Andrea Picks
Andrea’s Picks
God of the Woods
by Liz Moore
Liz Moore's God of the Woods is a gripping literary mystery set in the atmospheric Adirondacks, where a family's tangled legacy unfolds through two disappearances, generations of secrets, and enough disfunction to turn a summer retreat into a pressure cooker. Moore deftly explores class, privilege, and power through sharply drawn characters and layered storytelling, all building to a resolution that's both satisfying and hard-earned.
The Heaven & Earth Grocery Store
by James McBride
The story begins with a mystery - a skeleton discovered in a small Pennsylvania town - but quickly unfolds into a deeply moving portrait of a community bound by love, struggle, and quiet heroism. I was especially drawn to the main female character, whose strength, compassion, and humble leadership made her truly inspirational.
The novel beautifully explores the intersectionality of Black and Jewish communities in the 1920s and '30s, revealing the shared hardships and alliances that form in the margins. Though McBride does not shy away from weighty themes - racism, disability, and systemic injustice - it offers just enough levity and heart to leave you feeling refreshed and hopeful by the end.
Fever in the Heartland
by Timothy Eagan
In the 1920s the Ku Klux Klan came shockingly close to infiltrating the highest levels of American government, not just in the South but in places like Indiana and Oregon—one of its largest strongholds. Cloaked in patriotism, religion, and calls for moral reform, the Klan's message was disturbingly mainstream, with women often leading the charge under the banners of temperance and "American values." But it was the bravery of one woman, whose deathbed testimony exposed themonstrous crimes of the Indiana Grand Wizard, that cracked the facade. This chilling, timely story reminds us of how fragile democracy can be—and how much it can owe to the courage of one voice.
The Vegetarian
by Han Kang
Yeong-hye's quiet refusal to eat meat gravely disrupts her family life, exposing the delicate fragility of patriarchy. As her family unravels in response, we see how deeply control and consumption shape their identities. Her transformation, both psychological and physical, becomes a haunting form of resistance. Through an ecofeminist lens, she sheds domination—of body, gender, and nature—becoming something terrifying to some readers, yet beautiful to others. Either way, she becomes free.
The Lost Daughter
by Elena Ferrante
A short, intense read that cuts deep. This novel offers a raw, unflinching look at motherhood, identity, and the parts of ourselves that are supposed to be left unspoken. It captures the quiet rage and longing of a woman who once walked away from her children—and what happens when the past resurfaces during a seemingly simple beach vacation. Unsettling, honest, and impossible to forget.
1Q84
by Haruki Murakami
1Q84 grabs attention from the moment Aomame steps off the Tokyo expressway into a world that is subtly off-kilter. Murakami crafts a hypnotic blend of mystery, fantasy, and love, where a strange cult, twin moons, an ominous goat-headed myth, the cryptic Air Chrysalis, and the unsettling Little People blur the line between dream and waking life. 1Q84 is a complex, often perplexing novel that lingers in the mind long after the final page.