Here is the March 2017 LibraryReads list! From science fiction to historical fiction, boy scouts to hermits, this month’s selection is sure to have something for everyone. Take a look at the favorite books from librarians across the country, and get ready to place holds on these new releases.
“The Wanderers” by Meg Howrey
“A private space exploration company is mounting a manned mission to Mars. To prepare for the actual event, the company plans an elaborate training program to match the conditions and potential problems the team might face. The ordeal, though simulated, is no less dramatic for the astronauts, their families, and the crew. The lines cross between fiction and reality, and none of the participants are left unchanged. Part literary fiction, part sci-fi, all amazing.”
-Marie Byars, Sno-Isle Libraries, Oak Harbor, WA
“The Hearts of Men” by Nickolas Butler
“In the summer of 1962, we are introduced to popular Jonathan and social outcast, Nelson, aka ‘The Bugler.’ The only thing the two seem to have in common is that they both spend a few weeks of one summer at Camp Chippewa in the woods of Wisconsin. Yet, over the course of decades, their lives, and the lives of those they love the fiercest, are intertwined. This wonderful novel peels back the layers of male friendship and shows what loyalty, compassion and selflessness looks like.”
–Jennifer Dayton, Darien Library, Darien CT
“The Twelve Lives of Samuel Hawley” by Hannah Tinti
“Meet Samuel Hawley, a man in a constant struggle with his violent past, doing the best he can to raise his daughter. Meet Loo, his daughter, a girl with an obscure past and an uncertain future, on the cusp of adulthood. And meet Lily, the dead woman who connects them both. In this finely woven novel, the past and the present gradually illuminate the story of a man’s life through the bullet wounds he carries with him and makes readers consider what it is to be both good and evil.”
–Dawn Terrizzi, Denton Public Library, Denton, TX
“The Strangers in the Woods” by Michael Finkel
“There are three types of hermits in the world, according to Finkel: protesters, pilgrims, and pursuers. But Christopher Knight doesn’t seem to fit any of these categories. So why, at the age of 20, did he drive into a forest in Maine and disappear for 27 years, his only human interaction a single ‘hi’ with a passing hiker? This book uses the incredible but true story of Knight, ‘the last true hermit,’ to explore themes of solitude, introversion and the meaning of life.”
–Megan Tristao, San Jose Public Library, San Jose, CA
And for your holds-placing pleasure, here is the rest of the list:
- “The Women in the Castle” by Jessica Shattuck
- “Eggshells” by Caitriona Lally
- “Say Nothing” by Brad Parks
- “The Tea Girl of Hummingbird Lane” by Lisa See
- “If Not For You” by Debbie Macomber
