MPL Staff Pick
Rain Village (2006)
by Carolyn Turgeon
Genre: Fiction
Review by Shawna Pershing, Youth Services Librarian
This first novel by Carolyn Turgeon chronicles the life of Tessa Riley. Last child born to a poor Kansas farmer, Tessa is no more than four feet tall and unable to help with the heavy manual labor that is a part of farm life. The dullness of their lives is irrevocably changed when Mary Finn breezes into town and opens the library. Suddenly, farmers are reading Shakespeare on their tractors while their wives seek out Mary to have their fortunes told and get advice on their futures, lives and loves.
Tessa’s life is forever changed when she finally meets Mary, learns to read, and eventually, takes a job helping in the library. Mary introduces Tessa to a new world and Tessa learns about the secret life Mary escaped from. A devastating event sets Tessa on a new path and the book chronicles her life and the influence Mary had on it.
Rain Village will take you along Tessa’s journey. Enjoy the ride!
Don’t judge this book by its cover
When I Fall In Love (1999)
by Iris Rainer Dart
Genre: Fiction
Okay. Now I’m not one for sappy romances, and the cover of this one suggests “weepy, cavity-inducing love story.” But the cover is somewhat deceptive; there is substance and grit to this story. Iris Rainer Dart’s When I Fall in Love explores not only themes of unconditional love, but also of sensitivity, tolerance, and cruelty.
Comedy writer Lily Benjamin has a thriving career, a handsome cardiologist fiancé, and a teenaged son who has ambitions to be a tennis star. Then, every parent’s worst nightmare happens—Lily’s son, Bryan, is shot and his spine is damaged beyond repair. He will never walk again. Lily struggles desperately to comfort her son, but seems to be going about it all wrong; Bryan does not respond to her.
Enter Charlie Roth: Lily’s new boss and legendary comedian, and who is horribly disfigured from cerebral palsy. Famous for his off-color humor and outrageous self deprecation, Roth is not one of Lily’s favorite people.
Strangely enough to Lily, Charlie’s insensitive and often cruel humor is the only thing Bryan responds to. Slowly, Bryan gains a new perspective of the world around him, and how he fits into it. And Lily, too, begins to see life—and Charlie—in a new light.
Sound like a tear-jerker? It is. Your gut will twist from the emotions and tragedy of the story, but you will also convulse with laughter as well, and fall in love with the character Charlie Roth.
Life is Unpredictable…
by Christina Baker Kline
Genre: Fiction
Is the grass always greener on the other side? We’ve all dreamed of what would have happened had we taken a different path. Occasionally, some of us are given an opportunity.
In The Way Life Should Be, Angela Russo is thirty-three, single, and miserable, seemingly stuck in a job she hates and a life that just snowballed from nothing intentional whatsoever. The magazine ad featuring a picturesque cottage on the coast of Maine which she has tacked to her bulletin board represents a dream life that is virtually unattainable… that is, until Angela meets a sailing instructor online who goes by the name “MaineCatch.” As she builds a rapport with this perfect stranger, her dreams of a perfect life become more attainable. Suddenly, her world is turned upside down with the loss of her career, and Angela decides to pick up and move to Maine.
Of course, Angela learns that life can be complicated even in the beautiful setting in which she’s dreamed of living for so long. The “perfect man” isn’t so perfect, and Angela finds herself alone in Maine, just as she was in her old life. Yet, with little to return to, Angela begins to slowly build her future with very small steps. Isn’t it funny how things seem to work out, but not at all how you planned?
Filled with wit and humor, wisdom and thoughtful reflection, The Way Life Should Be is one of those novels everyone can relate to in some way or another. Kline gives us lots of great recipes to make our mouths water as well… very Under the Tuscan Sun! Reserve it today, and crawl under the covers for this warm and fuzzy read.
