“The Red Address Book” by Sofia Lundberg

With tender reminiscence, Doris, a 90-year-old Swedish woman whose health is failing quickly, uses the treasured entries in an old, red address book to recall the people in her life and recount her memoirs for her only surviving relative, Jenny, by describing the cherished relationships, places, and events that shaped her life. In rich detail, Doris reviews her years through the lens of time, while bringing to light the realities of aging, and the end-of-life process for a woman who has outlived most of the people she truly cared about. 4 1/2 Stars

“Anxious People” by Frederik Backman

There are 74 chapters in this book and for the first 30 chapters I found the flawed characters bleak, the themes of suicide disquieting, and the hopelessness depressing, and I almost stopped reading, when suddenly, as the farcical humor, human kindness, and poignant backstories emerged, I realized that to touch the heart of the reader with empathy, friendship, acceptance, and budding hope, you often have to start by showing rigidness, loneliness, despair, and well….”anxious people”.  Give this book a chance to touch you as you learn about a bank robber who never wanted to hurt anyone, and who ends up taking the “worst hostages ever” to create a chaotic comedy of errors and reveal with refreshing honesty the things we humans have in common, while uniting us with the thought that as different as we are, we’re all just “doing the best we can.” 4 STARS

“Jimmy Bluefeather” by Kim Heacox

Keb Wisting, who is part Norwegian, part Tlingit, and so old he is more than ready to die, resides in the small town of Jinkaat, Alaska, and together with a grandson who is recovering from a tragic accident, and two other young people, he embarks on an epic quest in a handmade canoe, and in the process unites a community, inspires a young woman who works for the marine service, and makes the reader examine the kinds of lives we chose to live. Part adventure and yet full of ponderings on the truly important things in life, the novel is full of rich insights and stunning descriptions of the southern Alaska landscapes, as the author reveals the poignant memories and desires of one man at the end of his life, and the coming-of-age angst of a young man whose path in life has been suddenly and dramatically altered. 5 Stars

“The Bookshop on the Corner” by Jenny Colgan

If you are looking for light entertainment with a little romance thrown in, this story was a fluffy little diversion and reminded me a bit of the Amy Adam’s rom-com “Leap Year, but set in scenic Scotland rather than Ireland. A shy, young, city librarian, Nina Redmond with a knack for recommending just the right book to her patrons, is pushed out of her job by technology, and moves to rural Scotland to run a mobile bookshop while of course, finding her happily ever after. 3 Stars

( Important note: this book was sold in the UK and USA under 2 different titles – “The Bookshop of Happily Ever After” is the same book.)