Spring Reading 2022 Fiction

This book is part of our Spring Reading Challenge. Read more here.

Magical realism that works! Steeped in Trinidadian myth, this is a rich and alluring love story. The tale of Yejide, who is reluctant to inherit her destined role of balancer of life and death. The tale of Darwin, working in a cemetery, living outside the teachings of his Rastafari faith. Written in rhythmic colloquial island language, with threads of romance, crime, and mythology. This debut novel created a magical world that delighted and wowed me. —Trey

It is a gift to have this deeply moving novel as a historical accounting of the Asian experience in late nineteenth century America. Steeped in mythology and calligraphy, Zhang’s gorgeous debut tells the story of Daiyu, a young girl forced into hardship, moving from China to a San Francisco brothel to small town Idaho. Her story is difficult but she is indomitable, and while you will want to protect your heart, you will also be grateful for giving it up. This is a heartbreaking triumph of the spirit in a lesser known history.

—Melinda

This book is part of our Spring Reading Challenge. Read more here.

Emily St. John Mandel, author of Station Eleven, delivers another page turner with Sea of Tranquility. After an anomaly in time tears through and connects multiple centuries, the reader is led through the lives of all affected. This novel pursues big questions on the very nature of reality while upholding important small moments that connect people through journeys, disasters, and plagues. It is a delight to follow so many distant pieces coming together throughout this story. —Zoe

I will never stop saying, “Jennifer Egan is a genius” and I will always find new ways of seeing with every book she writes. The Candy House is the latest reason for such exclamation. While it does relate to A Visit from the Goon Squad, anyone can start here. But everyone will want to read or return to Goon Squad afterwards, just for more time with her thoroughly lovable characters, curious intellect, unmatched craft, and prized balance between the macro and the micro, tackling big issues like tech and privacy while holding human connection central to all. To have a reading experience that is breathtaking, mind blowing, and heartwarming the whole way through is a true gift. Treat yourself to both books.

—Melinda

Set against the drawn-out dissolution of the Apartheid system and sense of rebirth that followed, this endlessly readable novel tracks the Swart family and their own trajectory of dissolution and possible rebirth after the death of Rachel, the family matriarch. Though third-person omniscient narration hasn’t been in vogue since Henry James, Galgut, who was twice nominated for the Booker Prize before winning it with this book in 2021, utilizes an off-kilter variety that somehow manages to be simultaneously expansive, intimate, and vaguely menacing. —Rico

Lee Cole is gaining prominence as one of the brightest new authors this year. In Groundskeeping, he explores the relationship between an aspiring Kentucky writer and his Ivy League grad school girlfriend. Through this lens, Cole creates an emotionally complex story of belonging, perseverance, and understanding (or lack thereof) across geographic, class, and political divides. Is it one couple’s story or a story of our nation at this moment? Read to find out.

—Casey

Julie Otsuka writes like no other author. Her words are melodic and mesmerizing. This exquisite, tender novel begins as a love letter to a group of swimmers, bound together by ritual. A mysterious crack appears in the pool they share, and their sanctuary is undone. The story then pivots to one of the swimmers, Alice, and the heartbreaking path of her dementia. This is a powerful, intimate, portrait of loss that touches deep inside. —Trey

Scattered All Over the Earth is a unique novel about a dystopian world brought about by climate change. An ensemble of characters and their interactions brings a lighthearted narrative to life. One of the main characters, Hiruko, is a displaced citizen from Japan living in Scandinavia, where she decides to develop a language called Panska. In searching for someone from her homeland, her journey through Europe encompasses the book’s themes of language and identity.

—Katrina

This heart-stopping story of processing grief is NOT to be missed. Serle is an expert at crafting immersive tales. One chapter, her descriptive style sucks the air from your lungs. The next, it breathes life back into your cold chest. I couldn’t put down this magical novel of transformation through seemingly insurmountable pain. It hurt in a good way and, like love, this story lingered long after the last page.

—Lindsay

The large family of John Wilkes Booth, some of the most prominent American Shakespearean actors of their day, share the stage of their lives with the fanaticism and discord of the build-up to the Civil War. Fowler, the award-winning author of We are Completely Besides Ourselves, amazes with rich historical research, deeply defined characters, and incredibly relevant discussions of extremism, family loyalties, and the role that society plays in defining good vs. evil. This book is a triumph.

—Casey