Squirrel Seeks Chipmunk: A Modest Bestiary by David Sedaris, illustrated by Ian Falconer

Sedaris's latest book anthropomorphizes an array of animals, from a disturbingly brutal "vigilant rabbit" to a knowledge-seeking great horned owl which befriends a gerbil and a hippopotamus. With this, the author mirrors the human conditions and afflictions.
In the title story, the squirrel and the chipmunk are starting a relationship only to be discouraged by the chipmunk's ignorant family. Readers are also introduced to an alcoholic cat that loathes the prison's AA meetings. The stories are full of dark humor, as well as both gross and clever dialogues. At times the depiction is very graphic (warnings!) along with Falconer's illustrations, as in The Crow and the Lamb and The Motherless Bear. The creatures will linger long after I have finished reading their tales.

Winter Garden by Kristin Hannah

This book is a story of two very different sisters who never understood thir cold distant mother. Anya, their mother, grew up in Russia but never shared the details of her hard life there in Leningrad during World War II. I started out listening to this as an audiobook and enjoyed the Russian accent of the character of Anya which stayed with me as I finished it in book form. The daughters wonderful, loving father dies but tells them they need to hear the rest of the fairy tale that their mother had told part of to them as children. Though their mother is reluctant they gradually hear the rest of the story from Anya and realize she is telling them of her life. Bonding builds and repairs the relationship. The historical information and the emotional elements in this story were satisfying.

The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake by Aimee Bender

Imagine when you take a bite of the food, you can detect the emotions of the cook. This is what happens to Rose Edelstein just before she turns nine when she bites into a slice of the lemon-chocolate cake her mother made. Contrary to Rose's mother's jovial appearance, Rose can "taste" her mother's desperation...
Rose struggles to cope with this uncanny ability at school and at home with her detached father and quiet brother, Joseph, who pulls off disappearing acts that worry everyone.
Aimee Bender weaves fantasy into reality in this novel. It also reminds me of growing up and finding one's place in the world, where some survive and some do not.

Wicked Appetite by Janet Evanovich

Is this a new series by Janet Evanovich? Could be! This book features Diesel, an occasional character from the Stephanie Plum novels, but everyone else is new. Unless you count the monkey. Lots of fun!

The Passage by Justin Cronin

The Passage is a long (766 pages) novel set in the near future. It's really two stories: first, a deadly disease sweeps the North American continent, wiping out the majority of the population and leaving many of the survivors less (or more?) than human. The second part is the story of one band of surviving humans, who are isolated, fearful, and ignorant of what is going outside their own community. It's an engrossing read, although I felt it ended too abruptly and without resolving many of my questions.

Apparition & Late Fictions by Thomas Lynch

This novel consists of 5 short stories. In Catch and Release, Danny, a fishing guide, took his father's ashes to their favorite fishing spots. What Danny did with the last bit of his father's ashes was shocking to me.
In Bloodsport, Lynch, having an undertaker's background, gave an insider's perspective on the embalming process and depicted Martin's inner struggles with the murder of Elena. Was it possible he could have helped and prevented her death?
Matinee de September offers a detailed description of the idyllic Mackinac Island and the Grand Hotel where Aisling Black, a widowed English professor, took a respite before fall semester. Awestruck by the waitress Bintalou's beauty, Aisling became obsessed with her...
I didn't care for Hunter's Moon and the title story Apparition. All 5 stories have the theme of death, and how the living cope with the departed. At times it is morbid, but we are assured that "life goes on."

A Dog's Purpose by W. Bruce Cameron

What is a dog's purpose? This sweet novel explores that question from a dog's point of view. This particular dog lives several lives. In each life, he (and sometimes he's a she) ponders his past experience and current situation in an effort to understand what he's meant to do. If you like dogs even a little, you will enjoy this book.