Fiction Old and New

The Fiction Old And New reading group meets the first Friday of each month. On Friday, April 3 , 2026 at 8 PM Eastern we will discuss The book, The sunshine sisters DB88188 by Jane Green. This book gets a 4.35 rating on “Good Reads” with more than eighty five thousand  reviews.   The facilitator for this meeting will be LeDon: [email protected].   The Bookshare link to this title and the Zoom Meeting link can be found below.   My review Jane Green is a “New York Times” bestselling author with more than twenty-three titles to her name. She writes in a warm and welcoming voice that explores the lives of contemporary women and the complicated bonds of family. In her novel “The Sunshine Sister” DB88188, she weaves a vivid story about three sisters growing up in the shadow of a famous mother.  She creates characters who are imperfect yet vividly alive, each with their own strengths and weaknesses. Through these characters she draws the reader into a story that gently explores forgiveness, family ties, and the enduring power of love. At the center of the novel stands Ronni Sunshine, who as a young girl dreamed of becoming a movie star. She always believed that she had the talent to become successful, and she swore that when her chance for stardom came along, she would take it no matter how distasteful the step might be. After reaching stardom Ronni found that remaining a star was demanding and she had to work tirelessly to stay on top. Every day she had to push herself to be noticed in a world that required flawlessness. She had to be ambitious, disciplined, and always aware that her fame could evaporate overnight. Life in the limelight needed twenty-four hours a day effort, leaving Ronni exhausted with little time or energy for providing her children with the love and attention that they deserve.   While growing up, the girls always knew they were the daughters of a famous actress, yet their lives were far from the fairy tale people imagined. Because their mother was always working, the girls often lacked the love and stability children normally get at home. The sisters often found themselves competing for the smallest scraps of her attention, and sometimes even competing. This competition shaped their relationships through all their lives and added tension between them. As the girls grew into women, each sister struggled in her own way to define herself outside of her mother’s fame.   Nell, the oldest, grows into a quiet and lonely woman who finds it difficult to trust others with her heart. She escapes the turbulence of her childhood by building a simple life on a farm, where she raises her young son on her own.   Meredith The Middle Sister has spent much of her life feeling inadequate because of her mother’s criticism. She now lives in London and works as an accountant but struggles with self-confidence. Wanting so badly to feel valued and secure, she becomes engaged to an English aristocrat even though deep down she knows she does not truly love him.   Lizzy is the baby of the family. She is ambitious, and impulsive, just like her mother. She has built a career as a celebrity chef, a cookbook author, and a social media influencer. Yet behind the shining image lies a tangle of secrets, betrayals, and growing troubles in her marriage.   — When Ronni calls her daughters home for a week together, she hopes it might open the door to forgiveness and healing. Perhaps the time together will allow the sisters to rediscover one another and begin to mend the fragile strands of their family. But as they return home, old hurts, memories, and grudges surface. Into this already fragile moment Ronni drops a piece of explosive news that shakes them all.   The question at the heart of the novel is simple but powerful. After everything that has happened, will these sisters drift apart for good, or will they discover that they are still tied together by the invisible threads of love.   Bookshare This book can be found on Bookshare at the following link: https://www.bookshare.org/browse/book/2209896?returnPath=L3NlYXJjaD9tb2R1bGVOYW1lPXB1YmxpYyZrZXl3b3JkPVRoZSUyQnN1bnNoaW5lJTJCc2lzdGVycw    

The frozen river: a novel DB 117781 Lawhon, Ariel. Reading time 15 hours, 8 minutes. Read by Ariel Lawhon Jane Oppenheimer. A production of National Library Service for the Blind and Print Disabled, Library of Congress. Subjects: Suspense Fiction; Historical Fiction; Mystery and Detective Stories Description: “Maine, 1789: When the Kennebec River freezes, entombing a man in the ice, Martha Ballard is summoned to examine the body and determine cause of death. As a midwife and healer, she is privy to much of what goes on behind closed doors in Hallowell. Her diary is a record of every birth and death, crime and debacle that unfolds in the close-knit community. Months earlier, Martha documented the details of an alleged rape committed by two of the town’s most respected gentlemen—one of whom has now been found dead in the ice. But when a local physician undermines her conclusion, declaring the death to be an accident, Martha is forced to investigate the shocking murder on her own. Over the course of one winter, as the trial nears, and whispers and prejudices mount, Martha doggedly pursues the truth. Her diary soon lands at the center of the scandal, implicating those she loves, and compelling Martha to decide where her own loyalties lie.” — Provided by publisher. Unrated. Commercial audiobook.   Our facilitator for this group is Michelle Bernstein   ([email protected]).  

We hope that you can join us to discuss this historical fiction audiobook. Here is the NLS annotation: Loot DB 115153 James, Tania. Reading time 8 hours, 45 minutes. Read by Shawn K. Jain. A production of National Library Service for the Blind and Print Disabled, Library of Congress. Subjects: Historical Fiction Description: “Abbas is just seventeen years old when his gifts as a woodcarver come to the attention of Tipu Sultan, and he is drawn into service at the palace in order to build a giant tiger automaton for Tipu’s sons, a gift to commemorate their return from British captivity. His fate–and the fate of the wooden tiger he helps create–will mirror the vicissitudes of nations and dynasties ravaged by war across India and Europe. Working alongside the legendary French clockmaker Lucien du Leze, Abbas hones his craft, learns French, and meets Jehanne, the daughter of a French expatriate. When Du Leze is finally permitted to return home to Rouen, he invites Abbas to come along as his apprentice. But by the time Abbas travels to Europe, Tipu’s palace has been looted by British forces, and the tiger automaton has disappeared. To prove himself, Abbas must retrieve the tiger from an estate in the English countryside, where it is displayed in a collection of plundered art.” — Provided by publisher. Unrated. Commercial audiobook.. Your facilitator for this group is Michelle Bernstein ([email protected]).  

The Fiction Old and New book group is thrilled to welcome author Tracey Lange to our Friday, April 5, 2024 meeting at 8 p.m. She will be discussing her two family novels, “We are the Brennans”, DB 104795 and “The Connellys of County Down”, DB 116746. We hope you can join us for this amazing event. Here are the NLS annotations: 1. The Connellys of County Down DB 116746 Lange, Tracey. Reading time 9 hours, 23 minutes. Read by Barrie Kreinik. A production of National Library Service for the Blind and Print Disabled, Library of Congress. Subjects: Family; Women Description: “When Tara Connelly is released from prison after serving eighteen months on a drug charge, she knows rebuilding her life at thirty years old won’t be easy. With no money and no prospects, she returns home to live with her siblings, who are both busy with their own problems. Her brother, a single dad, struggles with the ongoing effects of a brain injury he sustained years ago, and her sister’s fragile facade of calm and order is cracking under the burden of big secrets. Life becomes even more complicated when the cop who put her in prison keeps showing up unannounced, leaving Tara to wonder what he wants from her now. While she works to build a new career and hold her family together, Tara finds a chance at love in a most unlikely place. But when the Connellys’ secrets start to unravel and threaten her future, they all must face their worst fears and come clean, or risk losing each other forever.” — Provided by publisher. Unrated. Commercial audiobook. 2. We are the Brennans DB 104795 Lange, Tracey. Reading time 9 hours, 41 minutes. Read by Barrie Kreinik. A production of National Library Service for the Blind and Print Disabled, Library of Congress. Subjects: General; Psychological Fiction Description: When twenty-nine-year-old Sunday Brennan wakes up in a Los Angeles hospital after a drunk driving accident she caused, she swallows her pride and goes home to her family in New York. She deserted them all–and her high school sweetheart–five years before with little explanation, and they’ve got questions. Unrated. Commercial audiobook. 2021. Here is the Bookshare link to The Connellys of County Down: https://www.bookshare.org/browse/book/5496953?returnPath=L3NlYXJjaD9tb2R1bGVOYW1lPXB1YmxpYyZrZXl3b3JkPVRoZSUyQkNvbm5lbGx5cyUyQm9mJTJCQ291bnR5JTJCRG93bg Your facilitator for this group is Michelle Bernstein ([email protected]).  

Here is the NLS annotation: Land of milk and honey DB 116953 Zhang, C Pam. Reading time 8 hours, 7 minutes. Read by Eunice Wong. A production of National Library Service for the Blind and Print Disabled, Library of Congress. Subjects: Science and Technology; General; Women Description: “A smog has spread. Food crops are rapidly disappearing. A chef escapes her dying career in a dreary city to take a job at a decadent mountaintop colony seemingly free of the world’s troubles. There, the sky is clear again. Rare ingredients abound. Her enigmatic employer and his visionary daughter have built a lush new life for the global elite, one that reawakens the chef to the pleasures of taste, touch, and her own body. In this atmosphere of hidden wonders and cool, seductive violence, the chef’s boundaries undergo a thrilling erosion. Soon she is pushed to the center of a startling attempt to reshape the world far beyond the plate.” — Provided by publisher. Unrated. Commercial audiobook. Bookshare Link to this book https://www.bookshare.org/browse/book/5834395?returnPath=L3NlYXJjaD9tb2R1bGVOYW1lPXB1YmxpYyZrZXl3b3JkPWxhbmQlMkJvZiUyQm1pbGslMkJhbmQlMkJob25leQ Your facilitator is Michelle Bernstein, ([email protected]).

We hope that you can join us to discuss this psychological novel from acclaimed author Emma Cline. Here is the NLS annotation: The guest: a novel DB 114407 Cline, Emma. Reading time 8 hours, 39 minutes. Read by Carlotta Brentan. A production of National Library Service for the Blind and Print Disabled, Library of Congress. Subjects: Psychological Fiction Description: “Summer is coming to a close on the East End of Long Island, and Alex is no longer welcome. A misstep at a dinner party, and the older man she’s been staying with dismisses her with a ride to the train station and a ticket back to the city. With few resources and a waterlogged phone, but gifted with an ability to navigate the desires of others, Alex stays on Long Island and drifts like a ghost through the hedged lanes, gated driveways, and sun-blasted dunes of a rarefied world that is, at first, closed to her. Propelled by desperation and a mutable sense of morality, she spends the week leading up to Labor Day moving from one place to the next, a cipher leaving destruction in her wake.” — Provided by publisher. Unrated. Commercial audiobook. Your facilitator is Michelle Bernstein, ([email protected]).

Here is the NLS annotation: We are the Brennans DB 104795 Lange, Tracey. Reading time 9 hours, 41 minutes. Read by Barrie Kreinik. A production of National Library Service for the Blind and Print Disabled, Library of Congress. Subjects: General; Psychological Fiction Description: When twenty-nine-year-old Sunday Brennan wakes up in a Los Angeles hospital after a drunk driving accident she caused, she swallows her pride and goes home to her family in New York. She deserted them all–and her high school sweetheart–five years before with little explanation, and they’ve got questions. Unrated. Commercial audiobook. 2021. Your facilitator is Michelle Bernstein, ([email protected]).

The Fiction Old and New book group is meeting on Friday, December 1, 2023 at 8:00 p.m. to discuss “Happiness for Beginners by Katherine Center, D B C 1 1 9 3 9. We hope that you can join us to discuss this latest novel from one of our favorite authors. Here is the NLS annotation: Happiness for beginners DBC 11939 Center, Katherine. Reading time 9 hours, 49 minutes. Read by Leslie Rogers. A production of Texas State Library and Archives Commission, Talking Book Program. Subjects: General Description: A year after getting divorced, Helen Carpenter, thirty-two, lets her annoying, ten years younger brother talk her into signing up for a wilderness survival course. It’s supposed to be a chance for her to pull herself together again, but when she discovers that her brother’s even-more-annoying best friend is also coming on the trip, she can’t imagine how it will be anything other than a disaster. Thus begins the strangest adventure of Helen’s well-behaved life: three weeks in the remotest wilderness of a mountain range in Wyoming. Some strong language. Your facilitator is Michelle Bernstein, ([email protected]).

The Fiction Old and New book group is honored to have guest host LeDon lead the discussion of Dennis Lehane’s latest book, “Small Mercies”, DB 1 1 4 4 5 6 on Friday, November 3, 2023 at 8:00 p.m. Eastern. We hope that you can join us to discuss this compelling suspense audiobook. Here is the NLS annotation: Small mercies: a novel DB 114456 Lehane, Dennis. Reading time 10 hours, 27 minutes. Read by Robin Miles. A production of National Library Service for the Blind and Print Disabled, Library of Congress. Subjects: Suspense Fiction; Historical Fiction; Mystery and Detective Stories Description: “In the summer of 1974 a heatwave blankets Boston and Mary Pat Fennessy is trying to stay one step ahead of the bill collectors. Mary Pat has lived her entire life in the housing projects of “Southie,” the Irish American enclave that stubbornly adheres to old tradition and stands proudly apart. One night Mary Pat’s teenage daughter Jules stays out late and doesn’t come home. That same evening, a young Black man is found dead, struck by a subway train under mysterious circumstances. The two events seem unconnected. But Mary Pat, propelled by a desperate search for her missing daughter, begins turning over stones best left untouched—asking questions that bother Marty Butler, chieftain of the Irish mob, and the men who work for him, men who don’t take kindly to any threat to their business. Set against the hot, tumultuous months when the city’s desegregation of its public schools exploded in violence, Small Mercies is a superb thriller, a brutal depiction of criminality and power, and an unflinching portrait of the dark heart of American racism. It is a mesmerizing and wrenching work that only Dennis Lehane could write.” — Provided by publisher. Unrated. Commercial audiobook. Our facilitator for this group is Michelle Bernstein ([email protected]).

We hope that you can join us to discuss this entertaining audiobook. Here is the NLS annotation: Warrior girl unearthed DB 114761 Boulley, Angeline. Reading time 11 hours, 34 minutes. Read by Isabella Star LaBlanc. A production of National Library Service for the Blind and Print Disabled, Library of Congress. Subjects: Mystery and Detective Stories; Young Adult Description: “With the rising number of missing Indigenous women, her family’s involvement in a murder investigation, and grave robbers profiting off her Anishinaabe tribe, Perry takes matters into her own hands to solve the mystery and reclaim her people’s inheritance.” — Provided by publisher. Unrated. Commercial audiobook. For senior high and older readers. Your facilitator for this group is Michelle Bernstein ([email protected]).

Here is the NLS annotation: How Not to Drown in a Glass of Water: a novel DB 110919 Cruz, Angie. Reading time 6 hours, 19 minutes. Read by Kimberly M. Wetherell Rossmery Almonte. A production of National Library Service for the Blind and Print Disabled, Library of Congress. Subjects: Family Description: “Cara Romero thought she would work at the factory of little lamps for the rest of her life. But when, in her mid-50s, she loses her job in the Great Recession, she is forced back into the job market for the first time in decades. Set up with a job counselor, Cara instead begins to narrate the story of her life. Over the course of twelve sessions, Cara recounts her tempestuous love affairs, her alternately biting and loving relationships with her neighbor Lulu and her sister Angela, her struggles with debt, gentrification and loss, and, eventually, what really happened between her and her estranged son, Fernando. As Cara confronts her darkest secrets and regrets, we see a woman buffeted by life but still full of fight.” — Provided by publisher. Unrated. Commercial audiobook.Our facilitator for this group is Michelle Bernstein ([email protected]).

Here is the NLS annotation: The Lehman trilogy: a novel DB 101774 Massini, Stefano Dixon, Richard. Reading time 13 hours, 43 minutes. Read by Edoardo Ballerini. A production of National Library Service for the Blind and Print Disabled, Library of Congress. Subjects: Historical Fiction; Family Description: Henry Lehman leaves Bavaria for the United States to make a better life. He builds a textile dynasty in Alabama. Brothers Emanuel and Mayer expand the family’s holdings. The generations of the Lehman family span one hundred fifty years. Translated from the original 2016 Italian edition. Unrated. Commercial audiobook. 2020. Our facilitator for this group is Michelle Bernstein ([email protected]).

Here is the NLS annotation: We all want impossible things: a novel DB 111246 Newman, Catherine. Reading time 6 hours, 58 minutes. Read by Jane Oppenheimer. A production of National Library Service for the Blind and Print Disabled, Library of Congress. Subjects: Friendship Fiction Description: “Edith and Ashley have been best friends for over forty-two years. They’ve shared the mundane and the momentous together: trick or treating and binge drinking; Gilligan’s Island reruns and REM concerts; hickeys and heartbreak; surprise Scottish wakes; marriages, infertility, and children. As Ash says, “Edi’s memory is like the back-up hard drive for mine.” But now the unthinkable has happened. Edi is dying of ovarian cancer and spending her last days at a hospice near Ash, who stumbles into heartbreak surrounded by her daughters, ex(ish) husband, dear friends, a poorly chosen lover (or two), and a rotating cast of beautifully, fleetingly human hospice characters. As The Fiddler on the Roof soundtrack blasts all day long from the room next door, Edi and Ash reminisce, hold on, and try to let go. Meanwhile, Ash struggles with being an imperfect friend, wife, and parent–with life, in other words, distilled to its heartbreaking, joyful, and comedic essence.” — Provided by publisher. Unra Our facilitator for this group is Michelle Bernstein ([email protected]).

Here is the NLS annotation: The displacements DB 109018 Holsinger, Bruce W. Reading time 13 hours, 38 minutes. Read by Austenne Grey. A production of National Library Service for the Blind and Print Disabled, Library of Congress. Subjects: Suspense Fiction Description: “To all appearances, the Larsen-Hall family has everything: healthy children, a stable marriage, a lucrative career for Brantley, and the means for Daphne to pursue her art full-time. Their deluxe new Miami life has just clicked into place when Luna–the world’s first category 6 hurricane–upends everything they have taken for granted. When the storm makes landfall, it triggers a descent of another sort. Their home destroyed, two of its members missing, and finances abruptly cut off, the family finds everything they assumed about their lives now up for grabs. Swept into a mass rush of evacuees from across the American South, they are transported hundreds of miles to a FEMA megashelter where their new community includes an insurance-agent-turned-drug dealer, a group of vulnerable children, and a dedicated relief worker trying to keep the peace. Will “normal” ever return? A suspenseful read plotted on a vast national tapestry, The Displacements thrillingly explores what happens when priv Our facilitator for this group is Michelle Bernstein ([email protected]).

Here is the NLS annotation: The whalebone theatre DB 110521 Quinn, Joanna. Reading time 18 hours, 25 minutes. Read by Olivia Vinall. A production of National Library Service for the Blind and Print Disabled, Library of Congress. Subjects: Historical Fiction Description: “One blustery night in 1928, a whale washes up on the shores of the English Channel. By law, it belongs to the King, but twelve-year-old orphan Cristabel Seagrave has other plans. She and the rest of the household—her sister, Flossie; her brother, Digby, long-awaited heir to Chilcombe Manor; Maudie Kitcat, kitchen maid; Taras, visiting artist—build a theatre from the beast’s skeletal rib cage. Within the Whalebone Theatre, Cristabel can escape her feckless stepparents and brisk governesses, and her imagination comes to life. As Cristabel grows into a headstrong young woman, World War II rears its head. She and Digby become British secret agents on separate missions in Nazi-occupied France—a more dangerous kind of playacting, it turns out, and one that threatens to tear the family apart.” — Provided by publisher. Unrated. Commercial audiobook. The Fiction Old and New book group will be discussing “The Whalebone Theater” DB 110521 by Joanna Quinn on Friday, April 7, 2023 at 8:00 p.m. Our facilitator for this group is Michelle Bernstein ([email protected]).

The Fiction Old and New book group will be discussing the contemporary novel, “Nora Goes Off Script” by Anna Monaghan, D B 1 0 8 6 5 7 on Friday, March 3, 2023 at 8:00 p.m. eastern time. Here is the NLS annotation: Nora goes off script DB 108657 Monaghan, Annabel. Reading time 6 hours, 59 minutes. Read by Hillary Huber. A production of National Library Service for the Blind and Print Disabled, Library of Congress. Subjects: Romance Description: “Nora Hamilton knows the formula for love better than anyone. As a romance channel screenwriter, it’s her job. But when her too-good-to work husband leaves her and their two kids, Nora turns her marriage’s collapse into cash and writes the best script of her life. No one is more surprised than her when it’s picked up for the big screen and set to film on location at her 100-year-old-home. When former Sexiest Man Alive, Leo Vance, is cast as her ne’er do well husband Nora’s life will never be the same. The morning after shooting wraps and the crew leaves, Nora finds Leo on her porch with a half-empty bottle of tequila and a proposition. He’ll pay a thousand dollars a day to stay for a week. The extra seven grand would give Nora breathing room, but it’s the need in his eyes that makes her say yes. Seven days: it’s the blink of an eye or an eternity depending on how you look at it. Enough time to fall in love. Enough time to break your heart.” — Provided by publisher. Unrated. Commercial Our facilitator for this group is Michelle Bernstein ([email protected]).

The Fiction Old and New book group discussed the classic novel, “Invisible Man” by Ralph Ellison. Two versions of this novel are available on BARD and both are posted below. Here are the two book annotations: 1. Invisible man DB 56346 Ellison, Ralph. Reading time 20 hours, 57 minutes. Read by Peter Jay Fernandez. A production of the National Library Service for the Blind and Physically Handicapped, Library of Congress. Subjects: Classics Description: Classic novel of a young black man’s search for identity. Follows the unnamed protagonist from his youth in a Southern town through the depression years in Harlem, where he examines and rejects the values thrust on him by both whites and blacks. Some strong language. National Book Award 1953. 1947. 2. Invisible man DB 09600 Ellison, Ralph. Reading time 17 hours, 43 minutes. Read by Stanley Eisenberg. A production of the National Library Service for the Blind and Physically Handicapped, Library of Congress. Subjects: General Description: Classic novel of man’s search for identity. Follows a young black man from his youth in a Southern town through the depression years in Harlem, where he examines and rejects the values thrust on him by both whites and blacks.. Our facilitator for this group is Michelle Bernstein ([email protected]).

The Fiction Old and New book group is privileged to welcome guest host Shelly Kane who will lead the discussion of the suspense novel, “Behind Every Lie” by Christina McDonald, D B 9 9 6 9 4 on Friday, January 6, 2023 at 8:00 p.m. eastern time. Here is the NLS annotation: Behind every lie DB 99694 McDonald, Christina. Reading time 9 hours, 41 minutes. Read by Fiona Hardingham. A production of National Library Service for the Blind and Print Disabled, Library of Congress. Subjects: Suspense Fiction; Psychological Fiction Description: Eva Hansen wakes in the hospital after being struck by lightning and discovers her mother, Kat, has been murdered. Eva was found unconscious down the street. She can’t remember what happened but the police are highly suspicious of her. Determined to clear her name, Eva heads from Seattle to London–Kat’s former home–for answers. Unrated. Commercial audiobook. 2020.

Here is the NLS annotation: Musical chairs DB 100230 Poeppel, Amy. Reading time 12 hours, 41 minutes. Read by Jackie Sanders. A production of National Library Service for the Blind and Print Disabled, Library of Congress. Subjects: General Description: Cellist Bridget Stratton and her best friend Will are part of a chamber music trio in need of a new violinist. Bridget’s plans for a relaxing summer in the Connecticut countryside crumble when her boyfriend breaks up with her and her two grown children show up with their own problems. Unrated. Commercial audiobook. 2020. Our facilitator for this group is Michelle Bernstein ([email protected]).

The Fiction Old and New book group will be discussing “A Town Called Solace” by acclaimed Canadian author Mary Lawson, D B 1 0 8 0 1 0 on Friday, November 4, 2022 at 8:00 p.m. Here is the NLS annotation: A town called Solace DB 108010 Lawson, Mary. Reading time 7 hours, 34 minutes. Read by Ian Lake. A production of National Library Service for the Blind and Print Disabled, Library of Congress. Subjects: Family Description: In 1970s Ontario, sixteen-year-old Rose is missing. Angry and rebellious, she stormed out of the house and simply disappeared. Left behind is seven-year-old Clara, Rose’s adoring little sister. Clara finds comfort in caring for her hospitalized neighbor Mrs. Orchard’s cat, until a strange man moves into Mrs. Orchard’s house. Unrated. Commercial audiobook. 2021. Our facilitator for this group is Michelle Bernstein ([email protected]).

Here is the NLS annotation: The younger wife DB 107296 Hepworth, Sally. Reading time 9 hours, 20 minutes. Read by Zoe Carides. A production of National Library Service for the Blind and Print Disabled, Library of Congress. Subjects: Suspense Fiction Description: Heart surgeon Stephen Aston is looking to get married again, but he must first divorce his current wife–who can no longer speak for herself. His daughters, Tully and Rachel, believe his new fiancée, Heather, is nothing but a gold digger as she’s younger than both of them. But Heather has her own secrets. Unrated. Commercial audiobook. 2022.Our facilitator for this group is Michelle Bernstein ([email protected]).

Here is the NLS annotation: Lessons in chemistry DB 107538 Garmus, Bonnie. Reading time 11 hours, 57 minutes. Read by Bonnie Garmus. A production of National Library Service for the Blind and Print Disabled, Library of Congress. Subjects: Historical Fiction Description: In the early 1960s, chemist Elizabeth Zott has a lot of challenges as the only woman on her team at Hastings Research Institute. She falls for colleague Calvin Evans, but the double standards of the day eventually have her looking for a new chapter outside academia, hosting a television cooking show. Unrated. Commercial audiobook. 2022. Your facilitator is Michelle Bernstein ([email protected]).

How to walk away DB 91087 Center, Katherine. Reading time 10 hours, 38 minutes. Read by Therese Plummer. A production of the National Library Service for the Blind and Physically Handicapped, Library of Congress. Subjects: Human Relations; Family Description: Margaret Jacobsen is in a plane crash with her boyfriend which leaves her paralyzed. In the aftermath, she reevaluates her relationships, reconnecting with the sister she hasn’t seen in years and bonding with Ian, the tough physical therapist who won’t let her give in to self-pity. Strong language. Commercial audiobook. 2018.

Love & saffron: a novel of friendship, food, and love DB 106798 Fay, Kim. Reading time 3 hours, 48 minutes. Read by Kim Fay. A production of National Library Service for the Blind and Print Disabled, Library of Congress. Subjects: Friendship Fiction; Historical Fiction Description: In 1962, Joan Bergstrom, a twenty-seven-year-old just starting out as a food writer in Los Angeles, sends a fan letter and a gift of saffron to fifty-nine-year-old Imogen Fortier, a columnist from the Pacific Northwest. Their correspondence turns into a life-changing friendship. Unrated. Commercial audiobook. 2022.

The nature of fragile things DB 102273 Meissner, Susan. Reading time 10 hours, 41 minutes. Read by Jason Culp. A production of National Library Service for the Blind and Print Disabled, Library of Congress. Subjects: Friendship Fiction; Historical Fiction; Human Relations Description: In 1905, a year before the earthquake that would devastate San Francisco, Irish immigrant Sophie Whalen is so desperate to get out of a New York tenement that she answers a mail-order bride ad and agrees to marry a man she knows nothing about. Unrated. Commercial audiobook. 2021. our facilitator for this group is Michelle Bernstein ([email protected]).

On Friday, May 6, 2022, the Fiction Old and New Book group is privileged to welcome guest host DeAnna Noriega who will be discussing the novel, Firekeeper’s Daughter, by Angeline Boulley DB 102762. This exceptional audio book has been optioned by President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama’s production company, Higher Ground, for a forthcoming Netflix series. Please join DeAnna for a delightful discussion about this interesting book. In addition, I have included the annotation for our Friday June 3, 2022 book discussion. On that date, we will be discussing the historical novel, The Nature of Fragile Things by Susan Meissner, DB 102273. I will send out a second newswire after our May discussion. Here is the May book NLS annotation: Firekeeper’s daughter DB 102762 Boulley, Angeline. Reading time 14 hours, 16 minutes. Read by Isabella Star LaBlanc. A production of National Library Service for the Blind and Print Disabled, Library of Congress. Subjects: Suspense Fiction; Young Adult Description: Daunis, who is part Ojibwe, defers attending the University of Michigan to care for her mother. When Daunis witnesses a shocking murder, she reluctantly agrees to go undercover, drawing on her knowledge of chemistry and Ojibwe traditional medicine to track down the source of a new drug. Unrated. Commercial audiobook. For senior high and older readers. 2021. Here is the June book NLS annotation: The nature of fragile things DB 102273 Meissner, Susan. Reading time 10 hours, 41 minutes. Read by Jason Culp. A production of National Library Service for the Blind and Print Disabled, Library of Congress. Subjects: Friendship Fiction; Historical Fiction; Human Relations Description: In 1905, a year before the earthquake that would devastate San Francisco, Irish immigrant Sophie Whalen is so desperate to get out of a New York tenement that she answers a mail-order bride ad and agrees to marry a man she knows nothing about. Unrated. Commercial audiobook. 2021. our facilitator for this group is Michelle Bernstein ([email protected]).

What you wish for DB 99569 Center, Katherine. Reading time 10 hours, 20 minutes. Read by Thérèse Plummer. A production of National Library Service for the Blind and Print Disabled, Library of Congress. Subjects: Romance Description: Samantha Casey loves being an elementary school librarian in Galveston, Texas until her school gets a new principal: Duncan Carpenter, Samantha’s former crush. Unfortunately, Duncan is not the fun-loving goof she once knew and is soon turning the school into a veritable prison with his safety concerns. Unrated. Commercial audiobook. 2020. Your facilitator for this group is Michelle Bernstein ([email protected]).

Here is the NLS annotation: The downstairs girl DB 96993 Lee, Stacey. Reading time 10 hours, 24 minutes. Read by Emily Woo Zeller. A production of National Library Service for the Blind and Print Disabled, Library of Congress. Subjects: Historical Fiction; Young Adult Description: 1890. By day, seventeen-year-old Jo Kuan works as a lady’s maid for the cruel Caroline Payne, daughter of one of the wealthiest men in Atlanta. But by night, Jo moonlights as the pseudonymous author of a newspaper advice column. Unrated. Commercial audiobook. For senior high and older readers. 2019. Your facilitator for this group is Michelle Bernstein ([email protected]).

Please join us to discuss this classic novel by a significant 20th century American writer. Here is the NLS annotation: The optimist’s daughter / DB 31668 Welty, Eudora. Reading time 4 hours, 26 minutes. Read by Laura Giannarelli. National Library Service for the Blind and Physically Handicapped, Library of Congress. Subjects: Family Description: Laurel Hand, a middle-aged widow since World War II, returns home to a small Mississippi town after the death of her beloved father, a judge. There she confronts her past to gain a better understanding of herself and her parents. Pulitzer Prize, 1973. Your facilitator for this group is Michelle Bernstein ([email protected]).

Please join us to discuss this suspenseful thriller set in italy. Here is the NLS annotation: Palace of the drowned DB 104759 Mangan, Christine, (Christine Rose). Reading time 10 hours, 14 minutes. Read by Emily Pennant-Rea. A production of National Library Service for the Blind and Print Disabled, Library of Congress. Subjects: Suspense Fiction Description: 1966. Years after the success of her first novel, Frankie Croy retreats to a friend’s Venetian palazzo when she receives a scathing review of her latest work. When young fan Gilly appears and insinuates herself into Frankie’s life, Frankie worries about Gilly’s intentions, even as flood waters rise. Unrated. Commercial audiobook. 2021. Your facilitator for this group is Michelle Bernstein ([email protected]).

Here is the NLS annotation: The vixen: a novel DB 104346 Prose, Francine. Reading time 12 hours, 21 minutes. Read by Tristan Morris. A production of National Library Service for the Blind and Print Disabled, Library of Congress. Subjects: Historical Fiction Description: In 1953, recent Harvard graduate Simon Putnam is newly hired by a distinguished New York publishing firm. He gets a difficult first assignment editing a lurid bodice ripper improbably based on the recent trial and execution of Ethel and Julius Rosenberg. Unrated. Commercial audiobook. 2021. Your facilitator for this group is Michelle Bernstein ([email protected]).

Here is the NLS annotation: Klara and the sun DB 102764 Ishiguro, Kazuo. Reading time 10 hours, 18 minutes. Read by Sura Siu. A production of National Library Service for the Blind and Print Disabled, Library of Congress. Subjects: Science Fiction; Bestsellers Description: Klara, an Artificial Friend, possesses great observational skills, and loves to watch the humans around her. When she is purchased to act as a companion for an ill girl, she studies the emotions of her new family closely and tries to learn from them. Unrated. Commercial audiobook. Bestseller. 2021. Your facilitator for this group is Michelle Bernstein ([email protected])

When the stars go dark DB 102900 McLain, Paula. Reading time 11 hours, 31 minutes. Read by Marin Ireland. A production of National Library Service for the Blind and Print Disabled, Library of Congress. Subjects: Suspense Fiction; Mystery and Detective Stories Description: When tragedy strikes seasoned missing persons detective Anna Hart’s personal life, she flees to the northern California village of Mendocino to grieve. But when she arrives, it’s to find out a local teenager is missing and the circumstances are reminiscent of a murder in Anna’s childhood. Unrated. Commercial audiobook. 2021. Your facilitator for this group is Michelle Bernstein ([email protected]).

Here is the NLS annotation: Songs in Ursa Major DB 103913 Brodie, Emma. Reading time 10 hours, 47 minutes. Read by Kristen Sieh. A production of National Library Service for the Blind and Print Disabled, Library of Congress. Subjects: Historical Fiction; Historical Romance Fiction; Romance Description: In 1969, Jesse Reid is poised to tip from fame to legend with this one headlining performance at the Bayleen Island Folk Fest. When he gets into a motorcycle accident on the way to the show, local Jane Quinn and her bandmates get the opportunity of a lifetime. Unrated. Commercial audiobook. 2021. Your facilitator for this group is Michelle Bernstein ([email protected]).

Here is the NLS annotation: A good neighborhood DB 98910 Fowler, Therese. Reading time 10 hours, 37 minutes. Read by Ella Turenne. A production of National Library Service for the Blind and Print Disabled, Library of Congress. Description: In the tight-knit neighborhood of Oak Knoll, North Carolina, African American professor Valerie Alston-Holt lives with her bi-racial son, Xavier. When a local TV celebrity and his family build a huge house next door, the neighbors clash over damage to a tree on Valerie’s property. Unrated. Commercial audiobook. 2020. Your facilitator for this group is Michelle Bernstein ([email protected]).

Here is the NLS annotation: My dark Vanessa DB 99442 Russell, Kate Elizabeth. Reading time 15 hours, 38 minutes. Read by Grace Gummer. A production of National Library Service for the Blind and Print Disabled, Library of Congress. Subjects: General Description: When Vanessa Wye was fifteen she had an affair with Jacob Strane, her forty-two-year-old English teacher. Seventeen years later, Jacob is accused of sexual abuse by another one of his former students, and Vanessa is forced to re-examine her past. Unrated. Commercial audiobook. 2020. Your facilitator for this group is Michelle Bernstein ([email protected]).

Fiction Old and New will be discussing the historical novel, “Better Luck Next Time”, DB 102215, by Julia Claiborne Johnson. Here is the NLS annotation: Better luck next time DB 102215 Johnson, Julia Claiborne Baker, David Aaron. Reading time 8 hours, 28 minutes. Read by David Aaron Baker. A production of National Library Service for the Blind and Print Disabled, Library of Congress. Subjects: Historical Fiction; Humor Description: In 1938, women seeking a quick, no-questions-asked split from their husbands head to the divorce capital of the world: Reno, Nevada. While they wait the required six weeks, many of these wealthy, soon-to-be divorcées flock to the Flying Leap, the dude ranch where Ward Bennet works. Unrated. Commercial audiobook. 2021. Your facilitator for this group is Michelle Bernstein ([email protected]).

We will now be discussing “Joy in the Morning” by Betty Smith. “Joy in the Morning” is the story of Annie and Carl in their first year of marriage in a 1928 Midwestern town. It is a delightful story of the ups and downs of newly married life. Here is the NLS annotation: Joy in the morning DB 38778 Smith, Betty. Reading time 10 hours, 49 minutes. Read by Barbara Rappaport. National Library Service for the Blind and Physically Handicapped, Library of Congress. Subjects: Romance Description: In 1927 eighteen-year-old Annie McGairy arrives in a midwestern university town to marry her boyfriend, Carl Brown, who is studying law. Back in Brooklyn, both sets of parents react badly to the news and cut off all support. Despite the struggle to make ends meet, the couple’s good spirits keep them going. As Carl finishes his law degree, Annie, who never went to high school, pursues her dream of becoming a writer. Some strong language. Your facilitator for this group is Michelle Bernstein ([email protected]).

Fiction Old and New will be discussing the book, “The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek” by Kim Michele Richardson, DB 95243, on Friday, March 5, 2021 at 8:00 p.m. eastern time. This is a compelling historic fiction account of the pack mule librarians of the 1930’s. This memorable story weaves in themes of family, love, discrimination and friendship.   Here is the NLS annotation:   The book woman of Troublesome Creek DB 95243 Richardson, Kim Michele. Reading time 9 hours, 28 minutes. Read by Katie Schorr. A production of the National Library Service for the Blind and Physically Handicapped, Library of Congress. Subjects: Historical Fiction Description: Kentucky, 1936. Nineteen-year-old Cussy Mary Carter has been working as part of the Pack Horse Library Project, but her father hopes she’ll marry–despite the family trait of blue skin. In addition to her father’s hopes, Cussy must also face the prejudice of the community she serves. Unrated. Commercial audiobook. 2019.   Your facilitator for this group is Michelle Bernstein ([email protected]).  

Fiction Old and New discussed the book, Hello Summer by Mary Kay Andrews, DB 99179 on Friday, February 5, 2021 eastern time. This is a fast paced and entertaining mystery with a strong family element and a touch of romance.   Here is the NLS annotation:   Hello, summer DB 99719 Andrews, Mary Kay. Reading time 16 hours, 11 minutes. Read by Kathleen McInerney. A production of National Library Service for the Blind and Print Disabled, Library of Congress. Subjects: Human Relations; Romance Description: Conley Hawkins left her family’s small town newspaper in the rearview mirror years ago. Now a star reporter for a big-city paper, Conley is about to take a fancy new position in Washington, D. C. when the job disappears and she lands right back in Silver Bay, Florida. Unrated. Commercial audiobook. 2020.   Your facilitator for this group is Michelle Bernstein ([email protected]).

Here is the NLS annotation: The first actress: a novel of Sarah Bernhardt DB99894 Gortner, C. W. Reading time: 16 hours, 20 minutes. Read by Gabrielle de Cuir. Historical Fiction Young Sarah Bernhardt has rarely known love from those who should care for her. Her mother wants her to join the family business as a courtesan. Sarah refuses and joins the Comédie-Française. But her tenure is short and tempestuous. She slowly grows into her undeniable talent. Unrated. Commercial audiobook. 2020. Your facilitators for this group are Michelle Bernstein ([email protected]) and Sherry Wells ([email protected]).

Note – This book has 2 entries on BARD by different narrators. The annotation for each is the same so we are only listing one here. Here is the NLS annotation:

Fiction Old and New will be discussing the book The Impersonator by Mary Miley, DB77528, on Friday October 2 at 8PM Eastern. Here is the NLS annotation:

Fiction Old and New welcomes our fellow moderator and author, Ann Parsons on Friday, September 4, 2020 at 8:00 p.m. eastern time. We will be discussing Ann’s novel,

We will be discussing The Competition by Marcia Clark , DB79718, on Friday, June 5, 2020 at 8PM Eastern time. Here is the NLS annotation:

We will be discussing The Midwife’s Revolt by Jodi Daynard, DBC04046, on Friday, May 1, 2020 at 8PM Eastern time. Here is the NLS annotation:

We will be discussing Your House Will Pay by Steph Cha, DB97652, on Friday, April 3, 2020 at 8PM Eastern time. Here is the NLS annotation:

We will be discussing The Mermaid & Mrs. Hancock by Imogen Gowar, DB93081, on Friday, March 6, 2020 at 8PM Eastern time. Note – this historical fiction novel contains strong sexual content, especially towards the beginning of the book.

We will be discussing Pay Day by ReShonda Billingsley, DB96640, on Friday, February 7, 2020 at 8PM Eastern time. Here is the NLS annotation: