Throughout the summer, we’ll be posting 7 books our staff members really enjoyed. We will kick things off with Assistant Director Abby! Abby, who has a 2-year-old son and a Master’s Degree in Children’s Literature (in addition to her Master’s in Library Science) loves reading for all ages. She particularly likes to read mysteries, romances, and graphic novels! All of these books are available in the Lynnfield Library catalog. If you like Abby’s picks and would like more recommendations, email aporter@noblenet.org. Here are 7 books she really enjoyed recently:
Where’s Baby by Anne Hunter
This picturebook is perfect for toddlers and young readers. The illustrations are so cute and my son loves helping me search for the baby fox on every page. It manages to be repetitive for babies, yet still engaging for parents. I have now read it approximately 576 times since March and amazingly haven’t gotten sick of it. Click here to place this book on hold.
Truly Devious by Maureen Johnson
This teen series is one of the most compelling mysteries I’ve read in ages! Stevie Bell is obsessed with true crime, in particular, the disappearance of Alice Ellingham and murder of her mother nearly a century ago. She attends Ellingham Academy, a high school for gifted children and the scene of the crime, in the hopes of solving one of the greatest unsolved mysteries, but then another murder occurs. I couldn’t put this book down! Click here to place this book on hold.
Check, Please! by Ngozi Ukazu
This graphic novel is pure joy. It combines starting college in a new state, making awesome friends, finding love, coming out to friends and family, hockey playing, and, most importantly (in my opinion), lots of pie baking. It’s fun from start to finish and all of the characters are so lovable! Click here to place this book on hold.
Recipe for Persuasion by Sonali Dev
This is the second book in Dev’s retellings of Jane Austen novels and it again combines my favorite things, romance and cooking! Persuasion is also my favorite Jane Austen novel, so I was very excited for this one and stayed up way too late to finish it. The two main characters are adorable and seeing them find each other again is so heart-warming. Click here to place this book on hold.
Dear Girls by Ali Wong
I don’t read a lot of non-fiction, but Ali Wong is one of my favorite comedians, so I immediately got this one on audio, as she reads it. This book is a series of letters to her daughters about how she grew up and lessons she learned along the way. At times poignant, it is consistently laugh-out-loud funny. Also, as a warning, it is explicit, so teens & up for this one. Click here to place this book on hold.
Murder at the Palace by Margaret Dumas
This series is such a good time! Nora’s film star husband just very publicly cheated on her and she needs a place to hide out from him and the media. After giving up her film writing career to essentially be his manager for free, Nora is at a loss for what to do when her friend asks her to take over the Palace, a classic movie theater in San Francisco. The previous manager just passed away under mysterious circumstances and Nora knows a ton about classic movies, so it’s perfect! Except for the ghost. And the missing money. Between the endearing cast of characters and the classic movie recommendations, I can’t wait for the third book in the series. Click here to place this book on hold.
The Flatshare by Beth O’Leary
I picked this book up on a whim after seeing it on a best of 2020 list and I am SO glad I did. Tiffy is dumped by her emotionally abusive boyfriend and has no money. Because she owes it all to him. Desperate to find somewhere to live, she stumbles across Leon’s listing for someone to share his space. He works the night shift and asks that she be there in the evenings, while he will take the apartment during the day and travel to visit his mother during the weekends. The plan is that they will never meet, but they start to leave each other messages and quickly the messages become the highpoint of each other’s day. Just all around adorable. Click here to place this book on hold.
