Paperboy by Vince Vawter

In the heat of the summer of 1959 in Memphis, a boy takes over his friend's paper route for one month. While delivering and collecting on the route, he learns a lot about his neighborhood, the world around him, and about himself.

This is - hands down - the best book I've read in recent history. I can't stop thinking about it. The kid (we don't learn his name until close to the end) suffers with a stutter, so he's typically afraid to speak in public, especially to strangers. But this new responsibility encourages him to try some coping mechanisms and to practice, practice, practice.

By making routine, regular trips around the neighborhood, he gets a glimpse of the day-to-day in households other than his own. He begins to understand privilege, race, and responsibility. Good and bad things happen, and when his buddy returns at month's end, our hero is a little different than he was previously. You will be too.

Saints for All Occasions by J. Courtney Sullivan

Telling the story of one family and two generations of siblings, this novel flips back and forth in time between the 1950s when two sisters immigrate from Ireland and the modern-day as the family deals with the sudden death of an oldest son.

It's a story full of secrets and the way secrets rarely stay hidden. As a naive girl in Ireland, Nora makes a hasty decision (to marry the neighbor boy) that sets in motion everything that comes after. But as often happens, she's daily reminded of those decisions and sometimes feels like a martyr for the sacrifices she's made.

In the next generation, the kids are a tight bunch but are holding their own secrets. Coming together in the wake of Patrick's death brings them closer and also offers an opportunity for change.

The book is engaging and very well done. While satisfying, the ending is left open and unfinished, with the rest of the story for you to imagine. I highly recommend it!

Fleabrain Loves Franny by Joanne Rocklin

I tried, and as much as it hurts me to admit it - I just couldn't do it.

Actually, I really liked Franny, the 1950s girl recovering from polio in Pittsburgh. She's restless and bored because she should be running around with all her friends instead of cooped up doing exercises with her wicked nurse.

But she strikes up a friendship with one of her dog's fleas: a single flea who has survived repeated fumigation attempts and as a result has gained incredible intelligence, super strength, communication skills ... and an annoying pompous attitude that I COULD NOT STAND.

I gave up. I made it halfway, and decided I had better ways to spend my time.

No love from me.