- Emily Stoll
- Thursday, March 05, 2020
March is Women's History Month. It's a time to reflect and celebrate the vital role of women in American history.
Our staff wanted to recognize this annual observance with a literary twist. The goal was to highlight leading ladies and/or strong female characters, and their picks were recently featured in the March/April issue of Columbia Living Magazine.
Poppy Redfern and the Midnight Murders by Tessa Arlen
Recommended by Chantal Wilson
Summer 1942. Poppy Redfern is Little Buffenden’s first Air Raid Precautions Warden. The Redfern family house and land have been requisitioned by the War Office to build an airfield for the American Air Force – which increases the chances that the small English village might become a German bombing target. Shortly after the airfield opens, two young women dating American servicemen are strangled. Poppy decides to start her own investigation, Americans and villagers (many of whom wish the Americans never made an appearance) are suspects. Can Poppy find the killer before another young woman, or even herself, pays the ultimate price? Fans of Susan Elia MacNeal’s “Maggie Hope” mysteries will greatly enjoy this new series. It really is a smashing read!
Such a Fun Age by Kiley Reid
Recommended by Morgan Ryan
When a twenty-something Philadelphia babysitter, Emira Tucker, gets accused of kidnapping her wealthy white employer, Alix Chamberlain's toddler, a series of events unfolds that complicates and reveals the intricacies of life's many relationships. Kiley Reid effortlessly packs in a page worth of detail into each sentence, and her characters are vividly real. This novel, while set it 2015 and references many things specific to that time, has staying power as it takes a long look at the ways in which subtle racism filters through everyday life. With an omniscient third person narrator, we get to look into the minds and deepest inner thoughts of both Alix and Emira and how race, class, privilege, age and all of life's factors affect their lives and interactions with one another. A deep and interesting story disguised as easy and entertaining makes this such a fun read.
Chilling Effect by Valerie Valdes
Recommended by Mahogany Skillings
Eva Innocente is a hard talking, hard drinking, hard hitting, hard loving captain, and while she frequently ends up in compromising situations, she has the brains and gusto to get out of them - mostly. The Fridge (the big bad) kidnaps Eva’s sister, Mari, and blackmails her into doing odd jobs for them. Space battles, psychic cats, deliveries/pickups gone bad, rogue religious conversions, and declarations of war ensue. At one point in the story, there is a literal space opera. You’ll like this book if you enjoy space exploration, complicated family dynamics and a love story on the side.
Conjure Women by Afia Atakora
Recommended by Megan Mathis
Afia Atakora deftly interweaves storylines from before, during and after the Civil War in an independent and isolated settlement of former slaves. Following in her mother’s footsteps, Rue is a midwife and healer in the community. When the community is tested by both outside and inside forces, Rue must find a way to save them. “Conjure Women” is a compelling saga of the pre- and post- Civil War South centered around two strong healing women. The alternating timelines will keep readers hooked and guessing. Recommended for fans of “Homegoing” and “She Would Be King.”