November is the beginning of the holiday season; it starts with Thanksgiving and goes through the New Year! That means it’s time to consider “presents” for your family and friends, and books are great gifts for everyone. First of all, they are easy to wrap and relatively inexpensive. Plus, a book is like sending a person on an exciting, mental vacation that can last forever! November’s Selection includes The Blue Hour mystery by the best-selling author Paula Hawkins, a memoir by Melania Trump, and a new healthcare book, Blind Spots, by Marty Makary. ENJOY!
Books To Read In November
The Blue Hour by Paula Hawkins | Mystery
In The Blue Hour, discovering a human bone in a revered artist’s sculpture sets off scandal and violence. The mystery is filled with unlikable characters, intriguing hooks, and dramatic moments set on the dark and eerie island of Eris off the Scottish coast. The story unfolds through flashbacks from two decades ago, using excerpts from the artist’s diary. The plot builds slowly and culminates in a shocking ending.
Melania by Melania Trump | Politics*
The early chapters of Melania deal with her life in Slovenia, her education in architectural design at Lubjljana University, and then her experience as a Euro-model. It includes the pivotal moments that led her to the world of high fashion in Paris and New York and the serendipitous meeting with Donald Trump, which changed her life. As an immigrant, a former first lady, a self-confident entrepreneur, and a mother, Melania chooses what to share and omit in her memoir.
Intermezzo by Sally Rooney | Literary Fiction
Intermezzo is a moving story about grief, love, and family. The death of a father sheds light on his life and also on the lives of his two sons. This grieving process encourages them to question their past and their relationships. The siblings are suddenly aware of the brevity of life and how disappointing it can be. This is a new interlude for two grieving brothers and the people they love—a period of desire, despair, and possibility.
Be Ready When Luck Happens Ina Garten | Memoir
Be Ready When Luck Happens is an intimate, entertaining, and inspiring account of Ida Garten, the Barefoot Contessa’s remarkable journey. Her accomplishments have resulted from hard work, audacious choices, and exquisite attention to detail. The most important life lessons she learned along the way are: “Do what you love because if you love it, you’ll be good at it.”
The Sequel by Jean Hanff Korelitz | Thriller
The Sequel is the sequel to The Plot, Korelitz’s 2021 bestseller that’s soon to be an HBO series. The author is preparing to launch her debut novel, The Afterword, inspired by her husband’s death. But with literary acclaim for her work comes an anonymous letter threatening to ruin Anna. As her pursuer soon learns, there’s very little Anna won’t do to protect herself and the secrets hidden in her past.
Selling Sexy by Lauren Sherman & Chantal Fernandez | Nonfiction
Selling Sexy is how Victoria’s Secret skyrocketed from a tiny chain of boutiques to an intimate monolith with over $6 billion in annual sales. —all the while defining female beauty and sex standards for generations of Americans—and how the brand’s grip on the industry slipped.
Blind Spots by Marty Makary | Health
Blind Spots examines how entrenched medical dogmas—such as those regarding peanut allergies, hormone replacement therapy, and antibiotics—are often reversed, exposing the fallibility of modern health recommendations. This book advocates for greater transparency and accountability in the medical field.
In Case You Missed It: Here’s Sandy’s reading list from November 2023!
Forever Strong: A New, Science-Based Strategy for Aging Well by Gabrielle Lyon
Forever Strong teaches you how to optimize muscle no matter your age or health background by following a program of fitness and food anchored in new pioneering research. Dr. Lyon saw a pattern of patients suffering from the same core problem: they had too little muscle. This new Lyon approach can be a treatment for everything from obesity to autoimmune disorders and help avoid diseases like Alzheimer’s, hypertension, and diabetes.
The Exchange by John Grisham | Legal Thriller
The Exchange is a sequel to The Firm, where Mitch McDeere and his wife Abby were fleeing Memphis with the bad guys in hot pursuit. Now they’re back, fifteen years later, and living in New York where Mitch is an international lawyer and a partner in a mega-firm. During a trip to Libya, his trusted associate is kidnapped, and an execution is threatened unless an enormous ransom is paid. Only Mitch can facilitate the exchange.
The Armor of Light by Ken Follett | Historical Fiction
The Armor of Light is the fifth and final book in Follett’s Kingsbridge series. It begins with the Industrial Revolution in the late eighteenth century. The book’s character development is exceptional, with each individual facing their own struggles and challenges. Religious strife, political intrigue, and espionage form the backdrop of the war against Napoleon, with the story ending just after the Battle of Waterloo.
House of Doors by Tan Twan | Eng Historical Fiction
The House of Doors is a story inspired by real people, the Chinese revolutionary Sun Yat Sen, and the writer W. Somerset Maugham, recounting the two weeks that Maugham visited Malaysia in 1921. This book is a drama of love and betrayal under the shadow of The Empire, colonialism, and revolution. Longlisted for the Booker Prize International, this is a masterful novel of public morality and private truth a century ago.
Ideal Beauty by Lois Banner | Biography
In Ideal Beauty, Greta Garbo is one of the silver screen’s greatest beauties. A star in both silent pictures and talkies, she was also one of its most profound enigmas. Garbo kept viewers riveted with understated performances that suggested deep melancholy and strong desires roiling just under the surface. And offscreen, Garbo was perhaps even more mysterious and alluring, as her retirement from Hollywood at age thirty-six only fueled the public’s fascination.
The Leftover Woman by Jean Kwok | Mystery
With China’s one-child policy, an abusive husband who hoped for a son and heir told his wife their daughter had died during childbirth and secretly arranged for the child to be adopted by an American family. Once the birthmother learns the truth, she sacrifices everything to travel from China to America, working with Chinese gangsters to gain entry. Nothing was going to stop her from reuniting with her daughter.
Vintage Crime by Rebecca Gibb | Nonfiction
Vintage Crime reveals that by adding toxic sweeteners and passing off counterfeit bottles, wine fraud is as abundant and as old as wine itself. The world of wine prides itself on its aura of respectability, but it has always had a murky side. Vintage Crime exposes con artists from ancient Rome to modern-day California and introduces scrupulous merchants, honest growers, and cutting-edge scientists who have led the fight against fraudsters.
In Case You Missed It: Here’s Sandy’s reading list from November 2022!
Dinners with Ruth: A Memoir on the Power of Friendships by Nina Totenberg
Dinners with Ruth is an extraordinary memoir of Nina Totenberg’s personal successes, struggles, and life-affirming relationships, including her beautiful friendship of nearly fifty years with Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. This is also an account of how these two women paved the way for future generations by tearing down professional and legal barriers.
Listen, World by Julie Scheeres | Women In History
Listen, World is one of the inspiring stories we need to bolster women’s overlooked place in history. The long-forgotten Elsie Robinson (1883-1956) was the highest-paid woman writer in the William Randolph Media Empire. Robinson was a nationally syndicated columnist whose columns ran for over thirty years and garnered more than 20 million readers. During her career, Robinson was the most-read woman columnist in the country.
Bibi: My Story by Benjamin Netanyahu | Autobiography
As the longest-serving prime minister in the history of Israel, Netanyahu has experienced his share of crisis, controversy, tragedy, triumph, and more. In Bibi: My Story, he shares the story of his family and background, his path to leadership, and his commitment to defending Israel and securing its future. Written with humor, clarity, thoughtful candor, and a host of revealing anecdotes, readers will have new insight into Netanyahu.
Dying of Politeness by Geena Davis | Memoir
Dying of Politeness is an entertaining account of Geena Davis’ journey from a polite childhood to Hollywood powerhouse and ultimately fighting for women’s rights all around the globe. In 2022 Davis received an Honorary Oscar for her research against gender bias in movies. The Geena Davis Institute on Gender in Media was established in 2004 and advocates for equal representation of women in film.
Our Missing Hearts by Celeste Ng | Dystopia
Our Missing Hearts is a cautionary tale and warning about present-day political, racial, and inequality issues. There is a new act passed – the Preserving American Culture and Traditions (PACT) Act. Anyone of Chinese birth or ancestry is considered a danger to PACT. Chinese children are removed from their homes, books are banned, and freedom of speech is only acceptable if you agree with PACT.
Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver | Contemporary Fiction
Demon Copperhead is a reimagined David Copperfield in a modern-day rural America contending with poverty and opioid addiction. With each unfolding chapter, the connection between the two books brings home the fact that there are still many clever, self-reliant young people who must defy their circumstances simply to survive. Both books are simultaneously entertaining and moving and plead for reform.
CLASSIC: David Copperfield by Charles Dickens | Historical Fiction
This story follows the life of David Copperfield from childhood to maturity. The novel was published first as a serial in Crisis Magazine, then in book form in 1850 when Dickens was 38 years old. Adaptations of David Copperfield include a 1935 film starring Freddie Bartholomew, Basil Rathbone, Lionel Barrymore, and W.C. Fields; a 1970 British television movie featuring performances by Ron Moody, Ralph Richardson, Michael Redgrave, and Laurence Olivier; and a 1999 BBC miniseries starring Daniel Radcliffe.
In Case You Missed It: Here’s Sandy’s reading list from November 2020!
A Time For Mercy by John Grisham | #1 NYT Best Seller | Fiction
A Time For Mercy finds a court-appointed attorney defending a sixteen-year-old boy accused of murdering a local deputy. Many in town want a speedy trial and the death penalty. The story is a richly rewarding novel that is timely and timeless, filled with drama and small-town intrigue.
Readers Recommend:
- The Lincoln Lawyer by Michael Connelly
- A Time To Kill by John Grisham
- Sycamore Row by John Grisham
The Cost by Maria Bartiromo | World Politics
The Cost looks at the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the United States and China relations as the biggest challenge to corporate America today. The world’s health and wealth depend on the United States’ economic recovery leadership from the pandemic shutdowns.
Readers Recommend:
- Apollo’s Arrow: The Impact Of Coronavirus by Nicholas Christakis
- The New Abnormal: Reshaping Business by Yossi Sheffi
- The Great Reset by Klaus Schwab
The Searcher by Tana French | NYT Best Seller List | Fiction
The Searcher follows the story of a middle-aged retired Chicago detective who moves to a remote township in Ireland looking for peace and quiet. The concise descriptions of the Irish countryside introduce the location and scenes of the story. The detective gets swept up into the mystery surrounding a local boy’s disappearance and uncovers layers of darkness, realizing that even small towns shelter dangerous secrets.
Readers Recommend:
- In The Woods by Tana French
- The Secret Place by Tana French
- The Witch Elm by Tana French
The Invisible Girl by Lisa Jewell | NYT Best Seller List | Mystery
The Invisible Girl is an insightful, thought-provoking, and well-crafted drama. The story uses multiple viewpoints from a mother and lonely wife, a 17-year-old girl who suddenly disappears, and a 33-year-old suspicious neighbor, all desiring to be “truly seen.”
Readers Recommend:
- Watching You by Lisa Jewell
- And Then She Was Gone by Lisa Jewell
- Girls In The Garden by Lisa Jewell
Good Night Beautiful by Aimee Molloy | Psychological Thriller
Good Night Beautiful is a domestic suspense thriller featuring a newly married woman shaken to the core when her husband suddenly disappears. This mystery ride is filled with twists and turns that successfully lead to the final turn, which is the most thrilling surprise.
Readers Recommend:
- The Perfect Mother by Aimee Molloy
- Misery by Stephen King
- The Girl from Widow Hills by Megan Miranda
I’ll Be Seeing You by Elizabeth Berg | Memoir
I’ll Be Seeing You charts the passage of a family’s loss from Alzheimer’s disease to the understanding that even in the most fractious times, love can heal, transform, and lead to graceful, grateful acceptance. The family’s transition was difficult, mitigated at least by flashes of humor and joy. The children provided support and direction to the parents who had parented them for so long.
Readers Recommend:
- Still Alice by Lisa Genova
- The 36-Hour Day by Nancy L. Mace
- The Story Of Forgetting by Stefan Merrill Block
After The Rain by Alexandra Elle | Self-Improvement
After The Rain delivers 15 Lessons on overcoming obstacles and building confidence by sharing stories from her own remarkable life. This book is an uplifting reminder that there is always sunshine after the rain, helping transform challenging life experiences into life opportunities.
Readers Recommend:
- Present Over Perfect by Shauna Niequist
- Daring Greatly by Brene Brown
- Rising Strong by Brene Brown
*Prime Women does not endorse any political view.
If you are an Amazon Prime member, you get a free Prime Read each month. Right now, our favorite is the suspenseful thriller Things We Hide from the Light by Lucy Score.
Read Next:
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