So a month has gone by, and no doubt you're all finished with the books suggested in the paper's last literary report.
O.K., maybe not, but here are a few more titles that Magnolians have been picking up lately. Just in case. Karen Fisher's A Sudden Country was July's most popular book at Magnolia's Bookstore through July 13. The novel details a Hudson's Bay Company trader whose life falls apart when his wife deserts him and his children die. He eventually meets another woman with whom he develops a deep connection.
The Last Days of Dogtown, by Anita Diamant, comes in at No. 2 on the store's bestseller list. "Dogtown" is inhabited by the very lowest of society-widows, whores,"witches", etc. Diamant follows a few select characters, in particular Judy Rhines, a girl who somehow creates a life for herself despite her surroundings.
David McCullough's popular historical novel, 1776, still makes it onto the list at No. 3. He is accompanied by Rory Stewart and his very interesting book-The Places in Between. In January 2002, the Scotsman set out and walked across Afghanistan, surviving with his wits and knowledge of the language and culture. The book chronicles his overnight stays with villagers, encounters with various people in the country (teenage soldiers, tribal elders, etc.) and many other adventures.
Over at the library, employee Marty Hendley said her selection of David Plotz's The Genius Factory: The Curious History of the Nobel Prize Sperm Bank for the "staff picks" section has been checked out numerous times. Plotz's book details the work of peculiar millionaire Robert Graham, who set up the bank in 1980 in an attempt to produce highly intelligent offspring. The text contains both a history of the project and a follow-up on a few of the "genius babies" themselves.
A couple other books being demanded at the library are Ali Smith's The Accidental and Ayelet Waldman's Love & Other Impossible Pursuits. Waldman tells a story of a woman named Emilia who rushes into a love affair with a married man. Even though she wins him over and eventually marries him, she soon figures out that life is not so simple. The rest of the book details her struggles and personal growth.
Happy reading!
Jesse Baumgartner is a freelance writer living in Queen Anne. He can be reached at mageditor@nwlink.com.[[In-content Ad]]
