The Frozen River

The Frozen River
by Ariel Lawhon
Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group, 2023. 432 pages. Historical Fiction 

1789: When the Kennebec River freezes, entombing a man in the ice, Martha Ballard is summoned to examine the body and determine cause of death. As a midwife and healer, she is privy to much of what goes on behind closed doors in Hallowell. Her diary is a record of every birth and death, crime and debacle that unfolds in the close-knit community. Months earlier, Martha documented the details of an alleged rape committed by two of the town’s most respected gentlemen—one of whom has now been found dead in the ice. But when a local physician undermines her conclusion, declaring the death to be an accident, Martha is forced to investigate the shocking murder on her own. The Frozen River is a thrilling, tense, and tender story about a remarkable woman who left an unparalleled legacy yet remains nearly forgotten to this day. 

I was familiar with Martha Ballard through Laurel Thatcher Ulrich’s Pulitzer Prize winning biography, and I enjoyed returning to Martha’s life through the lens of fiction. The author’s lush descriptions, realistic historical details, and vivid characters immerse the reader immediately in the tense atmosphere of the story. I found myself outraged at how often the brilliant protagonist is sidelined professionally and personally by less knowledgeable men, but was fascinated by the ways she and the other women of the time still manage to claim autonomy in their lives. Author Ariel Lawhon has clearly researched the norms of the time period and the life of Martha Ballard in meticulous detail. Throughout the novel, the question of who killed Joshua Burgess adds an element of suspense to draw in mystery fans as well as historical fiction readers.

If you like The Frozen River, you might also like: 

The Lost Apothecary
by Sarah Penner
Park Row Books, 2021. 301 pages. Historical Fiction 

Hidden in the depths of eighteenth-century London, a secret apothecary shop caters to an unusual kind of clientèle. Women across the city whisper of a mysterious figure named Nella who sells well-disguised poisons to use against the oppressive men in their lives. But the apothecary's fate is jeopardized when her newest patron, a precocious twelve-year-old, makes a fatal mistake, sparking a string of consequences that echo through the centuries. Meanwhile in present-day London, aspiring historian Caroline Parcewell spends her tenth wedding anniversary alone, running from her own demons. When she stumbles upon a clue to the unsolved apothecary murders that haunted London two hundred years ago, her life collides with the apothecary's in a stunning twist of fate, and not everyone will survive. 

A Midwife’s Tale: The Life of Martha Ballard, Based on Her Diary, 1785 – 1812
by Laurel Thatcher Ulrich Knopf, 1990. 444 pages. Biography 

Between 1785 and 1812 a midwife and healer named Martha Ballard kept a diary that recorded her arduous work (in 27 years she attended 816 births) as well as her domestic life in Hallowell, Maine. On the basis of that diary, Laurel Thatcher Ulrich gives us an intimate and densely imagined portrait, not only of the industrious and reticent Martha Ballard but of her society. At once lively and impeccably scholarly, A Midwife's Tale is a triumph of history on a human scale. 

Year of Wonders
by Geraldine Brooks
Viking, 2001. 308 pages. Historical Fiction 

 Eighteen-year-old Anna Firth tells the story of her remote English village, Eyam, which was infected by the plague in 1666 and where, persuaded by the vicar, the townspeople decided to quarantine themselves.

SGR

The Milky Way

The Milky Way: An autobiography of our galaxy 
By Moiya McTier
Grand Central Publishing, 2022. 244 pages. Nonfiction

After a few billion years of bearing witness to life on Earth, of watching one hundred billion humans go about their day-to-day lives, of feeling unbelievably lonely, and of hearing its own story told by others, the Milky Way would like a chance to speak for itself. All one hundred billion stars and fifty undecillion tons of gas of it. It all began some thirteen billion years ago, when clouds of gas scattered through the universe's primordial plasma just could not keep their metaphorical hands off each other. They succumbed to their gravitational attraction, and the galaxy we know as the Milky Way was born. Since then, the galaxy has watched as dark energy pushed away its first friends, as humans mythologized its name and purpose, and as galactic archaeologists have worked to determine its true age (rude). The Milky Way has absorbed supermassive (an actual technical term) black holes, made enemies of a few galactic neighbors, and mourned the deaths of countless stars. After all this time, the Milky Way finally feels that it's amassed enough experience for the juicy tell-all we've all been waiting for.

I have two very bad habits. First, I buy nonfiction books about science and lose the motivation to read them. Second, when I happen to read anything science related I just skip right over the numbers regardless of how important they are. This book fixed both problems. McTier presents scientific concepts in an accessible voice that allows even the most inexperienced science-lovers to engage with new concepts and ideas. I love the blend of artful storytelling and hard science. The voice of the Milky Way is unique, funny, and extremely endearing. I would recommend this book to anybody that's new to astronomy and everyone that supports STEAM over STEM.        

If you like The Milky Way, you might also like: 

Eat, Poop, Die: How animals make our world
By Joe Roman

Little, Brown Spark, 2023. 277 pages. Nonfiction

If forests are the lungs of the planet, then animals migrating across oceans, streams, and mountains—eating, pooping, and dying along the way—are its heart and arteries, pumping nitrogen and phosphorus from deep-sea gorges up to mountain peaks, from the Arctic to the Caribbean. Without this conveyor belt of crucial, life-sustaining nutrients, the world would look very different. Eat, Poop, Die takes readers on an exhilarating global adventure, revealing the remarkable ways in which the most basic biological activities of animals make and remake the world—and how a deeper understanding of these cycles provides us with opportunities to undo the damage humanity has wrought on the planet.

Will My Cat Eat My Eyeballs?

By Caitlin Doughty

W.W. Norton & Company, 2019. 222 pages. Nonfiction

Licensed mortician Caitlin Doughty answers real questions from kids about death, dead bodies, and decomposition. Every day, funeral director Caitlin Doughty receives dozens of questions about death. What would happen to an astronaut's body if it were pushed out of a space shuttle? Do people poop when they die? Can Grandma have a Viking funeral? In the tradition of Randall Munroe's What If?, Will My Cat Eat My Eyeballs?, blends scientific understanding of the body and the intriguing history behind common misconceptions about corpses to offer factual, hilarious, and candid answers to thirty-five urgent questions.

The Stuff of Life
By Mark Shultz
Hill and Wang, 2009. 150 pages. Graphic Novels, Nonfiction

Let's face it: From adenines to zygotes, from cytokinesis to parthenogenesis, even the basics of genetics can sound utterly alien. So who better than an alien to explain it all? Enter Bloort 183, a scientist from an asexual alien race threatened by disease, who's been charged with researching the fundamentals of human DNA and evolution and laying it all out in clear, simple language so that even his slow-to-grasp-the-point leader can get it. In the hands of the award-winning writer Mark Schultz, Bloort's predicament becomes the means of giving even the most science-phobic reader a complete introduction to the history and science of genetics that's as easy to understand as it is entertaining to read.

KJ

The Talk

The Talk

By Darrin Bell

Henry Holt and Company, 2023. unpaged. Graphic Novels 

Darrin Bell was six years old when his mother told him he couldn’t have a realistic water gun. She said she feared for his safety, that police tend to think of little Black boys as older and less innocent than they really are. Through evocative illustrations and sharp humor, Bell examines how The Talk shaped intimate and public moments from childhood to adulthood. Drawing attention to the brutal murders of African Americans along the way, he brings us up to the moment of reckoning when people took to the streets protesting the murders of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor. And now Bell must decide whether he and his own son are ready to have The Talk.

Bell was the winner of the 2019 Pulitzer Prize for editorial cartooning, so it’s no surprise that the artwork and story move together brilliantly to create the whole experience for the reader.  This is a compelling graphic novel that will make you think twice about your own prejudices and reflect on how U.S. culture permeates hate and violence on minorities. A call to do better by every child who is getting The Talk from their parents, so that hopefully someday it isn't necessary.       

If you like The Talk, you might also like:

Good Talk

By Mira Jacob

One World, 2020. 355 pages. Graphic Novels 

An intimate graphic memoir about American identity as it has shaped the author's interracial family in the aftermath of the 2016 elections.

Between the World and Me

By Ta-Nehisi Coates

Spiegel & Grau, 2015. 152 pages. Nonfiction

Told through the author's own evolving understanding of the subject over the course of his life comes a bold and personal investigation into America's racial history and its contemporary echoes.

RBL

Nineteen Steps

Nineteen Steps
by Millie Bobby Brown
William Morrow, 2023. 304 pages. Historical Fiction 

It’s 1942, and London remains under threat of enemy attack as WWII rages on. In the Bethnal Green neighborhood, Nellie Morris counts every day lucky that she emerges from the underground shelters unharmed. Three years into the war, she’s grateful to hold onto remnants of normalcy. But after a chance encounter with Ray, an American airman stationed nearby, Nellie becomes enchanted with the idea of a broader world. Just when Nellie begins to embrace an exciting new life with Ray, a terrible incident occurs during an air raid, with catastrophic consequences. When it seems all hope is lost, Nellie finds that, against all odds, love and happiness can triumph. 

Stranger Things star Millie Bobby Brown grew up hearing her grandmother’s stories of the Blitz, including the bizarre crush at the Bethnal Green air raid shelter that resulted in Britain’s largest single loss of civilian life World War II. In her debut novel, the author capably shares that lesser-known piece of history, with a focus on a working-class family experiencing the pressures and heartbreaks of wartime life. Though the central tragedy is horrifying, this remains a heartwarming, clean, and gently-paced read. 

If you like Nineteen Steps, you might also like: 

Call the Midwife: A Memoir of Birth, Joy, and Hard Times
by Jennifer Worth
Penguin Group USA, 2012. 340 pages. Memoir 

The memoir that inspired the heartwarming television series. Jennifer Worth was just twenty-two when she volunteered to spend her early years of midwifery training in London’s East End in the 1950s. The conditions in which many women gave birth just half a century ago were horrifying. Coming from a sheltered background, there were tough lessons to be learned. 

Secrets of a Charmed Life
by Susan Meissner
New American Library, 2015. 388 pages. Historical Fiction 

As Hitler wages an unprecedented war against London’s civilian population, one million children are evacuated to foster homes in the rural countryside. But even as fifteen-year-old Emmy Downtree and her much younger sister Julia find refuge in a charming Cotswold cottage, Emmy’s burning ambition to return to the city and apprentice with a fashion designer pits her against Julia’s profound need for her sister’s presence.

SGR

The Women

The Women

by Kristin Hannah

St. Martin's Press, 2024. 471 pages. Historical Fiction

Women can be heroes. When twenty-year-old nursing student Frances "Frankie" McGrath hears these unexpected words, it is a revelation. Raised on idyllic Coronado Island, California, and sheltered by her conservative parents, she has always prided herself on doing the right thing, being a good girl. But in 1965 the world is changing, and she suddenly imagines a different choice for her life. When her brother ships out to serve in Vietnam, Frankie impulsively joins the Army Nurse Corps and follows his path. As green and inexperienced as the men sent to Vietnam to fight, Frankie is overwhelmed by the chaos and destruction of war, as well as the unexpected trauma of coming home to a changed and politically divided America.

Kristin Hannah is known for writing richly detailed, dramatic historical fiction focused on women's lives and experiences, and this book is no exception. If you've seen the television show M*A*S*H you'll have an idea of what Frankie goes through, but I appreciated that this book was not only about her experience in Vietnam as a highly capable casualty nurse; this book also covered her experience after the war. Frankie comes back to a home where people are ashamed of her service. My heart broke for Frankie as she dealt with the horrors of war, and the way she floundered when she returned home, dealing with undiagnosed PTSD. Although this book is not a cozy read, it is a compelling one, and one that will sit with me for a long time. I highly recommend it.

If you like The Women you might also like:

Absolution

by Alice McDermott

Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2023. 324 pages. Historical Fiction

As she exchanges letters with the daughter of her former mentor, Tricia recounts her experience maneuvering in the social politics among the American families stationed in Saigon leading up to the Vietnam War.

The Fire by Night

by Theresa Messineo

William Morrow, 2017. 306 pages. Historical Fiction

In 1940s war-torn France, Jo McMahon singlehandedly struggles to keep her patients and herself alive in a cramped and freezing tent close to German troops. She fights to hold on to joyful memories of the past, to the times she shared with her best friend, Kay, whom she met in nursing school. Half a world away in the Pacific, Kay is trapped in a squalid Japanese POW camp in Manila, one of thousands of Allied men, women, and children whose fates rest in the hands of a sadistic enemy. Surrounded by cruelty and death, Kay battles to maintain her sanity and save lives as best she can, and live to see her beloved friend Jo once more. When the conflict at last comes to an end, Jo and Kay discover that to achieve their own peace, they must find their place—and the hope of love—in a world that's forever changed.

MB

Bride

Bride

By Ali Hazelwood

Berkley, 2024. 399 pages. Romance 

Misery Lark, the only daughter of the most powerful Vampyre councilman of the Southwest, is an outcast--again. Her days of living in anonymity among the Humans are over: she has been called upon to uphold a historic peacekeeping alliance between the Vampyres and their mortal enemies, the Weres. Weres are ruthless and unpredictable, and their Alpha, Lowe Moreland, is no exception. He rules his pack with absolute authority, but not without justice. And, unlike the Vampyre Council, not without feeling. It's clear from the way he tracks Misery's every movement that he doesn't trust her. If only he knew how right he was because Misery has her own reasons to agree to this marriage of convenience, reasons that have nothing to do with politics or alliances, and everything to do with the only thing she's ever cared about. And she is willing to do whatever it takes to get back what's hers, even if it means a life alone in Were territory. 

I love Ali Hazelwood’s romantic comedies, so I was a little hesitant to pick up this fantasy romance, romantasy if you will. However, after a little orienting to the fantasy world of Weres, Humans, and Vampyres living in full knowledge of the other species with a shaky alliance, it was easy to fall into the love story between Misery and Lowe. It’s a great book for a fantasy beginner, it didn’t need a ton of world building since it was set in a mostly recognizable world and there wasn’t a ton of lore to follow. It was the perfect amount of fantasy, slow burn romance and spice but be wary if you’re looking for a milder romance...this is not that. Overall, if you enjoy a spicy romantasy or the tropes of arranged marriage and enemies to lovers then you are sure to love Bride. 

If you like Bride, you might also like:

Not the Witch You Wed

By April Asher

St. Martin’s Griffin, 2022. 340 pages. Romance 

A fake relationship between a magic-less witch and a wolf shifter turns to more in the start of a bewitching new paranormal rom-com series. Magic-less witch Violet Maxwell wants nothing to do with alpha wolf shifter Lincoln Thorne--the man who broke her fragile, teenage heart. But when the two of them are forced by arcane Supernatural Laws to find mates, Violet and Lincoln agree to fake-date their way to a fake-mating in order to conjure themselves some time. The joke's on them. When old feelings make a reappearance--along with Violet's magic--they both realize there's nothing fake about their feelings. But there are old secrets and looming threats that could snatch away their happily ever after, again. One thing's for sure: magic doesn't make dating and love any easier.

The Ex Hex

By Erin Sterling

Avon, 2021. 308 pages. Romance 

Vivienne Jones handled the biggest break-up of her life the way that any witch would: vodka, bubble baths, and a curse on her ex. That was nine years ago. Now Rhys Penhallow, descendant of the town's founders, breaker of hearts and still irritatingly gorgeous, is back. Rhys has returned to the quaint town of Graves Glen to recharge the ley lines and make an appearance at the annual fall festival. But when his every move results in calamity, Vivi realizes that hexing her ex might not have been so harmless after all. As the curse starts to affect the magic of the town, resulting in murderous wind-up toys, an outraged ghost, and a surprisingly talkative cat, Vivi and Rhys must put their personal feelings aside and work together to break the curse and save not just the town, but also Rhys's life.

BW

The Art Thief

The Art Thief 

By Michael Finkel 

Alfred A. Knopf, 2023. 221 pages. Nonfiction 

For centuries, works of art have been stolen in countless ways from all over the world, but no one has been quite as successful at it as the master thief Stéphane Breitwieser. Carrying out more than two hundred heists over nearly ten years-in museums and cathedrals all over Europe-Breitwieser, along with his girlfriend who worked as his lookout, stole more than three hundred objects, until it all fell apart in spectacular fashion. 

This is a nonfiction book that reads like a cinematic documentary. It’s very fast-paced and extremely fascinating, it truly feels like reading a novel. This story shows how obsession, hubris, luck, and maybe even genius, led to the most prolific art thief in history. If you are interested in reading about true crime that doesn’t involve murder or violence in anyway, but is still filled with secrets, lies, deception, and extremely flawed accomplices, this is the story for you. I literally gasped out loud at least twice while reading this book. 

If you like The Art Thief, you might also like: 

The Feather Thief 

By Kirk Wallace Johnson 

Viking, 2018. 308 pages. Nonfiction 

On a cool June evening in 2009, twenty-year-old American flautist Edwin Rist grabbed hundreds of bird skins - some collected 150 years earlier - and escaped into the darkness. Two years later, Kirk Wallace Johnson was consumed by the strange case of the feather thief. What would possess a person to steal dead birds? This is the gripping story of a bizarre and shocking crime, and one man's relentless pursuit of justice. 

The Last Mona Lisa 

By Jonathan Santlofer 

Sourcebooks Landmark, 2021. 376 pages. Fiction 

August, 1911: The Mona Lisa is stolen by Vincent Peruggia. Exactly what happens in the two years before its recovery is a mystery. Many replicas of the Mona Lisa exist, and more than one historian has wondered if the painting now in the Louvre is a fake, switched in 1911. Present day: art professor Luke Perrone digs for the truth behind his most famous ancestor: Peruggia. His search attracts an Interpol detective with something to prove and an unfamiliar but curiously helpful woman. Soon, Luke tumbles deep into the world of art and forgery, a land of obsession and danger. A gripping novel exploring the 1911 theft and the present underbelly of the art world, The Last Mona Lisa is a suspenseful tale, tapping into our universal fascination with da Vinci's enigma, why people are driven to possess certain works of art, and our fascination with the authentic and the fake.

LA

Florence Adler Swims Forever

Florence Alder Swims Forever

by Rachel Beanland

Simon & Schuster, 2020. 309 pages. Historical Fiction

 In 1934, Florence Adler has aspirations to be the next Gertrude Ederle and swim across the English Channel, but she drowns weeks before she can travel from Atlantic City to France. Her family's mourning is complicated by Florence's sister, Fannie, who is pregnant and hospitalized on bed rest, so parents Joseph and Esther decide to keep Florence's death a secret. Over the course of the summer, the family juggles their grief and their worry about Fannie as well as concerns about events in Europe. Joseph secured a student visa for Anna, the daughter of his former fiancée, but he has less success arranging papers for her parents, who, like Anna, are Jewish. Anna, separated from her parents and greeted with indifference or hostility by the Adlers, turns to Stuart, Florence’s former swimming coach. Their sweet romance is one of the many highlights of the story. Loosely based on her own family history, Beanland’s first novel is a strong family drama. While the ending tidies each story line up a bit perfectly, this is a finely realized work of historical fiction.

 I typically don’t enjoy historical fiction but this book is an exception! Something about being set in 1930’s Atlantic City in the summer time really drew me in. Plus, it has haunting sort of vibe and some dark family secrets that show themselves through out. And although Florence Adler isn’t a real person, the author based many of the characters names and personalities on her own relatives which is a very touching way to honor those family members. The writing is richly detailed without feeling over the top or bogged down. Although the pacing is a bit slower and I do wish for a different ending, I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book and will recommend it for my book group this year! 

If you like Florence Alder Swims Forever, you might also like:

The Boston Girl

by  Anita Diamant

Scribner, 2015. 322 pages. Historical Fiction

The Boston Girl tells a gripping story of a young Jewish woman growing up in early-20th-century Boston. Addie Baum, an octogenarian grandmother in 1985, relates long-ago history to a beloved granddaughter, answering the question: “How did I get to be the woman I am today?” The answer: by living a fascinating life. First reminiscing about 1915 and the reading club she became a part of as a teenager, Addie, in a conversational tone, recounts the lifelong friendships that began at club meetings and days by the seaside at nearby Rockport. She tells movingly of the fatal effects of the flu, a relative’s suicide, the touchy subject of abortion and its aftermath, and even her own disastrous first date, which nearly ended in rape. Ahead of her time, Addie also becomes a career woman, working as a newspaper typist who stands up for her beliefs at all costs. This is a stunning look into the past with a plucky heroine readers will cheer for. This was reviewed by another Provo City Librarian in 2015, linked here.

 

Send For Me 

by Lauren Fox

Alfred A. Knopf, 2021. 259 pages. Historical Fiction

The enduring ties between mothers and daughters are at the center of Fox’s intergenerational epic, which begins with Klara, a Jewish mother and wife living in Germany in the 1930s. Klara wants nothing more than to protect her daughter, Annelise, but that means letting her leave for America with her husband, Walter, and daughter, Ruth. As Annelise settles into her new life in Milwaukee, Klara’s situation becomes dire, and Annelise struggles to find a way to bring her parents to the U.S. Years later, Klara’s great-granddaughter, Clare, discovers Klara and Annelise’s correspondence, which becomes a key to understanding her family’s past and her own future as she decides whether to move to London with the man she loves. These letters, interspersed throughout the book, highlight the desperation of Klara’s situation and the sacrifices she made to give her daughter and granddaughter an opportunity to survive. Fox deftly moves between generations as she illuminates the ways that choices echo through the lives of those who came after. This thoughtful, character-driven exploration of the unbreakable bonds of motherhood will appeal to fans of Alice Hoffman and Elizabeth Berg. 

 

JK

The Unmaking of June Farrow

The Unmaking of June Farrow
By Adrienne Young
Delacorte Press, 2023. 320 pages. Fiction

One woman's deeply emotional story of self-discovery, family, and love - but make it time travel! In the small mountain town of Jasper, North Carolina, June Farrow is waiting for fate to find her. The Farrow women are known for their thriving flower farm -- and the mysterious curse that has plagued their family line. The whole town remembers the madness that led to Susanna Farrow's disappearance, leaving June to be raised by her grandmother and spend her life haunted by rumors. 

It's been a year since June started seeing and hearing things that weren't there. She knows nothing of the time travel that plagues the women in her family; June thinks it's mental illness. Faint wind chimes, a voice calling her name, and a mysterious door appearing out of nowhere--the signs of the family curse that June always knew was coming. But she is determined to end the curse once and for all, even if she must sacrifice finding love and having a family of her own.

After her grandmother's death, June discovers a series of cryptic clues regarding her mother's decades-old disappearance, except that they lead only to more questions. Could the door she once assumed was a hallucination be the answer she's been searching for? The next time it appears, June realizes she can touch it and walk past the threshold. And when she does, she embarks on a journey that will not only change both the past and the future, but also uncover the lingering mysteries of her small town and entangle her heart in an epic star-crossed love.

I don't usually read romance. I definitely don't usually read about time travel. This book made me wonder why! I absolutely flew through the audiobook on a recent road trip. The story has many layers and each character is nuanced; I truly felt transported along with June. Throughout, I was hooked by the intriguing clues and unexpected twists, as well as just generally trying to wrap my brain around all of the time travel. I wouldn't have picked this book for myself in a million years, and I'm so glad I decided to listen to a friend's recommendation! 

If you like The Unmaking of June Farrow, you might also like:

The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue
By V.E. Schwab
Tor Books, 2020. 442 pages. Fiction

As a young woman, Addie makes a deal with the devil to save herself from the tedium of an arranged marriage - asking not to belong to anyone. The devil grants her immortality, but curses her to a life of horrible isolation because no one she meets is able to remember her. After 300 years of moving through the world like shadow, Addie hears the words she thought she never would: "I remember you." This book was reviewed by another Provo City Librarian in 2021, linked here. 

Weyward
By Emilia Hart
St. Martin's Press, 2023. 329 pages. Science Fiction

Weaving together the stories of three extraordinary women across five centuries, the Weyward family women give us an enthralling novel of female resilience. In 1619, Altha Weyward is on trial for her life, accused of witchcraft in the death of her best friend's husband. In the 1940s, tomboy Violet Weyward, is a disappointment to her frosty father, who is darkly silent regarding Violet's dead mother. In 2019, Kate Weyward flees an abusive relationship, seeking shelter in the cottage bequeathed to her by her great-aunt Violet. Tension and suspense are skillfully maintained as these women seek to extricate themselves from dire circumstances and discover secret strength.

Wrong Place Wrong Time 
By Gillian McAllister
William Morrow, 2022. 402 pages. Fiction

Can you stop a murder after it's already happened? Jen can't believe what she sees when her funny, happy teenage son kills a stranger, right there on the street outside the house. Devastated and in despair, Jen wakes up the next morning only to discover that she is living that fateful day over again. The net day, it is the day before yesterday. Every morning, she wakes up a day earlier, another day before the murder, with another chance to stop it. This book was reviewed by another Provo City Librarian in 2023, linked here.

LKA

Civilización Zapoteca

Civilización Zapoteca
Por Captivating History
CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform, 2018. 72 páginas. No Ficción

Los zapotecas vivieron, prosperaron y se convirtieron en una civilización de interés para los conquistadores. Siendo una de las civilizaciones más grandes de su tiempo en Mesoamérica, ayudaron a construir y darle forma al mundo con el que se encontraron los conquistadores a su llegada. Rivalizando en tamaño y complejidad con sus vecinos los mayas, los zapotecas fueron intelectuales e innovadores, y crearon una sociedad muy similar a los reinos y sus estructuras sociales.

Los zapotecas fueron un pueblo fascinante y este libro busca ofrecer un enfoque nuevo y fresco de una civilización tan compleja, estructurada y noble como el resto de sus contrapartes Mesoamericanas, Sudamericanas y Europeas.

Si le gusta «Civilización Zapoteca» le recomendamos:

Olmecas
Por Captivating History
CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform, 2018. 84 páginas. No Ficción

¿Sabía usted que los olmecas pudieron haber sido los primeros en iniciar la escritura?

Las primeras personas que lograron elevarse a la vida civilizada fueron los olmecas. ¿Pero por qué siguen siendo relativamente desconocidos, y permanecen escondidos en los largos y oscuros pasadizos de la historia olvidada?

La verdad es que pocos historiadores están preparados para abordar la tarea de descubrir la verdadera historia de los olmecas. Y, por lo tanto, puede ser difícil para los lectores encontrar un recurso fácil de leer, y que resulte cohesivo, sobre esta fascinante civilización.

Pero eso está por cambiar. En este nuevo y fascinante libro de historia, usted descubrirá la verdad sobre la civilización más antigua conocida en América.

Antiguas Civilizaciones
Por Captivating History
CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform, 2018. 258 páginas. No Ficción

Explore la cautivadora historia y mitología de tres civilizaciones antiguas: los Maya, los Azteca y los Incas. Este libro se incluye tres manuscritos de la «Civilización Maya: Una guía fascinante de la historia y la mitología maya», 

«Azteca: Una Guía Fascinante De La Historia Azteca y la Triple Alianza de Tenochtitlán, Tetzcoco y Tlacopan» y «Incas: Una Fascinante Guía sobre la Historia del Imperio y la Civilización Inca».

Estos libros son parte de la serie Explorando la Historia Antigua.

MEB

Labels: Español, MEB, No Ficción

Tress of the Emerald Sea

Tress of the Emerald Sea

By Brandon Sanderson
Dragonsteel Entertainment, 2023. 483 pages. Fantasy

The only life Tress has known on her island home in an emerald-green ocean has been a simple one, with the simple pleasures of collecting cups brought by sailors from faraway lands and listening to stories told by her friend Charlie. But when his father takes him on a voyage to find a bride and disaster strikes, Tress must stow away on a ship and seek the Sorceress of the deadly Midnight Sea. Amid the spore oceans where pirates abound, can Tress leave her simple life behind and make her own place sailing a sea where a single drop of water can mean instant death?

To quote another patron and reader at our library, this book was a delight to read. Told in first person narrative from a potentially familiar character in the Cosmere universe, the whimsical and often comical voice of Hoid (aka Wit) tells of Tress's adventures on the literally thirsty sporous seas. She begins as just a common window washer on a boring, stony island but becomes a daring, resourceful women of the aether spores. I loved watching this character grow and learn as she tackles the problems presented to her. The witty commentary from the narrator, which had the risk of being annoying, is amusing and at times philosophical and poignant. This story is full of play on words and unexpectedly familiar elements from our own word. Often compared to the The Princess Bride in its approach and tone, this story is sure to delight avid fans of Sanderson and curious readers alike.

JJC

If you like Tress of the Emerald Sea you might also like:

The Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi
By Shannon Chakraborty
Harper Voyager, 2023. 483 pages. Fantasy

Amina al-Sirafi should be content. After a storied and scandalous career as one of the Indian Ocean’s most notorious pirates, she’s survived backstabbing rogues, vengeful merchant princes, several husbands, and one actual demon to retire peacefully with her family to a life of piety, motherhood, and absolutely nothing that hints of the supernatural.

But when she’s tracked down by the obscenely wealthy mother of a former crewman, she’s offered a job no bandit could refuse: retrieve her comrade’s kidnapped daughter for a kingly sum. The chance to have one last adventure with her crew, do right by an old friend, and win a fortune that will secure her family’s future forever? It seems like such an obvious choice that it must be God’s will.

Yet the deeper Amina dives, the more it becomes alarmingly clear there’s more to this job, and the girl’s disappearance, than she was led to believe. For there’s always risk in wanting to become a legend, to seize one last chance at glory, to savor just a bit more power…and the price might be your very soul.

The Magician's Daughter
By H.G. Parry

Redhook, 2023. 390 pages. Historical Fantasy

Off the coast of Ireland sits a legendary island hidden by magic. A place of ruins and ancient trees, sea salt air, and fairy lore, Hy-Brasil is the only home Biddy has ever known. Washed up on its shore as a baby, Biddy lives a quiet life with her guardian, the mercurial magician Rowan. A life she finds increasingly stifling. One night, Rowan fails to return from his mysterious travels. To find him, Biddy must venture into the outside world for the first time. But Rowan has powerful enemies—forces who have hoarded the world’s magic and have set their sights on the magician’s many secrets.