor Hijiri, who she speaks to only on the phone.

When Hijiri invites Fuyuko out for drinks one night, Fuyuko's carefully ordered world begins to crumble around her. She sees in the confident, charismatic, extroverted Hijiri everything she is not, and she starts to examine her own life more closely. The changes in Fuyuko's life are accompanied by heavy drinking—a habit she has picked up from Hijiri—and in attempting to reclaim control, she ironically begins to lose control of her actions, her work quality and her carefully structured existence. ...continued

Visit BookBrowse for the full review, excerpt, our accompanying Beyond the Book article "Loneliness and Social Isolation in Japan" and more.
Win a Signed Copy
Where the Crawdads Sing
by Delia Owens

Ahead of the release of the movie on July 15, we have three signed copies of Where The Crawdads Sing, the #1 New York Times bestselling worldwide sensation with more than 12 million copies sold.

About the Book

For years, rumors of the "Marsh Girl" have haunted Barkley Cove, a quiet town on the North Carolina coast. So in late 1969, when handsome Chase Andrews is found dead, the locals immediately suspect Kya Clark, the so-called Marsh Girl. But Kya is not what they say. Sensitive and intelligent, she has survived for years alone in the marsh that she calls home, finding friends in the gulls and lessons in the sand. Then the time comes when she yearns to be touched and loved. When two young men from town become intrigued by her wild beauty, Kya opens herself to a new life - until the unthinkable happens.
About the Movie

From the best-selling novel comes a captivating mystery. Where the Crawdads Sing tells the story of Kya, an abandoned girl who raised herself to adulthood in the dangerous marshlands of North Carolina. For years, rumors of the "Marsh Girl" haunted Barkley Cove, isolating the sharp and resilient Kya from her community. Drawn to two young men from town, Kya opens herself to a new and startling word: but when one of them is found dead she is immediately cast by the community as the main suspect. As the case unfolds, the verdict as to what actually happened becomes increasingly unclear, threatening to reveal the many secrets that lay within the marsh.

Where the Crawdads Sing stars Daisy Edgar-Jones (Normal People) as "Kya Clark," Taylor John Smith (Sharp Objects) as "Tate Walker," Harris Dickinson (The King's Man) as "Chase Andrews," Michael Hyatt (Snowfall) as "Mabel," Sterling Macer, Jr. (Double Down) as "Jumpin'" and David Strathairn (Nomadland) as "Tom Milton." Olivia Newman (First Match) directs the screenplay by Lucy Alibar (Beasts of the Southern Wild) based upon the novel by Delia Owens. The 3000 Pictures film is being produced by Reese Witherspoon and Lauren Neustadter.

Sony has created a fabulous guide to having a spectacular "Sip and See".
The Toolkit includes:
  • Questions for Discussion
  • A Conversation with Delia Owens
  • Recipe Suggestions (Who doesn't love Deviled Eggs and Shrimp & Grits?)
  • Decorating Ideas -- Create a fabulous tablescape
  • Links to the trailer and other videos about the book
  • Activity ideas -- Crawdad coloring pages anyone?
And after you have your get together, please post images of your friends, food and festive table using #CrawdadsMovie.


Giveaway Ends July 11
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About BookBrowse
With so many new books published every month, it's difficult to find the standouts, the ones which are really worth your time. This is why hundreds of thousands of readers rely on BookBrowse to do the hard work of sifting though the multitude of titles to find the most promising new books, with a focus on books that entertain, engage and enlighten.
BookBrowse Highlights is one of our four free newsletters. We also offer Publishing This Week every Sunday, and Book Club News and Librarian News monthly.

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