When Women Were Dragons by Kelly Barnhill

Title: When Women Were Dragons
Author: Kelly Barnhill
Genre: Fantasy; Fiction; Historical Fiction; Magical Realism; LGBT; Feminism

This tale takes place during the 1950s & 60s when all of a sudden thousands of women just disappear from their homes. They devour their husbands and leave behind a fiery wreckage. It was dragons. But discussing dragons is too uncomfortable so no one talks about the devastation that was left in the wake of the "mass dragoning". This coming-of-age story centers on a single family with a child named Alex and how she must endure growing up being lied to all the time. This book encapsulates what it might have been like to grow up as a woman in the 50s and what might have happened if women just decided they had enough.

-Gina

Check out When Women Were Dragons by Kelly Barnhill @ the library!

The Book Charmer by Karen Hawkins

Title: The Book Charmer
Author: Karen Hawkins
Genre: Fiction, Magical Realism

The Dove family has  lived in Dove Pond for ages. The daughters are even said to have magical traits. Sarah is the librarian who can commune with books. The books tell her who they need to go to. Though she can't explain it, she takes it in stride. When a book tells her that newcomer Grace is going to save the town, Sarah listens.

Grace is only in Dove Pond long enough to see if it helps her mom battle her Alzheimer's Disease. The job she took to support her family as the city's clerk doesn't pay well, but if it makes Momma G regain some memory, it will be worth the year away from her corporate job. Grace has also just been made guardian of her niece and never being a mom before, has plenty to learn about raising a child. The last thing she needs is to get sucked into the town's drama. One year and done is her mantra. 

Will Grace save the town? Read The Book Charmer to find out.

- Sarah R.

Check out The Book Charmer @ the library!

Harry's Trees by Jon Cohen

Title: Harry's Trees

Author: Jon Cohen

Genre: Magical Realism, Fantasy

When Harry's wife dies in a sudden accident, he is heartbroken. He is stuck in an unrewarding job and has always dreamed of working outside with trees. In his grief he tries to escape from all the pressures of his job and his money-hungry brother by commiting suicide in a nearby forest. Little does he know that he will be found by a young girl moments after his plan fails, and that she will interpret his arrival in her life as a fantastical sign from her father who recently died unexpectedly. What follows is a story of how friendship can be found in unlikely ways and redemption in doing things that you love. A heartwarming and uplifting read.

- Elizabeth

Check out Harry's Trees @ the library.

Garden Spells by Sarah Addison Allen

Claire Waverly, a highly-sought caterer, has an instinctive flair for cooking and more – her food has magical properties. She’s a bit of a solitary recluse, living and working alone in the house where she grew up, and she is perfectly content with her lifestyle. Then her sister, Sydney, returns home to Bascom, North Carolina, after a long absence, and disrupts everything. She has a five-year-old daughter, the niece Claire did not know she had, and she needs shelter from an abusive ex-boyfriend. As the two sisters confront each other and the abuse in their own shared past, Claire is forced to drop her guard, which opens the door for new possibilities.

Sarah Addison Allen describes Garden Spells as Southern-fried magical realism with a love story at its heart. It also has an ornery apple tree that flings prophetic apples at people. If you like Alice Hoffman, you might also like Sarah Addison Allen. Now is a good time to read Garden Spells and her other novels The Sugar Queen, The Girl Who Chased the Moon, and The Peach Keeper. Her new novel Lost Lake, is set to release early in 2014.

Check out Garden Spells by Sarah Addison Allen @ the library!

The Girl Who Chased the Moon by Sarah Addison Allen

Emily Benedict has traveled to her mom’s childhood home in Mullaby, North Carolina to answer questions about her mother who has passed away.  She lives with her grandfather who she has never met . The town does not welcome her and she soon realizes it’s not going to be easy to figure out what happened that caused her mom to leave and never come back.  Filled with magic, misfits, and far reaching secrets, The Girl Who Chased the Moon is an enjoyable read.  I am definitely going to check out Sarah Addison Allen’s other books, including The Peach Keeper and The Sugar Queen.  Both received rave reviews when they were first published.

The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake by Aimee Bender

When Rose is nine years old, her mother makes her favorite lemon chocolate cake for her.  On the first bite, Rose realizes that she has a special gift - she can taste the emotions and deepest secrets of others in the food they make.  The sweetness of her mother's lemon chocolate cake is eclipsed by her mother's bitterness and despair, and Rose becomes a connoisseur of vending machines.  As Rose grows up, however, she comes to realize that she is not the only one in her family with a special talent - and that she cannot taste all of her family's secrets.  For fans of Alice Hoffman and Cecelia Ahern, The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake is an intriguing blend of mystery, magic and the power of family and love.