Fall Reads

The Leftover Woman by Jean Kwok is the story of Jasmine, a Chinese girl who has fled her small village to escape an abusive husband and to find her daughter that was taken from her and sent to America. With no legal credentials, Jasmine must work in a sleezy bar, turning herself into an object of unwanted desirability putting herself in increasing danger. Uptown, a successful but-on-the-brink publishing executive, Rebecca, juggles her floundering career, her husband’s suddenly secret behavior while trying – mostly failing – to be the best mom she can be to their adopted daughter. When Jasmine and Rebecca’s paths cross it makes for an unexpected intersection that ends tragically. This is a beautiful read, suspenseful and engrossing. Kwok is a smart writer that brings the emotion while keeping the suspension taut.

Daniel Sweren-Becker dives into the world of true crime in his gripping Kill Show about the disappearance of Sara Parcell and the subsequent Searching for Sara reality show shot in real time during the hunt for the missing teen. This goes under the you-could-not-make-this-up category except – full disclosure – it is pure fiction. However, it is so smartly written you will be sucked in. The cast of characters have varying agendas that conflict dramatically with the real hunt for Sara. In fact, the missing girl becomes an afterthought, while a wily producer inserts herself into the “program” and a naïve detective finds himself in over his head and compromising his integrity. It’s raw and troubling as the book barrels towards an ending you won’t see coming. There are so many twists, it will leave you gasping.

James Ellroy is back with The Enchanters, taking on the death of Marilyn Monroe in his distinctive style filled with staccato dialogue. Ellroy is at his finest when he slinks through the underbelly of Los Angeles, bringing back less-than-heroic, ex-cop Freddy Otash, hired by Jimmy Hoffa to dig up some Monroe/Kennedy dirt. Loaded with a cast of fringe characters as only Ellroy can paint them, a little bit of filth clings to everyone, moving the story at break-neck speed. Though I found it less “enchanting” once Monroe was found dead, still it is Ellroy’s best work in years.

The Refugee Ocean is one of those breathtaking and simultaneously heartbreaking stories that slides under one’s skin and stays. Pauls Toutonghi begins his epic tale in Syria with teenage Naim and his mother fleeing Aleppo in 2014 after a devastating bombing that leaves his hand mangled. Interwoven with Marguerite’s story that begins in Beirut in the late 1940s, a talented musician who has been promised in marriage to a man who will crush her spirit, by a father who sees her as only a commodity. Unbeknownst to her family, Marguerite has been accepted into a prestigious music school in Paris, but before she can make her way there, the opportunity is snatched from her. Toutonghi follows Naim and Marguerite’s journeys as refugees, from Cuba to Washington, D.C. where their stories will intersect. It is a story of the power of music and its ability to bring lives and hope together and to heal wounds that threaten to sink the soul. 

Joan Didion fans will delight in Evelyn McDonnell’s intimate portrait of the author and her work in The World According to Joan Didion, through a lens of art, homes, and flowers that brought her joy and an idyllic California childhood. McDonnell is a smart, concessive writer, not only praising the obviously talented Didion but ruminating on her shortcomings. McDonnell reminds the reader of the rockstars, politicians, and artists that both informed Didion’s work and how her work informed our culture. It is a thoughtful read.