The Sisters Brothers by Patrick DeWitt

Two outlaw brothers set off to gold-rush California in search of a man they're contracted to kill. But nothing's ever as easy as it seems.

Eli and Charlie Sisters are "brand-name" famous for their work; all they have to do is introduce themselves, and people blanch. But Eli has had enough, and is considering what his next life could look like: husband, shopkeep?

In the meantime, they're hunting down a man with a chemical formula that makes panning streams for gold child's play.

This is a dark comedy, that contrasts with flashes of shocking, stark violence. It's a remarkable, unforgettable novel and one of the best I've read in quite a while.

Bread & Butter by Michelle Wildgen

If you're interested in the behind-the-scenes working of restaurants, you'll love this one.

Brothers Leo and Britt run a popular restaurant in their hometown. Their younger brother Harry has just returned with the plan to start his own restaurant - edgier, hipper, newer. He's looking for their help - but do they want to give it? Might his failure be their success?

It's a relatively light novel that deals a lot with relationships: between the brothers, with their love lives, and as a family.

But there's a ton of food and menu planning and chef talk to keep foodies interested. And if you were ever unclear on how much work it takes to run a restaurant, you'll understand by book's end.

Mudbound by Hillary Jordan

A true, gripping family drama - and the interconnection of two families, farming the same soil in the American Delta in the 1940s. I picked this book up because the new movie's been getting a lot of buzz, and I always like to try to read the book first if I can manage. Now, I can't wait to see the movie!

Laura was a spinster whose family had given up on finding her a beau - until Henry came along. But things change rapidly in their young marriage when Henry buys the farm he's always dreamed about and moves them "temporarily" into the shack on the property. Can this city girl adapt to no running water, an outhouse, and more mud than a body could imagine? She quickly learns the hard truths about sharecropping and the inequities of poor farming in the South.

The other family in the story is the Jacksons - a black preacher and his family working the cotton fields of the farm. Florence comes to work to help Laura in the house, and their son Ronsel returns from fighting overseas in a tank during WWII.

The audiobook is a multicast recording, a stellar choice for a story told in six parts and across two very different families.

Louis Undercover by Fanny Britt and Isabelle Arsenault

In this sensitive, sad story told in a mostly gray-scale graphic novel format, a boy juggles the emotions of his first big crush and his family's turmoil after his parents split up.

The only spots of color (yellow, blue, pink) in the book highlight hope: the girl he's in love with, happy memories, bravery, sobriety. They're few and far between - a physical depiction of the small, bleak lives of Truffle and Louis, their mom, and their distant dad. But there is, nonetheless, that hope for the future.

I loved this - it's a fantastic book about the tolls of alcoholism. It's not a happy story, but it's a truthful story about rebuilding a life and moving forward. I think it's an important book, an appropriate way for older kids and teens to either see themselves reflected or to better understand others.

My Brother's Husband (Volume 1) by Gengoroh Tagame

A Japanese father is forced to deal with his emotions about his twin brother when a large Canadian man arrives at his door, introducing himself as the now-deceased brother's husband.

This was a quick, fun book that dealt lightly with some heavy emotions. Through his young daughter's enthusiasm for life, Yaichi gradually comes to terms with his memories of Ryoji's coming out and his feelings about his gay brother-in-law Mike. 

Traditional Japanese social rigidity limits any adult show of emotion, and Ryoji is sometimes jealous of Mike's ability to hug Kana at will and to openly cry and express his grief. Kana's buoyant excitement in discovering she has an uncle to introduce to her friends and show around town acts as a catalyst for the two men's friendship.

There's obviously more to the story, and I'll be interested to read more about these complex characters. 

Three Junes by Julia Glass

Readers check in with a family's members three times (in the month of June) to learn about their relationships and loves. We meet recently widowed Paul as he vacations in Greece and ponders his new life and the condition of his family. Then we meet his sons, years later, as they gather for Paul's funeral. Further on, we meet up with prodigal son Fenno when his dog - his last link to his mother - dies and is buried.

We read this for book discussion. I was only halfway through by our discussion date, and decided I was going to continue because - unlike everyone else - I was enjoying the story.

A lot of the book centers around Fenno and his life off in New York. He moves across the world, graduates college, begins a business, comes to terms with his sexuality, deals with the impact of AIDS on his circle of friends, and makes visits back to Scotland to see his family. What he doesn't do is fall in love. Which makes him a slightly tragic figure.

I liked the book - it's rather quiet, without big drama. Just people trying to do the best they can, and sometimes failing.

The Lowland by Jhumpa Lahiri

Family and responsibility are at the core of this literary novel set in India and the United States. Two brothers - almost as close as twins - take very different paths in their young adulthood. Which is greater: civil action that works for change, or the tending of tradition and family?

We read this as a book discussion title at the library, but I didn't finish it in time for the conversation. Too bad, because there's a lot to talk about.

Even while Subhash builds a life in America, he's bound by duty to his family in India. He marries out of a sense of obligation, but when their daughter is born he finds a pure delight in raising her in Rhode Island. His duty to her future becomes more urgent than his dedication to the past - but that's not true for his wife, who never really left India behind.

The book offers mothers and fathers, siblings, husbands and wives, and there are lots of comparisons to be drawn between counterparts. Also, the role of responsibility: personal responsibility, family obligations, parental duty, social activism, passive acceptance. It's a heavy book, filled with lots of internal dilemmas, and it really would make for a fantastic discussion.

I listened to the audiobook version, which was an excellent way to read a book filled with foreign names and places.

The Misadventures of the Family Fletcher

In a house full-to-overflowing with four boys, there's always something going on: one's got soccer practice, another's got a friendship problem, the third is working on a science project, and the littlest just wants somebody to play with him. And that's the basis of this new series about the Family Fletcher (the second title was just released).

Each boy has a plotline, giving multiple narratives through a school year from age 12 to age 6. An overarching story concerns the new neighbor, who is always at odds with the rambunctious, fun-loving Fletchers no matter how hard they're trying to make friends with him.

It's not even a major plot point that there are 2 dads for the 4 boys - it ends up being a bigger deal that they're a mix of skin colors.

I loved this book, and have already placed a hold on the next one, The Family Fletcher Takes Rock Island. Look for a review soon!

Alligator Candy: A Memoir by David Kushner

David Kushner grew up with a hole in his life - the empty spot where his next-oldest brother should have been. And while the Kushner family moved forward, its surviving members living and achieving, they all carried the grief of losing 11-year-old Jon.

David was four years old when his brother died. He was too young to really understand what was going on, but certainly not too young to miss the brother he'd worshipped. His memory wiped clean most of it away, and throughout his life David remained mostly naieve to the details of Jon's death.

In bits and pieces, he eventually opens up to the story - but mostly, it's the death and funeral of their father (36 years after Jon's death) that compels David to turn his journalism skills to this tragic story and research, read, and interview his way into a full account of Jon's demise.

The book's well written and honest, though a bit emotionless even though it's personal. It's Kushner's factual, journalistic style that makes it so shocking then, later, when he coldly lays bare the facts of the murder.

To carry the weight of that information must be crushing - what was done to the child - and for me it made things even more stunning how the family members each dealt with the knowledge yet led fulfilling lives.

Anansi Boys by Neil Gaiman

Charles Nancy has built a good (but boring) life for himself: accounting job, a beautiful fiance, and a quiet, uneventful London existence almost completely free from embarrassment. That is, until his long-estranged father in Florida dies and Charlie discovers the fun, fantastic, and completely unabashed brother he never knew. Charlie's life quickly becomes anything BUT boring.

It's a wonderful Neil Gaiman story of ancient gods and timeless grudges, acted out on several planes of existence. It turns out Charlie's dad was actually the trickster god Anansi, and this long-lost brother has inherited Dad's old embarrassing, supernatural tendencies.

I picked up this audiobook because I read an article with another author, Joe Hill, about his favorite audiobooks - he says this is the best he's ever heard. That's a recommendation I couldn't pass up - turns out, I wholeheartedly agree! Narrator Lenny Henry does a truly stellar job with accents, inflections, and characterizations that range from a 104-year-old woman, to an animated clay spider, to island men and women, to London executives, to ancient animal gods and goddesses, and much, much more.