Monday October 24th

On Monday October 24th, Hank Phillippi Ryan will be speaking at the Braintree Public Library at 7pm. This is a free event hosted by the Friends of the Braintree Public Library...

Drive Time-
"Buckle up and prepare for a wild ride...Ryan once again channels her Emmy-winning investigative reporting expertise to craft a realistic and compelling mystery, full of hairpin turns and dangerous intersections at breakneck speed.

Verdict: Placing Ryan in the same league as Lisa Scottoline...her latest book catapults the reader into the fast lane and doesn't relent until the story careens to a stop. New readers will speed to get her earlier books, and diehard fans will hope for another installment."
—Library Journal on DRIVE TIME (starred review!)

Moonlight Mile-Dennis Lehane

On November 3rd at 7pm, Dennis Lehane will be at Newtonville Books to discuss his latest novel Moonlight Mile.

Click here to see a list of upcoming events at Newtonville Books!

Moonlight Mile:

Amanda McCready was four years old when she vanished from her blue-collar Boston neighborhood. Patrick Kenzie and Angela Gennaro risked everything to find her—only to orchestrate her return to a neglectful mother and broken home.

Twelve years later, Amanda, now sixteen, is gone again.

The disappearance of little Amanda was the case that troubled Kenzie and Gennaro more than any other. Still haunted by their consciences, they must now revisit the nightmare that once tore them apart—following the trail of a lost teenager into a world of identity thieves, methamphetamine dealers, and Russian gangsters, right up to the doorstep of a dangerously unstable crime boss and his demented wife. Once again Patrick and Angie will be putting everything that matters to them on the line in pursuit of the answer to the burning question: Is it possible to do the right thing and still be dead wrong?

The Boy in in Moon...

Additional reviews of our next selection, The Boy in the Moon- see entire reviews here:

With a tender imagination and stark honesty, Brown infuses The Boy in the Moon with the quality of love: for this amazing boy, for his family, and for life. As much as this book is about one frail boy and the tiny constellation of people who surround him, it is also about all of us who try so hard to be parents worthy of our children.

British Columbia National Book Award for Canadian Non-Fiction

Winner of the 2010 Charles Taylor Prize for Literary Non-Fiction

Trillium Book Award Finalist

'Eloquent as a love song, rich as the most generous, finely tempered philosophy, The Boy in the Moon asks some profound questions. What makes us human? What connects us to the most impaired members of our community? Who benefits more, the caretaker or the cared-for? The answer to all these questions lies in the wonderfully realized — poignant, dignified, funny — portrait of Walker, whom Ian Brown calls "my teacher, my sweet, sweet, lost and broken boy." It's hard to imagine a reader who won't also learn important things from Walker: this is a book that expands the mind and heart, and a joy to read.'

Katherine Ashenburg, author of The Mourner’s Dance and The Dirt on Clean

'There's poignancy on every page of this beautifully articulated memoir about life with Walker Brown.'

(Sunday Mail Brisbane)

' ... the unmistakably real humanity and honesty of Brown's description of this life are something valuable.'

(The Age)

Our book club member Tracey met the author and we are all looking forward to reading the book!

Boston Book Festival October 15th

I attended the Boston Book Festival this weekend and had a wonderful time. I spent the afternoon having lunch on Newbury Street, doing a little shopping and then enjoying the festival.

After wandering through the exhibits, I attended a panel discussion re: truth and fiction. The panel consisted of Jennifer Haigh (author of Faith), Vanessa Diffenbaugh (author of The Language of Flowers) and Ha Jin (author of Nanjing Requiem). I love hearing authors discuss how they research their novels, how long it takes to write them and the consequences in their lives when they have to let "their story" go...I'm excited to read The Language of Flowers.

For those of you who like crime fiction, there was a booth for the Sisters in Crime-New England: (www.sincne.org)

At Sisters and Crime New England we are, first and always, fans of the mystery genre. For readers of all the crime genres—including mysteries, suspense, thrillers, short stories, romantic suspense and more, we offer speakers and events all around New England, easy ways to find out about new books by your favorite New England authors, and a window into the New England mystery writing community.

There was also a booth for the Women's National Book Association Inc.
This organization hosts many talks and forums for book lovers...

I will definitely attend next years festival.

Boston Book Festival October 15th

Jennifer Haigh (Faith) and Vanessa Diffenbaugh (Language of Flowers)

Future options!

Hopefully one of our future selections

The Language of Flowers

The Food!

October Book Club!

We had a wonderful time at Gail's home. Our selection, Faith, caused a great deal of discussion, some friendly arguments and reminisces of growing up.

This book didn't particularly lend itself to food suggestions, so we did family favorite pot luck.
Great wine, food, desserts and friends- what more can you ask for.

Our menu consisted of:
Appetizers: Alison's cheese spread & cucumber sandwiches, Laurie's goat cheese spread, Gail's deviled eggs, Lori's pumpkin bread and Monica's mushroom rolls.

Main course: Mary's Mac & Cheese, Gail's Squash and Sausage bake, Lori's wonderful salad with home made dressing.

Dessert: Gail's Pumpkin Trifle, Alison's Indian Pudding and Tracey's God Bless Ryan cake!

Please join us for our next book club in January!
Our selection is The Boy on the Moon