Kenosha News readers share good reads

And thank goodness they do.

We all need an escape, if only for an hour, from whatever crisis of the day is raging.

As Thom Sczygielski of Zion, Ill., a retired Whittier Elementary School teacher, tells us, “Reading takes time, but it’s priceless.”

While summer is often a time for traveling, you can visit the whole world — and alien worlds and worlds that only exist in the writer’s imagination — between the covers of a good book.

Sczygielski and the other members of this year’s edition of Liz’s Book Club share their suggestions here for books that will capture your own imagination or, if only for a few hours, allow you to play detective from the comfort of a sunny backyard deck.

It’s a long list, with everything from John Grisham legal thrillers to World War II histories.

Or, for some of these avid readers, just enough to keep them busy until the end of summer.

Read on to fill out your own reading list:

Sczygielski, a regular Liz’s Book Club contributor, recommends “John Grisham’s new book ‘The Boys from Biloxi’ (always a winner). Circle your calendar for Oct. 17 to read Grisham’s ‘The Exchange,’ a sequel to ‘The Firm.’

“I have three books by George F. Will, a political commentator and Pulitzer Prize winner. His columns were regularly featured in the Washington Post and Newsweek. ‘The Pursuit of Happiness, and Other Sobering Thoughts’ was his first book. ‘American Happiness and Discontents’ features Will’s columns from 2008-2020. Sports fans will like Will’s book ‘Men at Work: The Craft of Baseball.’ He writes of the basics in managing, pitching, hitting and fielding, suffering through the joy of being a Cubs fan.”

He also recommends “James Peterson’s ‘Miracle at St. Andrews.’ For any golfer, ‘Miracle on the 17 Green’ is a must read!”

Adrienne Pfarr has “two books that I’d like to endorse for your annual book club. Both are works of nonfiction. ‘The Tiger,’ by John Vaillant, transports the reader to a remote corner of Russia’s Far East, where, in 1997 an Amur tiger went on a murderous rampage. It was the job of the area’s tiger tracking squad to find him. While the story of hunting the tiger is intriguing in itself, Vaillant brings many other aspects of Russian life into this true story: history, geography, economics, politics, culture, climate, etc. It is a fascinating book.

Another work of nonfiction, “Mudlark: In Search of London’s Past Along the River Thames” by Lara Maiklem, “is not unlike ‘The Tiger,’” Praff said. “In a similar vein, Maiklem takes the reader with her as she scours the banks of the River Thames at low tide. The relics and objects she finds are sometimes remnants from hundreds of years ago. Maiklem explains what these are in great detail and in doing so, the reader is treated to a vast lesson of history, culture, and traditions from London’s past. Some incredible stories emerged (pardon the pun) from her finds.”

Leslie Leader tells us about “the books I’ve read over the past year that most impressed me. They’re in no particular order.”

“The Echo Chamber” by Irish author John Boyne “is about the Cleverlys, an upper-middle-class Dublin family with three children who become split apart and nearly destroyed by social media and then very slowly put themselves back together. It’s a very funny look at the times we live in, with some often hilarious dialogue.”

“Elizabeth Strout is a wonderful and unique author who wrote about Olive Kitteridge in an earlier novel. ‘Olive Again’ is an update of Olive’s life, a woman who was a former math teacher in a small Maine coastal town. We see her now at age 71, newly widowed. As she continues her life journey into old age, we learn more about not only her but other Strout characters because that’s how Strout writes. The reader gets to know her characters slowly, from the outside in, as we often do with people in real life. ‘Oh, William’ and ‘Lucy by the Sea’ are two separate Strout novels, but ‘Lucy by the Sea’ is a continuation of ‘Oh, William.’ We see this divorced couple, parents of two, come together again so William can face his past and then later how they both face and cope with COVID and realize the different ways other people reacted to it. In Lucy’s words, ‘We are all on lockdown, all of the time. We just don’t know it. But we do the best we can. Most of us are just trying to get through.’”

Leader also enjoyed “Lincoln Highway,” by Amor Towles, which she calls “a wonderful, mesmerizing, picaresque novel that is carefully plotted and filled with unforgettable characters as well as much wisdom.”

“Set in 1954, it’s the story of 18-year-old Emmett and his 8-year-old brother Billie who, after their father dies, leaving them a Nebraska farm with lots of debt as well as a car in great shape with $2,000 in its trunk, decide to drive west to San Francisco to start a new life. Nothing goes as planned, of course. They end up going east to New York City on a 10-day journey instead.

“Told from many points of view with many twists and turns and an array of strange characters, this novel is a page turner that never loses its humanity.”

Leader also “read books by Irish author Tana French, who is billed as a mystery writer, but ‘The Witch Elm’ and ‘The Searcher’ are much more than that. They are richly layered and beautifully written, complex studies of human beings and the worlds they inhabit. She is a writer to be watched.”

“Finally,” Leader says, “I recommend the three-volume story of the Cazalet family before, during, and after World War II by Elizabeth Jane Howard, written in the early 1990s. They are ‘The Light Years,’ just before the war, ‘Marking Time,’ during the war, and ‘Confusion,’ both during and after the war.

“This family is an upper-middle-class British family of four children, their parents, spouses, offspring and servants, who live in London but spend holidays in Sussex near the English Channel in a sprawling complex called Home Place. The war means they must leave London for Home Place and is told from the point of view of both grownups, kids and servants. It’s so realistic, it wouldn’t be surprising if Howard herself was one of those kids during the war. We watch them struggle and applaud some of them, while becoming upset with others. This is no ‘Downton Abby,’ but it’s a quite wonderful reading experience.”

Dianna Hodges recommends her “favorite book this year, ‘Horse’ by Geraldine Brooks. The author’s meticulous research created a compelling novel around a historically famous antebellum racehorse named Lexington. She cleverly connected threads of the past with the present. The issue of race is a powerful force in the book, from both the mid-19th century and contemporary perspectives.”

Robert W. Murphy‘s book pick for 2023 is “Transformation in Christ” by Dietrich Von Hildebrand. “As I am sure you can tell by the title,” he says, “this book would fall into a more religious category, although I would say it could even be a general self-improvement type book.

“The author writes from a Catholic perspective but could be applied, I feel, to all Christian denominations and as I mentioned could even be a general self-improvement type of book. It also has an interesting story. The author is German and was active in writing and speaking out against the Nazi government during World War II. As I understand it, he was actively wanted by the Nazi government at the time and he had to move to a few different countries to evade capture. Because of their pursuit of him when the book was first published in Germany, it was done so under a different name until after the war when it was rereleased under his actual name.

“The only other thing I will say about the book is, because it is more of a philosophical type of book, it’s usually best read in smaller chunks, giving yourself time to think about, ponder and understand the things that he is talking about.”

Peggy Molloy of Pleasant Prairie “just finished reading a very good historical fiction book, ‘The Lost English Girl’ by Julia Kelly. To summarize the plot, a good Catholic girl from a rigid family in 1930s Liverpool gets pregnant after brief relationship with a Jewish saxophone player. They are forced into marriage, and her family pays him off to leave to pursue his musical dreams, leaving Viv to raise child by herself.

“The child is evacuated out of Liverpool at the beginning of World War II, and when her temporary home is bombed, is presumed dead. Viv accidentally finds out her daughter is alive and begins search for her, eventually including the previously absent husband/father in search.

“What I liked about this book,” Molloy said, “besides my love of historical fiction (second only to mysteries), the plot was engrossing, and the ending, while satisfying, was NOT sappy.” For more historical fiction, she also recommends “anything by Jennifer Chiaverini or Marie Benedict.”

Jan Iselin recommends “some of the books I have enjoyed this past year. ‘Someone Else’s Shoes’ by Jojo Moses was a fun read. The story is about women who have nothing in common. Another wonderful book is ‘Remarkedly Bright Creatures’ by Shelby Van Pelt: A story about an octopus and and older woman. I loved ‘The Book of Longings’ by Sue Monk Kidd. It is biblical fiction about the wife of Jesus.”

Judith Leanna — who says she look forward to the Book Club entries each year — recommends some mystery series. “If you like a little French history, dogs, horses and some French cooking along with mystery, you may enjoy the series by Martin Walker. Start with ‘Bruno, Chief of Police.’ M.L. Longworth also has a series based in a different area of France. ‘Death in the Vines’ is a good start there.

“If you enjoy the American Revolution era, Heidi Chiavaroli’s ‘The Tea Chest’ is a good read. Gabrielle Meyer’s ‘When the Day Comes’ is also set in American Revolution history but includes time travel.

“I also liked Parini Shirofi’s ‘The Bandit Queens,’ with the tagline: ‘She didn’t kill her husband but why not let everyone believe she did.’ Colleen Coble is an author I always like. Andrew Grant writes a good mystery, try hi ‘Die Twice.’”

Leanna also likes “Bee time: Lessons from the Hive” by Mark L. Winston, which she calls “an interesting read if you are concerned about our pollinators. Happy reading, everyone.”

Former Kenosha News reporter Heather Poyner tells us about a book she “found as a ‘Staff Pick’ at the Kenosha Public Library. ‘Stuff You Should Know; an incomplete compendium of very/mostly interesting things,’ written by podcasters John Clark and Chuck Byrant , published in 2020.

“What I liked about this 27-chapter nonfiction survey of trivia: A fine blend of accurate information and side comments seasoned with the occasional bit of snark. A fine beach (or bedtime) read,” Poyner said.

She lists some chapter titles from the book: “How to Get Lost: And seven ways to stay like that”; “Mr. Potato Head: America’s toy”; “Well-Witching: The ancient art of guessing with a stick”; “Trichotillomania and BFRB’s.”

Poyner said “a couple chapters didn’t grab my interest, but as you may be able to ascertain from the above, list there’s something here for everybody.”

Hope all is going well for you and Rex professionally and personally!

Donella Elsen says “all of my 2023 Liz’s Book Club choices were written by authors who were new to me. Admittedly, I was drawn in by their titles.”

“Do You Know Luis Velez?” and “So Long, Chester Wheeler” were both written by Catherine Ryan Hyde. Elsen calls both “be the change you want to see in the world” books.

“Luis Velez” features a 17-year-old male “who rises above lousy home and school lives after befriending an elderly neighbor woman,” Elsen said. “The teen transforms his, his new friend’s and his neighbors’ lives through his many acts of kindness. In ‘Chester Wheeler,’ you’ll be introduced to Lewis Madigan, a young, gay, out-of-work man who turns to end-of-life care out of desperation in order to pay his bills. Chester, and later Estelle, are both cantankerous clients other caregivers have given up on, but not Lewis. Their lives are transformed during the course of their unexpected and rocky friendships. There’s lots of humor in this uplifting novel.”

Her third pick is “The Love Song of Miss Queenie Hennessy” by Rachel Joyce. “I got this little gem at a library book sale,” Elsen said. “’Miss Queenie’ is a parallel story to ‘The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry’ (an Oprah pick and international bestseller). She writes from a hospice to say goodbye to her friend, Harold. This is “a wonderful book about loss, redemption and joy.”

Candy Peterson of Elmwood Park, Wis., tells her “favorite book this past year has been one which is a selection of our Banned Book Club. It is ‘Out of Darkness’ by Ashley Hope Perez. It’s a young adult book, as many banned books are, and it is an important one. It is based on a true historical event , the deadliest school disaster in the United States. Besides the historical content it raises issues of racism, segregation, racial and sexual violence, and sex abuse of a child. Extremely moving, I promise it will challenge and change you.”

Peterson is talking about the Banned Book Club, which meets the third Sunday of each month at Blue House Books, 5915 Sixth Ave. The club is open to everyone. Find more details at blue-house-books.com or call 262-612-5525.

Catherine McConnell — whose mother was a librarian “and I literally grew up in the stacks” — shares some of her favorite books from the last six months:

“How to Sell a Haunted House” by Grady Hendrix: “What a crazy premise for a book: Stephen King horror mixed with David Sedaris humor and Ann Patchett family relationships. Scary, hilarious and occasionally touching.”

“The Sentence” and “The Night Watchman” by Louise Erdrich: “I’m sure you’ve often heard all about these amazing stories of resilience so my recommendation here is more about the medium. I’m not usually a book on tape kinda gal, but these are even better borrowed in Hoopla (library app) and read by the author.”

“Lone Women” by Victor LaValle: “It’s a coincidence that I have two horror novels on this list. It’s not usual my thing (except for Stephen King) but this was not really a classic horror novel. More of an historical fiction allegory set in early 1900s Montana.”

The Warden Bowdritch series by Paul Doiron: “Better than watching a series on Netflix. They go down easy and you’ll just be sad that there aren’t more.”

Norma Lundstrom sends us “my list of favorite books”: “The House in The Cerulean Sea” and “In the Lives of Puppets” by T.J. Klune, “Where the Crawdads Sing” by Delia Owens, “The Dictionary of Lost Words” by Pip Williams, “Fire Keeper’s Daughter” by Angeline Bouley, “Hello Transcriber” and “The Widowmaker” by Hannah Morrissey, “Someone Else’s Shoes” by JoJo Moyes, “The Last Thing He Told Me” by Laura Dave, and “Happy Place” by Emily Henry.

Celia Sanchez has a very personal book to recommend: “A children’s book written and illustrated by my friend’s daughter, Maureen Poynter. It was recently published and it’s called ‘Mimi and Luis.’ Also, I read ‘November’s Fury’ about the 1913 hurricane on the Great Lakes and ‘Killers of the Flower Moon,’ about which the movie was made.”

Maria Lall sends in “three of my favroite books: ‘Roll of Thunder Hear My Cry, ‘The White Queen’ and ‘Memoirs of a Geisha.’“

Sarah Pederson has quite a list of favorites to recommend: “The Boy in the Striped Pajamas” by John Bolton (and the sequel, “All the Broken Places”); Chanel Cleeton’s “The Most Beautiful Girl in Cuba,” “The Last Train to Key West,” “When We left Cuba” and “Next Year in Havana”; “Isacc’s Storm” by Erik Larson; “Home of the Brave” by Katherine Applegate and “The Alice Network” by Kate Quinn. She also recommends “anything from authors Kristin Hannah and Fredrik Backman.”

Barbara Blachowicz — who tells us “Ialways look forward to see what others find interesting” — offers three suggestions “for ‘good reads,’ all with strong women as main characters”: “The Women of Copper Country” by Mary Doria Russell, “Daughters of Teutobod” by Kurt Hansen and “Magic Hour” by Kristin Hannah.

Terri Johnson recommendations “The People We Keep” by Allison Larkin: “This is a novel of great empathy, about connections and coming-of-age, built families and self-acceptance. It contains heartbreak and redemption.” Her second pick” “Verity” by Colleen Hoover: “This psychological thriller that keeps you on the edge of your seat and you must keep reading.”

Julie Ferraro also lists “Someone Else’s Shoes” by Jojo Moyes as one of her book picks. “It has a little bit of everything in the book,” she said, “drama, mystery and humor. I enjoyed the personal growth of the two main characters.” She also likes “Dial A for Aunties” by Jesse Q Sutanto (“for a laugh-out-loud, super fun read”) and “The Violin Conspiracy” by Brendan Slocumb, “for a great overall mystery and moving story about a Black classical musician, his coming of age and what happened to his stolen heirloom violin.”

Sue Gifford‘s book list includes: “The Diplomat’s Wife” by Pam Jenoff, “The Husbands” by Chandler Baker, “Midnight at the Blackbird Cafe” by Heather Webber, “The Paper Palace” by Miranda Crowley and “Reminders of Him” by Colleen Hoover.

Gail Burgess of Bristol — a Liz’s Book Club regular contributor — reads “so many good books, it’s really hard to narrow it down,” but shares “a few of my favorites.” She “discovered” two mystery series and recommends them both. “Julia Spencer-Fleming has written nine Claire Fergusson mysteries set in upper New York state. Claire is an Episcopalian priest and former helicopter pilot and ‘helps’ Police Chief Russ Van Alstyne solve mysteries.”

She also recommends Richard Osman’s “Thursday Murder Club” books. “Elizabeth, Joyce, Ron and Ibrahim are residents of a retirement village and select cold cases to solve — then somehow end up in various life-threatening situations. There are four books so far, but No. 5 can’t be too far behind.”

Burgess also enjoyed “Remarkably Bright Creatures” by Shelby Van Pelt, “Lessons in Chemistry” by Bonnie Garmus and “People We Meet on Vacation” by Emily Henry. “All three,” she said, “combine humor with a look at relationships — family and friends — and leave readers with a smile on their faces.”

Avid reader Denise Fox seconds the recomendation of “Lessons in Chemistry” by Bonnie Garmus, which “follows the story of Elizabeth Zott,” Fox said. “When Elizabeth suddenly becomes a young single mother, she chooses to become a famous television chef when, in fact, she is (and wants to be known as) a brilliant scientist. This book reflects upon sexism in the workplace; motherhood and the choices moms must make when it comes to work life balance; and also what it means to be a family. The book covers these topics and is at the same time very humorous.”

She also “could not put down ‘Remarkably Bright Creatures’ by Shelby Van Pelt. If follows the friendship between Tova, a lonely widow; Cameron, a young man trying to find his place in this world; and a giant, intelligent Pacific octopus (Marcellus). Yes, an octopus! This book is unconventional and heartwarming and is the first book written by this author, who resides in Chicago and was raised in the Pacific Northwest, where this book’s location takes place.”

“I can’t wait to see what other readers recommend,” Fox said.

Mary Philips “enjoyed Anna Quindlen’s ‘Lots of Candles, Plenty of Cake: A Memoir of a Woman’s Life,’ which any woman could relate to concerning one’s own childhood memories, through to what we find in our closets, to aging. While C.J. Box’s Joe Pickett series can be speckled with violence, his description of occurrences in nature or descriptions of western USA make for page-turners. Elizabeth Berg brings out her Midwest life through any of her books, especially ‘The Story of Arthur Truluv,’ which is the first in that heartwarming series.”

Bob Cisler recommends Lou Berney’s crime novel “November Road,” which he says “you will not be able to put down.”

The book focuses on “a loyal member to a New Orleans mob boss, who may know too much about the assassination of John F. Kennedy, and needs to ‘keep moving,’ drives past a housewife on the run as well with her two daughters, a dog and broken down car. Frank Guidry knows hit men are after him and what better cover than a ‘wife’ with two daughters?”

Cisler also enjoyed another Berney novel, “The Long and Faraway Gone,” an “exploration of memory and what it means to be a survivor. A mystery that is deep and wounded.”

Finally Cisler tells us about Peter Robinson’s DCI Banks series, starting with “Gallows View” in 1987.

“Robinson crafted 20-plus DCI Banks books before he passed away in 2022. Why read them? Complex and flawed characters, starting with Banks and including the DI’s he works with and the villains in each book. Solid, realistic storylines that often deal with social commentary on issues such as poverty, racism and homophobia. Besides, who can resist a character that refers often to music in the novels, classical and contemporary and enjoys a good Laphroaig Whisky. Alan Banks is one intriguing character. The books build upon each, so it may be best to begin with Gallows View.’ I have skipped around and enjoyed every book.” (Note: There is also an excellent British TV series based on the books.)

Donna Juzwik “would like to share three books that I have read and enjoyed: ‘Mad Honey’ by Jodi Picoult and Jennifer Finney Boylan and ‘West With Giraffes, by Linda Rutledge, which are both fiction, and ‘Bomb Shelter. Love. Time & Other Explosives’ by Mary Laura Philpott, a biography about middle-aged women. I liked the honesty and humor in this book,” Juzwik said. “West with Giraffes” is based on a real event in 1938 as a young boy immersed in tragedy travels across the country to deliver the giraffes to the San Diego Zoo.

Jillian Craig, a Kenosha News reporter who joined our staff last summer, recommends “The Butcher and the Wren” by Alaina Urquhart. The story is about a methodical killer with a penchant for medical experimentation, who lurks in the Louisiana bayou and taunts law enforcement who attempt to catch him for his viscous crimes. Forensic pathologist Dr. Wren Muller is the best there is and hasn’t come across a case she couldn’t solve — until now. As cases pile up on her examination table, Muller is sucked into a cat-and-mouse chase with a brutal murderer who becomes more brazen by the day.

“Although the story does contain some very graphic details of violence” Craig said., “the story is quite captivating and will leave you on the edge of your seat. Anyone who is a fan of horror or true crime genres would enjoy this book. Author Alaina Urquhart is also the co-host of the popular podcast ‘Morbid,’ so I enjoyed hearing her voice through her writing.”

Norm Gentry — another Liz’s Book Club regular — recommends two books this year: “Brave Men, Gentle Heroes: American Fathers and Sons in World War II and Vietnam” by Michael Takiff

“Michael Takiff presents an honest, dramatic and oral history of both wars,” Gentry said. “Each war defined a generation. His book demonstrates ordinary men, offering extraordinary insights into what it means to be a warrior, an American, a father and a son.”

The book features “many touching stories from both wars. One such reflection is seen through the eyes of Sandy Walmsky a Navy corpsman for a Marine Platoon in Vietnam. He showed the bravery of one corpsman who survived the war but never forgot the memories of this conflict. Approximately 1,300 Army medics and 690 Navy corpsmen were killed in Vietnam.”

Walmsky sums it up at the end, saying, “I only wish we could find a different way of coming to grips with things rather than armed conflict.”

Gentry’s second recommendation is “Johnny Carson,” a biography by Henry Bushkin. “To those of you like me who grew up watching ‘The Tonight Show’ hosted by Johnny Carson from 1962 until 1992, this book gives a significant insight into Carson,” Gentry said. “This is a revealing account of ‘The King of Late Night’ at the height of his fame and power, written by his lawyer, fixer and closest confidant for 18 years.

“What makes this book a great read is how Henry Bushkin Shows Johnny’s life with a clarity and depth that nobody else could do.”

Elizabeth Denman, who tells us “I will be 92 on my next birthday, and I am never without a book,” recommends picking up two books by of humorous stories and essays by the mother-and-daughter writing team of Lisa Scottoline and Francesca Serritella: “Does This Beach Make Me Look Fat” and “I’ve Got Sand in all the Wrong Places.” Denam calls both “good reads for nighttime.” She also recommends the John Grisham courtroom drama “A Time for Mercy” (though she does not recommend reading that right before you go to sleep).

Ann Engelstad of Winthrop harbor, Ill., describes herself as “an English lit major, writer, poet and artist” who enjoys reading “many genres.”

Here are some of her favorites: “Strangers on a Train” and “The Tremor of Forgery,” both by writer Patricia Highsmith; Michael Connelly’s Harry Bosch series of crime novels, including “Echo Park,” and his “Lincoln Lawyer” books; the “Girl with the Dragon Tattoo” trilogy of thrillers by the late Stieg Larsson; and the classic 1875 Leo Tolstoy novel “Anna Karenina.” Her other picks are Marcel Proust’s “Swann’s Way,” in a new translation by Lydia Davis. The first volume is “In Search of Lost Time.”