Always have Enough by Maria Melchor

ALWAYS HAVE ENOUGH by Maria Melchor, founder of FirstGenLiving, covers “How to Build Wealth When You Don't Come from Money.”  Melchor writes in a very accessible, understandable tone and offers numerous insights, including a 6-Week Kickstart Plan, to her readers. She focuses on habits to develop like savings goals and smart borrowing. I found this book to be quite helpful, especially for younger people who are struggling to understand the world of finance. Melchor writes about the AHEM (Always have Enough Money) system and encourages budgeting and planning. She frequently references her own experience as an immigrant and writes with empathy for those who are seeking to balance their personal needs and those of cultural, familial obligations. This text is designed to improve understanding and encourage reflection; for example, several chapters include homework exercises (e.g., creating a financial toolbox with simple steps related to banking and credit cards or strengthening one’s safety net). It might take someone who is less familiar with the system longer than her six-week program goal, but the checklists are very useful and a great first step towards more financial stability. 

The Flag Was Still There by McKean and Bennett

THE FLAG WAS STILL THERE by David McKean and M. Todd Bennett is a scholarly work which traces “A History of the American Experiment in Five Anniversaries:” 1776, 1826, 1876, 1926, and 1976. THE FLAG WAS STILL THERE received a positive review from Kirkus and praise from well-known historians like Douglas Brinkley and Walter Isaacson. However, it is fairly dense and would be daunting for our high school students, even those enrolled in AP US History. The reoccurring patterns (discrimination, nativism, corruption) and “inflection points” beg to be documented in a more accessible form – what interesting, informative, and necessary conversations they could prompt as the nation will soon be celebrating 250 years. Kudos to McKean, a former U.S. ambassador to Luxembourg, and Bennett, a professor of history at East Carolina University, for highlighting these key issues.

Bumblebee Season by Eileen Garvin

BUMBLEBEE SEASON by Eileen Garvin (Crow Talk) is the sequel to her debut novel The Music of Bees. She provides an update on the progress that wheelchair-bound Jake Stevenson is accomplishing with his bee hives and Queen of G Honey business located near the Hood River in Oregon. But there is much more to the story as Garvin introduces us to other characters. One is Abigail Elizabeth Plue, a young teaching assistant at the local university; she is interested in insects and nature, but she has difficulty with self-regulation and cooperating with others, resulting in a transfer to study bees. Flaco (“skinny”) is the nickname of Sebastian Santiago Luna Lopez; he’s only fourteen and has been sent North (entering the US without papers) by his mother to keep him away from the cartel in his hometown. Along with Jake, each is struggling with personal issues and rejection by a loved one, but Garvin unites them through a shared desire to protect the environment and a growing respect and care for each other. Belonging and community are key ideas in this book which she has dedicated to “anyone who’s ever longed for home.” BUMBLEBEE SEASON received a starred review from Booklist (“Undoubtedly inspired by her own experiences as an Oregon beekeeper, Garvin is a master at creating hive-like communities vibrating with characters readers will enthusiastically embrace.”).

Heart of a Stranger by Angela Buchdahl

HEART OF A STRANGER by Angela Buchdahl is certainly in contention for my favorite book of the year. That is a surprise because this is the story of an Asian American female Rabbi. Other than female, I don’t check any of those boxes, but I truly loved her “Unlikely Rabbi's Story of Faith, Identity, and Belonging.” At the end of each section, she offers a mini-sermon of sorts, exploring a concept, like this: “Faith is a noun, something you can have or possess, as ‘I have faith in God.’ Trust, on the other hand, is a verb. It is something you do or act upon. It is a choice and a deliberate response as in ‘I trusted, so I followed.’” HEART OF A STRANGER received a starred review from Publishers Weekly. The Washington Post review says, [our] “nation … has long rewarded those who chase opportunity and embrace pluralism. Today those ideals are more fragile than ever, and Buchdahl’s story now feels like an example of what once worked in America but may soon be lost.” This is an amazing, inspiring story for people of all faiths. Highly recommended.

The Lost Passenger by Frances Quinn

THE LOST PASSENGER by Frances Quinn is a work of historical fiction set primarily from 1910 to 1916 and features a young woman named Elinor Hayward whose father, a self-made man, is known in the Manchester area of England as the “cotton king.” After a brief courtship, Elinor marries a local aristocrat, Frederick Coombes. She learns too late that the Coombes family wanted her money for their estate and the only way she can stay in their good graces and have time with their heir, her young son Teddy, is to submit to disheartening efforts to mold her in their image. Thus, she is excited for the brief respite of a trip with her father, Frederick, and Teddy on the Titanic’s maiden voyage. That disaster, confusion, and huge loss of life give Elinor and Teddy a chance to disappear in New York and “find” a new family amongst the diverse immigrants there as Elinor assumes a new identity and learns new survival skills. [Swedish proverb: “You cannot prevent the birds of sadness from flying over your head, but you can stop them from nesting in your hair.”] THE LOST PASSENGER, billed as “the U.S. debut of an acclaimed British novelist,” made me think about another British author, Barbara Taylor Bradford, and her Harte family saga which began with the publication of A Woman of Substance over 45 years ago in 1979. That title is also a captivating story of a young, resilient woman who takes advantages of opportunities and makes a new life for herself. 

Rental House by Weike Wang

RENTAL HOUSE by Weike Wang (Chemistry and Joan is Okay) is another introspective and reflective look at the experiences of a young woman, Keru who generally felt, “these were her duties. To assimilate, work nonstop, make money, and provide.” She and her husband, Nate who is an academic, offer separate times at their Cape Cod rental house to their parents and that proves an instructive contrast between their families and even their worldviews; for example: “Expats left wealthy nations to humble themselves at the altar of the world, immigrants escaped poorer nations to be the work force of the rich. For Nate, the word immigrant sat closer to migrant or refugee, and though an expat did move overseas for work opportunities, much like immigrants, the term also seemed to imply vacation and adventure…” The couple clearly struggles to meet the expectations of their own parents and to form connections with their in-laws in the first part of the book. In the second, they are more established in their own careers and patterns, but something is still lacking as evidenced by the uncomfortable relationship with neighbors at a second vacation home in the Catskills. “They were co-dependent, she and Nate. Without her, he lost grounding, but without him, she could be relentless and too focused.” Despite the affection they show for their dog, Mantou, neither is prepared to have children, another aspect that feeds feelings of inadequacy.  Like Wang’s other novels, book groups would have much to discuss, including gender roles, white privilege, misogyny, and xenophobia. RENTAL HOUSE received starred reviews from Library Journal and Publishers Weekly as well as praise from book reviewers at The New York Times (perceptively noting, “Even as you flee a family, you carry it along with you, in memories of how and who you learned to be in the past.”) and The Washington Post (“As in any good novel, the answers are few, but the questions multiply.”).

Death of a Healing Woman by Allana Martin

DEATH OF A HEALING WOMAN by Allana Martin is a mystery story featuring Texana Jones which was originally published in the early 1990s. Martin, a native Texan and rancher, clearly loves the area and its people. Texana runs a trading post near the US-Mexico border in rural Presidio County. One day, while delivering supplies, she finds the body of a curandera, an older healing woman, named Rhea Fair. The novel continues as Texana attempts to find a murderer – she travels as far as San Antonio and back and forth across the border while also supporting her husband, the local vet, in combatting a rabies outbreak. I truly enjoyed the multifaceted mystery and its many references to culture, food, celebrations, and language. I would like to read more in this series, but they are hard to find since it's been about 30 years since they were published. That time difference is reflected also in the attitudes about border crossings and towards community members, perhaps one of the most interesting aspects of the book from my point of view.

The Teller of Small Fortunes by Julie Leong

THE TELLER OF SMALL FORTUNES by Julie Leong is a cozy fantasy debut that was chosen for the LibraryReads November 2024 list. Its beautiful cover reflects the warmth and good cheer which radiates from this story. Tao, a young girl travelling on her own is the title character. As she moves from village to town, she shares small fortunes with others, afraid to fully exercise her ability to foresee the future because of a past tragedy. It is on the road that she meets Mash, a former soldier looking for his lost daughter; Silt, a reformed thief and friend to Mash; and Kina, an apprentice baker. Together this unlikely group forms a community of sorts and their subsequent – sometimes dangerous – adventures bind them tightly together. This is a wonderful story about friendship and (found) family. Here is a favorite quote: “Aye, our lives are short and shaped by circumstance, and maybe we can't control most of what's to come. But we can control how we feel. We can savor the sweetness of a blackberry scone, and the company of our friends, and the warmth of the summer wind at night, and be grateful for it.”

In its starred review, Library Journal said, THE TELLER OF SMALL FORTUNES “is a delightful cozy fantasy that will appeal to fans of Legends & Lattes by Travis Baldree and A Pirate's Life for Tea by Rebecca Thorne.” Enjoy!! Discussion questions are included.

The Sticky Note Manifesto of Aisha Agarwal by Vohra

THE STICKY NOTE MANIFESTO OF AISHA AGARWAL by Ambika Vohra sets the perfect tone of what it feels like to be unsure of yourself in high school as you strive to complete AP classes, meet parental expectations, and somehow get the attention of a boy you like. Those goals are important to Aisha Agarwal, main character of this excellent, layered debut novel. Vohra says this was inspired by her own story and she evokes plenty of emotion while exploring fate (commenting on the butterfly effect and noting “God wills everything to happen for a reason”); class distinctions and privilege; race, immigration, assimilation, and compartmentalizing. There are insights on loneliness, romance, and family (“It's not easy untying the mental knots created by parents”), too. Aisha has a crush on her former neighbor and co-valedictorian, Brian. Helping her arrange a date with him and accomplish other items that appear as part of the sticky note manifesto are her best friend Marcy, and new friend, Quentin, a senior at another high school who is struggling with Math and the unexpected loss of his father. Aisha is – like many teens – pretty self-centered, but she grows throughout the story as she expands her experiences and shifts her attitude, finally asking, “What if all the stuff I wanted for so long isn't all that great?” At one point, Quentin remarks, “ultimately, people remember you for how you made them feel” and THE STICKY NOTE MANIFESTO OF AISHA AGARWAL is a feel good, coming of age story. Compared to Never Have I Ever, it would be fun to see on screen, too. Highly recommended.

Everything We Never Had by Randy Ribay

EVERYTHING WE NEVER HAD by Randy Ribay (Patron Saints of Nothing, a National Book Award finalist) is told in multiple perspectives across four generations of a Filipino-American family. The earliest action takes place in 1930 Watsonville, California where Francisco, a recent immigrant, has to deal with violence, prejudice, and his disappointment at life in America. In 1965 Stockton, California, readers meet Emil, Francisco’s son, a dutiful student and hard-working employee at his aunt’s restaurant. He resents his labor organizer father and vows to make his own way. Then there is 1983 Denver, Colorado where Chris yearns to play football but can’t ever live up to the standards of his demanding father, Emil. Chris rebels as he discovers a love of history and pursues his own interests as a teacher. His son, named Enrique Lorenzo and called Enzo, grows up in 2020 Philadelphia, coping with anxiety, the pandemic, and continuing discrimination. Once again, Ribay offers so much to unpack – immigrant feelings, generational conflict, parenting styles, and plenty of anger. Students will relate to the stories of each of these characters as a young man and may be intrigued by the way the societal environment and the individual choices of each character impacts the next generation. The novel does flip back and forth between time periods and this may be difficult for some students, but EVERYTHING WE NEVER HAD received multiple starred reviews, including from Booklist, Kirkus (“many heartwarming and heartbreaking moments offer deep insights into intergenerational patterns”), Publishers Weekly, and School Library Journal. The book contains a list of recommended resources, both print and online like Asian Mental Health Collective, Filipino American National Historical Society, Stop AAPI Hate, and United Farm Workers. Interested previewers can listen to an excerpt on the publisher’s website.

But What Will People Say? by Sahaj Kaur Kohli

In BUT WHAT WILL PEOPLE SAY? Sahaj Kaur Kohli, founder of Brown Girl Therapy, shares her own journey as a child of immigrants, a college student, a victim of sexual assault, and a therapist. This is a very powerful text which explores “Navigating Mental Health, Identity, Love, and Family Between Cultures.” In a dozen chapters, Kohli writes movingly about topics like “When Things Don't Go According to Plan” (or Reflecting on your achievement behavior); “Where Do My Parents End and I Begin?” (or Learning about boundaries and your values); and “Getting Out of My Own Way” (or Combating self-sabotaging behaviors and mindsets). She points out that “one in three freshman college students (worldwide!) struggles with mental health issues… my struggles were due to a combination of what I call the three E's -- the need for external permission, emotional immaturity, and an expectation of exceptionalism.” By combining her own experiences and therapy training, she offers prompts and insights to both students and parents (e.g., “I wish they would have asked: What can we do to help you? What do you need from us? I wish they would have approached this with: We don't understand, but we're willing to try.”).  An extremely useful guide, especially for older teens, their parents, and mentors. 

The Cemetery of Untold Stories by Julia Alvarez

THE CEMETERY OF UNTOLD STORIES is the latest from Julia Alvarez (In the Time of the Butterflies and How the García Girls Lost Their Accents). Alvarez focuses on four sisters, particularly Alma, the second eldest and a writer. She decides to retire and to bury her untold stories in some land she inherits in the Dominican Republic.  A sculpture friend works with her to install statues and a local caretaker, named Filomena, is hired. With a touch of magical realism surprising stories are shared. They build on themes of family, secrets, and prejudice and seem to link the local caretaker, Alma’s father, and the ex-wife of dictator Rafael Trujillo, named Bienvenida. THE CEMETERY OF UNTOLD STORIES received starred reviews from Booklist and Kirkus (“a rich and moving saga of Dominican history emerges, embodied in the lives of irresistible characters”). The audiobook (from Recorded Books) lasts almost nine hours and is narrated by Alma Cuervo who also contributed to readings of The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo, plus Alvarez’s Afterlife and multiple titles written by Isabel Allende and Robert Jackson Bennett.