Catherine Coles
Coles Notes
The staff of the County of L&A Libraries are avid readers and always eager to share their favourite books. Here we bring you a list of some of the reads we’ve recently enjoyed. This month you’ll find an outdoorsy suspense novel, a heartwarming picture book, and compelling novel of historical fiction from a must-read author.
Julie suggests The Book of Letters I Didn’t Know Where to Send by Steve Patterson
Does the ongoing chilly weather have you down? The Book of Letters I Didn’t Know Where to Send by Steve Patterson is the perfect “pick-me-up” book. Using his signature comedic tone, he pens numerous letters to a variety of recipients from the touching one to his wife, to an angry one to Prince William and Kate (how dare they ruin his wedding day), even random ones to various letters in the alphabet. I guarantee this is one “pick-me-up” you won’t want to put down.
Marg suggests The Last Year of the War by Susan Meissner
The Last Year of the War by Susan Meissner is a poignant Second World War story set primarily at an internment camp in Texas. It tells of the atrocities endured by the German-American and Japanese-American citizens who were uprooted and relocated from their homes under suspicion of being Nazi spies or sympathizers. Although this is a work of fiction the author has obviously researched and accurately relates the little-known historical fact that internment camps operated in the United States during the Second World War. In true Meissner form The Last Year of the War is an enduring and heartbreaking tale that you will not soon forget.
Jennifer suggests The Last Woman in the Forest by Diane Les Becquets
The Last Woman in the Forest is a compelling suspense novel with a strong sense of place. Marian, a keen wildlife conservationist trainee, falls in love with her charismatic trainer, Tate, while on location in the sombre, frozen landscape of northeastern Alberta.
Detailed descriptions of a love of animals, exploration of landscapes, and niche conservationist tasks enrich the novel. An intricately plotted story revs up when Tate’s apparent death by bear mauling brings a tragic close to their whirlwind romance and sets up a puzzle to solve.
In retrospect, Marian feels she may have fallen in love with a man who was too good to be true. Tate’s earlier revelation that he discovered a woman’s body in the woods alongside nagging doubts of disturbing inconsistencies in their courtship leads Marian to research his possible role in four murders.
Marian reaches out to Nick, a forensic profiler who worked the original case, in her relationship autopsy. Nick echoes the possibility that Tate could have been a serial killer.
All the while as they compare notes, Marian begins to feel an ominous presence stalking her.
Karen S. suggests When I Found Grandma by Saumiya Balasubramaniam
Maya watches her classmates with their grandmas and wishes she could see hers, who lives thousands of miles away. When Maya is surprised with a week-long visit from her grandmother over spring break, they get off to a rocky start since Grandma is so different from what Maya expects.
What follows is a beautiful and heart-warming picture book of learning to meet each other half-way to bridge cross-cultural differences, and the love and acceptance between grandparents and their grandchildren.