SFPL-Chinatown Branch Library Staff Picks for Summer 2024Like this list

21 items

• Acts of Forgiveness

  a Novel

  Cheeks, Maura,

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  In this impressive debut, Maura Cheeks tackles the subject of reparations and asks the question whether "forgiveness" can be quantified (and monetized). The novel asks pressing and timely questions about reckoning with this nation's history, lays…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• The First Husband

  a Novel

  Dave, Laura

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  Travel writer Annie gets unceremoniously dumped by her boyfriend Nick of more than five years. In this story, Annie learns about love from somewhere totally unexpected. Dave’s writing style consists of multiple run-on sentences, yet they flow in…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Spy X Family. 1

  Endō, Tatsuya, 1980-

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  Tells the story of a spy with the code name "Twilight". He's tasked with getting close to the leader of the National Unity Party, Donovan Desmond. The biggest problem is that Desmond makes no public appearances except at the prestigious private…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Lessons in Chemistry

  Garmus, Bonnie,

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  All Elizabeth Zott is trying to do is become a chemist focusing on the topic of abiogenesis. She is smart, she meets Calvin Evans, who is also a chemist, and they actually speak the same language, which is phenomenal. This is a story of…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Anita De Monte Laughs Last

  a Novel

  Gonzalez, Xochitl, 1977-

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  This book is a dissection of marriage, gender, power balances and artistic ambition, with a dash of magical realism. In a dual timeline, the novel follows an undergrad at Brown University, Raquel Toro, who unearths the buried history of a Latina…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• The Women

  Hannah, Kristin,

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  This novel will make readers think about Vietnam War in a new light. As the title implies, the story addresses the critical role many women played, and it was both eye-opening and inspiring to learn more about the frontline nurses who saved…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• The Book of Lost Names

  a Novel

  Harmel, Kristin,

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  Eva is Jewish and when she flees to south of France, she finds herself very good at forging paperwork and becomes part of the resistance during World War II. This is a book of courage, love and hope. If you are looking for a book to touch your heart…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Face It

  Harry, Debbie,

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  One of the better memoirs by musicians to come out in recent years. Debbie hits the high notes plus many of the low. Most interesting to me was her time in New York in the late '60s and into the '70s. She doesn't try to whitewash things and provides…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• The Remains of the Day

  Ishiguro, Kazuo, 1954-

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  "The Remains of the Day" is Ishiguro's masterwork of style and plot. On the surface the story appears to be an historical novel of mannered upper class life in the 1930s. By the end it's a heartwrenching and subversive revelation of the harsh…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Pineapple Street

  a Novel

  Jackson, Jenny (Editor),

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  A peek into the lives of the super rich, the Stocktons. Not as peachy as one would think, but not too bad either. The reader toggles between two sisters' and a sister-in-law's perspectives, friendship slowly blossoming. This story surprised me with…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Yellowface

  a Novel

  Kuang, R. F. (Rebecca F.),

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  This novel is a razor-sharp, electrifying, and unputdownable satire on race, publishing, and ambition. The first-person narrator is June Hayward, a white novelist struggling to leave her mark in the book industry. When her friend Athena Liu, young…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Still Life

  McDermid, Val,

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  DCI Karen Pirie runs Scotland's Historic Cases Unit. You know she is no nonsense and totally down to earth as soon as she enters the story. Karen is called in when a dead body is pulled up by lobster fishermen, who is presumably the brother of a…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• The Change

  a Novel

  Miller, Kirsten, 1973-

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  Part crime fiction, part superpower fantasy, and part satire on sexism, this is the story of three women on the cusp of 50s who unite to wreak a revenge on those who are responsible for committing heinous acts against young girls. This is really a…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• The Giver of Stars

  Moyes, Jojo, 1969-

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  A hopeless British wife in small town Kentucky finds comfort in working for Packhorse Library, where women bring books to families via horseback. This story is about perseverance, kindness and friendship. Although multiple odds stacked against them,…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• The Last Letter From Your Lover

  Moyes, Jojo, 1969-

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  Jenny and Boot have one of those once in a lifetime love affairs. Letter writing takes on a beautiful thread in this timeless story. If you are ready to get swept off your feet, pick up this book!

• A World of Curiosities

  Penny, Louise,

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  What a hell ride! The story hits the ground running as disturbing. Penny's multi-faceted writing style creates so many beautiful layers of ebb and flow, even after I finished the book, it is still reverberating in my mind the many details of the…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• The Things We Didn't Know

  Pérez, Elba Iris,

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  A poignant coming-of-age story in the 1950s that reflects upon the immigrant experience. Andrea Rodriguez & her little brother were Puerto Rican raised in an isolated Massachusetts factory town, where their father sought employment. Struggling to…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• The Briar Club

  a Novel

  Quinn, Kate,

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  Spanning the years from 1950 when new tenant Grace March (a mysterious widow tight-lipped about her past) moves into a DC boarding house to 1954 when double murders occur, this is an intriguing story wrapped up in the lives of multiple women…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Divine Rivals

  Ross, Rebecca (Rebecca J.)

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  Iris Winnow and Roman Kitt are rival reporters vying for the one permanent position at Oath Gazette. Unbeknownst to Iris, they both have magical typewriters belonging to their grandmothers who were good friends. When Iris types letters to her…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• The Kitchen Front

  a Novel

  Ryan, Jennifer (Jennifer L.),

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  During World War II, four women enter a cooking contest for a spot to co-host on BBC radio show. Each woman has their own intriguing story, with their recipes peppered throughout the book. This book makes me appreciate the basic things we have such…Read moreRead more of this annotation