nomadreader

The backstory: The Turner House  was a 2015 National Book Award finalist, a finalist for the 2015 Center for Fiction First Novel Prize , a 2015 New York Times  Notable Book  and named a National Book Award 5 Under 35. The basics:  "For over fifty years the Turners have lived on Yarrow Street. Their house has seen thirteen children get grown and gone—and some return; it has seen the arrival of grandchildren, the fall of Detroit’s East Side, and the loss of a father. But when their powerful mother falls ill, the Turners are called home to decide their house’s fate and to reckon with how their past haunts—and shapes—their future."--publisher My thoughts: The Turner House is a book I expected to adore. The premise and setting excited me. I picked it for my book club, which meets later this month. And while I liked it, and I'm quite curious to see what Flournoy writes next, I wasn't wowed. When I sat down to write this review, I was surprised to see I didn't...

The backstory: Tessa Hadley has been on my 'meaning to read' list for years. The basics: Four adult siblings, along with their children and one new spouse, gather at their country house for a three week vacation. My thoughts: Part of me has a hard time reading novels set at different temperature extremes than the one I'm currently experiencing. It's hard for me to remember how much I dislike the heat of summer in the middle of an Iowa winter (and vice versa), but Hadley made this summer country house come alive. The omniscient narrator is filled with wisdom, and I marveled at Hadley's ability to juggle so many characters in ways that left each one fully formed. It's a challenge to introduce a relatively large cast of characters so quickly, including those not present, but I was never confused about which sibling was which or whose children belonged where. As rich as the descriptions and insights were, Hadley is also a gifted writer of dialogue: "-...

The backstory: Liars and Saints  was shortlisted for the 2005 Orange Prize . The basics: Liars and Saints  is the story of the Santerre family. Over four generations, the novel covers World War II to the present (when this book was published in 2003.) My thoughts: For years I've been saying I want to read all of the Baileys Prize longlists, but I don't actually do it, so I started a new project to at least make some progress to that lofty goal. (If I actually continue to make progress, I'll write a post about my plans.)  Liars and Saints  reaffirms why I have that goal. It's a book I had never heard of, by an author I somehow never heard of. Once I started reading it, I discovered she is someone so many of my bookish Twitter celebrity people adore. And with good reason. I'm such a fan, I checked out her other three adult books (one novel and two short story collections) from library when I finished the first chapter. (She also writes the Apothecary series for ...

narrated by Lorelei King The backstory: Early Warning  is the second installment in Jane Smiley's Langdon family trilogy. I enjoyed the first installment, Some Luck . The basics: Each of these novels cover thirty-three years, with each chapter covering a year. Early Warning begins in 1953 and ends in the 1980's. My thoughts: I really enjoyed Some Luck , but I didn't always love King's narration. I planned to read this one instead of listen to it, but I'm so glad I decided to listen instead. King's narration improved in this installment, and her different voices helped me re-acclimate to this large family. I'm often leery of audiobooks longer than twelve hours, but I breezed through this one. On a personal note, there's something enchanting about listening to an Iowa family saga while driving around Iowa with my baby in the car. One character in this volume lives very near Hawthorne's day care. It took me a few chapters to get re-invested in...

The backstory: I've previously read and enjoyed Anne Enright's fiction ( my review of The Forgotten Waltz ) and nonfiction ( my review of Making Babies .) Update: The Green Road  has been longlisted for the 2015 Booker Prize . Update: It has also been longlisted for the 2016 Baileys Prize . The basics: The Green Road is the story of Rosaleen Madigan and her children. It begins in 1980 with the shock of Dan declaring he's becoming a priest. We spend time with each of the four Madigan children (plus Rosaleen) in different cities (and countries) in a different year before they each come home for a holiday. My thoughts: In some ways, the first five parts of The Green Road  would work as stand-alone short stories. There are some references to the family, but Enright lets us get to know each character individually. Oddly, my least favorite section was Hanna's, which comes first, and Hanna is the character I felt like I knew the least about in the first half of the book....

narrated by Kimberly Farr The backstory: A Spool of Blue Thread , Anne Tyler's twentieth novel, is on the 2015 Bailey Prize short list. Update: it was also on the 2015 Booker Prize short list. The basics: A Spool of Blue Thread  tells the story of the Whitshank family over four generations in Baltimore. My thoughts: For years, Anne Tyler was one of those authors I was embarassed to not have read. When The Beginner's Goodbye  came out three years ago, I read it and was disappointed . There were some highlights, to be sure, but I found it uneven overall. When A Spool of Blue Thread  came out, I was intrigued, as I love family sagas, but the first reviewers expressed disappointment, so I thought I would skip this one and revisit her earlier acclaimed novels. Then, when it was longlisted for the Baileys Prize (and since short listed), I knew I would read it. I opted for audio because it was available immediately at the library. Tyler drops the reader right into th...