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I picked up this book after hearing all the kerfuffle about the new Netflix adaptation. Persuasion by Jane Austen is beautiful and I am so happy to have picked it up. This novel is more melancholy compared to Austen's other novels, but with the same thoughtfulness and relatability.

Anne Elliot is a 27-year-old who differs drastically from her father and sisters. They are superficial and egotistical while Anne is a thoughtful, caring, and quiet young woman. Years ago, Anne called off her engagement to Captain Wentworth, the love of her life, at the insistence of her family due to his lower social standing. Years later, Captain Wentworth returns and Anne deals with changed feelings and circumstances of the relationship.

Although the setting and time of this book are a lot different than today, the book is a great read. Jane Austen has created a classic that involves themes and situations relatable to today. A great read!

Available as an ebook and eaudiobook on eMediaLibrary (Libby).

This classic novel is a page turner from start to finish. The beauty of To Kill a Mockingbird (1960) is that it is told from the point of view of six-year-old Jean Louise Finch (nicknamed Scout), whose curiosity and confusion about the racial injustice she sees all around her serve to highlight and call into question these horrible racial biases. The main storyline follows Scout's father, Atticus, a lawyer who has been appointed by the judge to defend a black man accused of rape. The fictional town of Maycomb, Alabama, in the early 1930s serves as the backdrop with a multitude of characters, young and old, each with their own prejudices.

Beyond the major theme, the book is about growing up and parenting in a particular place and time. Harper Lee's novel explores the human condition exposing the flaws of even the protagonists, who have their own biases.

To Kill a Mockingbird is available to borrow via Hoopla (ebook, audio) and Overdrive (ebook, audio).

If you liked this book, check out our list of read-alikes.

Willa Cather's My Antonia (1918) describes growing up in frontier Nebraska during the end of the eighteenth century. It is told from the point of view of ten-year-old orphan Jim Burden, who leaves Virginia to live with his paternal grandparents. He soon befriends Antonia Shimerda, who lives on the next farm, and they go on adventures that are indelibly etched into their memories. They grow up together and become lifelong friends, keeping in touch even after Jim moves east, eventually settling in New York. When he comes to visit later in life, Antonia has aged considerably, but despite her change in appearance, she is still the dear friend he remembers.

My Antonia leaves you with a deep feeling of nostalgia for a person and place you never knew. Visit Hoopla to read the ebook or listen to the audiobook.