What We’re Reading at Perrot: Book Recommendations from our Reference Desk

Come and read about the perfect little black dress and how it touches and changes the lives of the many people who come into contact with it. The action takes place mostly in Bloomingdale’s New York. This is truly a six degrees of  separation kind of story, from the first model who promenades the runway, to the unrequited love story of an assistant and her boss and everyone in between.  These are sweet scenarios, and Rosen definitely set this up as a chick lit story. It’s a fast-paced book and you will love it!

What a wonderful, well-illustrated collection of recipes, activities, places to stay in NYC! Each restaurant featured one of its tastiest dishes, and the book is presented both in English and Italian. The author of this collection is trying to get across the diversity and excitement of the city through beautiful pictures and alluring descriptions on how to prepare and present mouth-watering dishes. In his own words, Fabio says “New York isn’t America. It’s more, it’s magic, it’s exaggeration, it’s madness and desire.” Lovely book to enjoy and be tempted by.

Picture a well-to-do London family, four children, late 1960’s, escaping to their second home for holiday. Black Rabbit Hall is a sprawling mansion, turrets and all, on a seaside estate in Cornwall. Amber and Toby are twins. They are in their early teens. Kitty and Barney are the “little” guys. Mother is beautiful, fun and much loved by father. Tragedy strikes and lives change. Enter a second story line, 30 years later, Lorna is looking for a wedding venue and is drawn to Black Rabbit Hall. She has a dim memory of visiting when she was very, very young. Now the plot really thickens! Wonderful, happy, sad story that goes back and forth over the 30 years. Worth the read.

At first I thought this book was going to be a clone of Lovely Bones, which I did not like! It is not! Rosie is dying, being murdered in the opening chapter. What follows is a look behind the curtain at emotional and physical abuse, warped personalities, tempered by all too caring, well-meaning friends. This is so well done. The suspense keeps you guessing until almost the end. Rosie sums it up with this thought. “…I know, also, the consequences of what happens if you leave a heart unloved, un-nurtured, unimportant, destined never to reach its potential.”

This is a very different, but mesmerizing novel. At the center of the novel is a young woman, Miranda, who is a nature photographer. She lost her mother while she was still a young girl, and this loss is what drives Miranda to restlessly travel the world, photographing the glories and horrors of nature. This new adventure of hers takes her to the Farallon Islands, a dangerous and isolated archipelago 30 miles off the coast of California. The living space is fairly primitive and is inhabited by a small group of scientists and biologists. A nasty turn of events takes place and the person behind this turn is found dead shortly after. To tell you more would be to reveal too much. Suffice it to say, the descriptions of the sea and bird life are stunning.

What a fascinating concept! Get 10th graders to read! Get them off their devices and on to the printed page. Let’s face it, nothing feels quite like a book. Oh what places you’ll go! David Denby worked with three different secondary schools: one in NYC, one in New Haven, and one in Westchester. The reading lists were diverse, Kite Runner, Slaughterhouse Five, Glass Castle, The Scarlet Letter. I did not notice one  Tess of the D’Urbervilles anywhere! Credit goes to the impassioned, dedicated teachers who had a bunch of doubting 15 year olds under their tutelage. Very interesting book– and it includes a complete bibliography.

This thriller grabs you at the onset and just keeps going! It’s typical of this genre, since it is fast-paced and the action occurs in one day (for the most part).  The author uses the beloved St. Patrick’s Cathedral as the stage, and it’s during the Christmas holidays– which is one of the busiest times of the year for that part of New York City. It is supposed to take place on the evening of the lighting of the Christmas Tree in Rockefeller Center. You can imagine how valuable St Patrick’s Cathedral is to all the parties concerned: NYPD, FBI and others as they all work together to try to save the hostages and the building.

Is divorce a sign of failure or is it a necessary step in some marriages? This is the question raised and haltingly answered in the latest novel from David Nicholls, the bestselling author of One Day. Douglas Petersen, husband and father, is a scientist who approaches life rationally. He is rich in quiet virtues: sincerity, honesty, and a muted but ever-present sense of self-deprecation. Connie, his wife of almost 30 years, is a still-beautiful artist. Initially attracted to Douglas’ steadiness and calm, she has begun to feel restless in their marriage and is considering leaving her husband once their 17 year-old son, Albie, leaves for university. Before anything irreversible happens, however, Douglas arranges a month-long European tour for all three. The plan is to give the family one last time to bond over shared experiences, or, with luck, to save the marriage. As with many of the best-laid plans, things go awry, but throughout the journey Douglas compensates with his powerful optimism. Funny, sad, and at times, achingly true, the cannily titled Us offers its readers a journey worth taking.