Staff Picks: Great Books from 2021 You Might Have Missed

Thu, 08/11/2022 - 10:29am by emjane

So many amazing and meaningful books come out EVERY YEAR and it's IMPOSSIBLE to read them all. Maybe you missed hearing about a title. Maybe you peeped at the hold list and thought “another time.” That time is now! Here are four great books that came out in 2021 that are worth circling back for!

The Final Revival of Opal & Nev by Dawnie Walton | Request Now
Opal, a young Black woman in 1970s Detroit is ready to leave her Michigan life behind when she’s discovered by British up-and-coming musician Nev at a nightclub show. The two talents find great success, but reach an explosive end after Opal protests the racist actions of another band on their label. Told from multiple characters’ perspectives, Opal & Nev, unravels the story from the 1970s while also chronicling an attempt to reunite the two for one last performance in the modern day. The use of multiple narrators keeps the book propelling forward – I found myself wanting to set aside all responsibilities and just sit with the book until I made it to the end!

Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir | Request Now
Ryland finds himself waking up, after a long, long sleep, in a spaceship. Though he can’t remember the mission or how he got there, judging by his two dead compatriots, things haven’t gone according to plan. Over the course of the book, science teacher Ryland slowly recovers his memory, tries to figure out how to survive, and comes across a VERY intriguing potential ally. Like Weir’s previous hit, The Martian, Project Hail Mary follows the basic structure of “man stuck in space, facing problem, solving problem, facing new problem” but takes it in a different direction. I am decidedly not a Sci-Fi fan, but am so glad that I picked up the book at the recommendation of a few friends. I found myself instantly pulled into the story, engaged by the science without being overwhelmed, and caring deeply about the fate of the characters.

Rock the Boat by Beck Dorey-Stein | Request Now
Summer may be starting its wind-down, but there’s still time for this light (but not empty!) beachy read! After struggling with the implosion of her relationship and life in NYC, Kate returns to her hometown on the Jersey Shore to put herself back together and make a plan to get back to her glory. Miles, Kate’s high school classmate also finds himself returning home to prove himself – as “town royalty” he hopes to take over the family business and show his mom he’s not just a party boy. Ziggy, a third classmate, never left Sea Point, but is struggling to handle his dad’s plumbing business, and his grief, after his father’s unexpected passing. The three reunite and try to stumble their way into their next phases of life together.

These Silent Woods by Kimi Cunningham Grant | Request Now
The only world 8-year-old Finch has known is the small cabin in the remote Appalachian woods that she shares with her father Cooper. Their location is known to few—a local hermit called Scotland, and their friend Jake, who stops by yearly to drop off supplies. When Jake fails to show on the predetermined date, Cooper’s worries of how to survive, and how to escape his past, are intensified. This atmospheric thriller with a slowly revealed backstory made my reading time on-edge (in a good way!) I was never certain which characters and situations to trust!