The Calligrapher's Daughter

Living in Korea during the early twentieth century, Najin Han is the daughter of a famed calligrapher, from a long line of prestigious artists. Her life spans the Japanese occupation of Korea, the Second World War, and the end of the last Korean dynasty. This debut novel by Eugenia Kim, follows the lives of the Han family as Japan infiltrates the country, their traditons and their lives. Najin, with the support of her mother, seeks independence in a traditional family. She is educated, refined, and equipped to survive war and occupation. Male & female roles, food, living arrangments, marriage, work and the arts are all intertwiend as Father Han stubbornly refuses to let go of tradition and Najiin carefully moves forward to the new world order.

This reveiw by Denise R

This book can be found in our catalog www.newberglibrary.org

The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks

Rebecca Skloot has written a moving story of the historic "HeLa" cell. (HeLa standing for Henrietta Lacks) This was the first human cell that could be duplicated and thus opened countless doors for research in many fields. Since its origination it has played a roll in producing the polio vaccination, helped scientists learn more about many cancers and lead to important advances such as gene mapping.

Rebecca first heard about this cell when she was 16 and sitting in on a community college biology class. Though required to learn about the cell, she wanted to know more about the person. There was little known. And so a quest was started. It took her 10 years of research and personal interviews to put this book together. But the effort was worth it. Rebecca has indeed immortalized Henrietta Lacks, the person.

Review written by Denise R

You can find this title at: www.newberglibrary.org

The Girl Who Fell from the Sky

Heidi Durow's book is a story of despair and hope. It is the story of a 14 year old girl in the 1980s trying to figure out who she is and what she is. Rachel, the daughter of a black serviceman and a Dutch mother, lives in Chicago with her mother. After her mother's and sibling's shocking death, Rachel moves to Portland OR to live with her black paternal grandmother. Race now becomes apparent to her. "I learn that black people don't have blue eyes. I learn that I am black. I have blue eyes". The story progress as Rachel matures and grapples with the question "What are you? while at the same time Durrow gradually reveals what really happened to Rachel's mother and siblings on the rooftop.

I really enjoyed the fact that most of the story takes place in Portland, naming familiar sites like Laurelhurst and Oaks Park.

Reveiw by Denise R

This book can be found at http://www.newberglibrary.org/

Outlander

Gil Adamson's first novel is the story of outcasts. The story takes place in 1903 when Mary Boulton, at 19, is fleeing from the twin brothers of her husband who she has just murdered. She runs to the mountains, responding to little more than a primitive instinct to survive at any cost. Retreating ever deeper into the wilderness she meets up with other "outcasts" who have found life in the wild. An absorbing tale of betrayal and honor.

This revew by Denise R

This book can be found at our web page http://www.newberglibrary.org/

Moonlight Mile

In Moonlight Mile, Dennis Lehane brings back the detective team of Angie Gennaro and Patrick Kenzie after twelve long years away from the series. While revisiting the people and consequences from the previous book Gone Baby Gone, Angie and Patrick are dragged into the violent world of the Russian mob. This is one of my all time favorite series and I’m glad Lehane has returned to it after writing four other books including Mystic River and Shutter Island.

Also Lehane himself praised Nic Pizzolatto’s Galveston by calling it “the coolest noir I’ve read in a decade.” It doesn’t get much better than that.

This review written by Jean S.

These books can be found at our web page (http://www.newberglibrary.org/)

The Hundred-Foot Journey

Fantastic food which is lovingly described in faraway locations by Richard C Moralis drew me into this book. Narrator Hassan Haji has a rare culinary gift evident from childhood. He and his colorful Muslim family are driven from Bombay, to London, to the French Alps, where they run afoul of their neighbor, the famous chef Madame Mallory. The “hundred-foot journey” refers to the cultural gulf between his family’s Indian restaurant and Mallory’s Michelin-starred restaurant across the street where Hassan is eventually apprenticed. Warm hearted and funny, this is a light look at the Paris restaurant scene and the first novel by journalist Morais.

Review written by Jean S

This book can be found at our web site: http://www.newberglibrary.org/

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

Two and a half years after it was first published in the U.S., the audience for "The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo" by Stieg Larsson continues to grow. The book’s popularity is partly due to the release of the movie, but the combined force of the three novels in the trilogy has people talking. (The three books were published posthumously, following Larsson’s death in 2005.)

Lisbeth Salander is a brilliant social-misfit computer-hacker. She’s been abused by individuals, as well the system, yet is anything but a victim. Mikael Blomkvist is a disgraced journalist, hired to investigate the disappearance of a girl 40 years in the past. Although the two characters spend very little time in the same place at the same time, and often have different objectives, they make a formidable team, whether battling serial killers or government corruption.

The first book stands alone, but it also sets the stage for the complex and satisfying books that follow, "The Girl who Played with Fire" and "The Girl who Kicked the Hornet’s Nest".

This reveiw by Jean S

This book can be found at www.newberglibrary.org