The Best Book I Read This Month: The Dry by Jane Harper

The best book I read this month is a mystery set in a dying Australian town. Jane Harper’s The Dry was published a few years ago and was recently made into a movie on Amazon Prime. It follows Australian federal agent Aaron Falk as he investigates the deaths of his childhood best friend and the friend’s family. I can’t speak for the film adaptation, but the book was gripping. I finished it in a weekend. Once I started, I could not put it down.

The story takes place in a small farming town suffering an extreme drought (hence, the title). The town’s desperation feeds the tension in the book. As a reader, I could feel that the town was on the brink, surviving by little more than a frayed shoestring. Add to that the unexpected murder of a family and the memory of the unsolved murder of a teen girl and The Dry is born.

Harper’s sparse prose kept the focus on the unrelenting tension of the story, and the twists and turns of the mystery were masterful, with plenty of expected and unexpected turns.

Honorable Mention: Hamnet by Maggie O’Farrell

Until I started The Dry, I was sure my choice for best book of the month was going to be Maggie O’Farrell’s Hamnet. I love Shakespeare, so of course I picked up this book, which is a fictional account of Shakespeare’s marriage and the death of his son Hamnet. Scholars believe that Hamnet’s death inspired Shakespeare to write Hamlet., and O’Farrell’s story follows this line of thinking. (At the time, the names Hamnet and Hamlet were interchangeable.)

Hamnet was beautiful and heartbreaking. In contrast with Harper’s sparse prose and harsh mood in The Dry, O’Farrell’s prose is lyrical and poetic, with plenty of long sentences to get lost in, creating a softer mood.

But if you’re expecting a book with Shakespeare as a main character, Hamnet will disappoint you. The Bard is a minor character in this tale and appears only sporadically. The focus instead is on the family he left behind, especially his wife Anne (aka Agnes). The vast majority of the book takes place in Stratford. We don’t see Shakespeare in London or the theatre until the end of the book, when his wife leaves Stratford to see him and his new play, and that scene packs a powerful emotional punch.

The Best Book I Read This Month: Hana Khan Carries On by Uzma Jalaluddin

The best book I read this month was a refreshing break from my usual line-up of murder mysteries and Stephen King horror stories. I picked up Hana Khan Carries On because of its cover. It’s bright and colorful and a visible contrast to all the black covers on my bookshelves. (Apparently, black is the color of choice for books about murder.)

Hana Khan Carries On tells the story of a young Muslim Canadian woman and her quest to save her family’s restaurant and launch her own radio career. Along the way, she deals with visiting relatives, the owners of a rival restaurant, an online flirtation, and a boss with her own agenda. In the story’s climax, Hana must come to terms with a hate crime. Of course, because this is ultimately a romance, the story ends with Hana finding her version of a happily ever after.

I found Jalaluddin’s story and writing delightful. Hana is a compelling main character. Her cousin, Rashid, is part hero and part comic relief. Her visiting aunty is equally colorful.

This book just was the bit of sunshine I needed.

The Best Book I Read This Month: Girl Gone Missing by Marcie R. Rendon

The best book I read this month—Girl Gone Missing—was the sequel to the best book I read last month—Murder on the Red River by Native American author Marcie R. Rendon. There’s no sophomore slump in Girl Gone Missing. Everything I loved about the first book is there in the second: the narrative voice, the strong protagonist, the wandering pace.

What stood out for me in this one was Cash’s resourcefulness. It was there in the first book, but it really shined in this one. Whereas the first book centered on a murder, this one centers on a missing person’s case. Specifically, the disappearance of a white classmate of Cash’s at the local community college. As Cash pursues the “case,” she becomes endangered and relies on her wits to survive.

The supporting cast grows in this book too. We not only learn more about the sheriff who took Cash under his wing, we also meet Cash’s long lost brother—a veteran just returned from Vietnam and struggling with PTSD.

In some ways, this book was a bit darker than its predecessor, but it was no less satisfying. I have no idea if a third book in the series is coming, but I certainly hope there is!

The Best Book I Read This Month: Murder on the Red River by Marcie R. Rendon

The best book I read this month was a mystery by Native American author Marcie R. Rendon, Murder on the Red River. Set in 1970 along the Minnesota-North Dakota border, Murder on the Red River follows Cash Blackbear as she explores the circumstances surrounding the death of a Native American farm worker.

As the story follows Cash, we learn about her background as an Indian child in white foster homes (SPOILER: she was not treated well), as an itinerant farm worker who supplements her income hustling pool, and as the surrogate daughter to the local sheriff.

What grabbed me as a reader was the book’s narrative voice. It was spot on and suited Cash perfectly. I was so captivated by the voice and the story that I read the book in two sittings and then immediately ordered the sequel, Girl Gone Missing.

Despite this being a short book (199 pages), the pace of the story did not feel rushed at all. In fact, the story lacked the dogged single-mindedness common in so many mysteries. That’s a good thing, as such single-mindedness would not have suited these characters. It would have felt disingenuous.

I am now a few pages into the sequel, and I fervently hope this becomes an on-going series. I want lots more Cash Blackbear.

The Best Book I Read This Month: Our Declaration by Danielle Allen

The best book I read this month is a fascinating work about one of our founding documents, the Declaration of Independence. In Our Declaration: A Reading of the Declaration of Independence in Defense of Equality, Danielle Allen walks the reader through a close reading of the declaration’s text, arguing that each section of the document speaks to the notion of equality.

It’s a fascinating take, and I’ve never seen the Declaration analyzed or explained in this way. Best of all, Allen’s writing is accessible. You don’t need to be a scholar of history to understand her interpretation or follow her reasoning. That, in itself, speaks of equality. She makes the Declaration available to everyone.

BONUS RECOMMENDATION:

Our Declaration wasn’t the only—or even the first—remarkable book I read this month. I began February by reading called Why Study History When It’s Already on Your Phone by Sam Wineburg. If you are in any way involved in history education, READ THIS BOOK. The first chapter, in which Wineburg examines the failures of standardized testing, got me so worked up that I wanted to burn the system down and start all over again. The rest of the book did not provoke such a violent reaction, but it did identify many of my frustrations with state history standards and curriculum.