Biblioracle
It’s Week 2 of the Biblioracle Book Awards, and this time I’ll identify works of fiction that have re-scrambled my neurons one way or another.
(That’s a good thing.)
There are several moments while reading this book when the hairs stood up on the back of my neck, as if I had been visited by a terrible, alien presence. This makes the reading experience undeniably powerful, but when I’ve recommended it to others and they experience something similar, they come back and say, “Why’d you do that to me?” And then they, in turn, recommend it to someone else. Read this book at your own peril, but do read this book.
“The Children’s Bible” is the story of a group of young people fending largely for themselves as their parents while the time away during an unspecified severe climate event. By turns mordantly funny and also scary, Millet has a particular gift for seeing past the surface to the root of our dysfunctions in a way that’s thoughtful and generous, not preachy.
“Want” is the story of a young, educated working mother who only wants a reasonable life of security and happiness but is thwarted by a system that is fundamentally hostile to those rather modest goals. As we go through what some are calling a “she-cession,” with women being disproportionately harmed by the pandemic economy, this penetrating, emotionally acute novel helps us experience the human cost underneath the macroeconomic data.
I say this not just because this novel was already selected for Reese Witherspoon’s book club, but because it is expertly plotted with a series of forking paths where all directions seem plausible, and it is difficult to decide which eventuality you’d like to see come true. Throw in some scenes that would be indelible if filmed, plus rich, complex characters, and you’ve got the goods on the page and screen.
I gave Everett this title in a column a couple of years ago, but each time out he manages to reaffirm my belief. In this case it’s a haunting story of a man whose daughter is slipping away before his eyes and so he pursues something deeply foolish in response.
“Writers and Lovers” is the story of a young woman unmoored by loss, seeking to find purchase in the world as she figures out whether she’s a writer.
Can you believe that this is it for 2020? Not a moment too soon.
I’ll see you all next year.
Book recommendations from the Biblioracle
I’m going back 25 years for a little gem of nonfiction that defies categorization:
Louise Erdrich delivers every time out, and
I think John will take to the grit and intrigue of Daniel Woodrell’s
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