a woman is no man, by etaf rum (oh, i loved this book, the story of a palestinian woman who moves to america to get married, and also the story of her american-born daughter. this is one of those books that opened up my eyes to a world i hadn't encountered before and the story is SO well told. highly highly recommend!)
city of girls, by elizabeth gilbert (you just go ahead and skip this one, unless you're on a beach and need a really light read between sips of fruity drinks. it was too light and not terribly interesting, honestly...and also a horrible book to read following the super intense and really enlightening read of a woman is no man - it just couldn't compare to how much i loved that book.)
out of this furnace, by thomas bell (guys, my now-boyfriend bought me this book when he was just my friend and i had just moved to pittsburgh. it's his favorite book, and tells the story of three generations of immigrant mill workers in pittsburgh in the late 19th and early 20th century. it's beautifully written in places and a really compelling story of how my new city was built! he re-read it while i read it for the first time (all told, it took me about six months to finish this book as i kept putting it down while i waited for him to catch back up to where i was) and the act of read it alongside him was just as sweet to do as you're imagining it would be. i would highly recommend that pittsburghers read this!)
letters to a young poet, by rainer maria rilke (this is a tiny book that piqued my interested when it was referenced in the friend and i'm glad i picked it up and dived into it. i don't think it changed my life, but it does include the best line about love that i've maybe ever read: “
golden child, by claire adam (guys, this is another one of sarah jessica parker's recommendations through the publishing house that she's working with and i loved it. SJP can recommend books for me any day! this is the story of twin brothers in trinidad - one is the brilliant gifted student and the other appears to have some misunderstood learning difference. it's about family and tough choices and parental sacrifices and i found it an incredibly compelling story line. this would make a great book club read - so much to talk about! highly recommend.)
