Book picks similar to
Birch Hills at World's End by Geoff Hyatt
all-time-favorites
coming-of-age
ebooks
general-fiction
Tell the Wolves I'm Home
Carol Rifka Brunt - 2012
1987. There's only one person who has ever truly understood fourteen-year-old June Elbus, and that's her uncle, the renowned painter Finn Weiss. Shy at school and distant from her older sister, June can only be herself in Finn's company; he is her godfather, confidant, and best friend. So when he dies, far too young, of a mysterious illness her mother can barely speak about, June's world is turned upside down. But Finn's death brings a surprise acquaintance into June's life—someone who will help her to heal, and to question what she thinks she knows about Finn, her family, and even her own heart. At Finn's funeral, June notices a strange man lingering just beyond the crowd. A few days later, she receives a package in the mail. Inside is a beautiful teapot she recognizes from Finn's apartment, and a note from Toby, the stranger, asking for an opportunity to meet. As the two begin to spend time together, June realizes she's not the only one who misses Finn, and if she can bring herself to trust this unexpected friend, he just might be the one she needs the most. An emotionally charged coming-of-age novel, Tell the Wolves I'm Home is a tender story of love lost and found, an unforgettable portrait of the way compassion can make us whole again.
The Feasting Season
Nancy Coons - 2007
Domestic life is beginning to take its toll until Meg is offered her dream assignment: to write a guidebook about French history. Unfortunately, there is a catch. Jean-Jacques, a scruffy and imperious photographer, has been assigned to the project. As the dueling pair visits each region in search of the past, what they find is the colorful, food-filled present—the festive bullfights in the Camargue, the sacred gypsy pilgrimage at Stes-Maries-de-la-Mer, the pictographs and lightning storms of Mount Bégo. And over the course of mouthwatering meals—of lamb daube, paella and rosé, bull steak and anchioade, Brebis and strawberries—their antagonistic collaboration turns into a fiery love affair. Meg's notions about history—about what we preserve and how we accept the new—evolve, and in the end, she must reconcile her two lives and decide what to hold on to, and what to let go.
A Home at the End of the World
Michael Cunningham - 1990
In New York after college, Bobby moves in with Jonathan and his roommate, Clare, a veteran of the city's erotic wars. Bobby and Clare fall in love, scuttling the plans of Jonathan, who is gay, to father Clare's child. Then, when Clare and Bobby have a baby, the three move to a small house upstate to raise "their" child together and, with an odd friend, Alice, create a new kind of family. A Home at the End of the World masterfully depicts the charged, fragile relationships of urban life today.
Glimpse Spirit vol. 6
Lisa Mathisen - 2017
Applying her well-known writing style to the everyday struggles and triumphs of Christian life, the author connects scenes from Biblical text directly to the reader’s own walk with God. The result is a touching mix that both uplifts and admonishes the soul. “It is my intention and hope that Christians will find encouragement and fellowship in SPIRIT. The most important thing to remember is you're not walking alone. Everyone has felt the same highs and lows in their Christian walk. Just hang on tight and keep going.” - Lisa Mathisen, Author
The Korean Word For Butterfly
Jamie Zerndt - 2013
tank, The Korean Word For Butterfly is told from three alternating points-of-view:Billie, the young wanna-be poet looking for adventure with her boyfriend who soon finds herself questioning her decision to travel so far from the comforts of American life;Moon, the ex K-pop band manager who now works at the English school struggling to maintain his sobriety in hopes of getting his family back;And Yun-ji , a secretary at the school whose new feelings of resentment toward Americans may lead her to do something she never would have imagined possible. The Korean Word For Butterfly is a story about the choices we make and why we make them. It is a story, ultimately, about the power of love and redemption.*The author would like to note that this book deals, in part, with abortion. It tries, as best it can, to explore the issue with compassion rather than judgement.*"5 stars...full of fresh and original writing." -Kindle Book Review
SON COMPLEX
Kris Williamson - 2013
His mission: to meet Nasri Aziz, the politician he believes is his biological father. A man who has no idea Aaron even exists.Encouraged by the letters of his late mother Nora, Aaron seeks to find out more about her life in Malaysia in the 1980s. Aaron's arrival comes as a complete surprise not only to Nasri but his wife (who wants to be known only as Datin) and son Iskandar, a teenager who leads a darker double life.While working to gain their trust, Aaron discovers a complex background of secrets and lies. And it is up to Sundari, the controversial NGO activist who was Nora's confidante in Malaysia, to reveal the shocking truth.
Skinny
Ibi Kaslik - 2004
Haunted by her love-deprived relationship with her late father, this once strong role model and medical student is gripped by anorexia. Holly, a track star, struggles to keep her own life in balance while coping with the mental and physical deterioration of her beloved sister. Together, they can feel themselves slipping and are holding on for dear life. This honest look at the special bond between sisters is told from the perspective of both girls, as they alternate narrating each chapter. Gritty and often wryly funny, Skinny explores family relationships, love, pain, and the hunger for acceptance that drives all of us.
Secrets We Left In Greece
Ian Wilfred - 2018
Every year, Miriam, her daughter, Heather, and young granddaughter Amy would spend the long summer holidays enjoying the picturesque scenery, visiting local landmarks and integrating with the local community. However, life had moved on, and now with Amy having grown up, married and set up her own business, Miriam suddenly decided to take her family back to this idyllic holiday location. This news brought back poignant memories for all three of them. Thoughts of love and romance combined with dilemmas, choices and a cocktail of emotions would force life to never be quite the same again. Is it always wise to revisit memorable locations? Should the past remain in the past? Learn how Miriam, Heather and Amy all confront their secret fears. Discover whether previous friendships and relationships stand the test of time. Add in the intriguing stories of newcomers whose lives intertwine with the family trio. and how events of the past, present and future merge to form unexpected outcomes.. A subtle blend of engaging, interesting characters, thoughtful life dilemmas with lessons learned makes ‘Secrets we left in Greece’ a compelling summer read.
Anywhere the Weeds Grow (Brave Moments Book 1)
Danielle Stewart - 2021
All That's True
Jackie Lee Miles - 2010
Then my mother started drinking and my father started having sex with Donna, my best friend's stepmother. She's not even thirty years old."
With an equal mix of joy and sorrow, All That's True follows Andi's poignant-and sometimes laugh out loud-journey to young adulthood, where she struggles with the elusive nature of truth and the devastating consequences of deception. "Jackie Lee Miles is a wise and perceptive writer with a keen understanding of human frailties." –Julie Cannon, author of Truelove and Homegrown Tomatoes "Perfect in voice and detail, chock full of girl talk and seat-of-the pants crises, Miles' book is a winner." -Rosemary Daniell, award-winning author of Secrets of the Zona Rosa: How Writing (and Sisterhood) Can Change Women's Lives "Miles is a fascinating new voice in Southern fiction. Readers will rejoice." -Karin Gillespie, author of Bet Your Bottom Dollar "For those of us looking for relationships that feel authentic, you will find them in this novel!" -Edward Mooney, Jr. author of The Pearls of the Stone Man (20100629)
The Summer I Learned to Dive
Shannon McCrimmon - 2012
On the night of her high school graduation, things take a dramatic turn when she discovers that her mother has been keeping a secret from her—a secret that causes Finn to do something she had never done before—veer off her plan. In the middle of the night, Finn packs her bags and travels by bus to Graceville, SC seeking the truth. In Graceville, Finn has experiences that change her life forever; a summer of love, forgiveness and revelations. She learns to take chances, to take the plunge and to dive right in to what life has to offer.
Free
Lisa Litberg - 2014
Usually when I tell people that they laugh and ask me what my real name is. I just look them dead on and repeat, 'Free.' I left my old name behind with my old life; shed both of them like a useless layer of skin. When I stepped free of that world, I took the name Free. It is my real name. I picked it myself. What could be more real than that?"Since leaving home at the age of 18, Free has traveled the country searching for home. Her travels afford a variety of experiences, from following the Grateful Dead to waitressing in Chicago to selling jewelry in New Orleans' French Market, but nothing seems to quell her sense of unrest. All the while her estranged brother Alfie is in her thoughts. Once she finds him, perhaps she'll finally feel at home. But her world is filled with bad choices and unsavory characters, and she finds that freedom sometimes comes at a cost. The reader will feel as if they are traveling right alongside Free in this moving coming-of-age story.
Wonder Boys
Michael Chabon - 1995
In his first novel since The Mysteries of Pittsburgh, Chabon presents a hilarious and heartbreaking work—the story of the friendship between the "wonder boys"—Grady, an aging writer who has lost his way, and Crabtree, whose relentless debauchery is capsizing his career.
The Highest Tide
Jim Lynch - 2005
When he discovers a rare giant squid, he instantly becomes a local phenomenon shadowed by people curious as to whether this speed-reading, Rachel Carson obsessed teenager is just an observant boy or an unlikely prophet. But Miles is really just a kid on the verge of growing up, infatuated with the girl next door, worried that his bickering parents will divorce, and fearful that everything, even the bay he loves, is shifting away from him. As the sea continues to offer up discoveries from its mysterious depths, Miles struggles to deal with the difficulties that attend the equally mysterious process of growing up.
A Woman Run Mad
John L'Heureux - 1988
Blocked writer, accidental scholar, inattentive husband, all J. J. Quinn wants is peace, and he has gone to buy his wife an expensive handbag to accomplish it. As the bag in question walks out the door under the arm of a beautiful, aristocratic shoplifter, though, Quinn's curiosity leads him deep into mystery and danger. The shoplifter is Sarah Slade, a Boston Brahmin attempting to ditch a past as bloody as Medea's. Compared to Quinn's hypercompetent, Euripides-scholar wife, Claire, the unhinged Sarah is an alluring breath of fresh air -- but, of course, Quinn has no idea of the Pandora's box he's opened. Acclaimed by Newsweek as "witty and literate . . . Grand Guignol for grown-ups," A Woman Run Mad is an unsettling, deeply satisfying novel. "Remind[s] one of Iris Murdoch, or Muriel Spark, or E. M. Forster. Yet A Woman Run Mad is unlike any novel I know . . . unusual intelligence and personality are alive throughout the book." -- Richard P. Brickner, The New York Times Book Review; "Unless you have no interest in passions, the edge of madness, forbidden obsessions, runaway libidos and dangerous desires, A Woman Run Mad will fascinate you, from its title to its perfect final sentence. . . . A thinking man's Fatal Attraction." -- Chicago Sun-Times; "Normality -- as our time understands the word -- and monstrosity are L'Heureux's poles, and he joins them with extraordinary dexterity. . . . The ending is not to be revealed." -- Los Angeles Times Book Review; "A superior suspense story . . . It is the kind of story that might well have appealed to a writer like Patricia Highsmith, a drama of interlocking obsessions." -- The New York Times.