Books
The temperature has begun to drop, the leaves have started to change color, and everywhere you look, there's a pumpkin spice flavored or scented something beckoning you. That's right, fall is officially here, and if you want to welcome the season properly, you're going to want to grab you chunky sweaters and flannel scarves and curl up with one of these new fiction books about change.
Though I read every kind of book throughout the year, like a lot of book-lovers I know, I consider myself to be a seasonal reader. During the winter, I like to hunker down with long, classic novels and cozy mysteries. In the spring, I pull out my poetry collections and inspirational memoirs. Summertime is filled with heart-pumping thrillers and sexy romances, but in the fall, I fill my bookshelves with ghost stories, horror novels, and books about change.
Every season has its significance, and for a lot of people, fall's significance is change and transformation. That isn't just because leaves change their colors during the fall. It's also because the season traditionally marks the beginning of new things for a lot of people, whether it be new school, a new job, a new home, or even a new role as a husband or wife, father or mother, roommate or friend.
Whether you are going through a change this fall or just want to enjoy some seasonal reading about people who are, pick up one of these nine new books about transformation, transition, metamorphosis, and more.
'Clock Dance' by Anne Tyler
Anne Tyler's moving new novel Clock Dance tells the story of Willa Drake, a woman who makes the impulsive and unexpected decision to fly across the country to look after a young woman she has never met, the woman's nine-year-old daughter, and their dog. There, Willa finds that hope and happiness can be found where you least expect them.
'An Absolutely Remarkable Thing' by Hank Green
April May was the first person to discover one of the Carls — tall, strange, mysterious figures that began appearing in cities all around the world — and the viral video she made with it turned her into an overnight sensation. As April struggles to figure out how to handle her new found fame and all of the perks and problems that come with it, she searches for answers about who the Carls are, and what they want from humans. A captivating debut from a talented new novelist (and the brother of John Green), An Absolutely Remarkable Thing asks, what happens when life changes completely overnight, and how do we handle the transformation in our modern culture?
'The Bucket List' by Georgia Clark
When 25-year-old Lacey Whitman finds out she has the BRCA1 gene mutation, otherwise know as the "breast cancer" gene, she decides to make a "boob bucket list" that includes everything she wants to do with her breasts before she (possibly) gets a preventative double mastectomy. So begins a year-long journey of self-discovery, sexual exploration, and total transformation which author Georgia Clark masterfully chronicles in this hilarious and heartwarming novel.
'The Lido' by Libby Page
Rosemary Peterson has lived her entire life in Brixton, London, but the community she's always known is changing, and fast. On top of the library closing and the grocery store becoming a bar, the lido, an outdoor pool she's swum at daily since it opened, is at risk, too. When Kate Matthews, a promising but struggling writer, is assigned to cover the lido's closing, she discovers there is more to the pool's story, and more to Rosemary's life, than meets the eye. A charming story about community, friendship, aging, and change, The Lido is an inspirational read perfect for your fall TBR list.
'The Late Bloomers' Club' by Louise Miller
Nora loves her simple, predictable life serving the regulars who come to the diner she owns, but her routine changes completely when she learns she and her free-spirited younger sister are about to inherit a home and land from one of the town's most beloved citizens. Kit is thrilled to hear the news, and even happier when she finds out the land was in the process of being sold to a big-box developer, but some people in the community are less than pleased at the idea of development. Torn between their own feelings, desires, and needs, the sisters need to decide what to do with the land, or risk losing it all in this sweet new novel from Louise Miller.
'When We Found Home' by Susan Mallery
Callie didn't know where her life was going, but she certainly didn't expect it to lead her to a brother and sister she never knew she had, or a chance to live grand family home with her siblings and her grandfather. Of course, starting over is anything but simple, especially when it means learning how to be a part of a family for the first time. A touching story about love, connection, and new beginnings, When We Found Home is an uplifting read from start to finish.
'Goodbye, Paris' by Anstey Harris
After a traumatic event at music college years ago, Grace has lived a quiet, predictable life for herself repairing instruments and carrying on an affair with David, who promises to leave his loveless marriage as soon as his kids are old enough. That is, until David saves a woman's life in a Paris Metro, and the resulting fame illuminates the truth about his life and relationships. Devastated, Grace loses any hope of finding love and happiness or achieving her dreams of winning a violin-making competition, but her friends refuse to let her give up in this sweet and quirky novel about learning how to start over — again.
'The Intermission' by Elyssa Friedland
Jonathan thought he had a good marriage, so when his wife Cass requests a marital "intermission," a six-month separation during which they can explore whether or not the life they've built is the one they want, he is completely shocked. Although they are apart, Jonathan and Cass find that the time apart forces them to come face-to-face with the secrets they've spent years trying to avoid. Smart, funny, and incisive, The Intermission is a gripping story about love, the things that keep us together, and the lies that drive us apart.
'A River of Stars' by Vanessa Hua
There are few bigger transformations than that of becoming a mother, which the two characters at the heart of A River of Stars are about to be. After escaping a secret maternity home in Los Angeles, Scarlett Chen and her teenage companion, Daisy, flee to San Francisco's Chinatown, where they both struggle to navigate their new homes, their new lives, and their new futures. It's a gripping novel about motherhood, immigration, and survival, one you won't be able to put down.
