Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates

This is a letter that Coates has written to his son to help him understand how he is to understand his place in contemporary America.  It is spectacular writing. I had twenty passages identified for book group discussion in the first 44 pages.  I am not sure what I could say that would be a worthy commentary so I will just quote Toni Morrison from the back of the book jacket, "The language of (this book), like Coates journey, is visceral, eloquent, and beautifully redemptive. And its examination of the hazards and hopes of black male life is as profound as it is revelatory. This is required reading."  I agree.

Foreign Affairs by Alison Lurie

The writing in this Pulitzer Prize winning novel is what makes it worth the read.  Two American professors spend a few months researching and writing in London.  Vinnie is a 54 year old expert in children's nursery rhymes.  Plain looking and feeling unappreciated in her field, she loves all things British.  Fred is an much younger and anxious to make a name for himself  with his research on an 18th century English author.  Movie star handsome, his other reason for being in London is to escape embarrassing photos taken by his wife and shared in a photography exhibition.  Both Vinnie and Fred find romantic connections in London and their paths cross in Noel Cowardian ways.  By the end of the book, both have used their London experience to resolve some of the baggage they carry.  There is supposed to be a kind of sophisticated humor here but I never warmed to either of the main characters so I may have missed some of it.  Made for interesting book group conversation anyway.

Just Mercy by Bryan Stevenson

In 1983 Stevenson went from Harvard Law School to Georgia to intern with the Southern Prisoners Defense Committee.  He found a lot to horrify him in the prisons but when he began to talk to the prisoners on death row who had been so poorly defended in court and were likely to be put to death for crimes they did not commit, he knew where his law degree would lead him.  This is the story of many of those prisoners and Stevenson's attempt to fine justice for them.  It is the story of blatant racism and hidden corruption in the court system.  The combination of statistics and stories is enough to anger anyone but it is the rare person who channels that anger into a way to make a difference. Stevenson is that person who continues his work within the Equal Justice Initiative he founded.  This is the kind of change we need.

The Barber's Wife by Tanya Nichols

Back in the day O.C. Holloway and Charlie Floyd were good friends hanging out in rural Oklahoma.  O.C. learns to be a barber, meets Mayme while she was in nursing school, falls in love and makes a comfortable if not very exciting life in Mayme's hometown.  Charlie becomes "Pretty Boy" Floyd. Although they choose very different paths, they connect again as Charlie and a few other unsavory characters secretly seek help from Mayme for various health issues.  When Mayme is forced to draw Joe, the local doctor, into helping Charlie, the story takes a very different turn.  Joe keeps Mayme's secret because he is secretly in love with her.  So many secrets to keep in rural Oklahoma in the 30's.  So many moral dilemma's - some resolved at the point of a gun.