Foster Community Library

Tag: adult

  • “Return to the Secret Garden” by Susan Moody

    Audrey recommends: Return to the Secret Garden by Susan Moody

    Genre: Historical fiction

    Reading Level: Adult

    Summary: In an unofficial sequel to Frances Hodgson Burnett’s The Secret Garden, the friendship of Mary, Colin, and Dickon is tested by world wars, unhappy marriages, and the tumultuous jazz age.

    Audrey says: In the ’90s, The Secret Garden entered public domain, and a boom of content followed. There was a Broadway musical in 1991, a 39-episode Japanese anime the same year, the 1993 Agnieszka Holland film, and, in 1995, this novel, an unofficial sequel by crime fiction author Susan Moody.

    If you look online, this book is absolutely overburdened by negative reviews, which complain that the text lacks the charm and whimsy of the original and has desecrated their favorite childhood story with war, sex, and tragedy. But to me, Moody’s sequel expands Burnett’s world in a brutal but believable way. Dickon goes to fight on behalf of the country he loves so much in World War I, and it destroys his perpetual optimism. Mary, stubborn and impulsive as ever, decides to cut her hair short, travel to India, and join the Communist Party. Colin remains at home, turning his garden into a career by designing tropical greenhouses for wealthy estates.

    Throughout the book, the three separate and reunite in various configurations, but it’s clear that they only achieve balance when all three are together. At its core, through all the trappings of drama and suspense, it’s still a story about friendship. I truly loved this generation-spanning character study of my favorite piece of fiction. Don’t be swayed by low star ratings and give it a chance.

  • “Anne Boleyn & Elizabeth I” by Tracy Borman

    Olivia recommends: Anne Boleyn and Elizabeth I by Tracy Borman

    Genre: Nonfiction

    Reading Level: Adult

    Summary: This book tells the interesting story of Anne Boleyn’s relationship and influence over her daughter, Elizabeth I.

    Olivia says: Tracy Borman is a favorite historical Tudor period author of mine. Each of her books are outstanding, and this one doesn’t disappoint either! I enjoyed the well written timeline of Anne Boleyn’s marriage to Henry VIII and her time as Queen and Mother to the future Queen Elizabeth I. Many people may believe that Queen Anne was forgotten and put aside by her daughter based on what others hoped she would believe after her execution, but this book proves otherwise and offers a unique and fascinating perspective to this famous mother daughter duo. I highly recommend.

  • “Yellowface” by R. F. Kuang

    Kylie recommends: Yellowface by R. F. Kuang

    Genre: Literary fiction

    Reading Level: Adult

    Summary: Author June witnesses the freak accident death of her friend and best-selling author, Athena, and steals her unpublished work and passes it off as her own under the name Juniper Song. “So what if June edits Athena’s novel and sends it to her agent as her own work? So what if she lets her new publisher rebrand her as Juniper Song–complete with an ambiguously ethnic author photo? Doesn’t this piece of history deserve to be told, whoever the teller? That’s what June claims, and the New York Times bestseller list seems to agree.”

    Kylie says: This was a very compelling and thought provoking story. You read from June’s perspective and see her rationale for everything she does, you feel conflicted as a reader. I also really liked the inside look at the publishing world and how it discussed topics like racism, diversity, cultural appropriation, and ethics.

    This title is available at Foster Public Library.

  • “Reminders of Him” by Colleen Hoover

    Cathy recommends: Reminders of Him by Colleen Hoover

    Genre: Romance

    Reading Level: Adult

    Summary: One mistake does not an evil person make.

    Cathy says: This book brought such waves of emotion. It’s about a mother separated from her child whom she loves with all her heart. It’s about finding ways to deal with depression, untenable situations, living with disappointments and loneliness. It’s about good people and bad assumptions. It’s about love.

  • “Spare” by Prince Harry

    Olivia recommends: Spare by Prince Harry

    Genre: Autobiography

    Reading Level: Adult

    Summary: This is Prince Harry’s biography from childhood to adulthood. The book goes into detail about the many trials and tribulations he faces as a member of the royal family.

    Olivia says: I recommend this book because it as extremely eye-opening. It is easy to believe that the royal family is perfect in every way based on what the media portrays. Prince Harry’s side of the story was told well and is honestly very believable. I have a totally different picture in the my head of the family he as born into and the reason why he needed to get himself, his wife and two children out of the spotlight and somewhere more safe. I recommend listening to this book over reading it, as hearing his voice tell his own story makes the reader have a more sympathetic ear toward his cause.

    This book is available at Foster Public Library.

  • “The Dispossessed” by Ursula K. Le Guin

    Audrey recommends: The Dispossessed by Ursula K. Le Guin

    Genre: Science fiction

    Reading Level: Adult

    Summary: Shevek, a brilliant scientist in a utopian socialist society, visits the world where his people came from: a capitalist planet much like modern-day Earth.

    Audrey says: Le Guin wrote The Dispossessed in 1974. As we approach the 50th anniversary if its publication, it’s startling how it seems to be more relevant now than ever. The first chapter alone, where Shevek innocently questions the wasteful consumption that we take for granted as a part of everyday American life, is such an incisive critique of capitalism without being didactic. Throughout the text, the reader slowly learns that the supposed “utopian” society Shevek comes from is not quite so perfect either. After all, who decides what is best for the collective, when the collective is comprised of individuals with their own needs and wants? Le Guin writes in her introduction to The Left Hand of Darkness: “Science fiction is not predictive; it is descriptive […] I’m merely observing, in the peculiar, devious, and thought-experimental manner proper to science fiction, that if you look at us at certain odd times of day in certain weathers, [what] we already are.” The Dispossessed is a mirror through which we can see our world through the eyes of someone who wasn’t born into it, allowing us to name the flaws we misidentify as necessities. This novel deserves all the praise it gets, and I expect a lot of fanfare in 2024.

  • “Waiting for Tom Hanks” by Kerry Winfrey

    Cathy recommends: Waiting for Tom Hanks by Kerry Winfrey

    Genre: Contemporary fiction

    Reading Level: Adult

    Summary: Don’t look for love in all the wrong places.

    Cathy says: This is the quintessential rom-com. The protagonist, Annie, has blinders on about whom she should love and, as a result, is not even in the race. The reader is both amused and frustrated by Annie’s mulishness. As with most rom-coms, this easy read has a happy ending.

    This book is available at Tyler Free Library.