Chelka Recommends

Mary Jane, by Jessica Anya Blau: What if Judy Blume wrote "Almost Famous"? You'd end up with Mary Jane! This short, quick read takes place over one summer as a 14-year-old babysitter learns about music, sex, drugs, dysfunctional families, and the value of being seen. It's a little over-the-top, but isn't that what you want in a summer novel? A great diversion!

Greg Recommends

How I Learned To Hate In Ohio, by David Stuart MacLean: Barry is just your average everyday bookish 14-year-old kid, living with his parents in a quaint college town in rural Ohio. But when a new kid comes to town, it touches off a series of events that forces Barry to confront some very adult issues: racism, sex, infidelity, and more. Harrowing and hilarious, this is one of the most authentic accounts of small town life I've ever read. Absolutely loved it!

Erika Recommends

The Night Always Comes, by Willy Vlautin: Daaaamn, this book blew me away. Here is a story that is so specific yet illustrates such big, harsh realites about life for so many people in this country. Lynette works multiple jobs and barely gets by, but if she can secure enough money to buy her house, she can secure an actual future for herself, her mom, and her disabled brother. The entire story takes place over two days, as Lynette scrambles to find the money. Everything Vlautin does here -- from his tight plotting to his character development and the sense of urgency he creates -- works beautifully. This book is an absolute knockout.

Erika Recommends

Libertie, by Kaitlyn Greenidge: This lovely book illuminates a perspective that I don't see too often in fiction: That of a free black woman in the post-Civil War years. Libertie is the only daughter of an ambitious female doctor, and spends her young adulthood navigating the expectations of both her mother and society at large. Her journey takes her from Brooklyn to the Midwest to the lush hills of Haiti, but throughout, her voice is clear and distinctive and her self-reflection brings rich rewards for a reader. I really loved the book's ending, too!

Jess Recommends

Having and Being Had, by Eula Biss: I have always loved Eula Biss, and I will always love Eula Biss. Her writing does the exact thing I am drawn to: Interrogating a topic from every single angle, in a way that is memorable but not overwhelming. For this book, Biss is interrogating what it means to be a wealthy white woman buying a house, and what that means. And when I say "what that means," I mean: She asks what capitalism even is, what the purpose of capitalism is, what does having a gravy boat mean for her class, what is class, what defines the middle class, and what is the relationship between time, money, play, and art. This book feels timely and purposeful in the way that money is always timely and purposeful -- but also, an important book to read if you want to re-examine the system we live in, and maybe for some of us, a system we also reject.

Christy Recommends

Open Book, by Jessica Simpson: Well that was seriously fun to read. Self-deprecating, warm, funny, personal. And dishy without ever veering into meanness.

Chelka Recommends

Time Travel for Love and Profit, by Sarah Lariviere: I can't say enough good things about this book. It made me LOL when I really needed it. It doesn't read like a kids' book at all. You'll love it, too, if you were a nerdy kid, you understand Star Trek jokes, and you're really good at suspending disbelief.

Erika Recommends

All Girls, by Emily Layden:  I'll admit, Layden's lovely debut novel -- which follows a handful of students at an all-girls boarding school over the course of a scandal-plagued schoolyear -- is VERY much in my wheelhouse. But in addition to illuminating the complex feelings the girls have about school, sex, their friends and families, etc., Layden does a great job showing how an institution that's built on tradition is forced to confront some very modern problems. There's a lot going on here (I mean that in the best way), and it all adds up to a really compelling picture.

Greg Recommends

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Klara And The Sun, by Kazuo Ishiguro: This novel is an absolute master class in empathy! Ishiguro's singular genius is making incredibly complex human emotions seem easily relatable. He does there in this parable told from the perspective of an Artificial Friend -- a robot. But this novel is SO human -- about how we love, hope, and connect to others. Rich with symbolism, allusion, and allegory, this is just a stunning work of art. Easily a favorite of the year!