A LETTER FROM ELIZABETH STROUT..(Need I say more?!)

All That's Left to Tell

Dear Joyce, I am writing to you about a debut novel that I loved to pieces, Daniel Lowe’s All That’s Left to Tell. I first read this debut while recovering from an illness. I have often thought I wanted to write a book strong enough that someone convalescing could read it and disappear in it, but I had never had that experience myself until reading All That’s Left to Tell. I got an early copy in the mail, I opened it up, and then I was gone. There are so many things to say about Daniel’s lovely book, but it feels strange to divide up the aspects of it, because it is such a beautiful whole. Ostensibly, it is about an American businessman named Marc, who is being held captive in a foreign land and the relationship he develops with Josephine, his interrogator. Every day, Josephine visits Marc and they tell each other stories. And it is through these stories that we see how grief, imagination, empathy, and ultimately the power of storytelling can redeem us. All That’s Left to Tell made me think at times of another book I love, Philip Roth’s American Pastoral. But that said, I have never read anything like Daniel Lowe’s novel. It is such a brave book. The prose is splendid—Daniel Lowe’s authority on the page never wavers. Oh, I was with him every single word of the way. I think you will feel the same way, and I hope you pick up a copy of this astonishing debut. With best wishes, Elizabeth Strout

WHAT WE'LL BE READING IN 2017

So many new books debuting in the next few months...lots of well known authors and many newcomers. I still haven't finished my list for 2016, but hope to catch up...too many distractions!

A new novel by Elizabeth Strout titled "Anything is Possible" is at the top of my 2017 list...also Paula Hawkins of "Girl on the Train" fame debuts "Into the Water." (At the bottom of my list...)

Colin Toibin retells the Greek legend of Clytemnestra titled "House of Names" and short story master, George Saunders has a first novel titled "Lincoln in the Bardo."

 Some notable non fiction in March includes Joan Didion and Ariel Levy...all eagerly anticipated.

Stay tuned for more book announcements....

GOODBYE 2016

As 2017 approaches it's worth noting that many familiar authors left their mark on the 2016 fiction lists. Ian McEwan, Richard Russo, Elizabeth Strout, Don DeLilo, are some of my favorites...along with several bold debuts by new authors. Imbolo Mbue's BEHOLD THE DREAMERS is an example of a debut novel that illuminates the Immigrant experience in America written with warmth, confidence and empathy...a must-read.(Scroll down to earlier post)

I'm anticipating many more exciting releases for 2017 which I'll happily share with you. In the meantime I'm off to sunny climes with a kindle full of 'to be read' books!

Have a great holiday season!

WSJ NEWS (JANUARY 2016)

According to the Wall Street Journal, winter is a relatively quiet season for book publishers, a time when they can introduce gems that might otherwise be lost in fall’s crush of literary heavyweights. The buzziest titles this season range from family dramas to ghost stories and most are included on this blog.

Among the most notable are the latest novel from Pulitzer Prize-winner Elizabeth Strout reviewed in an earlier post and The Expatriates by Janice Y.K.Lee, described below.

‘The Expatriates’ by Janice Y.K..Lee, Jan. 12

Janice Y.K.Lee's debut novel in 2009, “The Piano Teacher,” a tale of two love affairs in midcentury Hong Kong, was a runaway hit, selling more than 400,000 copies in the U.S., according to her publisher. Viking is hoping for a repeat performance with “The Expatriates.” The new work, set in present day Hong Kong, looks at three women whose lives cross paths in the city’s insular expat community.