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Carmen Maria Machado’s memoir In the Dream House chronologizes her experiences in an abusive relationship with a woman. In the Dream House was published in 2019 and won the 2021 Folio Prize and the 2020 Lambda Literary Award for LGBTQ Nonfiction. The memoir discusses potential modes for queer representation through the use of multiple narrative techniques. As of 2022, Machado lives in Pennsylvania with her wife and works at the University of Pennsylvania.Other work by... Read In the Dream House Summary

The novel is set in the Dominican Republic, in both 1994—the “present day”—and during the period of Trujillo’s regime. In 1994, Dedé Mirabal lives in the house where her three sisters—Minerva, Patria and María Teresa—and her family used to live. Her dead sisters are known as the “butterflies,” they are martyrs and national heroes. In 1994, Dedé talks to an interviewer about her sisters’ lives and deaths. Her narrative is interspersed with her own memories... Read In the Time of the Butterflies Summary

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Into the Beautiful North is an adventure story that parallels the plot of the Hollywood movie, The Magnificent Seven. Set in the village of Tres Camarones in Sinaloa, Mexico, the novel’s protagonist, nineteen-year-old Nayeli, notices that there are no men left in the village – they have all gone north for more opportunities and a better life. Fearing that the village will be taken over by bandidos, and with no real law enforcement or men... Read Into the Beautiful North Summary

Into Thin Air is American is authored by professional mountain climber Jon Krakauer. It is a personal account of attempting to ascend Mount Everest, prompted by an assignment from Outside magazine to cover the commercial development of the communities at the mountain’s base. Krakauer’s climbing attempt, which was fatal for several, became the deadliest expedition ever on the mountain. In the book, he reflects on his experience, reporting it as truthfully as possible.Krakauer recalls being... Read Into Thin Air Summary

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Jamaica Inn (1936) is a period piece thriller written by Daphne du Maurier. Inspired by her stay at the eponymous inn—which still stands and hosts visitors today—du Maurier’s novel is set in the early 1800s and centers on the infamous underbelly of smuggling in Cornwall, United Kingdom. Jamaica Inn follows the protagonist, Mary Yellan, as she navigates the unfamiliar world of the moorlands, where life is harsh, and the ever-present proximity of the moors and... Read Jamaica Inn Summary

Published in 2009 and written by Craig Silvey, Jasper Jones is a coming-of-age novel that follows the teenage protagonist, Charlie Bucktin, after he helps an ostracized teen named Jasper Jones dispose of the body of a local teenage girl. Charlie and Jasper attempt to find out who killed the girl, and in the process, they both learn secrets about their own families and the town around them. The novel won numerous awards, including both the... Read Jasper Jones Summary

Jayber Crow, published in 2000 by Counterpoint, is one of author Wendell Berry’s 80 novels and is set in the fictional town of Port William on the banks of the Kentucky River. The novel is often classified under transcendentalism, and Berry’s works focus on the agrarian lifestyle he practices in his personal life living and working a farm in rural Kentucky. Many of his novels share what he calls the “Port William membership” and have... Read Jayber Crow Summary

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Just Like Us: The True Story of Four Mexican Girls Coming of Age in America, written by Helen Thorpe, is detailed account of the lives of four Mexico-born girls as they come of age in Denver, Colorado. Thorpe, an Irish-American journalist, published the nonfiction novel in 2009. Two of the girls, Clara and Elissa, are here legally, while the other two, Marisela and Yadira, are without documents. While the girls are similar in birth and... Read Just Like Us Summary

Killers of the Flower Moon is a 2017 nonfiction book by American journalist David Grann that tells the story of the so-called 1920s Reign of Terror, a period during which numerous Osage Nation members were killed in Oklahoma for their oil wealth—murders that for the most part went unsolved. The book details these killings and investigates who was responsible.The Osage Nation, like many Indigenous tribes of North America, had been pushed west by white colonists... Read Killers of the Flower Moon Summary

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Kitchen Confidential is a nonfiction work by chef, author, and travel television host Anthony Bourdain, based on his 1999 essay, “Don’t Eat Before Reading This,” published in The New Yorker. In part a memoir of Bourdain’s years in the restaurant industry, it is also a candid exposé of New York City’s restaurant scene in the 1970s, ’80s, and ’90s. Bourdain takes his readers on a wild ride through his career journey while providing a realistic... Read Kitchen Confidential Summary

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