|bookshelf
February books NOTABLE NEW RELEASES compiled by Sally Brewster
The Christie Affair, by Nina de Gramont The Christie Affair is riveting reimagining of actual events in the life of Agatha Christie on her mysterious, 11-day disappearance in December 1926, shortly after Christie’s husband revealed he was having an affair and wanted a divorce. The story is narrated by Nan O’Dea, the ‘other woman.’ She disappears around the same time as Christie, and the two end up becoming friends of a sort. Christie eventually returns home, but her life — and Nan’s — have changed dramatically. The Nineties: A Book, by Chuck Klosterman It was long ago, but not as long as it seems: The Berlin Wall fell and the Twin Towers collapsed. In between, one presidential election was allegedly decided by Ross Perot while another was plausibly decided by Ralph Nader. In the beginning, almost every name and address was listed in a phone book, and everyone answered their landlines because you didn’t know who it was. By the end, exposing someone’s address was an act of emotional violence, and nobody picked up their cell phone if they didn’t know who was calling. The ’90s brought about a revolution in the human condition we’re still groping to understand. Chuck Klosterman makes a home in all of it: the film, the music, the sports, the TV, the politics, the changes regarding race and class and sexuality, the yin yang of Oprah and Alan Greenspan. Mercy Street, by Jennifer Haigh For almost a decade, Claudia has counseled patients at Mercy Street, a clinic in the heart of the city. The work is consuming —
the unending dramas of women in crisis. For its patients, Mercy Street offers more than health care. For many, it is a second chance, but outside the clinic, the reality is different. Anonymous threats are frequent. A small, determined group of anti-abortion demonstrators appears each morning at its door. As the protests intensify, fear creeps into Claudia’s days, a humming anxiety she manages with frequent visits to Timmy, an affable pot dealer who is dealing with his own existential crisis. At Timmy’s, she encounters a random assortment of customers, including Anthony, a lost soul who spends most of his life online, chatting with the mysterious Excelsior11 — the screenname of Victor Prine, an anti-abortion crusader who has set his sights on Mercy Street and is ready to risk it all for his beliefs. Don’t Cry For Me, by Daniel Black As Jacob lies dying, he begins to write a letter to his only son, Isaac. They have not met or spoken in many years, and there are things that Isaac must know: Stories about his ancestral legacy in rural Arkansas that extend back to slavery. Secrets from Jacob’s tumultuous relationship with Isaac’s mother and the shame he carries from the dissolution of their family. Tragedies that informed Jacob’s role as a father and his reaction to Isaac’s being gay. But most of all, Jacob must share with Isaac the unspoken truths that reside in his heart. He must give voice to the trauma that Isaac has inherited. And he must create a space for the two to find peace. SP Sally Brewster is the proprietor of Park Road Books at 4139 Park Rd. parkroadbooks.com southparkmagazine.com | 61
