UNP Staff members are always reading new books, both within our list and outside of what we publish. Here are some of the titles where our noses have been buried.
November Staff Reading List
Nicci Gerrard
“It’s about dementia—both about the experiences of those who have it (to the degree that is possible) and of their caregivers. I picked it up for greater understanding—and maybe a glimmer of hope. It’s insightful, well written, compassionate, and consoling in some ways. And now it’s time for something completely different.” —Tish Fobben
Stay Sexy & Don’t Get Murdered
Karen Kilgariff and Georgia Hardstark
“This was a book club pick and I wasn’t terribly impressed. Although the authors have interesting stories to tell about their lives, the book wasn’t as funny as I expected and the F-bomb was used far more times than necessary. Perhaps I would enjoy it more if I was a follower of the podcast, but since I am not, this book is not something I would recommend to others.” —Emily Wendell
The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle
Stuart Turton
“A good page-turner, especially for really long airplane trips. The story combines a tense dinner party, a perpetually murdered woman, shady allies, and a man forced to relive the day in a new participant’s body every day until he proves who did the crime.” —Heather Stauffer
Tosca Lee
“This is an easy and thrilling novel focusing on a modern day religious cult and a fast spreading epidemic. I like the variance between chapters in the present and flashback chapters. It’s my book club selection for December, so it should be a fun one to discuss with a group.” —Lacey Losh
Evan Winter
“It is about a race of people called the Omehi who have come to a new land to escape a terrible threat from their previous home. They are immediately embroiled in a war with the native population, which badly outnumbers them. However, the Omehi have people with various mystical gifts and they can call on dragons as well. The book jumps 180 years after the initial landing where we are introduced to more about the Omehi society, including their rigid caste system. We are also introduced to the main protagonist, a young man named Tau. He suffers a loss and sets out to become the greatest warrior possible in order to seek revenge. It took me a little while to get into the book, but it really picks up once Tau sets out on his journey and I am enjoying it quite a bit.” —Rob Buchanan
Barbara Kingsolver
“Barbara Kingsolver has been one of my favorite writers ever since I discovered one of her essays over 20 years ago. As with many of her other books, this one draws from her background as a biologist, her experience in the messiness of family life, and her concern over political and economic forces that work against our collective best interests.” —Joyce Gettman
Richard Russo
“I’m reading Nobody’s Fool by Richard Russo. (I’m still working through NPR’s list of 100 funny book recommendations.) It makes me feel nostalgic for the pre-social media days of the mid-1980s.” —Erica Corwin
J. R. R. Tolkien
“After many years of ignoring the books (largely because I prefer dialogue-driven stories, rather than pages of intense landscape description, which I knew I would find after reading The Hobbit), I found myself with enough time on flights this past month to finally finish The Fellowship of the Ring by J. R. R. Tolkien. I can quote the movies (yes, the extended editions) backward and forward, so I felt it was high time I gave the books an honest go. I’m hoping someone will give me The Two Towers for Christmas…” —Anna Weir
UNP blog 