In the last decade or so, there has been a surge in fiction revolving around books, bookstores, libraries, and book scholars. These may be mysteries, romances, historical fiction, or what have you. Below are listed some of my favorites in this appealing genre.
If you’d like a glimpse into the rare-book market, there are two fabulous mysteries by John Dunning, “Booked to Die” and “The Bookman’s Wake.” Cliff Janeway is a Denver ex-cop who retires and buys his own bookstore specializing in hard-to-find, pricey items. We enter the world of the lowly book scout, those people who hunt through junk stores and old peoples’ attics for elusive treasures. Since both books are fiction, of course, you also have the book hunt interspersed with the odd murder or two. Janeway, despite his expertise in the field, is not some scholarly hothouse flower, but rather a tough cookie full of smart, sassy comments and comebacks that will make you smile. Both books will give you some idea of what makes a book valuable to collectors, and the second one also peeks into the mechanics of the printing process.
“The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Society” by Mary Ann Shaffer is a delight from start to finish. Don’t let the title put you off. It’s basically a charming story of a small group of people who live on the isle of Guernsey in the English Channel. It’s 1946, and the islanders are slowly recovering from five years of German occupation. During this time they had no contact with the world outside and had to find ways to distract themselves from their deprivations, and so a book discussion group is formed almost by accident. The story unfolds through a series of letters between the islanders and Juliet, a young writer in London, who is looking for inspiration for her next book. They are happy to tell her about their lives. She finds herself drawn more and more into their world. This is essentially a book about how a mutual love of books can bring people together.
Robert Hillman gives us “The Bookshop of the Broken Hearted.” Set in rural Australia in the 1960’s, farmer Tom Hope is abandoned by his wife, who takes her son away to join an isolationist religious cult. He meets Hannah, a jewish immigrant with a sad past. She is looking to rebuild her life after her internment at Auschwitz, where she lost a husband and son. Despite the small town’s total lack of interest in reading, Hannah is determined to open a bookstore and she enlists Tom’s help. How these two wounded souls come to bond and heal over books and their mutual grief is the thrust of the story. It may cause you to shed a tear, but I promise it has an upbeat ending.
And now for something completely different. If you’re an adventurous reader, try “Mr. Penumbra’s 24-Hour Bookstore” by Robin Sloan. The New York Times Book Review called it “part love letter, part technological meditation, part thrilling adventure, part requiem…” and to that I would add part quest. The plot revolves around an odd bookstore where main character Clay finds himself clerking. He’s surprised to discover there are almost no customers and those who do come in don’t buy the books, they check them out. He finds the books are all written in a secret code that all the customers are working to decipher. So Clay and two friends enter into that world and just may find the secret to immortality.
Here are also some honorable mentions which fall into our “books about books” category:
•Charlie Lovett – “The Lost Book of the Grail.” Follow our hero through some Indiana Jones-type adventures in search of an ancient encoded book that gives clues to the location of the Holy Grail.
•Katrina Bivald – “The Readers of Broken Wheel Recommend.” A charming story of pen pals from different parts of the world who bond over their love of books.
•Gabrielle Zevin – “The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry.” I will not even describe this since I’ve gushed over it three other times!
And look for a brand new book by Matt Haig called “The Midnight Library.” It’s about a troubled young woman who, after trying to commit suicide, wakes up in a huge library where each book she looks at shows her a life she might have lived. Does that sound a little like Dickens’s Ebenezer Scrooge? I’m hoping to find and read this soon. If it’s good, you’ll hear more about it soon.
Happy reading!
Kaye West recently retired from the Henry County Library System. She enjoys reading, taking daily walks, and spending time with friends. She lives in McDonough with her husband
