10 best books of fall 2019, from magical tales to heartwrenching memoirs
September 13, 2019 at 2:50PM
'Gun Island'
Amitav Ghosh's new novel centers on a rare-book dealer who tries to trace the origins of a Bengali folk tale. (Farrar, Straus & Giroux, Sept. 10. Ghosh will appear at 7 p.m. Sept. 26 at Grace-Trinity Community Church, 1430 W. 28th St., Mpls.)
'Year of the Monkey'
In her third memoir, Patti Smith is faced with loss — the death of friends, the end of her 60s, approaching dotage — as she sets out on a quest that takes her across the United States. (Knopf, Sept. 24.)
'Beverly, Right Here'
The third in Kate DiCamillo's "Raymie Nightingale" series tells of a 14-year-old girl who runs away from home after her dog dies to start a new life in a small town. (Candlewick Press, Sept. 24. DiCamillo will sign books at 6 p.m. Sept. 25 at Barnes & Noble, St. Cloud.)
'The World That We Knew'
In Alice Hoffman's latest mystical novel, a young Jewish girl, a rabbi's daughter, and a magical golem fight the forces of evil in 1941 Europe. (Simon & Schuster, Sept. 24. Hoffman will be at Talking Volumes at 7 p.m. Sept. 25, Fitzgerald Theater, St. Paul, $28-$30.)
'The Dutch House'
Two rich children, abandoned by their mom, look back on their difficult life with their father and stepmother. (Harper, Sept. 24. Novelist Ann Patchett will be at PenPals at 7:30 p.m. Oct. 24 and 11 a.m. Oct. 25, Hopkins Center for the Arts, 1111 Mainstreet. $45-$55.)
'The Water Dancer'
In his debut novel, Ta-Nehisi Coates imagines a young enslaved man with mystical powers who joins the fight for freedom with the Underground Railroad. (One World, Sept. 24.)
'Make It Scream, Make It Burn'
In 14 essays, Leslie Jamison explores whales, guns, journalism and photography. (Little, Brown, Sept. 24. Jamison will appear at 7 p.m. Oct. 18 at Next Chapter Booksellers, 38 S. Snelling Av., St. Paul.)
'How We Fight for Our Lives'
Poet Saeed Jones turns to memoir, exploring growing up gay and black in small-town Texas with a single mother. (Simon & Schuster, Oct. 8. Jones will be at Talking Volumes, 7 p.m. Oct. 9, Parkway Theater, 4818 Chicago Av. S., Mpls., $28-$30.)
'What God Is Honored Here?'
This collection of 27 poems and essays, edited by Twin Cities writers Shannon Gibney and Kao Kalia Yang, brings together voices of women of color who have lost children through miscarriage and infant death. (University of Minnesota Press, Oct. 15. Event 7 p.m. Nov. 11, Next Chapter, 38 S. Snelling Av., St. Paul.)
'In the Dream House'
In this memoir, short-story writer Carmen Maria Machado unflinchingly recounts a story of domestic violence. (Graywolf Press, Nov. 5. Machado will be at Talk of the Stacks at 7 p.m. Nov. 18, Minneapolis Central Library, 300 Nicollet Mall.)
LAURIE HERTZEL
LOCAL FICTION: Featuring stories within stories, she’ll discuss the book at Talking Volumes on Tuesday.
