Ann Patchett Recommends....

Many of you may not know that Ann Patchett, author of State of Wonder and Bel Canto, owns a bookstore in Nashville named Parnassus.  At the American Library Association meeting in June, she offered attendees a list of books she recommends to her customers that I thought might be of interest to all of you.  The books she recommends are:

We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves by Karen Joy Fowler
Coming of age in middle America, eighteen-year-old Rosemary evaluates how her entire youth was defined by the presence and forced removal of an endearing chimpanzee who was secretly regarded as a family member and who Rosemary loved as a sister.

A Constellation of Vital Phenomena by Anthony Marra
Marra has written a brilliant debut novel that brings to life an abandoned hospital where a tough-minded doctor decides to harbor a hunted young girl, with powerful consequences. 

Claire of the the Sea Light by Edwidge Danticat
From the best-selling author of "Brother, I'm Dying" and "The Dew Breaker: " a stunning new work of fiction that brings us deep into the intertwined lives of a small seaside town where a little girl, the daughter of a fisherman, has gone missing. 

A Day at the Beach: recollections by Geoffrey Wolff
In these autobiographical essays, Wolff shares with the reader the wisdom of an alert man learning through the unsettling collisions of time, place, and local custom, and through the force of hardship and hazard, to bring his many disparate selves together --
with astonishing high-stakes candor and dazzling literary agility.

Old Filth by Jane Gardam
Filth is a lawyer with a practice in the Far East. A few remember that his nickname stands for Failed In London Try Hong Kong. But Old Filth is not as pompous as people imagine, and his past contains many secrets and dark hiding places. 

The Casual Vacancy by J. K. Rowling
Pagford is a town at war.  Who will triumph in an election fraught with passion, duplicity, and unexpected revelations? Rowling's first novel for adults is blackly comic, thought-provoking, and constantly surprising. 

The Patrice Melrose Novels: Never Mind, Bad News, Some Hope and Mother's Milk by Edward St. Aubyn
This single volume brings together the first four Patrick Melrose novels by Booker Prize Finalist Aubyn. The collection includes "Never Mind, Bad News, Some Hope," and "Mother's Milk." The novels take the reader into the world of the English upper class as they
follow Patrick Melrose's story from child abuse to heroin addiction and recovery.  Beautifully written.

The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt
This is a story of a boy and his painting.  Theo lost his mother in an explosion and came into possession of a dutch painting entitled "The Goldfinch" that has the biggest impact on his life.  As an adult he is led into the dark world of art theft.  The novel has well-drawn characters, beautiful prose, and takes the reader through loss, love, and the world of art.

Take Ann Patchett's recommendations or check out our booklists here on the blog or our Pinterest site.  Enjoy!  SH