They persisted: Tales of endurance lead the 10 best books of September
Novels dominate the rich offerings as summer yields to autumn and publishers roll out their more 鈥渟erious鈥� literature. A new book about Abraham Lincoln and another about displaced persons after World War II bring new insights in the nonfiction genre.
1.聽The Midnight Library聽by Matt Haig
Nora鈥檚 life is burdened by regrets. Then she stumbles on a library with books that enable her to test out the lives she could have led, including as a聽glaciologist, Olympic swimmer, rock star, and more. Her discoveries ultimately聽prove life-affirming in Matt Haig鈥檚 dazzling fantasy.
Why We Wrote This
Resilience is a quality threaded through much of the fiction that made our list in September. Tales of hardship overcome, of rising up out of limitations; these are the stories that see people through difficult days. Among the two nonfiction selections, a new biography digs deeper into Abraham Lincoln's leadership during the Civil War, and a history of refugee camps captures the plight of displaced people after World War II.
2.聽Transcendent Kingdom聽by Yaa Gyasi
Ghana-born American writer Yaa Gyasi follows her award-winning debut 鈥淗omegoing鈥� with the affecting story of Ghanaian immigrants struggling to realize the American dream in the face of racism and the opioid crisis. Told by the daughter, Gifty, it is also the story of a young woman鈥檚 spiritual journey to reconcile her calling as a neuroscientist with her evangelical 海角大神 faith.
3.聽His Only Wife聽by Peace Adzo Medie
Peace Adzo Medie tells a story of strong women in the midst of a patriarchal culture. The book focuses on Afi, a young seamstress in Ghana who agrees to an arranged marriage to help her family. As the story unfolds, she develops a sense of herself and realizes just how strong she truly is.
4.聽The Thursday Murder Club聽by Richard Osman
The backdrop for this charming and cleverly written 鈥渃ozy mystery鈥� is an upscale British retirement community.聽 At first, the septuagenarians tackle cold cases, but when one of the developers of their community is murdered, the little club serves up lemon drizzle cake and looks for answers.
5.听惭辞苍辞驳补尘测听by Sue Miller
Sue Miller鈥檚 novel tracks a woman鈥檚 evolving, conflicted feelings following her magnetic husband鈥檚 sudden death, especially after learning of a recent infidelity. Underlying this emotionally astute tale are questions about what makes a good marriage.
6.听闯补肠办听by Marilynne Robinson
In the fourth novel of her acclaimed Gilead series, a prequel set in St. Louis in the late 1940s, Marilynne Robinson hones in on Jack Boughton鈥檚 interracial relationship with Della Miles. Longtime readers who know the outcome can focus on Robinson鈥檚 deeper look at humanity and history, full of torment but also abiding kindness and grace. Readers new to Gilead may find the narrative disorienting at first, but no less rewarding once they settle in.
7.聽All the Devils Are Here聽by Louise Penny
Inspector Gamache endeavors to uncover a sinister web of crime in the City of Light, ignited by the attempted hit-and-run of his beloved godfather. Sparkling with psychological suspense, secrets, danger, and levity, this masterful addition to Penny鈥檚 鈥淭hree Pines鈥� crime mystery series also celebrates the enduring gift of love and family.
8.聽Just Us聽by Claudia Rankine
Claudia Rankine follows her prize-winning 鈥淐itizen: An American Lyric鈥� with a brilliant and timely examination of whiteness in America. This consciousness-raising, bravura combination of personal essays, poems, photographs, and cultural commentary works on so many levels and is a skyscraper in the literature on racism.
9.听础产别听by David S. Reynolds
Abraham Lincoln had less than a year of formal education; he has often been portrayed as inexperienced and unprepared to lead. David S. Reynolds鈥� monumental, reverential biography rejects that narrative, arguing that Lincoln鈥檚 immersion in the high and low culture of 19th-century America, along with his deep moral convictions, equipped him to steer the Union through the Civil War.
10.聽The Last Million聽by David Nasaw
David Nasaw tells the story of Holocaust survivors and many other displaced persons who landed in the first modern refugee camps. Nasaw shows how the United States remained reluctant after World War II to take in Jewish refugees, who were tarred as potential communist subversives.
