If the end of summer is bittersweet, you might find comfort in one of these new books. Or read last month’s books if you need a break from the news.
“The Boys of Riverside: A Deaf Football Team and the Quest for Glory” by Thomas Fuller
Championship seasons require athleticism, teamwork and passion, and the Cubs, a high school football team from the California School for the Deaf in Riverside, have all three qualities in abundance. Fuller’s fast-paced narrative follows a spirited team of deaf players and coaches as they battle physical and mental challenges — pneumonia, broken limbs, housing insecurity and being underdogs in a game designed for a hearing world — and unite for a common goal while thrilling fans across the country.
“We’re Experiencing a Slight Delay: Tips, Stories, Travel” by Gary Janetti
Janetti, author and producer of Family Guy and Will & Grace, follows up his bestselling collection Do You Mind If I Cancel? with more witty essays inspired by international travel. His varied journeys – on the Orient Express and the Queen Mary 2, among other tantalizing excursions – include family vacations, solo expeditions and getaways with his husband, television star Brad Goreski. Entertaining chapters include tips on how to get as many freebies as possible while traveling and how to develop the right attitude when dining out alone. Janetti’s relatable observations are filled with warmth and self-deprecating humor, and convey his deep affection for Brad and the places they love.
“Errands and espionage”,
by Sam Tschida
After her marriage collapsed, Gabby Greene’s self-help books, job hunting, and piles of laundry were her constant companions until the CIA came knocking on her door. As a doppelgänger for a recently murdered undercover agent, Gabby agrees to take on the assignment – to infiltrate the Russian mafia. With the guidance of a terrifyingly hot agent, can a stressed-out mother of two take down a money launderer while making sure everyone gets to school on time? Suspend your disbelief and enjoy this sizzling romantic thriller.
“A Wilder Shore: The Romantic Odyssey of Fanny and Robert Louis Stevenson” by Camille Peri
In 1876, Scottish writer Robert Louis Stevenson met American Fanny Van de Grift, an unhappily married woman ten years his senior. As their marriage and his health continued to deteriorate, they wrote letters to each other, eventually married, and spent the rest of their years together seeking temperate climates and inspiration for their writing—essays, travelogues, and novels for her and for him, works that would become classics: Treasure Island, Kidnapped, and The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. Although Fanny was portrayed as “difficult,” her support allowed Stevenson to write uninterrupted, and her circumvention of Victorian norms enabled a marriage in which love blossomed.
“My favorite mistake”,
by Marian Keyes
Keyes’ best-selling contemporary dramas revolve around the five Walsh sisters, whose lives are sometimes chaotic and challenging – but always shot through with optimism and humor. The latest drama follows Anna, a New York City marketing executive who returns to her Irish hometown and must confront people she has hurt in the past, including the man she once loved. The family’s stories were introduced in 1995’s Watermelon, but each book in the Walsh family series can also be read as a standalone novel.
