The Chaperone by Laura Moriarty
Many times when I’ve needed a good book to read, I’ve simply gone to bn.com and searched for Laura Moriarty to see if she has published anything new. Much to my pleasant surprise, my most recent query was successful, and Ms. Moriarty does indeed have a new book out. The Chaperone tells the story of a 1920s pilgrimmage to New York City by two midwestern women. The first, Louise Brooks, is travelling to the east coast to pursue a dancing career at a prestigious academy. Her chaperone, 36 year old wife and mother, Cora, makes the awkward request to accompany Louise. As the reader quickly learns, Cora has her own agenda while in New York, struggling to uncover the truth about her early childhood. Some of my favorite things about this book were its quick pace, and rarely do I met a piece of historical fiction that I can’t put down. I also loved the perspective this novel gave on what life was like for women after World War 1 and before the stock market crash. This book entertained and educated me, so I was not surprised to find that USA Today had named The Chaperone its #1 summer read.
If I Stay by Gayle Foreman
If I Stay is a young adult book that I’ve been wanting to read forever. It became a movie, which I really wanted to see, but I managed to hold off and wait for the book. One of my students lent the book to me on Thursday afternoon, and, by noontime on Friday, I was finished. I thought this book was beautifully written, weaving flashback with action, as Mia, a comatose high school student who has just been in a fatal car wreck with her family, must decide whether to stay for her boyfriend and her future or go to join her already deceased parents and brother. This was obviously a tear jerker, but it at no point felt cliche, and I had really feared it would. This book is already popular amongst teens, but I think adults would enjoy it as well.
