My e-library used to have this excellent feature where I could recommend books they didn’t have in the catalog. Mostly these got ignored, but some were added. Unfortunately, by then my burning desire to read them had usually passed and I didn’t borrow them after all.
Now that recommending books has become more difficult (you can still do it, but only through the Libby app, and books the library doesn’t own no longer appear in search results), I think I should go back to some of my recommendations and read them. I did really want to, once upon a time.
Here are five books for you to help me choose from.
- Godmersham Park by Gill Hornby – I keep swearing off Austen spinoffs, but here is another one that looked tempting.
- Us by Terrence Real – I loved his first three books, and one, I Don’t Want To Talk About It, really helped me with relationship issues. This is his latest, and I do still want to read it, though the crisis has passed.
- The Divorce Colony by April White – Looks like a fascinating, feminist glimpse into a forgotten corner of history.
- Easy Beauty by Chloe Cooper Jones – A memoir about “disability, motherhood, and the search for a new way of seeing and being seen”? Sign me up.
- Sweet Bean Paste by Durian Sukegawa – “A charming tale of friendship, love, and loneliness in contemporary Japan” also sounds great.
Use the poll below to select ONE option. You can talk about your reasons and other titles in the comments, but in terms of telling me what to read, the poll will be the deciding factor.
Easy Beauty just sounds the most nourishing, to me!
That’s a good reason to choose it!
I started reading Sweet Bean Paste and was intrigued! I had to return it to the library before I finished. Very quiet, but sweet 😉seeming.
That’s exactly how it struck me. One has to be in the right mood for that kind of book, but it can be very consoling.
The last title has been on my TBR. Anything Japan attracts me, PLUS I so love sweet bean paste desserts!
It’s a tantalizing title, isn’t it?
I voted for Sweet Bean Paste. Oops was this supposed to be a secret ballot?
I’ve know nothing about any of these books but figure the one from Japan would give the most interesting experience. Enjoy!
Not a secret ballot, I just added the poll because people would recommend more than one book in the comments and it got confusing.
Sweet Bean Paste is the front runner so far. Seems a lot of people are intrigued by this tale from Japan.
They all look good, but I have voted for Sweet Bean Paste because the cover is adorable and I am shallow like that.
Also — I didn’t realize the websites had retired the recommendation function. This sucks! I did not use it super duper often, but I used it often enough to miss it when it’s gone. Argh. Damn you, Overdrive!
Don’t know if they all have, but that is my guess. It’s probably too labor intensive or something.
I think my comment got eaten but I said I really liked Gill Hornby’s Miss Austen which my book group read last year.
I am very tempted by the Hornby, even though it’s not getting many votes. Austen in August?
I haven’t read SWEET BEAN PASTE but it’s been on my TBR for some time, so that gets my vote.
You are not alone!
Sweet Bean Paste is the only book on your list I’ve read, and it was one of my favorites last year. So good!
I’m really looking forward to it now.