Book Donations

Last week a student donated five books (thank you very much!) to the library of Inari-juku. She suggested I read them first, which I agree with since they’re novels and take a little more time to read than readers, so knowing their contents will give me an idea as to who I can recommend them to based on their level of difficulty and themes. I looked them up and I’m sharing their summary here for anyone who’s interested and would like to borrow them before I start (I’m still reading a book I started a week ago).

  • Blu’s hanging by Lois-Ann Yamanaka
    Blu’s Hanging follows the Ogata family after the death of their mother, as each family member struggles to come to terms with their grief. The story is told through Ivah, a smart-mouthed thirteen-year-old who is left as the oldest child to take care of her younger siblings, Blu and Maisie.

  • The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros
    The House on Mango Street deals with Esperanza Cordero, a young Latina girl, and her life growing up in Chicago with Chicanos and Puerto Ricans.

  • Woman Hollering Creek and Other Stories by Sandra Cisneros
    A collection of stories, whose characters give voice to the vibrant and varied life on both sides of the Mexican border. The women in these stories offer tales of pure discovery, filled with moments of infinite and intimate wisdom.

  • Mail by Mameve Medwed
    Katinka O’Toole is desperately smitten by the postman’s charming smile. Despite wearing Dior dresses to attract him, the affections of a corporate lawyer and her mother’s advice and his dodgy past, she continues to hope that romance will flourish.

  • Host Family by Mameve Medwed
    Daisy and Henry have been married for 20 years, and for all that time they have served as host families for international students coming to study at Harvard. So Daisy should have seen it coming when Henry dumps her for the extremely French Giselle.