The Nature of Fragile Things by Susan Meissner
San Francisco, 1906, forms the backdrop for this story where life does not unfold as expected even before a devastating earthquake rocks the region. An unlikely trio of women are forced to unite to navigate the perils of the world they are thrust into.
Fast moving and well written, this book transports the reader to other times and other challenges. Also,check out the many other fascinating historical novels Susan Meissner has written. She is af an favorite. This title is available at the SLO County library system.
Y is for Yesterday by Sue Grafton
Kinsey Milhone is up to her usual detective work on the Central California coast.Grafton adds to the atmosphere by incorporating bits of California history into her“alphabet” series. This is an enjoyable read written with humor and great characters. We have several titles at the GBCL.
West With Giraffes by Lynda Rutledge
In 1938, a massive hurricane slammed into the east coast of the U.S. A ship carrying two giraffes bound for the San Diego Zoo was close to port when it was overcome. The giraffes were rescued but still had to be transported across the country that was still in the grip of the great depression.
Based on a true story, we can share in this remarkable 12 day journey, complete with attempts to steal these amazing animals and put them in the circus. All together an excellent and well written book. This can be found in the SLO Co library system.
At Random by Bennett Cerf
“I’ve got the name for our publishing operation. We just said we were going to publish a few books on the side at random. Let’s call it Random House.” So recounts Bennett Cerf in this wonderfully amusing memoir of the making of a great publishing house.
An incomparable raconteur, possessed of an irrepressible wit and an abiding love of books and authors, Cerf brilliantly evokes the heady days of Random House’s first decades. Our reader loved all the anecdotes of authors and their quirks. The book was from a personal collection.
The Echo of Old Bones by Barbara Davis
Finding a couple of old books with curious inscriptions in her bookshop, Ashlyn goes on ahunt to find the origin of their stories. In the 1940’s, “Regretting Belle” and “Hemi and Other Lies” are conflicting stories of a tragic romance. Ashlyn has a unique gift of psychometric vibes and can feel the authors’ stories within. When she inquires about Hemiand Belle, she finds forbidden love and the history of some of the wealthiest people as well as a link to anti-Semitic secrets.
The Book of Lost Names by Kristen Harmel
Eva, a semiretired librarian, is at the returns desk one morning when her eyes lock on to a photograph in newspaper nearby. That quick glance opens up a chest full of memories from the Nazi occupation in France sixty-five years before.
Working with a Resistance group, Eva helps to re-locate Jewish children and provide them with new identities. But should they maintain a list of the children’s names and their new identities? What if they fall into Nazi hands? Eva is presented with a new dilemma – should she try to reunite these people with their actual history?
The Big Rock Candy Mountain by Wallace Stegner
Stegner portrays life in the early 1900’s American west in a semi-biographical novel that follows the life of a family in the Montana and Wyoming areas. “Stegner once said this was a book about motion,” a Goodreads review says. “The family certainly moved a lot, with that B.R.C.M. [Big Rock Candy Mountain] always beckoning.There was movement of a different sort, too. Young Bruce, who was wise beyond his years, noted that people weren’t fixed points so much as lines, always changing a little from what they were like the wiggly line on a machine used to measure earthquake shocks.”
The Warsaw Protocol by Steve Berry
Steve Berry is a master storyteller, weaving history and culture into an adventure soaked tale set in current times. Medieval Christian relics, venerated as miraculous instruments by believers and also used to profit the church are the fee to gain entry to an exclusive and deadly auction.
Recently uncovered documents that link the current president of Poland to traitorous activities from the communist government era of the 1980’s are offered to the highest bidder. Bidders representing six major countries in the world have differing motives for wanting this valuable leverage. And they have all come to win. This title, and many others by this author, is available at the GBCL.
Next Meeting of Book Break – June 9, 2026, 10:30 a.m. The topic is Women.