CURRENTLY READING: TBA

Next book being chosen by MM. TBA

PARROT AND OLIVIER IN AMERICA by Peter Carey

Olivier is an aristocrat, one of an endangered species born in France just after the Revolution. Parrot, the son of an itinerant English printer and twice Olivier's age, always wanted to be an artist but has ended up a servant. Starting on different sides of history, their lives will be permanently joined by an enigmatic, one-armed Marquis.

When Olivier sets sail for the New World — ostensibly to study its prisons, but in reality to avoid yet another revolution — Parrot is sent with him, as spy, protector, foe and foil.

As the narrative shifts between the perspectives of Parrot and Olivier, between their picaresque adventures apart and together — in love and politics, prisons and finance, homelands and brave new lands — a most unlikely friendship begins to take hold. And with their story, Peter Carey explores the adventure of American democracy — in theory, in practice, and in ongoing argument.

Parrot and Olivier in America is a dazzlingly inventive reimagining of Alexis de Tocqueville's famous journey, brilliantly evoking the Old World colliding with the New. Above all, it is a wildly funny and deeply tender portrait of two men who come to form an almost impossible friendship, and a completely improbable work of art.

THE OTHER BOLEYN GIRL by Philippa Gregory

The Other Boleyn Girl is an excellent portrayal of one of the most fascinating eras in English history, the turbulent reign of Henry VIII. Under Henry's direction, the English Court changes course, breaking from the Roman Church in order to dissolve Henry's marriage to Katherine of Aragon, who cannot provide a living heir to the throne.

The relatives of the great aristocratic families fill the courts and fawn upon the King and are immensely enriched by this association. To this end, various influential nobles position their young female family members to serve the Queen and gain the King's particular attentions. Comely as a young man, Henry VIII is accustomed to garnering the flattery of these young court women.

When Henry first notices Mary Boleyn Carey, he is attracted to her refreshing candor and youthful exuberance as well as her bright-eyed beauty. Mary, already married, is acceptable for a tryst with the King. A dalliance would actually be scandalous were she not married, a virgin and therefore prime for marriage to a noble. Mary's sister, the erudite Anne, recently returned from the French Court, is one of the clever minds pushing Mary to prominence as the King's paramour. The third Boleyn, George, their brother, is also a popular member of the current royal Court. Sisters and brother form the family triumvirate that is an essential element of the intrigue surrounding the eventual dissolution of marriage to Katherine of Aragon that will set a precedent and change the history of England.

Mary is the primary focus of the novel, even when replaced in the King's affections by her duplicitous sister, Anne. Yet Mary remains a trusted royal confidante and servant of her family's interests. George and Mary are instructed by their family to retain their favored positions in support of the clever, if unlikable, Anne. For five long years Anne seduces and challenges Henry, until she herself is crowned Queen. The faithful Mary remains at her sister's side, forced to watch Anne's increasing emotional instability. Eventually, Henry tires of Anne's insufferable temper and constant demands, his attention captured by the seemingly docile and self-effacing behavior of a simpering Jane Seymour. Anne must live with the precedent she's established, swept aside by the King in his desperate pursuit of another fertile woman to provide his male progeny.

Philippa Gregory's characters are intricate and persuasive, the story masterfully told, the plots, counter-plots and political intrigue unending. No less complicated than modern day political affairs, the degree of scheming is truly Machiavellian. Engaging and thought-provoking, Gregory's beautifully imagined novel overflows with greed and ambition, teeming with ignoble characters who bet everything on the whims of a puerile King. The adventure is magnificent.

A THOUSAND SPLENDID SUNS by Khaled Hosseini

A Thousand Splendid Suns is a breathtaking story set against the volatile events of Afghanistan’s last thirty years—from the Soviet invasion to the reign of the Taliban to the post-Taliban rebuilding—that puts the violence, fear, hope, and faith of this country in intimate, human terms. It is a tale of two generations of characters brought jarringly together by the tragic sweep of war, where personal lives—the struggle to survive, raise a family, find happiness—are inextricable from the history playing out around them.

Propelled by the same storytelling instinct that made The Kite Runner a beloved classic, A Thousand Splendid Suns is at once a remarkable chronicle of three decades of Afghan history and a deeply moving account of family and friendship. It is a striking, heart-wrenching novel of an unforgiving time, an unlikely friendship, and an indestructible love—a stunning accomplishment

THE 10PM QUESTION by Kate de Goldi

Twelve-year-old Frankie Parsons is a talented kid with a quirky family, a best friend named Gigs, and a voice of anxiety constantly nibbling in his head: Could that kidney-shaped spot on his chest be a galloping cancer? Are the smoke alarm batteries flat? Has his cat, The Fat Controller, given them all worms? Only Ma, who never leaves home, takes Frankie’s worries seriously. But then, it is Ma who is the cause of the most troubling question of all, the one Frankie can never bring himself to ask. When a new girl arrives at school — a daring free spirit with unavoidable questions of her own — Frankie’s carefully guarded world begins to unravel, leading him to a painful confrontation with the ultimate 10 p.m. question. Deftly told with humor, poignancy, and an endearing cast of characters, The 10 P.M. Question will touch everyone who has ever felt set apart.

THE NO.1 LADIES DETECTIVE AGENCY by Alexander McCall Smith

The African-born author of more than 50 books, from children's stories (The Perfect Hamburger) to scholarly works (Forensic Aspects of Sleep), turns his talents to detection in this artful, pleasing novel about Mma (aka Precious) Ramotswe, Botswana's one and only lady private detective. A series of vignettes linked to the establishment and growth of Mma Ramotswe's "No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency" serve not only to entertain but to explore conditions in Botswana in a way that is both penetrating and light thanks to Smith's deft touch. Mma Ramotswe's cases come slowly and hesitantly at first: women who suspect their husbands are cheating on them; a father worried that his daughter is sneaking off to see a boy; a missing child who may have been killed by witchdoctors to make medicine; a doctor who sometimes seems highly competent and sometimes seems to know almost nothing about medicine. The desultory pace is fine, since she has only a detective manual, the frequently cited example of Agatha Christie and her instincts to guide her. Mma Ramotswe's love of Africa, her wisdom and humor, shine through these pages as she shines her own light on the problems that vex her clients. Images of this large woman driving her tiny white van or sharing a cup of bush tea with a friend or client while working a case linger pleasantly. General audiences will welcome this little gem of a book just as much if not more than mystery readers.

EAT, PRAY, LOVE by Elizabeth Gilbert

Gilbert (The Last American Man) grafts the structure of romantic fiction upon the inquiries of reporting in this sprawling yet methodical travelogue of soul-searching and self-discovery. Plagued with despair after a nasty divorce, the author, in her early 30s, divides a year equally among three dissimilar countries, exploring her competing urges for earthly delights and divine transcendence. First, pleasure: savoring Italy's buffet of delights--the world's best pizza, free-flowing wine and dashing conversation partners--Gilbert consumes la dolce vita as spiritual succor. "I came to Italy pinched and thin," she writes, but soon fills out in waist and soul. Then, prayer and ascetic rigor: seeking communion with the divine at a sacred ashram in India, Gilbert emulates the ways of yogis in grueling hours of meditation, struggling to still her churning mind. Finally, a balancing act in Bali, where Gilbert tries for equipoise "betwixt and between" realms, studies with a merry medicine man and plunges into a charged love affair. Sustaining a chatty, conspiratorial tone, Gilbert fully engages readers in the year's cultural and emotional tapestry--conveying rapture with infectious brio, recalling anguish with touching candor--as she details her exotic tableau with history, anecdote and impression.