Three Good Reads from the Rochester Hills Public Library

What Alice Forgot by Liane Moriarty (2011)

Liane is in spinning class when she falls and hits her head.  Upon waking she finds that she has forgotten the past 10 years of her life.  Her life is surprising to her:  when did she have three children and how can she forget them?, her husband seems to hate her, and her mom is remarried and has taken up salsa dancing!  Set in Sydney, Australia, with a serious theme, there is a great deal of humor including the phrases unique to that continent.  This was a truly enjoyable book, making me wonder how my life has changed in ten years’ time and how shocked I’d be to wake up and find myself in a life where many things changed without me knowing.  ~ Recommended by Sue

Her Fearful Symmetry by Audrey Niffenegger (2009)

When Elsbeth Noblin dies, she’s left behind family secrets.  Those secrets revolve around twins Julia and Valentina, identical twins whose private twin’s world is eerily unsettling.  The story also involves ghosts, obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD), the history of London’s Highgate Cemetery and it’s also a love story.  The most fascinating character is Martin Wells and his case of OCD.  He’s an intelligent man who speaks many languages and creates the most difficult crossword puzzles. He’s deeply in love with his wife of many years who finally left because she couldn’t take the effects of the OCD – walking in a room with the right foot first, the smell of bleach, the apartment windows covered in paper and taped shut, just to name a few.  Niffenegger has a knack of making the reader care about the characters that aren’t very lovable and because of that, the story delves deep on many levels.  This is not at all like Niffenegger’s bestseller The Time Traveler’s Wife, but those who like quirky character-driven stories may like Her Fearful Symmetry.  ~ Recommended by Sheila

Caleb's Crossing by Geraldine Brooks (2011)

Caleb (Cheeshahteaumauck) who became the first Native American to graduate from Harvard is the inspiration of this tale narrated by Bethia Mayfield, a minister's daughter, who lived on the sparsely populated island known today as Martha's Vineyard.  Bethia and Caleb meet by chance and become friends while still children.  In 17th century America girls were not usually educated but Bethia overcomes this by secretly listening in on her brother's lessons while working on her weaving.  She tries to convince Caleb that her cultural beliefs of her heritage are the right ones.  Together they share the hardships of subordination to the white man.  She arouses his curiosity about the teachings of her world and he ultimately ends up as a scholarship student at Harvard in the hope of improving the lot of his people.  Brooks’s mastery of language is exquisite as she tells the tale of the tragedies and accomplishments of their divergent lives.  ~ Recommended by Regina