"Lessons in Chemistry," by Bonnie Garmus

“Lessons in Chemistry” (Doubleday, 2022), by Bonnie Garmus, caught me by surprise, in a delightful way. It is an extremely feminist novel, not didactic at all, but makes its points in a biting but also humorous way. The main character, Elizabeth Zott, is a chemist in a time (the early 1960s) when the world of science was still not ready for women in science, at least not in positions other than menial ones, serving male scientists. Zott, though, never takes no for an answer, and through persistence, ingenuity, and belief in herself, is able to succeed. The novel is about more than this point, though, as it shows Elizabeth engaging with the world, with men, with what love (another kind of "chemistry") is or isn’t, and much more. This novel made me angry (but not surprised) on Zott’s behalf, and at the same time I was thoroughly engaged and even entertained. It is a unique, quirky, meaningful novel that I highly recommend.

"The Latecomer," by Jean Hanff Korelitz

I highly recommend “The Latecomer” (Celadon, 2022), by Jean Hanff Korelitz (author of the also highly recommended “The Plot”), which is the type of engrossing, entertaining, very original novel that I revel in. It focuses on a family with triplets (through an IVF process) who don’t much like each other, and manage to mostly avoid each other, although -- as a concession to their parents -- pretending to like each other more than they do. The birth of a fourth child when the first three are in college changes many things, and it all comes to a head when that child becomes a late adolescent and works to change the family dynamic positively. A lovely, tangled, complex, sweet and sour, no-holds-barred portrait of an unusual family, one which is somehow, despite everything, very relatable and at times even moving.

"Love Marriage," by Monica Ali

Monica Ali’s new novel, “Love Marriage” (Scribner, 2022), is as good as her wonderful earlier novel, “Brick Lane.” The setting is England, and many of the main characters are of Indian heritage. The theme is whether arranged marriages or “love marriages” are better. But that sentence is reductive, as this novel is bursting with vivid characters, many plot points, much talk, family life, social and cultural themes, and yes, love, as well as various infidelities and other complications. In other words, the novel is bursting with life. The writing is excellent and generous, the novel is thought-provoking but at the same time great fun to read.

"Search," by Michelle Huneven

As an academic who has been on many faculty search committees, I loved the idea of a novel all about a search, albeit in this case, a Unitarian Universalist church’s search for a new minister. There are definitely similarities between the two types of searches! The novel, titled “Search,” by Michelle Huneven, is a wonderful examination of characters in a group (the search committee) as we get to know the committee members and other church members separately and as they interact with each other and with the candidates for the position. The main character, Dana, is a member of the church and a food writer; the other committee members are also members of the church, with various backgrounds, attributes, and agendas. Although they are progressive and idealistic, and are generally civil with each other, differences of opinion, personalities, and values provide much of the conflict (and interest!) in the story. I found the novel fascinating, insightful, and a joy to read. I have read other novels by Huneven, notably “Round Rock,” “Jamesland,” and “Off Course,” and find her an intriguing writer with great understanding of human nature, and with a subversive sense of humor.

"The Wedding," by Dorothy West

Until very recently, I didn’t know as much as I should have about the author Dorothy West (1907-1998). She was a member of a group of Black writers (including Zora Neale Hurston and Langston Hughes), artists, and musicians in New York City’s Harlem, during what was known as the Harlem Renaissance. Her second novel, “The Wedding” (Doubleday, 1995), which she worked on for many years, portrays the lives of the Black elite families who lived in an exclusive African American area of Martha’s Vineyard. These upper middle class families were Black doctors, lawyers, and ministers, and were very conscious of their place in society, and of what was due to them. (I use the past tense here, as the story seems to be set in the mid-20th-century, but aspects of this society still exist in one beautiful enclave (which I visited some years ago) of Martha’s Vineyard, as well, of course, as elsewhere in the U.S.) When some characters in the novel do not follow, or threaten not to follow, their parents’ and others’ expectations about whom they will marry (someone of the same class), there are tensions and unexpected events. The story focuses on one planned wedding, as well as all the back stories and uncertainties related to that wedding and its participants, and to their family members and other community members. The story is compelling and even suspenseful. The novel’s contribution from a social perspective is the insights it provides into this specific and influential community of privileged Black people in the U.S.

"Brown Girls," by Daphne Palasi Andreades

I cannot speak highly enough of first time novelist Daphne Palasi Andreades’ “Brown Girls” (Random House, 2022). The story is told in the plural voice, a sort of chorus, of an extended group of girls of various ethnic and national backgrounds who grow up together in the borough of Queens, New York City. They, or their parents or grandparents, are from the Dominican Republic, Pakistan, the Philippines, the Bahamas, Vietnam, India, Mexico, and many more countries. They tell stories of their families, their neighborhoods, their schools, the boys and girls they date and love, the music, the excitements and the dangers, and most of all, their extended sisterhood and their pride in their heritages and cultures. The group story takes them through girlhood, young womanhood, and into middle age and beyond, but with an emphasis on their teen years and their twenties. There is much to celebrate, but there are also sad and even tragic events. This novel is beautifully written, with the “chorus” structure being very effective. The novel bursts with life in all its aspects, and is exhilarating in its breadth and vividness. Highly recommended!

"Seeking Fortune Elsewhere: Stories," by Sindya Bhanoo

I often read and very much enjoy collections of short stories, but less often write about them here, since it is harder to capture in a short blogpost a set of short works than a whole, unified world such as that found in a novel or memoir, my most frequent readings. As I was reading “Seeking Fortune Elsewhere: Stories” (Catapult, 2022), I became so immersed in the world that author Sindya Bhanoo portrayed that I had to write about the book. The setting of many of the stories, in South India, surfaced memories and nostalgia for me, as I spent much of my childhood there. Obviously, my situation was different than that of the Indian and Indian-American characters in these stories; although I cherish my memories, my family and I as White Canadians, while privileged in many ways, were of course also always outsiders in very real ways. Still, one’s feelings, one’s memories of childhood, do not obey one’s knowledge of one’s actual roles. Beyond my own connection with the settings of these stories, the focus on both Indians and Indian-Americans, and more widely, on immigrants, those who move back and forth between and among cultures, is one I have always found of great interest. I married someone who did just that, as did others in my family and among my friends, colleagues, and students. I eagerly read fiction and nonfiction about the topic. Some of my academic publications have addressed aspects of the topic. So all of these factors drew me in to this thoughtful and evocative story collection. But they would not have done so if not for the author’s skillful and moving portrayals of the characters and their families and interactions. Bhanoo writes so beautifully, with so much truth, of love, heartache, conflict, compromise, pride, and more. She particularly focuses on contemporary women characters and their ambivalences and balancing acts. Her portrayals of children are realistic and revealing as well. As you can tell, I was struck by this book, caught up in its world, and highly recommend it.