Check out APL’s Book Club Kits To Go – Great For Your Online Zoom Book Club!

Each of Abbot Public Library’s Book Club Kits has ten copies of the book and a binder with information about it which may include articles, discussion questions, and reviews. 

To reserve a kit, call 781-631-1481 or email mar@noblenet.org. When it is time to pick up your kit, call us and we can have it out for Curbside Pickup by the back door, near the parking lot.

The following are the books currently available in Book Club Kits.

The Splendid and the Vile: a Saga of Churchill, Family, and Defiance During the Blitz by Erik Larson

In this biography, Erik Larson gives a detailed account of Winston Churchill’s first year as Britain’s Prime Minister during the Blitz, the start of World War II. Germany had just taken over France and started an air force attack against Britain. Told in Erik Larson’s engaging writing style, the book includes day-to-day accounts of this terrifying time.

American Dirt by Jeanine Cummins

This is the story of Lydia Perez and her son, Luca, who must flee their home in Acapulco when a cartel leader orders the death of her entire extended family. Surviving their escape, they embark on a terrifying journey across the U.S. border, seeking shelter with her uncle’s family in Denver.

The Man in the Red Coat by Julian Barnes

This is the biography of Samuel Pozzi, a surgeon in Paris who travelled to Britain in 1885. John Singer Sargent painted a portrait of him wearing a red coat. He was a doctor who transformed the practice of gynecology. High society is depicted, as Pozzi was an associate of famous figures such as Oscar Wilde, Henry James, Marcel Proust, and Sarah Bernhardt.

The Dutch House by Ann Patchett

The Dutch House is a mansion in Philadelphia that Cyril Conroy surprises his wife by purchasing in 1945. Maeve and Danny, their young children, suffer the abandonment of their mother, the death of their father, and being sent from their home by their stepmother. The siblings form a close bond, increased by the neglect of their family.

The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides

Theo Faber is a psychotherapist in London in this psychological suspense novel. His patient, Alicia Berenson, has been convicted of the murder of her husband six years ago. Since the day of the murder, Alicia hasn’t spoken a word. Intrigued by the case, Theo is determined to get Alicia to speak.

History: New Books on WWII

This year marks the 75^th anniversary of the end of WWII, which ended in Europe on May 7^th after Germany’s unconditional surrender, but was not officially over in Asia until September 2^nd, when Japan formally surrendered in a ceremony aboard USS Missouri.

For history buffs, military history buffs, and WWII buffs, as well as those wanting to learn more about the previous major historical event that affected the whole world, we created a curated collection of new books:

The latest Eric Larson’s book is about Winston Churchill as the newly appointed Prime Minister in the early days of the war.

Though Churchill is the main character of this story, the book is more about the country and, especially, London and its denizens during the Blitz. The inclusion of witness accounts, taken from the diaries of those who tried to survive the horrors, lend a particularly chilling and poignant tone to the narrative. It’s on the NYT Bestseller List. Accessible as an ebook or audiobook. 

Sinclair McKay’s book is about the bombing of Dresden by Allied forces, which occurred in February 1945 and is considered one of the most controversial actions during WWII. Was it a war crime against German civilians or a calculated step to a victorious end?

The book was reviewed as “well researched, powerfully written and balanced.”

In the Pacific theatre, a group of five American pilots, inspired and motivated by legendary WWI pilot Eddie Rickenbecker, started a wild race for the title of America’s greatest fighter pilot during combat against the Japanese air force. Read about it in Race of Aces by John R. Bruning.

ebook format

ebook format

audiobook format

Martha Maccallum also writes about the Pacific and its battles, and the heroic and courageous men that fought them. Her book, Unknown Valor, is accessible as an ebook and audiobook.

The Battle of Normandy was the epic invasion by the Allied forces that marked the beginning of the end of war in Europe. Begun on June 6^th,1944, it was known as D-Day.

Lately, a number of books were published on the incredible contribution of women to the war effort, and the role they played in the Allied path to victory. These are books about women who became spies and operated in Europe. True stories, based on exhaustive research, all these books gained much praise and became bestsellers.

As always, all these titles are available through Overdrive/the Libby app with your library card. Click the book covers above to access the titles in Overdrive.

New Nonfiction eBooks and Audiobooks!

Many new nonfiction eBooks on a variety of subjects have been added recently. 

Here are descriptions of some of our latest acquisitions — titles included on the NYT or USA Today Bestseller lists. 

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Particularly recommended are a couple of books that received wonderful reviews in The New York Times.

British author Julian Barnes is mostly known as a fiction writer; his work is highly valued and has brought him multiple literary awards. The Man in the Red Coat, his latest book, is a work of nonfiction: a biography of a French doctor, a distinguished physician and a very interesting figure who lived in France in the late 1800s and early 1900s. American artist John Singer Sargent considered him “a brilliant creature” and painted his portrait, which is on the cover of the book.

If you would like to read the review for this book — or any other book — in The New York Times, you can create a free account at the NYT website.

Another book you may want to consider is The Splendid and the Vile by Erik Larson, the bestselling author of such books as Devil in the White City, Dead Wake, and In the Garden of Beasts. This author is known for doing very deep research to create his characters, as well as historical settings of his narratives. His latest book is about the UK during World War II, with Winston Churchill, who led the country to victory, as the main character. 

This eBook is in demand, but do not hesitate to place a “hold”. Our library owns more than one digital copy, with quite a few copies owned by other libraries. As a member of this community, you have priority on copies purchased by our library, so your wait time will not be long.

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Educated, a memoir by Tara Westover, and Sapiens: The Brief History of Humankind by Yuval Noah Harari have been on various bestseller lists for years. If you did not have a chance to read them earlier, it is quite possible to do so now.

As always, we are open to your suggestions and will be glad to consider purchasing new titles. Feel free to leave recommendations in the comments below!