Central Skagit Library District

A new edition of this award-winning modern classic, with an introduction by Tayari Jones (An American Marriage), an excerpt from the never before seen follow-up, and discussion guide.
 
Pakersfield, Georgia, 1958: Thirteen-year-old Tangy Mae Quinn is the sixth of ten fatherless siblings. She is the darkest-skinned among them and therefore the ugliest in her mother, Rozelle’s, estimation, but she’s also...

Reluctantly agreeing to organize a children's benefit at which a rock-star ex-lover is performing, Claire Danner Crispin finds her efforts complicated by her clashes with a fellow organizer, her best friend's catering mishaps, and a new relationship.

Returning to her hometown was the last thing Laurie ever expected. But with two children in tow, she must begin anew... and face the life--and man--she turned her back on. Cal has been struggling with his own problems, but the arrival of Laurie brings new hope and meaning to his life. Can he push aside his feelings to simply be the friend she desperately needs? And when the dangers of her hidden past threaten, can Cal overcome the haunting memories...

"Set in 1960s California, this ... debut is the ... story of a female scientist whose career is constantly derailed by the idea that a woman's place is in the home, only to find herself starring as the host of America's most beloved TV cooking show"--

"Giffin excels at creating complex characters and stories that ask us to explore what we really want from our lives."—Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Tessa Russo is the mother of two young children and the wife of a renowned pediatric surgeon. Despite her own mother's warnings, Tessa has recently given up her career to focus on her family and the pursuit of domestic happiness. From the outside, she seems destined to live a charmed

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"It's 1965 in a tight-knit working-class neighborhood in Queens, New York, and Ruth Malone--a single mother who works long hours as a cocktail waitress--wakes to discover her two small children, Frankie Jr. and Cindy, have gone missing. Later that day, Cindy's body is found in a derelict lot a half mile from her home, strangled. Ten days later, Frankie Jr.'s decomposing body is found. Immediately, all fingers point to Ruth. As police investigate the...

Lisa lives for her daughter Ava, her job and her best friend Marilyn. When a handsome client shows an interest in her, Lisa starts daydreaming about sharing her life with him, too. Maybe she can trust again... and let her terrifying secret past go. When Ava rescues a boy from drowning and their pictures are all over the news for everyone to see, Lisa's world explodes. Now everything she has built is threatened, and Lisa doesn't know who she can trust....

Young army vet Michelle Sanderson returns to Blackberry Island Inn, the home she left long ago, to claim her inheritance and recover from war. But she finds Carly Williams, her former best friend, running the inn and the business on the verge of financial collapse. To save the inn, the two women must put aside their feelings and work together, but can they heal their past, too?

"One of our most gifted writers of fiction returns with a bold and piercing novel about a young single mother living in Harlem, her eccentric aunt, and the decisions they make that have unexpected implications for the world around them. Reyna knows her relationship with Boyd isn't perfect, yet she sees him through a three-month stint at Riker's Island, their bond growing tighter. Kiki, now settled in the East Village after a youth that took her to...

Annie O'Harran is getting married . . . all over again A divorced, single mum, Annie is about to tie the knot with David. But there's a long summer to get through first. A summer where's she's retreating to a lonely house in Cornwall, where's she's going to finish her book, spend time with her teenage daughter Flora and make any last-minute wedding plans. Annie should be so lucky. For almost as soon as Annie arrives her competitive sister and her...