February 23, 2015

Opinion

An overflowing bin of avocados at the grocery store is proof that summer has arrived, and there is arguably no better way to eat an avacado than in the perfect batch of guacamole.

Do you dream about buttery cookies, pies crammed with fruit, the brown glaze of fat turkeys just out of the oven, and mounds of garlicky mashed potatoes? This holiday season, just kick those skinny little lo-carb Nazis to the curb and enjoy yourself. After all, carbs are organic.

Rich characters and vivid dreams provide the counterpoint to this tale of relationships as Solange Ambris loses first her exquisite but straying husband, then her admirable but controlling mother, leaving the middle-aged Sully left with the task of finally deciding for herself who she is when not defined by others.

Piker Press staffer Wendy Robards discovers and reviews "Summer Crossing," Truman Capote's first novel, written when he was only 19 years old.

Wendy Robards reviews Lisa See's book "Peony In Love."

Wendy Robards reviews "The Reluctant Fundamentalist" by Mohsin Hamid.

Wendy Robards previews the upcoming novel, "The Outlander" by Gil Adamson.

Wendy Robards reviews "Jackfish, The Vanishing Village," by Sarah Felix Burns.

Wendy Robards reviews the book "The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society" by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows.

Wendy Robards reviews the book "Crossing the River" by Caryl Phillips.

Wendy Robards reviews "Sweetsmoke," by David Fuller, and explains how to enter her book give-away

Wendy Robards reviews Anita Brookner's book, "Hotel Du Lac".

Wendy Robards reviews Art Spiegelman's graphic novels "Maus I" and "Maus II."

Wendy Robards reviews "The Story of Forgetting" by Stefan Merrill Block.

Wendy Robards reviews Kathleen Kent's debut novel, "The Heretic's Daughter."

Wendy Robards reviews "House and Home" by Kathleen McCleary.

Wendy Robards reviews the book "Ships Without A Shore" by Anne R. Pierce.

Wendy Robards reviews "Let The Northern Lights Erase Your Name", by Vendela Vida.

Wendy Robards reviews the book, "The Emperor's Children" by Claire Messud.

Wendy Robards reviews the book "Music and Silence" by Rose Tremain.

Wendy Robards reviews the book, "The Brass Verdict" by Michael Connelly.

Wendy Robards reviews the book "Tomato Girl" by Jayne Pupek.

Wendy Robards reviews the classic gothic novel, "Rebecca" by Daphne Du Maurier.

Wendy Robards reviews the Book "Black Wave" by John and Jean Silverwood.

Wendy Robards reviews the book, "An Exact Replica of a Figment of My Imagination," by Elizabeth McCracken.

Wendy Robards reviews the book "Nefertiti" by Michelle Moran.

Wendy Robards reviews the book, "The Robber Bride" by Margaret Atwood.

Wendy Robards reviews the book, "The Secret Scripture" by Sebastian Barry.

Wendy Robards reviews the book, "Regeneration" by Pat Barker.

Wendy Robards reviews the second book in Pat Barker's WWI trilogy, "The Eye in the Door."

Wendy Robards reviews the final book in Pat Barker's trilogy about WWI: "The Ghost Road."

Wendy Robards reviews the book, "The White Tiger," by Aravind Adiga.

Wendy Robards reviews the book "The Road Home" by Rose Tremain.

Wendy Robards reviews the book, "Fingersmith" by Sarah Waters.

Wendy Robards reviews the book, "After the Floods," by Bruce Henricksen.

Wendy Robards reviews the book, "The Little Giant of Aberdeen County," by Tiffany Baker.

Wendy Robards reviews the book "In Hovering Flight" by Joyce Hinnefeld.

Wendy Robards reviews the book of short stories, "Unaccustomed Earth," by Jhumpa Lahiri.

Wendy Robards reviews the book, "Matrimony" by Joshua Henson.

Wendy Robards reviews the book, "Chocolat" by Joanne Harris.

Wendy Robards reviews the book, "The Islands of Divine Music" by John Addiego.

Wendy Robards reviews the book "The Brightest Moon of the Century", by Christopher Meeks.

Wendy Robards reviews the book, "Offshore" by Penelope Fitzgerald.

Wendy Robards reviews the book "Buffalo Lockjaw" by Greg Ames.

Wendy Robards reviews the book, "Everyone Is Beautiful" by Katherine Center.

Wendy Robards reviews the book, "The School of Essential Ingredients," by Erica Bauermeister.

Wendy Robards reviews the book, "Follow Me" by Joanna Scott.

Wendy Robards reviews the book, "Christine Falls," by Benjamin Black.

Wendy Robards reviews the book, "The Silver Swan" by Benjamin Black.

Wendy Robards reviews the book, "Last Night In Montreal," by Emily St. John Mandel.

Wendy Robards reviews the book, "The Suspicions of Mr. Whicher," by Kate Summerscale.

Wendy Robards reviews the book, "What the Dead Know" by Laura Lippman.

Wendy Robards reviews "Love Begins in Winter," by Simon Van Booy

Wendy Robards reviews "Beach Trip," by Cathy Holton.

Wendy Robards reviews the book, "The Local News" by Miriam Gershow.

Wendy Robards reviews the book "Sea of Poppies" by Amitav Ghosh.

Wendy Robards reviews the book, "Finding Nouf" by Zoe Ferraris.

Wendy Robards reviews the book "Between Here and April" by Deborah Copaken Kogan.

Wendy Robards reviews the book, "The House on Fortune Street," by Margot Livesey.

Wendy Robard reviews the book, "Someone Knows My Name," by Lawrence Hill.

Wendy Robards reviews the book, "The Book of Unholy Mischief," by Elle Newmark.

Wendy Robards reads and reviews John Steinbeck's book, "Tortilla Flat."

Wendy Robards reviews the book, "Cleopatra's Daughter" by Michelle Moran.

Wendy Robards reviews the book "The Help," by Kathryn Stockett.

Wendy Robards reviews the book, "The Promised World," by Lisa Tucker.

Wendy Robards reviews the book, "A Disobedient Girl," by Ru Freeman.

Wendy Robards reviews the book "A Bend in the River" by V.S. Naipaul.

Wendy Robards reviews the book, "Goldengrove" by Francine Prose.

Wendy Robards reviews the book, "The Cradle" by Patrick Somerville.

Wendy Robards reviews the book, "Love Medicine," by Louise Erdrich.

Wendy Robards reviews the book, "The Art of Racing in the Rain," by Garth Stein.

Wendy Robards reviews the book, "Last Night in Twisted River," by John Irving.

Wendy Robards reviews the book, "Crossed Wires," by Rosy Thornton.

Wendy Robards reviews the book, "The Passport" by Herta Muller.

Wendy Robards reviews the book, "Kristin Lavransdatter", by Sigrid Undset.

Wendy Robards reviews the book, "The Superstress Solution," by Roberta Lee, MD.

Wendy Robards reviews "Book Two of Kristin Lavransdatter: The Wife", by Sigrid Undset.

Wendy Robards reviews the third book of Sigrid Undset's trilogy, "Kristin Lavransdatter: The Cross."

Wendy Robards reviews the novel "Fire in the Blood" by Irene Nemirovsky.

Wendy Robards reviews the book, "Digging To America" by Anne Tyler.

Wendy Robards reviews the book, "Shanghai Girls" by Lisa See.

Wendy Robards reviews the book, "Sacred Hearts" by Sarah Dunant.

Wendy Robards reviews the book "The Basic Book of Digital Photography," by Tom and Michele Grimm.

Wendy Robards reviews the book, "The Last Surgeon" by Michael Palmer.

Wendy Robards reviews the book "Keeping the Feast" by Paula Butturini.

Wendy Robards reviews an Advance Reader Copy of Gail Caldwell's book, "Let's Take The Long Way Home."

Wendy Robards reviews the memoir "Just Don't Fall," by Josh Sundquist.

Wendy Robards reviews the book "Life Sentences" by Laura Lippman.

Wendy Robards reviews the book "The Children's Book" by A. S. Byatt.

Wendy Robards reviews the book "Raven Stole the Moon" by Garth Stein.

Wendy Robards reviews the book, "An Irish Country Girl," by Patrick Taylor.

Wendy Robards reviews the book, "The Little Stranger," by Sarah Waters.

Wendy Robards reviews the book "Iron Lake" by William Kent Krueger.

Wendy Robards reviews the book "Impatient With Desire" by Gabrielle Burton.

Wendy Robards reviews the book, "The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo" by Steig Larsson.

Wendy Robards reviews the classic book, "Therese Raquin" by Emile Zola.

Wendy Robards reviews the book "The Threadbare Heart" by Jennie Nash.

Wendy Robards reviews the book "Brooklyn" by Colm Toibin.

Wendy Robards reviews the book "The Lizard Cage" by Karen Connelly.

Wendy Robards reviews the book "Let the Great World Spin" by Colum McCann.

Wendy Robards reviews the book "Tinkers" by Paul Harding.

Wendy Robards reviews the book "My Name Is Mary Sutter," by Robin Oliveira.

Wendy Robards reviews the novel, "Cool Water", by Dianne Warren.

Wendy Robards reviews the book "The Marriage of True Minds" by Stephen Evans.

Wendy Robards reviews the book, "In the Wake of the Boatman" by Jonathon Scott Fuqua.

Wendy Robards reviews the book "Whiter Than Snow," by Sandra Dallas.

Wendy Robards reviews Allie Larkin's debut novel, "Stay."

Wendy Robards reviews the book "31 Bond Street" by Ellen Horan.

Wendy Robards reviews the book "Tomorrow River" by Lesley Kagen.

Wendy Robards reviews the book "Cutting for Stone" by Abraham Verghese.

Wendy Robards reviews the book, "Wild Comfort" by Kathleen Dean Moore.

Wendy Robards reviews the book "Earth and Ashes" by Atiq Rahimi.

Wendy Robards reviews the book, "Home Repairs" by Liz Rosenberg.

Wendy Robards reviews the novel "Simply from Scratch," by Alicia Bessette.

Wendy Robards reviews "The Wake of Forgiveness."

Wendy Robards reviews the book "Dangerous Neighbors" by Beth Kephart.

Wendy Robards reviews the book "The Blessings of the Animals" by Katrina Kittle.

Wendy Robards reviews the novel "Room" by Emma Donoghue.

Wendy Robards reviews the novel "Stranger Here Below" by Joyce Hinnefeld.

Wendy Robards reviews the book "Hiroshima in the Morning," by Rahna Reiko Rizzuto.

Wendy Robards reviews the novel "Red Hook Road," by Ayelet Waldman.

Wendy Robards reviews the book "Safe From The Sea," by Peter Geye.

Wendy Robards reviews the book "Pukka: The Pup After Merle" by Ted Kerasote.

Wendy Robards reviews "Love in Mid Air," by Kim Wright.

Wendy Robards reviews the novel "On Maggie's Watch" by Ann Wertz Garvin.

Wendy Robards reviews the book "Portrait of the Mother as a Young Woman," by Friedrich Christian Delius.

Wendy Robards reviews the book "The Distant Hours" by Kate Morton.

Wend Robards reviews the nonfiction book "Scent of the Missing," by Susannah Charleson.

Wendy Robards reviews the novel "Three Seconds," by Anders Roslund and Borge Hellstrom.

Wendy Robards reviews the book, "The Truth-Teller's Lie" by Sophie Hannah.

Wendy Robards reviews the book "Stone in a Landslide" by Maria Barbal.

Wendy Robards reviews the book "The Doctor and the Diva" by Adrienne McDonnell.

Wendy Robards reviews "The Weird Sisters" by Eleanor Brown.

Wendy Robards reviews "Muslim Women Reformers," by Ida Lichter.

Wendy Robards reviews the book "Bread Givers," by Anzia Yezierska.

Wendy Robards reviews the novel "Caribou Island" by David Vann.

Wendy Robards reviews the novel "Small Wars" by Sadie Jones.

Wendy Robards reviews the novel, "The Last Brother," by Nathacha Appanah.

Wendy Robards reviews the book, "The Postmistress" by Sarah Blake.

Wendy Robards reviews the book "Island Girl" by Lynda Simmons.

Wendy Robards reviews the book "Emily and Einstein," by Linda Francis Lee.

Wendy Robards reviews the novel, "Every Last One" by Anna Quindlen.

Wendy Robards reviews the novel "The Fates Will Find Their Way" by Hannah Pittard.

Wendy Robards reviews the book "The Raising," by Laura Kasischke.

Wendy Robards reviews the book "The Provence Cure for the Brokenhearted" by Bridget Asher.

Wendy Robards reviews the book "Galore" by Michael Crummey.

Wendy Robards reviews the book, "The Paperbark Shoe," by Goldie Goldbloom.

Wendy Robards reviews the book "I'd Know You Anywhere," by Laura Lippman.

Wendy Robards reviews the book, "The London Train," by Tessa Hadley.

Wendy Robards reviews the novel "Secret Daughter," by Shilpi Somaya Gowda.

Wendy Robards reviews the book "The Season of Second Chances" by Diane Meier.

Wendy Robards reviews "Unbroken" by Laura Hillenbrand, a nonfiction book about Japanese prisoner of war Louie Zamperini.

Wendy Robards reviews the book "Down From Cascom Mountain" by Ann Joslin Williams.

Wendy Robards reviews the memoir "The Boy in the Moon" by Ian Brown.

Wendy Robards reviews the novel, "The Descent of Man" by Kevin Desinger.

Wendy Robards reviews the book "Anthropology of An American Girl," by Hilary Thayer Hamann.

Wendy Robards reviews the book "The Tiger's Wife" by Tea Obreht.

Wendy Robards reviews the novel "The Secret Lives of Baba Segi's Wives," by Lola Shoneyin.

Wendy Robards reviews the book "Everything Beautiful Began After, by Simon Van Booy.

Wendy Robards reviews the book "The Long Song," by Andrea Levy.

Wendy Robards reviews "Steinbeck: A Life in Letters," edited by Elaine Steinbeck and Robert Wallsten.

Wendy Robards reviews the novel "Mice" by Gordon Reese.

Wendy Robards reviews the book, "Darkness, My Old Friend" by Lisa Unger.

Wendy Robards reviews the novel, "Rules of Civility," by Amor Towles.

Wendy Robards reviews the novel "Awakening" by S.J. Bolton.

Wendy Robards reviews the book "Salvage the Bones" by Jesmyn Ward.

Wendy Robards reviews the book "Touch and Go" by Thad Nodine.

Wendy Robards reviews the book "Falling Together" by Marisa de los Santos.

Wendy Robards reviews the book "You Are My Only," by Beth Kephart.

Wendy Robards reviews the novel, "State of Wonder" by Ann Patchett.

Wendy Robards reviews the book "The Marriage Artist," by Andrew Winer.

Wendy Robards reviews the collection of short stories "Little America," by Diane Simmons.

Wendy Robards reviews the novella "Schoolgirl," by Osamu Dazai.

Wendy Robards reviews the novel "The Taste of Salt," by Martha Southgate.

Wendy Robards reviews the novel "Tides of War" by Stella Tillyard.

Wendy Robards reviews the book "The Marriage Plot," by Jeffrey Eugenides.

Wendy Robards reviews the novel "The Devil's Ribbon," by D. E. Meredith.

Wendy Robards reviews Donia Bijan's memoir, "Maman's Homesick Pie."

Wendy Robards reviews the book "The Night Circus" by Erin Morgenstern.

Wendy Robards reviews Diana Athill's remarkable collection of short stories, "Midsummer Night in the Workhouse."

Wendy Robards reviews Justin Torres' debut novel about domestic violence and individual identity, "We the Animals."

Wendy Robards reviews Eliot Perlman's novel about connected lives and racial hatred, "The Street Sweeper."

Wendy Robards reviews the collection of novellas set in India, "The Artist of Disappearance" by Anita Desai.

Wendy Robards reviews the book "Swamplandia!" by Karen Russell. Alligator wrestling? Ghosts? You may find them in this book.

Wendy Robards reviews the novel, "The Invisible Ones," by Stef Penney, about an investigation into the disappearance of a Romany girl in England.

A novel informed by the Rwandan Genocide, "Running the Rift," by Naomi Benaron, gets high approval in Wendy Robards' review.

Wendy Robards reviews Gin Phillips' second novel, "Come In and Cover Me," a story of grief and the enigmas of archeology.

An Olympic rower hopeful is found dead. Wendy Robards reviews the mystery, "No Mark Upon Her," by Deborah Crombie.

Nicci French's new series of psychological thrillers begins with "Blue Monday."

Esi Edugyan places her characters in the volatile world of jazz in 1939 in the novel, "Half-Blood Blues."

Stephen King tackles one of the most infamous days in the Twentieth Century in his weighty novel about time travel and the assassination of JFK.

Author Alex George explores how we define our families, and how they shape us in his debut novel, "A Good American."

New York City, 1845 -- the city must build a police force to stop the rise in crime, and a mysterious child-killer. Wendy Robards reviews Lyndsay Faye's novel, "The Gods of Gotham."

The immigrant experiences of hope, struggle, and the search for a better life color the stories of Sana Krasikov in her book "One More Year."

"We cannot detach ourselves from our biology or from the world in which we live." High praise for "Birds of a Lesser Paradise" by Megan Mayhew Bergman.

Who wouldn't love to read the memoirs of a woman who can't resist dressing up dead weasels?

A Russian fairy tale forms the core of Eowyn Ivey's novel, "The Snow Child," a story of grief and recovery.

Set in apartheid South Africa, Malla Nunn's mystery novel "A Beautiful Place To Die" examines the injustice of the laws that governed racial discrimination, unveiled by a murder investigation.

Two years after the destruction of the World Trade Center towers, a jury is selected to choose a memorial design. Amy Waldman's provocative novel "The Submission" examines our prejudices and fears surrounding one of the most traumatic events in American history.

Filled with complex characters with secrets from their pasts, Emily St. John Mandel's third novel, "The Lola Quartet," revolves around the simple, yet compelling, concept that one decision can have lasting echoes far into the future.

Julie Otsuka tells a collective story about the "Picture Brides" who came from Japan and Korea to marry men in the United States in the early 20th Century.

A young pregnant woman is sent to Spain to give up her baby in Beth Kephart's novel "Small Damages."

A young man becomes the caretaker and friend of two starving elephants, saving their lives.

The nature of marriage and how outside relationships affect it is explored in Joan Frank's novel "Make It Stay."

Set in the war-damaged country of Sierra Leone, "The Memory of Love" examines the interwoven tales of three men trying to rebuild their lives.

Wendy Robards reviews the novel "With My Body" by Nikki Gemmell.

From a quiet village in the Italian Alps to the bustle of New York City, Adriana Trigiani follows two lovers and their lives in her novel, "The Shoemaker's Wife."

Set against the backdrop of World War I, John Boyle's novel "The Absolutist" explores the morality of war and the lives of two men who fought.

Steve Sem-Sandberg's massive historical novel "The Emperor of Lies" examines the lives of Jewish people in the ghetto of Lodz.

A woman who marries a "Buffalo Soldier" in a one-year deal to gain homesteading land faces plainsland difficulties her city life never imagined in this novel of hardship and fulfillment by Ann Weisgarber.

Chris Cleave brings his flawed and struggling characters together at the Olympics speed cycling event in his latest novel, "Gold."

Wendy Robards awards a five-star rating to Rachel Joyce for her novel, "The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry."

Elizabeth Haynes shows just how easy it is for a woman to get caught up in a domestic violence situation in her novel, "Into the Darkest Corner."

Laura Lippman draws the reader into the world of prostitution, murder, and -- motherhood -- in her novel, "And When She Was Good."

Three Indian women find their lives changed, and their reality far from the dreams they had when they were young friends together in this novel by Thrity Umrigar.

An unsolved murder from the early part of the twentieth century is the center of Louise Erdrich's stunning novel "The Plague of Doves."

Wendy Robards reviews the crime genre-twisting novel "The Murder of Halland" by Pia Juul.

A soldier returns home after service in the Korean War, emotionally scarred, in this novel "Home" by Toni Morrison.

Wendy Robards reviews the first book in Ken Follett's "Century Trilogy" -- "Fall of Giants."

A couple recovering from tragedy find a baby washed up in a boat. In keeping the child as their own, how will they work their way through the moral obligation to find the child's mother? "The Light Between Oceans" is M.L. Stedman's debut novel.

Woman are dying, murdered by what appears to be a serial killer stalking the streets of Boston ... Hank Phillippi Ryan's novel "The Other Woman" takes the reader on a roller-coaster ride of tension and mystery.

Two daughters of a bigamist compete for their father's love in this novel "Silver Sparrow," by Tayari Jones.

Wendy Robards reviews the novel "The Lighthouse Road," by Peter Geye.

Barbara Kingsolver's newest novel, Flight Behavior," explores the impact of global warming and the divide between science and religion.

Author Adam Johnson takes the reader behind the secrecy of North Korea in his novel "The Orphan Master's Son."

Wendy Robards reviews Kathleen Alcott's debut novel of childhood, memory, and loss: "The Dangers of Proximal Alphabets."

The life of Zhu Da, the Prince of Yiyang, the influential Chinese poet and painter, is at the heart of this poetic novella by Richard Weihe.

Jennifer Spiegel's novel "Love Slave" is a funny yet surprisingly poignant journey into the heart of a young woman looking for real love in New York City.

The story of Hungarian Jews during WW II, Julie Orringer's novel "The Invisible Bridge" is a searing, sweeping, and ultimately triumphant story about love, war, survival and the endurance of the human spirit.

A woman travels across the country to New England to investigate her great-aunt's disappearance -- and finds clues to her own shattered past in Brunonia Barry's debut novel, "The Lace Reader."

A mysterious vision experienced by a strange woman leads Emil Larsson into a turmoil of murder and political intrigue in Karen Engelman's novel "The Stockholm Octavo."

Laurel, a well-known English actress living in London, wants to uncover the horrific secret her mother has kept all these years ... and must do so before her mother dies, in this novel by Kate Morton, "The Secret Keeper."

In "All Our Worldly Goods," published five years after her death at the hands of Nazis, Irene Nemirovsky writes of the heart-wrenching uncertainties of life during wartime.

Edward Belfar's collection of stories, "Wanderers," describes the ethical and personal trials of men and women around the world.

Lisa O'Donnell's novel, "The Death of Bees," leads the reader on a dark and mysterious path to drugs and a backyard burial.

"...a penetrating and compelling look into the life of one young girl during a time in history when women were considered property..." Nell Leyshon's novel, "The Colour of Milk."

Set in apartheid South Africa, Eleanor Morse's brilliant and heartbreaking novel, "White Dog Fell from the Sky," explores the ways in which lives become entangled with others in the face of tragedy and loss.

Wendy Robards reviews Kate Watterson's fast-paced thriller "Frozen."

Felix J. Palma takes the reader on an intricate time-travelogue in the Victorian Era in his novel, "The Map of Time."

Lauren Groff's riveting first novel, "The Monsters of Templeton," explores identity, the irresistible pull of our pasts, and the history of a strange small town in New York.

Birgit Vanderbeke's darkly comic novella, "The Mussel Feast," observes how revolutions begin and how change unfolds in the face of tyranny.

Allie Larkin's second novel, "Why Can't I Be You," is filled with wonderful characters who remind us of the awkwardness of growing up and the necessity of friendship.

Elizabeth Graver's novel "The End Of The Point" spans fifty years of a family's growth and trials, and their love for their summer home Ashaunt.

"Behind the Beautiful Forevers" is a true story: Author Katherine Boo spent four years following the individual lives of people living in the Annawadi settlement -- an Indian slum which sits near the Mumbai airport.

A woman is missing, blood evidence is found -- did her husband kill her? Gillian Flynn's novel "Gone Girl" leads the reader through a smart psychological thriller.

Set against the horrific backdrop of the 2002 Bali suicide bombing, Ellen Sussman's novel "The Paradise Guest House" explores the difficult road through grief to acceptance.

Astronomy, racism and the suffragette movement color the background of Amy Brill's novel, "The Movement of Stars."

Mike Greenberg explores friendship within the context of the unexpected events which life throws in our path in his novel about three women, "All You Could Ask For."

Louise Erdrich's newest novel, "The Round House," exposes the cracks within the Native American justice system, and examines the strong familial ties and loyalties found in Native culture.

Khaled Hosseini explores the idea that a simple choice will echo across time in his novel, "And the Mountains Echoed."

A mother disappears from an elite community in Maria Semple's humorous story, "Where'd You Go, Bernadette."

Suzanne Rindell captures the mood and feel of the mid-1920s spectacularly with wonderful descriptions of New York speakeasies in her debut novel, "The Other Typist."

"Tuesday's Gone," Nicci French's mystery continues the character Frieda Klein, who still carries the guilt of a young woman's murder and the nagging suspicion that the killer still walks free.

A missionary and his wife come to China to save the unfaithful, but what they discover is an unforgiving land of dust and famine, in this novel "River of Dust" by Virginia Pye.

Dark secrets begin to surface, while a history-making hurricane barrels up the coast of Rhode Island and threatens to change lives forever in Beatriz Williams' novel "A Hundred Summers."

Denise Mina introduces Detective Inspector Alex Morrow in the first of a trilogy of murder mysteries, "Still Midnight."

A literary, psychological thriller full of dark secrets and dysfunctional husband-wife relationships, Herman Koch's "The Dinner" delves into the morality of protecting one's children and one's reputation.

A young girl commits a terrible mistake and is expelled from her family in Anton DiSclafani's debut novel, "The Yonahlossee Riding Camp for Girls."

"Mr. Darwin's Gardener," by Kristina Carlson, explores faith, religion, and life through peoples' grief and loss, and through the hope that heals them.

Margaret Atwood gives a different take on "The Odyssey" in this novelette, "The Penelopiad," told from the point of view of Odysseus' wife.

Detective Alex Morrow must defy her boss and solve a brutal murder -- one in which a childhood friend is a suspect. Book Two of the Alex Morrow trilogy by Denise Mina.

Kristiana Kahakauwila's "This is Paradise" is a haunting, beautifully crafted collection of stories from a penetrating and talented new voice in fiction.

Derek Sherman's debut novel, "Race Across the Sky," explores the limits of human endurance both physically and emotionally.

Kelly Braffet dares to go to disturbing places, digging deep inside the pathos of her characters in her novel, "Save Yourself."

Kate Atkinson's novel "Life After Life" is flawless, darkly comic, and filled with a poignant insight into what makes us human.

Michael Crummey has crafted a novel rich in the history of Newfoundland: River Thieves, a story of the loss of hunting and fishing grounds of the Beothuk Indians.

Author Beth Kephart presents a workshop about the writing of memoir, and shares her knowledge in her book, "Handling the Truth."

A solitary orchardist in the Pacific Northwest, grieving for his sister's death, finds two traumatized young girls on his property in Amanda Coplin's novel, "The Orchardist."

P. D. Viner examines the weight of grief and its destruction of a family in the wake of a child's death, in this debut novel, "The Last Winter of Dani Lancing."

Part memoir and part science, "What the Dog Knows" is Cat Warren's journey with a bigger-than-life dog as they go from novices to professionals in the world of the working K9.

Hanna Krall's novella, "Chasing the King of Hearts" is a story of love and survival during the horror of the Holocaust.

Jayne Anne Phillips brings back to light the haunting story of serial killer Harry Powers in her novel, "Quiet Dell."

Violence, political upheaval, and illness are the reality which begins to intrude on Farida's dreams of life in Africa, and she must wrestle with love and make a heart-wrenching decision in Rebecca Walker's debut novel, Adé.

The investigation of a serial killer near Mt. Tamalpais threatens and shapes the life of a thirteen-year-old girl in Joyce Maynard's novel, "After Her."

Paul Harding offers deep insight into the passage of time, loss, and the importance of family in this highly literary work of fiction, "Enon."

"Pretty in Patchwork" is a book of patchwork sewing projects to last the whole new year.

Benjamin Black's third novel in his Quirke series, "Elegy for April," sets the disappearance of his daughter's friend in Dublin, as Quirke himself struggles with his alcoholism.

A convoluted and complex relationship between characters fuels this fifth installation in the Quirke mystery series written by John Banfield.

"Holy Orders" is perhaps Benjamin Black's most darkly psychological novel to date in his acclaimed Quirke series, haunting and resonating with a sense of doom and catastrophe.

"Tracks" is a deeply personal journey into Genni Gunn's childhood memories -- memories triggered by travel.

The first of Robert Crais's Joe Pike novels, "The Watchman," is fast-paced, edge of your seat entertainment.

Eleven-year-old Byron and his sister and mother are driving through a summer fog. Something happens that changes everything, and only Byron can make it all okay again. "Perfect" is Rachel Joyce's second novel.

The murders of a man and his family bring a different style of justice in this second Joe Pike novel by Robert Crais.

"The Sentry" is Robert Crais at his best -- a fast paced, twisty plot with lots of violent interactions.

Deep secrets must be uncovered to solve a mystery and give two brothers a second chance in John Hart's gripping novel, "Iron House."

"The Bat" is the first novel in the Harry Hole mystery series by Jo Nesbo. Set in Australia, it is an interesting and twisty introduction to the character Harry Hole.

Hannah Kent bases her debut novel, "Burial Rites," on the true story of Iceland's execution of a woman accused of a brutal murder.

Caroline Leavitt weaves a haunting tale of literary suspense in her novel about a missing child, "Is This Tomorrow."

Cathy Holton's "Summer in the South," a novel about a young woman caught in a dark mystery from the past, explores Southern culture and untangling gossip from fact.

Colum McCann never loses his way in "TransAtlantic," a novel about history and the men and women who played such a pivotal role in it.

Aging, rediscovery, love, and friendship form the themes in Anna Quindlen's novel "Still Life with Bread Crumbs."

"Tapestry of Fortunes," a novel by Elizabeth Berg, explores female friendship and healing from loss.

A fast-paced plot, engaging characters and plenty of heat in the romance department make Beatriz Williams' novel, "The Secret Life of Violet Grant" a compelling read.

Two small children survive a bear attack in this gripping novel, "The Bear" by Claire Cameron.

With lavish detail and perfect words, Amy Tan explores the consequences of choices and intention of tourists gone astray in Myanmar in this book, "Saving Fish from Drowning."

Susan Davis' book, "Physical Therapy and Rehabilitation for Animals" proves to be a valuable resource for pet owners, especially those who have working dogs.

Nora Roberts treats the reader to a chunkster book full of mystery, suspense, and romance in "Whiskey Beach."

"The Invention of Wings," written by Sue Monk Kidd, is a rich novel that reminds the reader of the often painful road to freedom for blacks and women.

Kim Church's insight into the human psyche, her understanding of the struggle to make sense of past mistakes and difficult choices, is deeply provocative in her debut novel, "Byrd."

A classic literary work by W. Somerset Maugham, "The Painted Veil" examines personal growth in the midst of trial and betrayal.

Dinaw Mengestu's novel "All Our Names" takes the reader into the slums of Kampala and into the hearts of men who refuse to accept tyranny, even when it means they may lose everything.

Marie-Helene Bertino has written a charming debut novel about bad luck, human kindness, and the dazzling lure of possibility: "2 A.M. at the Cat's Pajama's."

In a city of unspeakable destruction and horror, things disappear daily along with memories, in Paul Auster's novel, "In the Country of Last Things."

In the 1920s, children were removed from New York City and relocated to settlements in the West. In her novel "Orphan Train," Christina Baker Kline explores this practice and its consequences.

Tom Rob Smith's novel of murder, conspiracy, and the quest to uncover the truth, "The Farm" weaves a convoluted story around a woman alleged to be insane.

Exploring the themes of regret and redemption against the historical background of the Indian Wars, Lin Enger has penned a truly American novel in his book "The High Divide."

Leila Aboulela transports the reader to another culture in her novel, "The Translator."

Monica Ali's novella, "Alentejo Blue," adeptly explores the lives and conflicts of characters in a small town in the Alentejo region of Portugal.

In his novel "A Sudden Light," Garth Stein has written a family saga that fully immerses the reader in the Pacific Northwest's timber industry.

Chris Bohjalian explores the aftermath of domestic violence, betrayal, and the consequences of secrets in his novel, "Secrets of Eden."

Gillian Flynn's debut novel "Sharp Objects" is a dark psychological thriller -- a good introduction to Flynn's skill as a writer.

Emily St. John Mandel's novel, "Station Eleven" examines the idea of connectedness between individuals, the importance of art and literature in one's life, faith, and the appreciation of the things we take for granted.

In her novel, "The Elegance of the Hedgehog," Muriel Barbery has written an exceptional story about appearance, class, beauty, and the search for meaning in one's life.

"All The Light We Cannot See," by Anthony Doerr, is a magical, searing novel about war, fear, radio, and the resilience of the human heart.

A brutal novel, and not for the faint of heart, "The Narrow Road to the Deep North" by Richard Flanagan explores the violence and suffering of POWs and looks deeply into the strength of the human spirit.

Peter Heller's astute observations of nature and his poetic introspection into his characters elevate this bookThe Dog Stars," to a thoughtful, heartbreaking literary work.

An updated version of the classic DIY manual from the editors of The Family Handyman.

Short

From the first moment two sets of eyes meet and a romance is kindled, it begins to grow. A lover's kiss sparks Frannie's memory, isolated moments in time telling the story of love's evolution, through times both good and bad.

The winning entry from the "Write Fiction Like Cheryl" contest. A winter's day is the setting for a secret admirer, an old friend, a sweet romance, and a touch of poetry.

Naomi Langer is running into problems in her classes, but her professor is very understanding. Very friendly. Very passionate. But a spur-of-the-moment tryst that should have provided Naomi with a quick answer gives her nothing but questions. Runner up in the Piker Press Ghost Story Contest. Part 1 of 2.

What was supposed to be a simple discussion about her performance in class has become an issue of far less ethical "performances" of another kind entirely. But this isn't a case of trying to earn an easy A; there's something almost supernatural about the way Naomi can't resist her professor's advances... Part 2 of 2.

Cold winter night? Whip up a batch of Bananas Foster and set fire to dessert to warm up your kitchen!

The two best days of Alice's week are Saturday and Sunday. Yard sale days. Her house is littered with trophies collected from her bargain hunting, but the clutter and the yard sale obsession aren't the problem, they're just symptoms. Originally appeared 2004-10-23.

Nonfiction

Cover story.

Traditional Swedish Christmas pepparkakors -- cookies so good they take two days to make. Each taste contains a memory.

Cover story

Cover story. First appeared 2004-08-21.

Having a pet can be a rewarding relationship. Though most of the time, we take care of their needs, sometimes they wind up taking care of ours.

Whatever is in the water is going to have Kodiak to deal with!

Dennis Smith, who believes that "through art we have the means to peacefully consider violence," has created a war memorial that fills the observer with reverence and tranquility.

At the Manzanita Lake entrance to Lassen Volcanic National Park, someone has posted cautionary advice about being prepared for sudden changes in weather. Is it the advice of a furry rodent in shades and ski boots?

Fog drapes the manzanita bushes and wisps across the pavement in front of my car. The road is dark with damp and at its edge sits a golden animal. I brake because I think it's a stray dog, maybe injured and in need of rescue. The animal turns its head to look at me for a second, then bunches its muscles and springs. Its front feet hit the center line of the road, then the back haunches roll forward. The hind feet strike the pavement, while the front legs stretch for the opposite side of the road. The tip of the creature's long tail flicks, as if waving good bye, before it disappears into the thick brush.

My heart thrills and a tingle launches itself up my spine. I have just seen one of the most elusive animals in North America: a mountain lion.... (Originally appeared 2005-02-13)

The German Shepherd Dog Kodiak, and little playmate Sam.

In Humboldt County, California, a young man is missing. Caribou, a trained German Shepherd Dog, is deployed on her first search after she was declared "mission ready." The cliffside terrain is dangerous, and the man seems to have disappeared from the face of the world ...

Lassen Volcanic National Park lies almost fifty miles due east of Redding, California. On June 22, 2003 I am not thinking of the Park's beauty. On this night, a murmur of a search in progress begins, and grows as the bright, hot day fades into a still, breezeless night. A tiny child, not yet four years old, is lost. (Originally appeared 07-24-2004)

The view extraordinary, the scent sublime -- Mt. Shasta Lavender Farm is a high desert beauty inviting all to turn off the main road and experience summer at its finest.

Comics

Mama and her little mule foal, Ruby

A contrast of snow and rock. Lassen Volcanic National Park, Shasta County, California.

So beautiful, so serene, so dangerous: Mt. Shasta, California, USA.

Essay

In this week's Featured Blog, Wendy Robards talks about the charitable organization Gone Reading, and its work providing funding for libraries around the world.