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Reviews by Cathryn Conroy

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The Ninth Hour: A Novel
by Alice McDermott
Powerful. Formidable. Astounding. Read It! (4/21/2023)
This is a wonderful story about life among the Irish-American Catholic community in New York City in the early 1900s. A nice little story. And then PUNCH! The last part of the book delivers such a powerful, unexpected and wholly formidable if not astounding ending that Imore
The Road from Gap Creek
by Robert Morgan
A Story of Family Love and Survival (4/21/2023)
This sequel to "Gap Creek" tells the story of Julie and Hank's marriage years after they moved away from Gap Creek. They are now the parents of four grown (or nearly grown) children, and the life they live is based in large part on what they can raise and grow on their farmmore
Columbine
by Dave Cullen
This Should Be Required Reading for Everyone (4/21/2023)
Breaking news! Oh, it's just another school shooting. How sad we can even think like that.

The notion that a child could procure guns and make bombs to take down his high school took on a whole new meaning when Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold did the unthinkable at Columbinemore
An American Marriage
by Tayari Jones
A Love Story AND a Human Story (4/21/2023)
This is my favorite kind of book: long on characters and short on plot.

Expertly written by Tayari Jones, the book's characters are so real and so fully developed that they just pop off the page. The plot is heartbreaking: Celestial and Roy have a passionate and fierymore
Baker Towers
by Jennifer Haigh
A Powerful, Expertly Written Book That Will Transport You Back in Time (4/21/2023)
This book will transport you to the 1940s, '50s and '60s to the imagined—but, yet, oh so real—mining town of Bakerton, Pennsylvania where the good times come and go based on the coal industry. This is the story of the Novak family. He works in the coal mines, while shemore
City of Light
by Lauren Belfer
Secrets. Lies. Innuendoes. Betrayals. Oh, What a Delicious Book! (4/21/2023)
Secrets. Lies. Innuendoes. Betrayals. More secrets. A murder mystery. And great tragedy. Oh, and enough of a lesson on how electricity is generated from Niagara Falls that it (almost) masquerades as nonfiction. Written by Lauren Belfer, this is one of those utterlymore
Code Girls: The Untold Story of the American Women Code Breakers of World War II
by Liza Mundy
A Must-Read—But Not an Easy Read (4/21/2023)
What this book is: A prodigiously researched, well-written and cogent historical account of the heretofore unrecognized accomplishments of the so-called "code girls," the incredibly smart young women who successfully deciphered the coded secret messages sent by Japan andmore
The Teachers: A Year Inside America's Most Vulnerable, Important Profession
by Alexandra Robbins
A Treasure! This Is a Page-Turner Filled with Compelling Storytelling and Cutting-Edge Research (4/21/2023)
This book inspired me, angered me, filled me with awe and wonder, and made me really and truly think—think about our public schools, the educators who work so hard, the students who depend on the schools, and the parents who can make life so wonderful or challenging formore
The Aviator's Wife
by Melanie Benjamin
An Oh-So-Sad Story of the Private Life of a Very Public Couple (4/20/2023)
This book is so sad. At times, it was almost too sad to keep reading. It is a fictionalized account of the life of Anne Morrow Lindbergh, the painfully shy wife of the famous pilot Charles Lindbergh. Lauded as a hero for flying solo from New York to Paris in 1927, he wasmore
The Hour I First Believed
by Wally Lamb
A Beautifully Written, Intelligent Book (4/20/2023)
There is only one word that can adequately describe this phenomenal book: Genius.

That said, this work of literary fiction by Wally Lamb may not appeal to everyone. (English majors will love it!) Narrated in the first person by Caelum Quirk, this multilayered book ismore
Behold the Dreamers
by Imbolo Mbue
This Remarkable Book Pierced My Heart and Soul (4/20/2023)
The time: 2008

The place: New York City. Well, to be exact a corner office on Wall Street with floor to ceiling windows offering a breathtaking view, a posh Upper East Side apartment that is decorated to the nines and a one-bedroom, cockroach-infested fifth-floor walk-up inmore
The Female Persuasion: A Novel
by Meg Wolitzer
Profound and Moving, This Is a Sheer Joy to Read (4/20/2023)
Somehow this book, which is all about the characters—and I mean ALL about the characters—somehow has a plot. And that is the genius of author Meg Wolitzer!

This is the story of Greer, a shy, confused college freshman and her journey to adulthood. It's also about Cory, hermore
The Art of Hearing Heartbeats
by Jan-Philipp Sendker
Enchanting, Passionate and Profound: Read and Enjoy (4/20/2023)
Magic. Pure magic. This book—with prose that reads more like poetry—is a sheer delight. I have no idea how to classify it. It's a haunting fable. And a passionate love story. And an enchanting mystery. I wanted to hurriedly read to find out what would happen next, but I hadmore
Little Fires Everywhere
by Celeste Ng
This Is a 10-Star Book: Read It! (4/20/2023)
This is a 10-star book. But it comes with a serious warning: Do not read it unless you really have time to read. Because this book will suck you in and not let go. It is one of those rare accomplishments in literature: an ingeniously plotted page-turner that is written withmore
The Monk of Mokha
by Dave Eggers
A Breathless, Unexpected and Mesmerizing Journey About Coffee (4/20/2023)
It's a good thing this book is nonfiction. If it were a novel, no one would believe it! The author would be excoriated for creating an absurd and preposterous plot line and told to tone it down. A lot. But this isn't fiction. It really happened.

Let's back up. This is themore
The Great Alone
by Kristin Hannah
ChickLit Meets Adventure With a Hearty Dose of Melodrama (4/20/2023)
This can best be described as ChickLit meets Adventure with a hearty dose of Melodrama. It is a good story—the kind that keeps you turning pages to find out what happens. And if you enjoy books with riveting plots, this one is for you. But that's about all it has. Themore
Fresh Complaint: Stories
by Jeffrey Eugenides
Extraordinary Collection: By Turns Hilarious and Heartbreaking (4/20/2023)
This collection of 10 extraordinary short stories by the ingenious Jeffrey Eugenides is by turns hilarious and heartbreaking. From the decades-long friendship between two women to the 40-something failed poet who is so desperate for money he does something horribly wrong tomore
Manhattan Beach
by Jennifer Egan
Love, Redemption and Hope in a Powerful, Suspenseful Storyline (4/20/2023)
Deftly written with a compelling plot that is populated with fully-realized and colorful characters, "Manhattan Beach" is one of those rare books that succeeds on every level. The imaginative and suspenseful storyline will grab you on the first page.

Eddie Kerrigan of Newmore
Tribe: On Homecoming and Belonging
by Sebastian Junger
A Truly Remarkable Book (4/20/2023)
"Isn't it fun to be with your tribe?" author Joyce Carol Oates asked the assembled 1,000 who had gathered to hear her speak at the 2016 National Book Festival in Washington, D.C. Indeed. As an avid reader, I had never before thought of those sitting around me in thismore
Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine
by Gail Honeyman
Priceless. Perfect. Phenomenal. (4/20/2023)
Priceless. Perfect. Phenomenal.

Eleanor Oliphant is one of the most refreshing characters to ever inhabit the pages of a book. She is literal and direct in everything she says, using perfect English at all times. She is confident and quite self-sufficient, thank you verymore

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    The Wager
    by David Grann
    From the bestselling author of Killers of the Flower Moon, a gripping story of shipwreck, survival, and savagery, culminating in a court martial that reveals a shocking truth.
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Help Wanted by Adelle Waldman

From the best-selling author of The Love Affairs of Nathaniel P. comes a funny, eye-opening tale of work in contemporary America.

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    The Secret History of the Rape Kit
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    The story of the woman who kicked off a feminist revolution in forensics, and then vanished into obscurity.

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    Going Home
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    Going Home is a sparkling, funny, bighearted story of family and what happens when three men take charge of a toddler following an unexpected loss.

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    Beast of the North Woods
    by Annelise Ryan

    When a local fisherman is mauled to death, it seems like the only possible cause is a mythical creature.

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