At the end of each month, staff from the Airdrie Public Library send the Airdrie City View a small collection of some of the titles available at the library, along with some short synopses. The titles include both adult fiction and non-fiction selections.
Here is the May 2023 submission of the 'APL Book Page,' showcasing some of the library's books Airdrie readers can enjoy digging into as the weather heats up.
Adult Fiction
Yellowface
R.F. Kuang
Authors June Hayward and Athena Liu were supposed to be twin rising stars. But Athena's a cross-genre literary darling, and June didn't even get a paperback release.
So when June witnesses Athena's death in a freak accident, she acts on impulse: she steals Athena's just-finished masterpiece, an experimental novel about the unsung contributions of Chinese labourers to the British and French war efforts during World War I.
As June races to protect her secret, she discovers exactly how far she will go to keep what she thinks she deserves.
A Grandmother Begins the Story
Michelle Porter
Five generations of Métis women argue, dance, struggle, laugh, love, and tell the stories that will sing their family, and perhaps the land itself, into healing in this brilliantly original debut novel.
Carter is a young mother, recently separated. She is curious, angry, and on a quest to find out what the heritage she only learned of in her teens means.
Allie is trying to make up for the lost years with her first born, and to protect Carter from the hurt she herself suffered from her own mother.
Lucie wants the granddaughter she's never met to help her join her ancestors in the Afterlife.
Genevieve is determined to conquer her demons before the fire inside burns her up, with the help of the sister she lost but has never been without.
Mame, in the Afterlife, knows that all these stories began with her, and that she must hold on to the tellings until all her daughters and their daughters find the paths they need to be on.
Adult Nonfiction
A Good Mom's Guide to Making Bad Choices
Jamilah Mapp & Erica Dickerson
They are everywhere on social media. Images of perfect, pleasant white women with perfect, pretty children in perfect, tidy homes – the epitome of "good" moms.
But this model of motherhood is an illusion that far too many women either measure themselves against or simply cannot relate to in the first place.
Uncensored, unapologetic, empathetic, and no-holds-barred, the creators of the Good Moms Bad Choices podcast take an unconventional and much-needed approach to motherhood that recognizes that moms are vibrant, sexual, creative beings with needs and desires that deserve to be acknowledged and respected.
Excellent Advice for Living: Wisdom I Wish I'd Known Earlier
Kevin Kelly
On his 68th birthday, Kevin Kelly began to write down for his young adult children some things he had learned about life that he wished he had known earlier.
Kelly's timeless advice covers an astonishing range, from right living to setting ambitious goals, optimizing generosity, and cultivating compassion. He has wisdom for career, relationships, parenting, and finances, and gives guidance for practical matters ranging from travel to troubleshooting.
This is the ideal companion for anyone seeking to navigate life with grace and creativity.
