Margaret Atwood has more in store for us
The Thread's Must-Read
"My Sister, the Serial Killer"by Oyinkan Braithwaite
Buy this book
If you are a woman with a sister, this bit of social science research is probably going to resonate with you: Even if you grew up squabbling through your tweens and teens, your sister was deeply influential in the way you turned out.
Laura Padilla-Walker at Brigham Young University found that sisters teach one another kindness, conflict resolution skills and self-esteem. And the loyalty sisters develop, even if the relationship was difficult, runs deep.
That loyalty gets tested in Oyinkan Braithwaite’s sassy, subversive novel, “My Sister, the Serial Killer.” And lest you think that title's a metaphor — it isn't. Beautiful, cosseted and sociopathic, younger sister Ayoola resolves romances-gone-wrong with a knife she carries in her designer bag. And when she needs to dispose of the evidence, her straitlaced, long-suffering, head nurse of a sister, Korede, steps in.
Korede isn’t unmoved by the crimes her sister is committing. She even muses about seeing Ayoola pay for what she’s done. But she can't bring herself to confront her. “Ayoola was my responsibility,” she says, “and mine alone.”
I'm excited to interview Braithwaite soon — listen for it in early December.
-Kerri Miller
 |
Here's what college freshmen are reading Colleges across the United States assign books to introduce new ideas to incoming students. This year, colleges selected books on topics that ranged from climate change to race, fiction and non-fiction.
More
More on this "sour, sly" novel "My Sister, the Serial Killer" by Oyinkan Braithwaite
Buy this book
Don't miss the review from NPR, too: Oyinkan Braithwaite's wry, sly debut novel follows two sisters, dowdy Korede and gorgeous Ayoola — who has a habit of killing her boyfriends. Korede cleans up her sister's messes, but for how long?
More
Prepare to be overwhelmed, in the best way possible, by NPR's 2018 Book Concierge Explore more than 300 titles NPR staff and critics loved this year.
More
How did America learn to dance? "Dance in America," edited by Mindy Aloff
Buy this book
Mindy Aloff has attempted the nearly impossible task of collecting, in an anthology, the essays, excerpts, and asides that create a snapshot of the history of American dance.
More
The love story of C.S. Lewis and Joy Davidman "Becoming Mrs. Lewis" by Patti Callahan
Buy this book
There's been plenty written about C.S. Lewis — but not about the woman he fell in love with, who influenced his work.
More
The links between nature, climate and us "In Search of the Canary Tree" by Lauren E. Oakes
Buy this book
Conservation scientist Lauren E. Oakes weaves her musings about humans' place in a warming world together with conservation science in a moving and effective way.
More
Margaret Atwood is writing a sequel to "The Handmaid's Tale" Atwood said that she was inspired by readers' questions about the dystopian world of Gilead — and, she says, by "the world we've been living in." It's set to be released next September.
More
This collection remembers those who might otherwise be forgotten "Evening in Paradise" by Lucia Berlin
Buy this book
This second posthumous anthology of stories by Lucia Berlin is full of deeply felt stories about lives on the fringe, alternately comic and tragic, bound together by Berlin's love for her characters.
More
Kate DiCamillo, chronicler of the hard truths of youth She's hugely popular and comes across as something of a smart aleck, but the children's author says she retains the timidity of her youth. She says that helps her connect to her young readers.
More
Bernie Sanders criticizes Democrats and Republicans in new book "Where We Go from Here" by Bernie Sanders
Buy this book
The former presidential candidate's latest book is just what you might expect from this genre: His platforms are presented but not interrogated — and there is little self-reflection.
More
Digging up buried memories and unacknowledged history "Extinctions" by Josephine Wilson
Buy this book
The title of Josephine Wilson's new novel refers to its protagonist, an elderly man who feels useless, extinct — and whose journey is to find the means for growth and change within himself.
More
Gorgeous new novel tracks a writer's development "How Long 'til Black Future Month?" by N.K. Jemisin
Buy this book
N.K. Jemisin's new story collection is a story in itself, a chronicle of her career that has the seeds of her award-winning novels, but is also lovely and thought-provoking stand-alone work.
More
Twin Cities teen author aims to help children connect with dementia Because of the stigma around the disease, Edie Weinstein said, many young people may not feel comfortable around people with dementia. But she hopes her book will help bring about greater understanding for those with dementia.
More
