New  Books for Summer Reading

 June brings us some exciting new reads. Nancy Pickard mystifies and captivates with “The Virgin of the Small Plains.” This novel about a small town with a big secret is the perfect book club read!  Who doesn't like to talk about secrets? A secret - the one thing you're not supposed to discuss - could be the very thing that keeps you talking for hours.  Small Plains has more secrets than your average town - all surrounding the death of a young girl seventeen years ago, now know as "The Virgin of Small Plains." The night she was discovered, a mystery began to ravel, one that would consume everyone in the town and take years to solve - and that will keep you turning pages until the very end.  Some say the Virgin of Small Plains has healing powers. Can she repair the town and heal the fractured lives of its residents? Can she help bring back those that have stayed away for so long?  Several book clubs have already discovered “Virgin of Small Plains.” Read what they have to say at www.virginofsmallplains.com!  Share this with your book club and use the publisher’s reading guide to start the discussion! Check the web address at the end of my column.

I am so excited about Fannie Flagg's newest paperback:  “Can’t wait to get to heaven.”  Fannie's southern charm is a treat - and her trademark wit will have your book group smiling for hours.  Combining southern warmth with unabashed emotion and side-splitting hilarity, Fannie Flagg takes readers back to Elmwood Springs, Missouri, where the most unlikely and surprising experiences of a high-spirited octogenarian inspire a town to ponder the age-old question: Why are we here?

Life is the strangest thing. One minute, Mrs. Elner Shimfissle is up in her tree, picking figs, and the next thing she knows, she is off on an adventure she never dreamed of, running into people she never in a million years expected to meet.
       
Can’t wait to get to heaven is proof once more that Fannie Flagg "was put on this earth to write" (Southern Living), spinning tales as sweet and refreshing as iced tea on a summer day, with a little extra kick thrown in.

We've got much more for you this June including Andrea Lee's “Lost Hearts in Italy.”  The Italian phrase Mai due senza tre-"never two without three"-forms the basis of Andrea Lee's spellbinding novel of betrayal. Sophisticated and richly told, “Lost Hearts in Italy” reveals a trio caught in the grip of desire, deception, and remorse.

When Mira Ward, an American, relocates to Rome with her husband, Nick, she looks forward to a time of exploration and awakening. Young, beautiful, and in love, Mira is on the verge of a writing career, and giddy with the prospect of living abroad.
An elegant, raw, and emotionally charged read, “Lost Hearts in Italy” is a classic coming-of-age story in which cultures collide, innocence dissolves, and those we know most intimately remain foreign to us.

Watch for Margaret Forster's “Lady’s Maid,” Amy Bloom's “Away,”and Mike Leonard's “The Ride of Our Lives.”  And as a special summer treat, Hilma Wolitzer brings us “Summer Reading.”  Don't give in to those lazy, hazy days of summer - keep reading!

Visit this Web site at www.thereaderscircle.com where you and your reading group can access everything from sample excerpts and author interviews, to reading group guides, book club tips, online chats, and contests.