Every Christmas I buy books for my sister. As a librarian, books are something I think I know something about. Since my sister reads a lot, I have to pick books that were not big bestsellers so I can be sure she hasn’t read them. Here are the books I picked – they’re good books you might have missed.
Sister of My Heart by Chitra Divakaruni
Sudha and Anju are two cousins being brought up in India in a very traditional household. When their fathers die under strange circumstances the two girls bond together as sisters. When both are forced into arranged marriages, they learn a secret that threatens to tear them apart. This is one of my favorite books and my sister loved it too. This is a beautiful story about the power of love that is timeless and cross-cultural. Divakaruni wrote a sequel to this novel called The Vine of Desire.
The Dogs of Babel by Carolyn Parkhurst
When Paul Iverson’s wife dies under very strange circumstances, he turns to the only witness to the event to find out what really happened –his dog Lorelei. He decides he’ll teach Lorelei to talk so she can tell him what occurred that awful day. It sounds like a very silly book but it is actually about how Iverson deals with the possibility that there was something missing in his marriage that could have made his wife take her own life.
Wednesday Letters by Jason F. Wright
When devoted couple Jack and Laurel Cooper die the same night, their three children come home for the funeral. As they prepare for the services, they find boxes of letters written every Wednesday by their father to their mother. As they read through the letters they discover a shocking secret about their parents and learn the power of love and forgiveness. Wednesday Letters is for people who loved Bridges of Madison County and want a little romance in their lives.
A Town Like Alice by Nevil Shute
Nevil Shute, author of On The Beach, wrote this novel in 1950, and it is one I read over and over. It’s a story about an English woman and an Australian soldier who meet in Japanese-occupied Malaysia during World War II. When Jean is taken prisoner by the Japanese in Malaysia, she must use all her intelligence and ingenuity to ensure the survival of her weary group of women prisoners. After the war, she reconnects with the Australian soldier who was also imprisoned by the Japanese and who risked his life to help her. This is a beautiful story of romance and courage, set in Malaysia and the Australian Outback.
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