If you’re looking for a mystery that’s both a commentary on the prejudice that still exists in our world today and a story about how one caring adult can make a huge difference in a young person’s life, then you must read The Violin Conspiracy by Brendan Slocumb.

“Even before the cats, before the dogs, before the chickens, before the turkeys, before the ducks and the guinea fowl and the betta fish and the Black Angus cattle, I was always a little animalish.”

“Doug Tompkins spent the first half of his life scaling the peaks of capitalism, founding iconic companies including THE NORTH FACE and ESPRIT. Then he realized he had climbed the wrong mountain. Moving to a remote cabin in Patagonia without electricity or running water, he launched one of the greatest conservation efforts the world has ever seen.”

“I never know what to expect when I open my door to new clients. The preliminary phone call only reveals so much. In this case, it came from a woman who introduced herself as Marissa Bishop. My marriage is in trouble, she began. I need to talk to my husband about something, but it’s a bit complicated. I thought if we came in together -“

If you’re ready to read a novel about the COVID experience, one that is about the triumph of the human spirit, then you must read Wish You Were Here by Jodi Picoult.

“Titanic’s fate was not preordained, it was ordained by the failings of men in critical moments.” I’m Mark Martin with "Martin’s Must Reads" and William Hazelgrove separates fact from fiction, reality from myth in his book One Hundred and Sixty Minutes, The Race to Save the RMS Titanic.

As the book jacket says, “Discussions become debates, debates become arguments, which turn into fights. As sides are declared, a madness takes hold.” There are four or five murder suspects and like any good mystery, it’s not solved until the last pages of the book.

Clark and Bryant have been podcasting since 2008 about all kinds of interesting things and published a book of twenty-seven of them. They include: Mr. Potato Head, The History of Income Tax, The Pet Rock, Trillionaires, Jack Kevorkian, and Dog Smells.

Crossroads is the name of the church’s youth group, but it is also where these five people stand in their lives. If you’re looking for a story with vivid characters, then you must read "Crossroads" by Jonathan Franzen.

If you are looking for a story of the human side of men in combat during the final months of World War II, then Don Brown and Captain Jerry Yellin’s book The Last Fighter Pilot is a must read.