Of One Blood: Or, The Hidden Self is a novel by African American author Pauline Elizabeth Hopkins. It was published serially in The Colored American Magazine, where Hopkins worked as an editor, between 1902 and 1903. The story centers on Reuel Briggs, a medical student who plays down his biracial identity. After falling in love with the singer Dianthe and saving her life, Reuel travels to Africa where, in search of ancient treasures, he discovers... Read Of One Blood Summary

“Of the Threads that Connect the Stars” was written by the American poet Martín Espada. It appeared in the collection Vivas to Those Who Have Failed published by W. W. Norton in 2016.This is the work of a mature poet, comfortable with his own voice and confident in his place within a long tradition of Whitmanesque artistic advocacy. Both the title of the book and the poem are drawn from Walt Whitman’s “Song of Myself,”... Read Of the Threads that Connect the Stars Summary

Of Women and Salt (2021) is the first novel by Gabriela Garcia. A work of literary fiction, it explores themes of family, patriarchy, feminism, race, colonialism, and immigration. The story touches several generations, from 1866 to 2019, but takes place primarily in 21st-century Miami and Cuba. Plot SummaryRather than presenting events chronologically, Of Women and Salt jumps backward and forward in time, and the point of view changes with each chapter. This summary places the... Read Of Women and Salt Summary

Oh William! (2021) by Elizabeth Strout is the sequel to the Man Booker longlisted and New York Times bestselling novel My Name is Lucy Barton (2016). Strout is also the author of six other books, including the Pulitzer-prize winning Olive Kitteridge (2008).Oh William! features the previous novel’s first-person protagonist Lucy Barton at a later stage in life when she is 63, a successful writer, and widowed from her second marriage. While the first novel’s topic... Read Oh, William Summary

Oil and Marble: A Novel of Leonardo and Michelangelo is a 2016 historical fiction novel by Stephanie Storey. Storey is an American novelist, television producer, and art historian. The novel, set in Renaissance Florence, is a fictionalized retelling of the rivalry between the artists Leonardo da Vinci and Michelangelo.This guide uses the 2018 Arcade Publishing edition.Content Warning: The source text and this guide feature depictions of unconventional sexual orientation.Plot SummaryIn 1499, renowned artist Leonardo da... Read Oil and Marble Summary

This is an overview of the first edition of Okay for Now, a humorous Young Adult novel by award-winning author, Gary D. Schmidt. Published in 2011, this children’s novel was nominated for the National Book Award for Young People’s literature. Other works by Schmidt include Lizzie Bright and the Buckminster Boy (2004), The Wednesday Wars (2007), and The Labors of Hercules Beal (2023).Plot SummaryDoug Swieteck, a middle schooler, is the child of an abusive, alcoholic father... Read Okay for Now Summary

Olga Dies Dreaming is Xochitl Gonzalez’s first novel. Published in 2021 by Flatiron Books, it tells the story of the Acevedo siblings—wedding planner Olga and congressman Prieto—whose mother has Blanca left to join a Puerto Rican revolutionary organization. As Hurricanes Irma and Maria are about to hit the island, the Acevedos must wrestle with their past, their mother’s involvements in growing unrest in Puerto Rico, and their ability to live in her shadow. Gonzalez’s novel... Read Olga Dies Dreaming Summary

Olive, Again, by Elizabeth Strout, was published in 2019 by Random House. Elizabeth Strout is the author of nine novels, many of which take place in or near the fictional town of Crosby, Maine. Olive, Again is the sequel to Olive Kitteridge, which won the Pulitzer Prize and was published in 2009. Olive Kitteridge was also made into a limited television series by HBO, starring Frances McDormand, in 2014. Critics praise Strout for her ability... Read Olive, Again Summary

Published in 2008, Olive Kitteridge is an unconventional novel by Elizabeth Strout that interlinks 13 tales about the people of Crosby, Maine. The novel is a collection of short stories tied together by the unifying element of titular character Olive Kitteridge. The novel won the 2009 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction, and HBO created a mini-series of the book in 2014. Because of its construction, Strout’s novel is less about its plot than it is about... Read Olive Kitteridge Summary

Kevin Henkes is the author of Olive’s Ocean, a 2001 coming-of-age chapter book for young readers. Kevin has written and illustrated several books for children and young readers, including Waiting (1991) and The Year of Billy Miller (2013). Henkes was born in Wisconsin, and this Midwest state is the home of his character Billy Miller, as well as Martha Boyle, the 12-year-old protagonist in Olive’s Ocean. In the novel, Martha grapples with the sudden death... Read Olive's Ocean Summary

First published in 2024, Allie Millington’s Olivetti is a mixed-genre middle grade novel with elements of mystery, family drama, and fantasy. The story follows seventh-grader Ernest Brindle, who embarks on a journey of discovery as he searches for his missing mother with the help of a sentient typewriter named Olivetti, who communicates with humans by typing out his thoughts on paper. The novel, which examines The Healing Power of Memory, The Journey From Grief to... Read Olivetti Summary

On Beauty by the celebrated British author Zadie Smith was published in 2005. On Beauty was shortlisted for the prestigious Man Booker Prize and won the Orange Prize for Fiction. Smith is known for writing novels and essays that analyze the intersections of identity in the contemporary world with nuance, clarity, and empathy. She is also known to be influenced by the classic English author E.M. Forster. On Beauty is loosely based on Forster’s masterpiece... Read On Beauty Summary

On Call: A Doctor’s Journal, Dr. Anthony Fauci’s memoir published in 2024, offers a first-person perspective on his career milestones, which also serve as a history of public healthcare in the US. Fauci grapples with the ethical complexities of modern medicine, personal challenges, and political trials as his career advances. The book, which combines autobiographical prose with a medical journal narrative, recounts Fauci’s experience as a leading infectious disease expert and director of the National... Read On Call Summary

Rebecca Serle’s 2026 novel, Once and Again, is a work of contemporary fiction that blends domestic drama with magical realism. The story centers on Lauren Novak, whose family has a unique matrilineal inheritance: Each woman is born with a single-use silver ticket that allows her to undo a past event. Lauren has spent her adult life believing her mother used her ticket to save her father’s life, a secret that has shaped her family’s dynamic... Read Once and Again Summary

Once There Were Wolves is a mystery suspense novel by Australian writer Charlotte McConaghy which was published by Macmillan in 2021 and became a New York Times Bestseller. McConaghy is also the author of Migrations. In both novels, McConaghy writes about fierce women who are searching for their purpose while dealing with serious internal conflicts. The crimes that occur in each novel force the women to face their demons and make choices that will lead... Read Once There Were Wolves Summary

Once Were Warriors by Alan Duff is the first installment of a historical fiction trilogy originally published in 1990 that explores the lives of a Māori family in early 1990s New Zealand. In the first year of its publication, it won the PEN Best First Book award and was the runner-up for the Goodman Fielder Wattie Award. In 1994, Once Were Warriors was optioned and made into a movie of the same name, which won... Read Once Were Warriors Summary

On Death and Dying is a 1969 psychological study by Elisabeth Kübler-Ross. It is best known in popular culture for introducing the five stages of grief: denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance. Kübler-Ross’s work with terminally ill patients inspired the model. She wrote the study as a response to the lack of instruction in medical schools about how to handle the topic of death. It was the very first book written by Kübler-Ross in her... Read On Death and Dying Summary

One Crazy Summer, a Coretta Scott King Book Award winner and National Book Award nominee, is a historical novel for children that was published in 2009 by Rita Williams-Garcia. Other works by this author include P.S. Be Eleven, Like Sisters on the Homefront, and Clayton Byrd Goes Underground.This guide is based on the 2009 Amistad/HarperCollins Kindle edition. Set in 1968, the novel describes what happens when Delphine Gaither and her two younger sisters, Vonetta and... Read One Crazy Summer Summary

One Dark Window is the first installment of the Shepherd King duology written by Rachel Gillig. A dark fantasy novel with gothic undertones, the story centers on Elspeth Spindle, a young woman attempting to survive the dangerous, magical, and monarchical world while trying to hide her own secret from the prying eyes of the Rowan King. Published in 2022 by Orbit Books, One Dark Window is Gillig’s first novel, while its sequel, Two Twisted Crowns... Read One Dark Window Summary

One Foot in Eden is a 2002 crime novel by Ron Rash. Rash employs a blend of Southern Gothic and detective fiction to create suspense and explore the psychological inner conflict of the characters. The novel follows five different narrators as the people of Jocassee, South Carolina, discover the murder of Holland Winchester. As the investigation continues, the characters must come to terms with the displacement of their community while Carolina Power evicts the inhabitants... Read One Foot in Eden Summary