Quick Lit January 2021 Archives

What Could Be Saved

by Liese O'Halloran Schwarz

Despite its hefty 464-page length, I finished most of this family drama in a single day. The Preston family moved from Washington, DC to Bangkok during the Vietnam War. When they returned home several years later nothing was the same—not in their country and not in their family, because while in Thailand their eight-year-old son had been kidnapped and was now presumed dead. This story opens with that boy's sister opening an email, a message from Thailand saying, <em>I think I have your brother. Will you come get him?</em> In dual timelines that span 47 years, the story probes the long-held secrets the Preston family members have been keeping, and their devastating consequences.

The Biggest Bluff: How I Learned to Pay Attention, Master Myself, and Win

by Maria Konnikova

This book was such a delightful surprise. I never expected to love—or even read—a book about poker, but several readers with great taste told me to prioritize this one, and I'm glad I listened. In this story-driven narrative, author and New Yorker journalist Konnikova tells how and why she dedicated several years of her life to becoming a professional poker player, and seamlessly connects what she learns at the table to making better decisions and living a more satisfying life. Endlessly fascinating and laugh-out-loud funny.

Walking: One Step At a Time

by Erling Kagge

I've had this little book on my stack for well over a year, and am so glad I picked it up as one of my final 2020 reads! I loved it so much. This book in translation (from the original Norwegian) is a little bit personal story, a little bit philosophical meditation on just that—how walking is grounding and expansive. I took a ridiculous number of notes in my book journal (which I shared with the Modern Mrs. Darcy Book Club in our Best Book of the Year event, along with all the quotes I had to read out loud to my family).

The Push

by Ashley Audrain

Word on the street is this brand-new release has already been in a nine-way bidding war for the film rights. From the publisher: "The Push is a tour de force you will read in a sitting, an utterly immersive novel that will challenge everything you think you know about motherhood, about what we owe our children, and what it feels like when women are not believed." It's been compared to We Need To Talk About Kevin.

The Survivors

by Jane Harper

I’ve long said that Harper’s first novel The Dry is her best work, but now I might have a new favorite. In her latest, Harper returns to the themes that worked so well in her debut: a man returns to his tiny hometown to find that neither the community nor his family have forgotten or forgiven FROM his involvement in a past tragedy—and that’s before a fresh crime brings painful memories raging back. Much of the story is set in seaside caves that the local teens enjoy exploring—but flood when the tide comes in. A deliciously creepy (and sometimes claustrophobic) tale of buried secrets, family tensions, and life after tragedy.

This Close to Okay

by Leesa Cross-Smith

On a rainy October night in Kentucky, recently divorced therapist Tallie Clark is on her way home when she spots a man precariously standing on the edge of a bridge. Without a second thought, Tallie pulls over and jumps out of the car into the pouring rain. She convinces the man to join her for a cup of coffee, and he eventually agrees to come back to her house, where he finally, reluctantly, shares his first name: Emmett. Over the course of the emotionally-charged weekend that follows, Tallie makes it her mission to provide a safe and comfortable space for Emmett, although she doesn’t confess that she works as a therapist. However, Emmett is not the only one who needs help—and he has secrets of his own. Heads up for an open door scene and serious content, including depression and suicide.

The Wife Upstairs

by Rachel Hawkins

Longtime readers know I'm a sucker for a classic retelling. Jane Austen is my usual catnip, but I'm glad I took a chance on this updated Jane Eyre, set in contemporary Birmingham, Alabama, in the Thornfield Estates neighborhood of Mountain Brook. In Hawkins's version, Jane becomes a dog-walker with a troubled past she'd prefer to keep hidden, Bertha the owner of a Southern home and fashion empire that put me in mind of Draper James, and Eddie the handsome, grieving widower looking to rebuild his life after tragedy—or so he says. A dark kind of fun.

The Power of Writing It Down: A Simple Habit to Unlock Your Brain and Reimagine Your Life

by Allison Fallon

I was honored to provide an endorsement for Ally, which reads: Good things come to those who write. I'm thrilled that this book will help so many people benefit from the power of putting words on the page, learning through Allison Fallon's firm but friendly instruction both why and how to develop their own writing practice—because words can change everything.

Quick Lit January 2021