Cheri's Book Picks

What if the winning submission for a 9-11 memorial comes from a Muslim? This novel by Amy Waldman, is making ripples in the book world. The Submission takes place two years after the WTC buildings fall to the ground. Over 5,000 architects and artists anonymously submit their interpretation of what the memorial for the victims should be, and a jury of a select few picks the winner. When the envelope is opened, the winner is Mohammad Khan, an American Muslim. Viewpoints from survivors, families of the dead, the media, and the artist all clash in this portrait of a broken city. This is a piercing and personal look at the juxtaposition of how we should feel about freedom of speech and expression, and how we actually do feel about it when faced with this kind of an issue.

The book Reluctant Hero by Michael Benfante takes us back to September 11, 2001. This is a true account of a sales manager for a telecommunications company on the 81st floor of the WTC North tower. He was working at his desk when the first plane struck 12 floors above him. He helped gather stunned employees and get them moving down the stairs. On his way down, he and a co-worker met a woman in a wheelchair on the 68th floor. They spent the next 96 minutes carrying her down the stairs and out of the tower just moments before it fell. Michael Benfante shares this compelling and emotional story and allows the reader a look inside his experiences.

Kate White’s The Sixes is a thriller set in a college town. Combine bodies washing up on the shore, a deadly but secret society of girls, and a police investigation that leads to the discovery of a serial killer, and you have a potboiler. Nasty pranks turn deadly, and there are disturbing revelations about the ‘quiet’ little town .

The book Mice, by Gordon Reece follows a mother and daughter who, after living most of their life afraid of almost everything, find themselves in a situation where they are forced to kill an intruder. The daughter Shelley suffered emotional and physical abuse from school bullies that led to her being set on fire. After she withdrew from school, she and her mother move to an outlying area, and their goal is to ‘disappear’. When threatened, they find they have more courage than most. A very interesting read, with lots of twists and turns.