Highly anticipated 2015 releases

Almost Famous Women

by Megan Mayhew Bergman

Published January 6. This short story collection delves into the lives of women who are—as the title puts it—were almost famous: Oscar Wilde's niece, Lord Byron's illegitimate daughter, Edna St. Vincent Millay's sister.

Happiness for Beginners

by Katherine Center

A year after getting divorced, Helen Carpenter needs a do-over, so she signs up for a notoriously tough wilderness survival course to prove that she can make it on her own. But then she finds out her kid brother’s best friend is joining her on the trip, wrecking her plans before she even gets to the mountains. Once there, Helen confronts a summer blizzard, a group of sorority girls, rutting season for the elk, and spin-the-bottle—yet she also discovers what it really means to be brave. A fun and light read that still manages to tackle some serious topics. If you love this, go back and read The Lost Husband.

Trigger Warning

by Neil Gaiman

Neil Gaiman is hit or miss for me: sometimes he's too dang scary. Despite that, I think I may tackle this short story collection, which I've heard lets you appreciate his range in a way his novel-length work can't.

The Fringe Hours: Making Time for You

by Jessica Turner

Real-life time management for the busy woman: a topic I'm always interested in, as are many MMD readers.

A God in Ruins

by Kate Atkinson

In her last novel Life After Life, Ursula Todd lived many versions of her life. This companion shows much of the same story from her brother Teddy’s point of view. It lacks the showiness of its predecessor, yet the structure remains strong, and subtly inventive. While Ursula’s life (lives?) centered on the blitz, Teddy’s one life (albeit with a twist) centers on Britain’s strategic bombing campaign against Germany. As a Halifax pilot, Teddy’s life expectancy was brutally short: the statistics were overwhelmingly against his survival. When the war ends, he has a hard time coming to terms with the future he’s been given, and suffers mightily from survivor’s guilt. This is an awfully good book, nimbly spanning generations, and marvelously told.

Big Magic: Creative Living Beyond Fear

by Elizabeth Gilbert

Coming September 22. I haven't read any of Gilbert's books, but I adored her TED talk on the subject and have loved her short work on creativity. I'll be reading this (and maybe The Signature of All Things in the meantime).

Winter

by Marissa Meyer

Coming November 10. I blew through Fairest last week and now I can't wait to read this fifth and last installment of The Lunar Chronicles. Come on, November!

The Buried Giant

by Kazuo Ishiguro

Coming March 3. Readers with great taste are raving fans of Ishiguro's work. I'm looking forward to reading his new one, even though I still haven't read his best-known work The Remains of the Day.