Great Reads from the Reference Librarians | Perrot Memorial Library, Old Greenwich, CT

Beach Bag Picks!

[Click on each book cover to view that item in the catalog and to place a hold.]

OLIVE KITTERIDGE, BY ELIZABETH STROUT

[Fiction] This book consists of thirteen stories linked together through a common character: Olive Kitteridge, a retired teacher. These stories bring many changes to light, but Olive doesn’t accept them in her small Maine town, and the world around her. It is the human condition: its conflicts, tragedies and joys, and the endurance it requires.

Elizabeth Strout will visit Perrot Library this fall to lead us in a discussion about the book, so we all need to get a jump on it! You may purchase this book at the front desk, or borrow one of the Library's copies.

THE LAST LECTURE, BY RANDY PAUSCH

[Non-Fiction] As a professor, the author was asked to give a "last lecture" to his students on how to consider one’s last days and impart some kind of wisdom as a legacy to them. This assignment was all too real for Pausch, as he had just had a diagnosis of terminal cancer. This book is about that speech and more– Pausch talks about life and achieving one’s dreams. Despite the author's own circumstances, this book really is life-affirming and inspirational.

SKELETONS AT THE FEAST, BY CHRIS BOHJALIAN

[Fiction] It is the end of World War II. The Russian army is advancing across Poland to reach Germany, forcing the Nazis to retreat before them. Also retreating are families and prisoners, deserters, the rich and the poor. In this mix is a well-to-do Prussian family; father and sons are off to fight with the Nazis, leaving mother, daughter, young son and a Scottish POW who is hidden in the wagon. What a glimpse into the “other” side of the war! The author portrays the family as having little or no knowledge of the atrocities going on around them. This is a beautifully written, poignant novel by a very capable writer.

WIT'S END, BY KAREN JOY FOWLER

[Fiction] The best-selling author of The Jane Austen Book Club sends us this story that blurs the lines between fictional characters and the real world. Rima, trying to leave behind her recent losses, moves in with her estranged godmother, who is a mystery author. Some of the mystery writer’s fans can’t let go of her well-loved fictional detective, and live as if he occupies the author’s house.

NAMES MY SISTERS CALL ME, BY MEGAN CRANE

[Fiction] For her upcoming wedding, Courtney decides it’s time to call a truce with her sisters, who haven’t been together since the wedding of one of the other sisters years before. It’s all about fights new and old, jealousy between sisters and differences in temperament. Can they finally learn how to get along?

THE STEEL WAVE: A NOVEL OF WORLD WAR II, BY JEFF SHAARA

[Fiction] This is the second installment in Shaara's series on World War II. This fictional account covers D-Day and the Allied Invasion of Europe. From ordinary soldiers to generals and others who were in positions of power, this leads us to the changed course of World War II.

BIKINI SEASON, BY SHEILA ROBERTS

[Fiction] You may have read Roberts' earlier book, On Strike for Christmas, and is so, you will appreciate her brand of offbeat humor. In Bikini Season, what started out as a Cooking Club changed into a diet group called the Bikini Club. Erin, Megan and some friends decided to ditch the food they made once a month and become a support group for food choices and much more. As they work on their food issues, they surprise themselves with some real changes in their lives.