January 12, 2024, Update: The Waters is for sale (click the blue link!), and it's a Jenna Bush Hagar January Book of the Month Club pick!
Hello, fellow bookworms! As we bid farewell to another incredible year of literary adventures, it’s time to look to the future. Get ready to dive into two must-reads in the new year and join me at the wishing well for two others.
Calling all lovers of the gritty, the real, the raw. The best stories have authentic characters, so it’s no surprise I am longing for new releases from two authors who specialize in character-driven stories. January is the release month for one, and the other, well … it’s a wait and see.
I was first introduced to Bonnie Jo Campbell by my friend, the lovely and brilliant Kerry Peterson, who sees beauty in all things. Author Bonnie Jo Campbell has a knack to write that way, too. Campbell highlights the simple, draws out the mundane, and captures the everyday. Campbell also writes character-driven short stories and brings to life small town, rural living.
Her newest release – The Waters – is a 400-page novel published by W.W. Norton & Company. Goodreads says, “A master of rural noir returns with a fierce, mesmerizing novel about exceptional women and the soul of a small town.” It’s set to release on January 9.
On a cold, wintery day during Christmas Break in 2018, I stumbled across Q Road (2002) in a used bookstore in Kalispell, Montana. Imagine my delight when I found the copy was signed! I also loved American Salvage (2008) and Mothers, Tell Your Daughters (2015), both of which are short story collections.
On Oct. 29, 2019, I gave American Salvage 4 Stars and wrote, “With a sharp focus on rural life, Bonnie Jo Campbell brings to life everyday characters.” On the same day, I added Q Road to “My Favorites” list with 3.5 Stars. If you want gritty, raw, and real, read Bonnie Jo Campbell.
Another author known for character-driven works is someone without an upcoming release: Wally Lamb. I have read every Wally Lamb book and cannot stop thinking about them! Lamb’s stories have plots and subplots that mirror how life and people work – there’s always a story behind the story behind the story.
Here are two of my favorites: I Know This Much is True (1998), to which I gave 4.5 stars and no review on May 8, 2012, on Goodreads, and The Hour I First Believed (2008), to which I gave 5 Stars with no review on Goodreads on July 24, 2016. [See my Goodreads here].
Lamb’s last published book was in 2019 with You Don’t Know Me: The Incarcerated Women of York Prison Voice Their Truths. At 73 years old, Lamb is still speaking at events, and according to his website he will be in Newport News, Virginia, on Feb. 29. You can still catch him live at book festivals around the nation. Perhaps I will consider re-reading his stuff. I mean, it has been more than 10 years, and I don’t do well with the wait and see game.
A book I read and would love to shout out (thank you #NetGalley for the ARC!) is The Color of Sound by Emily Barth Isler. Set to release on March 5, 2024, The Color of Sound is for middle grade readers and addresses themes of relationships with parents and understanding the importance of family heritage. A beautiful story that showcases Jewish traditions, 12-year-old Rosie is a musical prodigy whose synesthesia allows her to see music in colors. With a wrinkle in time – Rosie meets her mother as a teen – this children’s fiction book will make a great addition to a personal library or classroom.
Shop your local, independent bookstore for these titles and more!
While I may keep throwing a penny in a wishing well waiting on Lamb and Bechdel, I am confident in the world of literary wonders that awaits. What are you most looking forward to in 2024 on your magical reading journey?
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