The Revisioners - Margaret Wilkerson Sexton

 This was a great book club choice. It's actually our book for November, and I am looking forward to the discussion. The writing was top notch and the story was both heartwarming and heartbreaking. It's really a kind of tribute to women, and to mothers, and to how women can help support each other through generations. I'd definitely read more by this author. Recommended. 

Violette Nozière - Sarah Maza

Time for another library confession! Way back in 2019, I stumbled on this book in the library and the subtitle: "A Story of Murder in 1930s Paris" really sold me (I like 30s music/movies/fashion, I love Paris, and I enjoy true crime stories). I checked it out, started to read it and - I don't know what happened, but I somehow ran out of time to finish and had to return the book (I suspect some work travel got in the way). All this time has passed and I have thought about this book from time to time ever since, feeling guilty for not finishing it, and wanting to know how the story ended of course, so I finally checked it out again 2+ years later. 

This is a meticulously researched nonfiction book about a young woman who poisoned her parents. The author, who is evidently a history professor, sets the scene with a lot of detail about life in Paris in the 30s, particularly for working class/bourgeois people, as well as getting into detail about how this sensational case impacted popular culture. I appreciated the overall tone of the book being more academic, rather than sensational or "trashy" like some true crime writing can get. I won't go into detail, but the case is fascinating for many reasons and there are still unanswered questions the world will never know the truth of. Recommended. 

Me - Elton John

Stumbled across this book in the library and thought it looked interesting. As you may have surmised from the title, this is the autobiography of one of the most prolific and popular singer-songwriters in the world. His music has been around for so long that I don't remember a time when it wasn't played on the radio back when I was a kid, and even though I'm not a super fan or anything, I can name a bunch of his hits off the top of my head without trying. This book is incredibly well written - it's like having a comfortable conversation with the pop legend, who comes off as very funny, witty, smart, outrageous, and honest. If you've seen the film Rocketman (which was entertaining and well done), many of the events in the book will seem very familiar - and probably the reverse is true. This was a really fast and entertaining read. Recommended. 

The Henna Artist - Alka Joshi

 This book was another good choice for the virtual book club. It's a page turner - while reading, I really wanted to see what happened next, and I liked the main character a lot. The writing is heavy on the telling rather than showing, but the story carries you along and it's an enjoyable read. Evidently, there is a sequel that's been published, and I would definitely read it to get more of the story and of the main character (some of the side characters I could do without, ha ha). All in all a recommended read.