Friday, June 17, 2016

New Books for June that caught my eye

A few June releases that I hope to read.
(descriptions below)





A grand hotel in the center of 1920s Berlin serves as a microcosm of the modern world in Vicki Baum’s celebrated novel, a Weimar-era best seller that retains all its verve and luster today. Among the guests of the hotel is Doctor Otternschlag, a World War I veteran whose face has been sliced in half by a shell. Day after day he emerges to read the paper in the lobby, discreetly inquiring at the desk if the letter he’s been awaiting for years has arrived. Then there is Grusinskaya, a great ballerina now fighting a losing battle not so much against age as against her fear of it, who may or may not be made for Gaigern, a sleek professional thief. Herr Preysing also checks in, the director of a family firm that isn’t as flourishing as it appears, who would never imagine that Kringelein, his underling, a timorous petty clerk he’s bullied for years, has also come to Berlin, determined to live at last now that he’s received a medical death sentence. All these characters and more, with all their secrets and aspirations, come together and come alive in the pages of Baum’s delicious and disturbing masterpiece.





Kate Battista feels stuck. How did she end up running house and home for her eccentric scientist father and uppity, pretty younger sister Bunny? Plus, she’s always in trouble at work – her pre-school charges adore her, but their parents don’t always appreciate her unusual opinions and forthright manner.  

Dr. Battista has other problems. After years out in the academic wilderness, he is on the verge of a breakthrough. His research could help millions. There’s only one problem: his brilliant young lab assistant, Pyotr, is about to be deported. And without Pyotr, all would be lost.

When Dr. Battista cooks up an outrageous plan that will enable Pyotr to stay in the country, he’s relying – as usual – on Kate to help him. Kate is furious: this time he’s really asking too much. But will she be able to resist the two men’s touchingly ludicrous campaign to bring her around?




Northern California, during the violent end of the 1960s. At the start of summer, a lonely and thoughtful teenager, Evie Boyd, sees a group of girls in the park, and is immediately caught by their freedom, their careless dress, their dangerous aura of abandon. Soon, Evie is in thrall to Suzanne, a mesmerizing older girl, and is drawn into the circle of a soon-to-be infamous cult and the man who is its charismatic leader. Hidden in the hills, their sprawling ranch is eerie and run down, but to Evie, it is exotic, thrilling, charged—a place where she feels desperate to be accepted. As she spends more time away from her mother and the rhythms of her daily life, and as her obsession with Suzanne intensifies, Evie does not realize she is coming closer and closer to unthinkable violence.
 
Emma Cline’s remarkable debut novel is gorgeously written and spellbinding, with razor-sharp precision and startling psychological insight. The Girls is a brilliant work of fiction.

24 comments:

  1. I am really looking forward to The Girls!

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    1. Kailana, everyone seems to have The Girls on their summer reading list. Hope it lives up to the hype.

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  2. Grand Hotel sounds and looks very interesting! If you read it, I want to hear about it!

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    1. I love NYRB Classics and Grand Hotel really caught my eye.

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  3. I'm always interested in new Anne Tyler!

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  4. Grand Hotel sounds pretty interesting!

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    1. I've loved most every book I've read that has had a hotel as the setting.

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  5. Grand Hotels sound very interesting.

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    1. I thought so as well and, I've loved most every book I've read that has had a hotel as the setting.

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  6. I will have to add these to my reading list, thanks Diane. Have a great weekend :)

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  7. They all sound good, but I'm adding the last two to my list.

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  8. Grand Hotel is already on my e-reader and waiting for summer reading, and Vinegar Girl is on my TBR list. Good eye! ;-)

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  9. Excellent choices! I agree with Debbie,good eye! I learned about Grand Hotel recently, on Mel's blog, The Reading Life. I think I would like to see the movie first. Enjoy your weekend, Diane!

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    1. Movie? I need to check that out. Thanks for mentioning that as I wasn't aware of it.

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  10. I'm about halfway through The Girls - it's terrific!

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  11. I can't wait to read The Girls, especially given all the hype.

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  12. I am going to read Vinegar Girl this week! I was not going to read The Girls but I keep seeing good reviews. Hm. Maybe I will let you go first.

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