I know that the writing in this book is well loved by a lot of readers, but I just could not get into it.  The western, masculine world of the wild west just isn't for me. It was a bit of Don Quixote, a bit of Lonesome Dove, and a lot of expecting Brokeback Mountain without an ounce of romance. It was just men making their way in a world of other men--and horses-- in a way that just did not resonate for me.  It did make me want to go back and read Lonesome Dove, though, since I loved that series in the 1990's and I wonder whether it holds up such that I would like it now or would I find it as boring as this novel was.

​Not recommended.

This book really grew on it.  It started so slowly. The third or maybe fourth Iranian book this year, I found the initial development of backstory to be tedious.  But, somewhere along the way, I was gripped by the storytelling and really appreciated the way the characters grew into complex relationships that intertwined and made seemingly horrible people understandable. And of course all of the trauma caused by all of the things that happen during times of resistance and revolution and revolt.  I ended up really appreciating the story, the romances, the family dynamics, the politics, the heartaches, the life choices people make...really well written, well plotted, and well edited.

​Recommend.

This is a strange novel that is hard to classify.  It follows Raja and his mother for 50+ years following the many changes in Lebanon starting in the 1960's. Through times of prosperity and joy to war and devastation, Raja's life as a gay man is filled with times of love and light and some times of darkness and hatred, including extended scenes of sexual abuse. I really don't know what to make of the book overall.  Parts of it gave me a glimpse into a life and a time and a community I hadn't ever read about before, which I always really love in a book.  Part of it was bleak and full of family dysfunction.  The community bullying and othering reminds us how universal those themes are, across time and place and culture.  The sexual abuse was complicated, but explored consent in the context of captivity in a unique way.  The theme of things not always being as they seem from the outside is also well explored here in ways that I haven't developed well in other contexts. Huge bonus points for an ending in which a survivor just embraces his anger, refuses to feel guilty or not forgiving their abuser, and finding their own path of survival that doesn't take anyone else's opinion into account.

It isn't an easy or fast read and it is the opposite of light.  Even when it is openly funny, I find that humor to be harsh.  All of this leads me to a not not recommended, although I know I will be recommending it for some people.

​Not not recommended.

Another great read this year, this is a fictionalized story that brings home the Missing or Murdered Indigenous Women (MMIW) movement in a nuanced story about "family" and the complex meaning of that word, especially in the context of harms that are too deep to be forgiven. Set in Nova Scotia and Maine, it centers in part on cross-border indigenous migrant workers who picked summer berries for white farmers.  It is really hard to talk about this book without spoiling the story because the core themes unfold slowly. By the time the themes reveal themselves, it wasn't a surprise they were coming, but it didn't end where it began.  Suffice it to say that this is worth reading and has timely and timeless themes of family separation because of both casual and systemic racism that transcends generation and causes ripples of pain, as well as ripples of love.

Recommend. 

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Often when a book gets this much hype, I find it doesn't live up, but Reid came through again and I loved this book.  I was completely sucked in, stayed up much to late to finish it. In fact, 4 minutes from the end, which was a thrilling ending, my phone ran out of battery and I was left in wicked suspense while I recharged it in the middle of the night to find out what happened. 

This book is like The Hidden Figures meets Erich Segal's Love Story meets Lessons in Chemistry. The backdrop of working at NASA in the 1980's sets the stage for a relatively nuanced portrayal of the many ways that women adjusted to make their way in that workforce.  I loved the character development, the love story, the family relationships, and the way in which the plot unfolded with flashbacks. I often do not like when a book starts with a harrowing scene and then leaves you hanging while it backs up to fill in what is happening, but this book used that structure better than almost any book I can remember and it kept me engaged, not just in the that scene unfolding, but in the back stories as well. I can definitely see why so many people thought this was their favorite book of 2025 and, for once, I am going to join the crowd on this one.  

What a great start to my reading year!

​Recommend.

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Although when traveling, I prefer books not only set in the location I am traveling to, instead of books about foreigners traveling to those locations, I am making an exception for this story of three wealthy, self-centered Americans traveling to Loch Ness during WWII.  It is a well crafted story, with the personal growth of the main character against the lack of it by the two men who strand her in Scotland.  

The descriptions of the country and the people and the culture were well done, but it really was the plotting and character development that had me engrossed.  A definite story to add to your Scottish vacation.

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Set in 1962 Ireland, this is a marginally interesting period piece that recounts the bleak existence of a small town second-generation doctor and his adult spinster daughter who "keeps house for him."  Living under the rigidity of the Catholic Church and a cloud of grief since the death of the doctor's wife and the daughter's mother, the first three parts of the story drag on with detailed descriptions of mundane events that I suspect "real" lovers of literature find beautiful and enthralling.  I got all the way to part four and realized that only about two or three weeks of time had passed in the storyline. 
 
By Part Four, a few things happen.  We meet another character, whose life is also dismal.  A young teen, his father is an alcoholic and his mother the kind of run down and sad that comes from a lifetime of being dependent on alcoholics. The poverty and pain of the story continues on until the Time of The Child.  At this point, well into the last part of the book, the plot seemed to begin.
 
Now, I am not saying the book isn't well crafted or that it wasn't at times informative of an historical period in a place that is often ignored, but I am saying that it was boring and those things weren't enough to pull me along.
 
Not recommended.

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Set mostly in Edinburgh, this is a layered book with a multi-generational story that unfolds when the mental health facility where Esme has been living for decades is being closed.  Her great-niece, who was oblivious to her existence, is the next-of-kin contacted and the story to understand Esme's -- and by extension the whole family's--life history unfolds.  With themes addressing intergenerational family dysfunction and the control of rebellious women, I found the book engaging and charming.

Recommend.
​
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​Following The Secret Life of Albert Entwistle, I was not expecting to find myself in love with another sweet read.  A more traditional coming of age story about a teenager leaving home and finding his way in the world during the Great Depression, I found this story about a boy trying to survive anyway he can and to outrun his demons (and his criminal background) entrancing. 

I have been hating on these imagined historical fiction books lately (like The Frozen River, The Postmistress of Paris, The Pull of The Stars, Take My Hand), but this one feels different.  Perhaps because it is based on a little known historical event that I know absolutely nothing about… Perhaps because it was an historical event that wasn't filled with the weight of sexual assault, war, the Holocaust, or forced sterilization… Or perhaps because it was just better written… For whatever reason, I found it was easier for me to suspend disbelief here and to just really appreciate the story of man and a boy driving a pair of giraffes from a port in New Jersey to the San Diego Zoo in 1938. 

I appreciated how their backstories were unfolded over time, without it feeling like the author was holding back critical information and how there was no secret agenda to the tale.  It was just good storytelling, well written, about what turned out to be an interesting adventure.
Recommend.

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This is such an unusual and sweet book.  In many ways, it is a classic coming-of-age story, with self-discovery and coming to accept one's place in the world, but what makes this story so, so lovely is that the protagonist who is discovering himself and goes on a quest of sorts is 65 and facing mandatory retirement from the postal service where he worked since he was a teenager. 

The characters in the book are richly developed, even the peripheral ones. The plot is unusual, with just the right amount of foreshadowing and unexpected turns.  The writing itself has a clip to it that is charming. It sometimes feels like it is meandering, but then sort of wanders back to the point with just the right amount of description and prose.  I ended up just really loving this book.

Recommend.
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