CityView Magazine

52 August 2023 GOOD READS End-of-summer picks for your book club BY DIANE PARFITT A s summer begins to wind down, book clubs that took a break will be getting ready to meet again. Most groups probably had their books picked out for the fall so the members could do their summer reading. If your group has not made a list, here are a few suggestions. Remember, many book clubs like it if you have read the book before suggesting it so that you will be able to persuade the group to add it to the list. And I've always found that if you bring a copy of the book to your meeting, it adds a great incentive for them to select your book. 1. WE SHOULD NOT BE FRIENDS by Will Schwalbe If you read "e End of Your Life Book Club" by Schwalbe, you will certainly enjoy this equally warm and funny memoir of two men who became friends in college and remained close for more than 40 years. Nerdy and creative Will meets Maxey, the physically imposing jock at Yale who wants to become a Navy SEAL. eir friendship endures over the years through marriages, divorce, triumphs and losses, and what survives is an extraordinary friendship. 2. HELLO BEAUTIFUL by Ann Napolitano Leaving his dysfunctional family to go off to college to play basketball, William Waters meets vivacious Julia Padavan, who comes from a close-knit family with three sisters. ey all welcome William into their loving and chaotic family, but when cracks begin to develop, will their strength sustain them, or will it ultimately change everyone's future? A perfect book for discussion, "Hello Beautiful" explores issues of family and relationships, mental health, and forgiveness. 3. ALL THE SINNERS BLEED by S.A. Cosby When Titus Crown becomes the first Black sheriff in a small Virginia county, he isn't sure he will be accepted by the residents, even though he is a former FBI agent and is well prepared for the job. While investigating the killing of a schoolteacher by a former student, who is then shot by one of his deputies, Titus discovers a string of terrible crimes and a serial killer who has been lurking in plain sight. As if trying to close the case is not enough, Titus is then confronted with a far-right group preparing to hold a celebration of the town's Confederate history. All the while, his own painful past may come back to haunt him. 4. THE BOOK OF CHARLIE: Wisdom From the Remarkable American Life of a 109-Year-Old Man by David Von Drehle We oen forget how much we can all learn from the older generation, but in this true story, author Von Drehle reminds us that they can help us understand how to live a long and happy life. When Von Drehle, a Washington journalist, moves to Kansas, he soon meets a new neighbor who is more than 100 years old. What can Charlie White teach this sophisticated writer? In fact, a lot. Charlie was born before radio and lived long enough to use a smartphone. Aer a shocking tragedy interrupted his happy childhood, Charlie mastered the skills that brought him years of human wisdom. Learning from his resilience and willingness to adapt, Von Drehle decides to write about Charlie's secrets for a long and happy life as a tribute to his children. 5. THE HOUSE OF EVE by Sadeqa Johnson is story alternates between the perspectives of two distinctly unrelated Black women in Philadelphia and Washington, D.C., in the 1950s. However, throughout the book there are hints at a connection that ties their lives together. Ruby tries to become the first person in her family to attend college. However, her plans are threatened when she falls in love with a Jewish boy. Will her pregnancy overcome the prejudice? Eleanor arrives in D.C. with secrets she wishes to hide, but also an ambition she hopes will overcome this. Like Ruby, her plans are interrupted when she meets "the one," William, at Howard University. When they fall in love, she "Books are something social — a writer speaking to a reader — so I think making the reading of a book the center of a social event, the meeting of a book club, is a brilliant idea." ~Yann Martel 2 1 3 4 5 6 7

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