Book Titles for your consideration, in no particular order

Little to no commentary, but random ideas if you're interested in a good read. To be honest, I can't always remember the details, but if they're on this list, I enjoyed them.

Romantic Comedy | Curtis Sittenfeld

Confessions of a Bookseller | Shaun Bytell

The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry | Gabrielle Zevin

The Marriage Portrait | Maggie O’Farrell

Absolutely anything by Maggie O'Farrell is fabulous. She has such range--she can write anything and tell a fantastic story. Maybe you read Hamnet? There are many others. Highly recommend her!

Trust | Hernan Diaz

I kept putting off reading this because I didn't really like the cover. How shallow is that? But once I got into it I really like the story. I just saw this it's on the list of the top 100 books of the 21st century in the NYT.

Olga Dies Dreaming | Xochitl Gonzalez

This was a recommendation from my friend Dee and I really liked it.

The Queen of Dirt Island | Donal Ryan

This book was great for a lot of reasons--great character-driven story, strong women, and so forth. But what was really interesting is that the chapters are all very short which really impressed me. The discipline to write a story like that is something you have to admire. Kind of a writer's book if you like to geek out on stuff like that.

The Midnight Library | Matt Haig

Maisie Dobbs series | Jacqueline Winspear

My friend Whitney turned me on to this series. It starts at the end of WWI and the last book. I've described it as Nancy Drew for grownups. Maisie's fantastic. They're an easy read. Very fun. Kind of in the Veronica Speedwell vein but not as steamy and nudge-nudge, wink-wink. Must be read in order.

Daughter of Sherlock Holmes series | Leonard Goldberg

These are just flat out silly but still fun. You can literally read one in a day. Perfect for vacation, airplane trip, etc. If you like Sherlock, this is a fun add-on to the canon.

The Weeds (plants / roman coliseum) Katy Smith Simpson

Side-by-side stories of women in the same place, doing some of the same things, decades apart. And all dealing with the challenges of being a woman doing them. Really interesting.

Ocean State, Henry Himself, Emily Alone, etc. by Stewart O’Nan.

Some of these share characters and a neighborhood in Pittsburgh. Great sense of place for that city. When I was in college, we studied writers referred to as "regionalists," examples being Mary Wilkes Freeman and Sarah Orne Jewett. Books like O'Nan's remind me of that.

The Selfless Act of Breathing, JJ Bola

Someone Else’s Shoes | JoJo Mayes

I've also heard from a reading friend that other Jojo Mayes are good, specifically Giver of Stars

Dances by Nicole Cuffy

The main character is a young women of color who is a ballet dancer.

The Paris Library by Skeslien Charles, Janet,

Demon Copperhead, Barbara Kingsolver

I know some people didn't like this, and it isn't an easy read. But Barbara Kingsolver is a fantastic writer and really tells a compelling story here.

Lily and the Octopus, Steven Rowley

Rowley wrote another book called The Editor that was pretty entertaining. It's about a novelist who is working on a novel and his editor is Jackie Onassis.

Librarian Spy, Keeper of Hidden Books, Last Bookshop in London | Madeline Martin

I'll read almost anything with the words book, bookshop, library, librarian in the title. Easy historical fiction reads. Nice stories with strong women.

Becoming Madame Secretary | Stephanie Dray

Just finished this one and it's about Frances Perkins who was in FDR's cabinet and was the architect of New Deal and the visionary for Social Security. Who knew! ?Definitely an unsung hero of her day.

Cemetary of Untold Stories | Julia Alvarez

I like a bit of magical realism now and again and this is a good one. And it's about stories!

Remarkably Bright Creatures | Shelby Van Pelt

Lovely. Read it.

Dictionary of Lost Words | Pip Williams

Loved this. A great recommendation from my friend Susan.

Fortune Favors the Dead | Stephen Spotswood

Another mystery series (can you tell I enjoy these?) fun story, Snappy characters. Easy, fun read.

Hello Beautiful | Ann Napolitano

A modern re-telling of Little Women. I enjoyed it.

The Dressmakers of Prospect Heights } Kitty Zeldis

The Daughters of Erietown | Connie Schulz

The author lives in Cleveland and is married to Sherrod Brown. This is her first novel. Having grown up in NE Ohio, the landscape was familiar. Great sense of place in this story.