THE SELF ISOLATION SERIES - BOOK CLUB
Now that we're all in virtual self-quarantine, we each finally have time to catch up on some well overdue pleasure reading.
Stuck in your house or apartment for the foreseeable future? Coincidentally enough, so are we, so here are five great reads to help ease your boredom during self-isolation:
“The Glass Hotel”
by Emily St. John Mandel
Fiction
At the remote Hotel Caiette, a 5-star hotel on the coast of Vancouver, a barmaid named Vincent meets a man named Jonathan the same night someone has scrawled “Why don’t you swallow broken glass” on the lobby wall. Vincent will embark on a relationship with Jonathan, though she doesn’t yet know he’s running an international Ponzi scheme. Gorgeous and haunting. The author’s previous book, “Station Eleven,” is also amazingggg, but as it deals with the aftermath of a global pandemic, it’s perhaps best shelved for happier, healthier times.
“Oona Out of Order”
by Margarita Montimore
Fiction
On New Year’s Eve 1982, Oona is just about to turn 19, her whole life ahead of her. But then she wakes up and she’s . . . 51 and wondering what the hell just happened. As she grapples with this strange new world, she discovers it’s going to happen every New Year’s Eve: She’ll be transported to a different year in her life (which sounds pretty appealing right now, doesn’t it?)
“Dear Edward”
by Ann Napolitano
Fiction
Twelve-year-old Edward is the sole survivor of a plane crash that killed his parents, his older brother and 183 other passengers. As he struggles to adjust to life with his aunt and uncle as the public face of a shocking national tragedy, he tries to navigate a world in which nothing feels certain. Trust me on this one: While it deals with a plane crash, it’s really a celebration of life and feeling connected to other people.
“The Holdout”
by Graham Moore
Fiction
It was the most famous trial of the decade: A billionaire’s daughter vanished on the way to school, her teacher named a suspect in her murder. One juror, Maya Seale, was convinced of the teacher’s innocence and succeeded in getting her peers to return a not-guilty verdict. Ten years later, a TV show reassembles the jury for a reunion, but one of the jurors is found dead — in Maya’s hotel room.
“The Red Lotus”
by Chris Bohjalian
Fiction
A couple goes on a bike tour in Vietnam, but only one comes home: The man, Austin, vanishes one night on the road, leaving only a pack of yellow energy gel in his wake. As his girlfriend Alexis struggles to put together the pieces back home, she uncovers a trail of lies — and realizes she may not have known Austin very well at all. Pretty much everything Bohjalian writes is addictive, so when you’re done with this, check out “The Flight Attendant,” among others.
Happy reading!