Every ten years, Granta, the London-based literary magazine, selects a list of 20 authors who they cite as "The Best of Young British Novelists."  In order to qualify, an author must be under 40 years of age. The fourth iteration of this list of novelists has just been selected by Granta.

The Pulitzer Prize winners were announced yesterday.   After not awarding a winner in the Fiction category last year, the judges have selected The Orphan Master's Son by Adam Johnson as this year's recipient.
Other finalists in this category were What We Talk About When We Talk About Anne Frank by Nathan Englander and The Snow Child by Eowyn Ivey.

Though Jim and Bob Burgess are both lawyers living in New York City, the legacy of their Maine childhoods and of the circumstances of their father's death remain.   Their sister Susan has never left the small town where they were raised, and when her teenage soon is accused of a possible bias crime involved Somali immigrants, the brothers are called to her aid.  Jim is a high profile lawyer whose success is legendary in the town.  But as the present crisis unfolds, the complicated dynamics among the siblings and their own spouses and offspring are revealed.  While Strout's characters are all flawed human beings, sometimes frustratingly so, the strength of this novel lies in their journeys toward self-awareness and in their efforts to reconcile the legacy of the past with their present lives.  (Submitted by Adult Services Librarian Dorothy Pawlowski.)

Looking for a thriller to read.  Checkout this list of nominees for the 2013 Thriller Awards that will be awarded in July by the International Thriller Writers.

In her new novel The Obituary Writer, Ann Hood offers parallel but converging tales of two women.  Vivien becomes an obituary writer after losing her lover in the 1906 San Francisco earthquake; and Claire, a former TWA flight attendant, is a young mother working on the 1960s Presidential campaign of John F. Kennedy.  Separated by time, these two women struggle with the meaning of love and loss, the bonds of women to their children, and with making their way in a world offering tantalizing glimpses of freedom.   With these two beautifully drawn characters, Hood explores the universal struggles of women balancing their own needs with the demands placed on them in their roles as lovers, wives, and mothers. (Recommended by Adult Services Librarian Dorothy Pawlowski.)

Did you know that you can have monthly newsletters about new books available at the Ridgefield Library sent to you via email each month.   Go to our Newsletter Signup page and choose from a list of 14 newsletters including Fiction and Nonfiction Bestsellers, Mystery, Business, Children's Chapter Books and more!

Here are the winners of the recently announced National Book Critics Circle Award.