The Free Library of Philadelphia* just released their fall Author Events schedule, and it features a fierce female line-up. Here are four fantastic must-read books for when these authors come to town.
Amy Tan, Mother Tongue
This fall, Amy Tan will come to Philadelphia to celebrate her latest book, a memoir, called Where the Past Begins. It won’t be released until October though, which means you have plenty of time to read her essay Mother Tongue. As she describes all “the different Englishes” she uses, depending on whom she is speaking with, Tan draws an important connection between language and identity, especially for adolescents.
Ntozake Shange, Sassafrass, Cypress & Indigo
Ntozake Shange’s newest book, Wild Beauty, is a collection of 60 original and previously collected poems in English and Spanish that call on “a new generation of activists” to take action. Dip your toes in with one of her earliest books, Sassafrass, Cypress & Indigo. In this story, three sisters and their mother explore what it means to be a woman and an artist. The Philadelphia Inquirer called the novel, “A marvel… Languages–colloquial, established, lyric play together like the most lush chamber music, the coolest jazz, the brassiest marches, the hippest jug band… It leaves us filled with joy and yearning for more.”
Jennifer Weiner, Little Foot, Big City
Don’t miss Little Foot, Big City by Philadelphia-native, Jennifer Weiner. It’s the second book in a young adult (YA) trilogy about friendship, belonging, and urban sasquatches. In an “unexpected twist of fate,” three unsuspecting characters end up at the same crossroads and must carefully ask themselves critical questions: What is good? What is evil? What does it mean to be a hero?
Isabel Allende, The House of the Spirits
Isabel Allende has received 50 awards in more than 12 countries. The House of the Spirits is her debut novel that has been turned into a feature film. In it, Allende tells the stories of members of the Trueba family during a turbulent political time in an unnamed Latin American country.
What other books by these authors would you recommend? Share with us in the comments below!
* Author’s note/disclosure: I support an after-school culinary literacy class for teens with this organization.
