By Rachel Burt
Director of the Hackettstown Free Public Library

As a librarian, I have a lot of “go-to” books and authors that I’ll bring up when people ask me for book recommendations.  In this column, I’ve given you the skinny on three new books that I’m very excited to read, along with a shout-out to an old favorite that I implore you to read if you haven’t already.

The book I most recently finished is The Secret History, Donna Tartt’s first novel.  While a delightfully complex read, it left me with one inescapable thought: what I really should have done was reread The Goldfinch.  With The Secret History, I found myself chasing the feelings I experienced when listening to The Goldfinch.  And while it came close, the experience was never realized.  Which brings me to The Goldfinch.

The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt
A young boy in New York City, Theo Decker, miraculously survives an accident that takes the life of his mother.  Alone and abandoned by his father, Theo is taken in by a friend’s family and struggles to make sense of his new life.  In the years that follow, he becomes entranced by one of the few things that reminds him of his mother: a small, mysteriously captivating painting that ultimately draws Theo into the art underworld.  It is a story of loss and obsession, survival and self-invention, and the enormous power of art.  Tartt takes such care to develop every aspect of the story that I found myself intertwined and wholly invested in the characters and was genuinely distraught when the audiobook came to an end (as an added bonus, the narrator of the audiobook does a fantastic job).  At 771 pages, it’s a hefty undertaking, but well worth the effort.

Anxious People by Fredrik Backman
I have thoroughly enjoyed every book I’ve read by Fredrik Backman (if you haven’t read any of his books yet, do yourself a favor and start with A Man Called Ove), and Anxious People has made its way to the top of my To-Read list.  This is a poignant comedy about a crime that never took place, a would-be bank robber who disappears into thin air, and eight extremely anxious strangers who find they have more in common than they ever imagined.  Viewing an apartment normally doesn’t turn into a life-or-death situation, but this particular open house becomes just that when a failed bank robber bursts in and takes everyone in the apartment hostage.  As the pressure mounts, the eight strangers slowly begin opening up to one another and reveal long-hidden truths.  As police surround the premises and television channels broadcast the hostage situation live, the tension mounts and even deeper secrets are slowly revealed.  Before long, the robber must decide which prospect is more terrifying: going out to face the police, or staying in the apartment with this group of impossible people.

The Searcher by Tana French
Tana French is best known for her Dublin Murder Squad series which, admittedly, I have not read.  I have, however, read The Witch Elm—her first standalone novel—and loved it.  The Witch Elm was a slow burn of a crime story with considerable depth and character development.  If The Searcher, another standalone novel, follows in its footsteps, it should not disappoint.
Cal Hooper thought a fixer-upper in a bucolic Irish village would be the perfect escape.  After twenty-five years in the Chicago police force and a bruising divorce, he just wants to build a new life in a pretty spot with a good pub where nothing much happens.  But when a local kid whose brother has gone missing arm-twists him into investigating, Cal uncovers layers of darkness beneath his picturesque retreat, and starts to realize that even small towns shelter dangerous secrets.

Eat a Peach by David Chang
Aside from works of fiction, I am a sucker for a chef memoir.  If you’re looking for an inside scoop on the life of a celebrity chef, consider David Chang’s new memoir.  You might also want to read the memoirs of Anthony Bourdain, Julia Child, Roy Choi, or Padma Lakshmi, to name a few.

The affecting memoir from chef and Momofuku founder David Chang details his path to culinary success amid his struggles with bipolar disorder. In Eat a Peach, Chang opens up about growing up as a Korean-American kid in Virginia, where he battled a mental illness that he only began to understand years later. In vulnerable and honest terms, Chang puts these experiences into the context of his life and career, delving into the chaos of working in a kitchen and outlining his rise to cooking stardom.

Be sure to contact your local library to check the availability of these or any other titles!