Book List – January 2023
We know. We’ve always been told we shouldn’t judge a book by its cover. Since the cover incudes the title, we obviously shouldn’t judge a book by its title either. But some titles are simply irresistible. This month’s list includes some of the most intriguing titles in our collection.
And Every Morning the Way Home Gets Longer and Longer: a Novella by Fredrik Backman
Noah and his grandfather sit together every day on a bench in a square, telling jokes and discussing their shared love of mathematics, as Grandpa’s memories begin to fade.
Backman is the king of irresistible titles. See also:
DB083204 My Grandmother Asked Me to Tell You She’s Sorry.
Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers by Mary Roach
One of our best popular science writers examines what might happen to our bodies after we die. Among other things, cadavers are used to test guillotines, study plane and car crashes, and experiment with organ transplants.
Smoke Gets in Your Eyes: And Other Lessons from the Crematory by Caitlin Doughty
Mortician and star of the online video series “Ask a Mortician” recounts her entry into the field.
To Sleep in a Sea of Stars by Christopher Paolini
After her discovery of an alien relic during a routine survey mission, Kira’s life is upended, and first contact isn’t what she imagined.
Special Topics in Calamity Physics by Marisha Pessl
Blue Van Meer, erudite daughter of an itinerant professor, settles into Stockton, North Carolina, for her senior year in an elite high school. She is unprepared for the deaths of a student and a favorite teacher. A darkly hilarious coming-of-age novel and a richly plotted suspense tale. Some strong language.
The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay by Michael Chabon
A Pulitzer Prize-winning novel about a couple of guys writing superhero comics in the 1940s. Some descriptions of sex and some strong language.
The Left Hand of Darkness by Ursula K. LeGuin
Confused and afraid, a lone human becomes the pawn in an intrigue on Gethen, a planet inhabited by creatures that are neither male nor female. Won both the Hugo and the Nebula Awards for Best Novel.
John Dies at the End by David Wong
When John and David ingest a new street drug called Soy Sauce, they gain access to an alternate dimension full of alien creatures. You have to admire a book that puts a spoiler like that right on the cover. Violence and strong language.
Cold Comfort Farm by Stella Gibbons
Novel about rural English life intended as a parody of the bucolic novels of such writers as Thomas Hardy and D. H. Lawrence. The joke of the title is continued in the names of the cows on the farm: Aimless, Feckless, Pointless, and Graceless.
Image Description: Colorful hard cover books with no titles float in a white background. Some books are open displaying pages, some are closed, and some are partially open.