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POSTED May 14, 7:38 AM
Bel Canto, by Ann Patchett, was published in 2001 , and would seem to have been influenced by September 11--except that it was written before that event. It is a study of hostages and terrorists, their differences and similarities. If your world is beginning to look a bit black and white, this novel will restore the all-important gray areas to your perceptions. This is, unquestionably, my students' favorite novel of the year. Sometimes they don't return the books on time because their parents want to read it!
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POSTED May 11, 9:20 AM
Transmission, by Hari Kunzru, was published in 2004 and is for those interested in the way the tech revolution has shaped our lives. The hero experiences the fantasies of living the Silicon Valley life as a Microsoft employee, followed by the humiliation... Read More
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POSTED May 9, 3:58 PM
Purple Hibiscus, by Chimamanda Adichie, is an amazing coming-of-age novel by a Nigerian woman who carries on the literary legacy of Achebe's Things Fall Apart. The characters are both disturbing and moving and altogether fascinating. I read this... Read More
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POSTED May 6, 5:24 AM
The Secret Life of Bees, by Sue Monk Kidd, was a bestseller of 2002 and won the Orange Prize. Initially I resisted it because it was so popular, but finally gave in. A great book for students, parents, and other sentient human beings. It is about the... Read More
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POSTED May 2, 3:45 PM
Haruki Murakami is an author of bestsellers in Japan, and his novels are pretty popular in the States, as well. I am a huge fan of this quirky, magnificent novelist. Kafka at the Shore was published in 2006 after a number of other novels that hit it... Read More
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POSTED May 2, 5:40 AM
Yesterday was a day of "last" things. It was the last class before the AP test with many of my students, it was the last after school session where I cook and review simultaneously, and it was my last May 1 as a high school teacher. (Next... Read More
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POSTED April 30, 5:24 PM
I liked The Joy Luck Club a lot, but (with the exception of Kitchen God's Wife) I have liked every subsequent novel even more. Tan reinvents herself each time she writes a novel. Saving Fish From Drowning, published in 2006, is a brillliant satire on... Read More
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POSTED April 29, 1:39 PM
Prep , by Curtis Sittenfeld, was published in 2005 and became an instant bestseller. I couldn't put this book down. It's a grisly look at the social pressures in high school---magnified by money and privilege in this preppy environment. The main character,... Read More
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POSTED April 28, 4:33 PM
Digging to America is by Anne Tyler, Baltimore's Great American Novelist. I think this is her best novel (and since I love all her novels, that's saying something.) Her characters are, as always, funny, quirky, and very human. This time, though, I occasionally... Read More
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