Great local summer reads at the library
Summer is a great time to kick back and relax with a great novel, especially one with a flavour of home. At Newfoundland and Labrador Public Libraries (NLPL) we have many new works of fiction set in Newfoundland and Labrador, or written by local writers, available for borrowing.
Recent releases from Breakwater Books include “My Indian” by Saqamaw Mi’sel Joe and Sheila O’neill. It tells, from the perspective of Mi’kmaw guide Sylvester Joe, the story of William Cormack’s 1822 journey in search of the Beothuk. While accessible to a younger audience, this novel is appropriate for adult readers too. We especially liked the use of Mi’kmaq vocabulary throughout this very readable work.
Other new novels on the shelves from Breakwater are “Instructor” by Beth Follett and “Two for the Tablelands” by Kevin Major. We are looking forward to the arrival of “Three for Trinity,” the next in Major’s Sebastian Synard series, this fall, along with the next in Trudy Morgan-cole’s Cupid trilogy, “Such Miracles and Mischiefs.”
CONTEMPORARY GOTHIC
Recent from Breakwater, “The Hush Sisters” by Gerard Collins is a contemporary gothic tale of two middleaged sisters with little left in common besides joint ownership of a large, crumbling and somewhat creepy family home in downtown St. John’s. Make sure you have a lamp or flashlight nearby when reading: this novel is full of dark secrets.
From Flanker Press we have “The Hanged Woman’s Daughter” by Nellie P. Strowbridge, a sequel to her 2009 novel “Catherine Snow.” Also new to our shelves is Susan Flanagan’s highly anticipated and humourous “Supermarket Baby,” winner of the 2019 Percy Janes First Novel Award.
There are new works by past NL Reads winners released by Flanker. Emily Hepditch, author of “The Woman in the Attic” is back with the psychological thriller “Alone on the Trail,” set in Gros Morne National Park.
Tom Moore, author of “The Sign on My Father’s House” continues the story of Felix Ryan in “My Father’s Son.”
Newfoundland and Labrador titles were published outside the province this spring, and there are a number we are especially excited about making available at NL Public Libraries.
Damhnait Monaghan’s “New Girl in Little Cove” (Harper Collins) is one. The arrival of a come-from-away teacher for the local Roman Catholic high school sets the stage for this romantic tale. Set in 1985, and written from the perspective of a newcomer to rural Newfoundland, this novel offers an interesting picture of outport life when both the fishery and denominational education were in full swing.
EXPLORING WOMEN’S HEALTH
Another book worth borrowing is “We, Jane” by Aimee Wall (Book*hug), which explores questions of women’s health and the complexity of female relationships. Set in contemporary rural Newfoundland, with snapshots of Montreal and downtown St. John’s, this novel is beautifully and powerfully written. I could not put it down.
For fans of historical fiction, we have new on our shelves the debut novel “Ananias” by James Case (Nevermore Press). Inspired by a passion for genealogy, this novel was informed by the life of Ananias Case, the author’s third great-grandfather. Well-known for his work as an architect, Case has turned out an impressively researched book grounded in real events and lives of English settlers on Conception Bay’s north shore in the 1820s.
More recent history, still living in the minds of people from Newfoundland’s south coast especially, is the subject of “Storm Birds” by Einar Karason (Quercus). Translated from the original Icelandic by Quentin Bates, this novella tells the story of an Icelandic trawler and its crew caught in a Feb. 9, 1959 winter storm on the Grand Banks.
This was the same storm that sank the “Blue Wave,” taking the lives of 16 men from Grand Bank and Fortune. Many Newfoundlanders will relate to Karason’s dramatic and inspirational story of human crisis at sea.
Other new novels to look for are “Constant Nobody” by Michelle Butler Hallett (Goose Lane) and “The Retreat” by Elisabeth de Mariaffi (Harper Collins). Both are available as e-books, with de Mariaffi’s psychological thriller available soon in eaudio too.
LIGHTER READS
If you prefer lighter reads, Mike Martin is back with two additions to his popular Sergeant Windflower detective series: “A Perfect Storm” and “Safe Harbour.” For fantasy and romance fans, we have added new titles by series writers J.J. King and Candace Osmond, perfect for a weekend at the cabin or camper.
Whatever this summer has in store for you, make plans to collect a full-length work of fiction from a local NLPL library branch or from our digital library (available at www.nlpl.ca).
Read it outside on a lovely day or inside on a rainy one. It is one holiday plan that can go ahead no matter what the weather.