1. Vertical by Rex Pickett
(Out 1/1/11, 404p)
A great follow-up to Sideways. "Miles" is now rich & famous & living off the success, as he readily admits, of the movie more than the book. Lots of debauched revelry with "Jake," his drinking companion. Just went it starts to be too much "oh celebrity is so hard" self-pity, the book turns into a poignant exploration of mother/son relationships.
2. A Stranger on the Planet by Adam Schwartz
(Out: 1/5/11, 336p)
An episodic tale of how being the son of a crazy mother and cruelly distant father inhibit a man's ability to commit to deep, long-lasting relationships. Sometimes you'd like to kick the narrator (Seth) in the behind to get him to make smarter choices, but the story is full of humor and you can always sympathize with his mistakes."
3. Lydia by Tim Sandlin
(Out: 4/1/11, 464p)
The return of characters from the Grovont trilogy. Sam is now operating a home for pregnant teens. His mother, Lydia, out of jail after trying to poison Reagan's dog, must collect an oral history from a centenarian who lived thru majors events of 20th century. Meanwhile, a crazed man is on the hunt for the boy he abducted years ago & who was raised by Maurey Pierce.
4. Eleven by Mark Watson
(Out: 5/17/11, 320p)
A lighthearted look at the struggle of deciding how involved to get in other people's lives. An Australian runs away to England after a tragic event & becomes a host of a radio talk show. He falls in love with his cleaning woman & she encourages him to not just be a bystander & help the people around him. He then has to experience the consequences of getting involved.
5. Orientation: And Other Stories by Daniel Orozco
(Out: 5/24/11,176p)
A diverse range of premises & storytelling technique. Faves: title story about hilariously bizarre new employee orientation; "I Run Every Day" about a man whose favorite activity & lifestyle are solitary & who makes a young woman pay for trying to connect to him; & "Officers Weep," funny tale of the burgeoning romance b/w 2 police officers, told thru the reports they file.
6. My American Unhappiness by Dean Bakopoulos
(Out: 6/7/11, 288p)
Zeke Pappas, a lovably self-deluded director of a program to foster the humanities, needs to find a wife so that he can retain custody of two nieces whose parents (Zeke's brother and sister-in-law) have died. Zeke badly attempts to woo all the woman he knows, while working on his side project, an inventory of why Americans are so unhappy.
7. Northwest Corner: A Novel by John Burnham Schwartz
(Out: 7/26/11, 304p)
A great sequel to Reservation Road, in which a man, Dwight, accidentally runs over a boy, then drives away to avoid having his life turn upside down, only to be found later by the boy's father. Now Dwight is out of prison and estranged from his family, but has to reconnect with them when his own son, a college senior, comes close to repeating his father's mistake."
8. Domestic Violets: A Novel (P.S.) by Matthew Norman
(Out: 8/9/11, 352p)
Tom Violet is the son of a famous novelist, with a novel in the drawer, a bad case of ED at home with his wife, a crush on a cute young, co-worker, and a soul-deadening job. Can he right things before he ruins everything? Very, very funny.
9. The Family Fang: A Novel by Kevin Wilson
(Out: 8/9/11, 320p)
Wilson follows up his terrific short story collection, Tunneling to the Center of the Earth, with a great, offbeat novel about a couple of performance artists who include their kids in their projects and then have to deal with the impact that has on their grown son and daughter, who aren't happy that their lives got sacrificed for art.
10. The Leftovers by Tom Perrotta
(Out: 8/30/11, 336p)
Another great novel from a masterful storyteller. Examines with his usual mix of poignancy and humor the traumatic impact a Rapture-like event has on a family and their community. Those left behind struggle, in all sorts of intriguing ways, to make sense of an event that has no explanation.
11. The Art of Fielding: A Novel by Chad Harbach
(Out: 9/7/11, 304p)
Great tale of a rising young baseball star at a small college. Mutliple characters: the hot prospect, the driven young man who pushes his talent, the gay roommate who starts an affair with the college president, and the aimless daughter of the president. Life goes astray for all when the prospect beans his roommate with an errant throw from short to first that goes into the dugout.
12. If Jack's in Love by Stephen Wetta
(Out 9/29/11, 368p)
A funny tale of the burdens of a bright Southern 12-year-old boy who is born into a white trash family. His family are the social outcasts of his town and he has to deal with an unemployed father who wants to rob the jewelry store of a man who befriended him and gave him fatherly advice and a violent older brother who may have killed the brother of the girl he has a crush on.
13.How the Mistakes Were Made by Tyler McMahon
(Out: 10/11/11, 352p)
A great story about a woman who plays in two pioneering rock bands -- one led by her brother that was in the avant garde of hardcore punk rock, the other led by two musical prodigies she meets from Montana who are at the forefront of Seattle grunge movement. Great insider's look at the life of musicians and the perils of instant celebrity.
14. God Bless America: Stories by Steve Almond
(Out: 10/25/11, 224p)
Another great collection from Almond about lost or self-deluded souls, told with language both inventive and precise. Faves: “What the Bird Says” about a son coming to understand his critical father when the old man is on his death bed and “Donkey Greedy, Donkey Gets Punched” about a psychoanalyst and professional poker player dueling each other at their respective games.
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