We tried something different in the selection process for our August book. The Artist’s Bookshelf nominated five outstanding choices, and asked you, the reading public, to decide. We are pleased to announce that the winner is:
The Inheritance of Loss by Kiran Desai
We think this is a great choice, and will finish off our summer season with a literary bang. Ms. Desai is one of Britain’s most exciting contemporary writers, and weaves intriguing tales of her native India with great compassion and conviction. It should be on the top of everyone’s summer reading list, and we’re now happy to say it’s on ours.
We’ll begin our summer by tackling one of the great anti-war novels of all time Slaughterhouse Five by the late Kurt Vonnegut, Jr., who met his untimely demise just last week.
I first encountered this book while an impressionable teen, and will never forget its impact. While re-visitng it this past month, I was again amazed and saddened by its humorously poignant plea for an end to the absurd human behavior we call war. “So it goes.”
In July, we will focus on The Painted Drum by Minneapolis writer Louise Erdrich. For those of you unfamiliar with Ms. Erdrich’s work, be prepared for a powerful, muliti-voiced narrative full of love, loss, dark humor, and ultimately, hope.
Happy reading!
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