The Impostor's Daughter by Laurie Sandell

Most of the books I review are borrowed from the Edmonton Public Library. Sometimes I blog about books that I purchase (my favourite bookstores are Audrey's and Greenwoods). This is the first time I've written about a book that I got free from a publisher (Hachette) and it is thanks to a give-away offer on Avis' delightful She Reads and Reads blog. I was really excited to get it in the mail, but I'm not sure that I'll want more review copies. Feeling obliged to review a book in "payment" for a free copy does not sit well with me - even though I enjoyed reading it.

Laurie Sandell is a journalist who has interviewed a great number of celebrities. Her most intriguing subject, however, is her own father. He had immigrated from Argentina to the U.S.A. as a young man. He enthralled his children with amazing stories about his life experiences before his job as an economics professor. Sandell idolized her father, but as she grew older, she began to wonder about his stories and his very odd quirks. In her search for truth, Sandell uncovered shocking secrets about her family and also realized the extent of her father's mental illness.

Sandell's graphic novel style reminded me of two other full-colour memoirs: At a Crossroads by Kate Williamson and Cancer Vixen by Marisa Acocella Marchetto. Another readalike - with a similar quest by a daughter to understand her father - is You'll Never Know by Carol Tyler. The Impostor's Daughter is a compelling coming-of-age story.

The Eye of Jade by Diane Wei Liang

Mei Wang is officially an information consultant, because in Beijing in the late 1990s it is illegal to operate a detective agency. Uncle Chen, an old friend of her mother's, asks Mei to find a piece of jade that may be surfacing on the black market. Mei's investigations turn up more than she expected; secrets from her own family history.

Beijing-born author Diane Wei Liang wonderfully evokes the chaotic setting and complex culture of modern China. The relationships between Mei and her family and friends are also very well developed. Liang's writing style combines dialogue that moves the story forward with lyrical passages: "Night was like a magic brush, blacking out all the ugliness so that the hour of love and longing could unfold." Highly recommended.

The Upside of Irrationality by Dan Ariely

In his earlier book, Predictably Irrational, Dan Ariely looked at biases that lead consumers into making unwise decisions. His new book's subtitle - The Unexpected Benefits of Defying Logic at Work and at Home - explains the shifted focus in The Upside of Irrationality.

"Some of the ways in which we are irrational are also what makes us wonderfully human (our ability to find meaning in work, our ability to fall in love with our creations and ideas, our willingness to trust others, our ability to adapt to new circumstances, our ability to care about others and so on)." Understanding the forces that drive our actions can help us to make better decisions in our lives. Ariely's advice is to "Ask questions. Explore. Turn over rocks. Question your behaviour, that of your company, employees, and other businesses, and that of agencies, politicians and governments." Enquiring minds unite!

Discord's Apple by Carrie Vaughn

In a near-future world of increasing terrorism, military action and consumer shortages, Evie Walker writes comic books for a living. She travels from Los Angeles to the sleepy town of Hope's Fort, Colorado, because her widowed father is dying of cancer. While the Kremlin is obliterated by Mongolian bombs and the U.S. waffles on whether to side with Russia or China in the ensuing world war, Evie battles with her emotions regarding her stoic father.

Evie also learns a family secret that has been kept for thousands of years; the Walkers have been designated as guardians of the Storeroom. The room in the basement had been forbidden to Evie when she was a child. With her father's death imminent, Evie must take his place. Mythological folk show up at the door, making demands, asking for magical items from the Storeroom.

Stir together the myths of ancient Greece, Arthurian legend and European folk tales into a modern setting and you've got Discord's Apple. The story falters in the final two chapters, but I recommend it anyway. Without giving away the ending, it is safe to say that there will be a special appeal for readers who like romance. Readalikes: American Gods (Neil Gaiman); Gods Behaving Badly (Marie Phillips); The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms (N.K. Jemisin) and The Book of Lost Things (John Connolly).

Sanctuary Line by Jane Urquhart

Liz is an entomologist studying monarch butterflies on the shores of Lake Erie in southern Ontario. She lives in a fieldstone farmhouse that has been in her family for generations, although most of the farmland has been sold over the years. Every summer while Liz was growing up, she and her mother used to travel from their home in Toronto to spend two months at the farm. The place was like her second home and Liz's cousin Mandie, two years younger, was her best friend.

The story opens with Mandie's funeral; she died in Afghanistan during a tour of military duty. Grief over the loss of her cousin opens old wounds for Liz. She addresses her narrative of memories to a particular person, identified only as "you" until the denouement. Liz's story of her extended family centers around Mandie's charismatic and mentally unstable father and the event that caused him to abandon his family when the girls were in their mid-teens. Teo, a child of one of the Mexican fieldworkers who came to the farm every year, is also part of the story. He and Liz were the same age and they both felt somewhat apart from the other kids.

It is this quality of aloofness or reservedness that is a distinguishing mark in Jane Urquart's fiction. Another reader told me she found Urquart cold, but I am fascinated by characters like Liz who protects her heart so fiercely.

Sanctuary Line is a quiet story with vivid characters and an excellent evocation of time and place. It is on the long list for the Giller Prize. Readalikes: The Lost Garden by Helen Humphreys and Crow Lake by Mary Lawson.

Unaccustomed Earth by Jhumpa Lahiri

I love good writing about relationships and that is what I found in Jhumpa Lahiri's Unaccustomed Earth. The stories are about the lives of Bengali immigrants in the U.S., yet they have a universal appeal. The links between parent and offspring, between siblings or roommates, and husband and wife are explored delicately and with insight. The stories are also about healing and forgiveness, the qualities that help get us through the pain of loss and the hurts we inflict on the people closest to us.

Sarita Choudhury and Ajay Naidu perform the Random House audio edition (10 hours) and their alternating male and female voices make this a very pleasant listening experience.

Georgia's Kitchen by Jenny Nelson

As part of my ongoing pursuit to find romantic fiction that I like, I read Georgia's Kitchen by first-time author Jenny Nelson. Reasons I thought I'd like it: it's about a woman chef and it's partly set in Tuscany. Which are the same reasons that I did enjoy it, plus the characterization of Georgia, the 33-year-old central character, and her relationships with lots of different people in her life.

I didn't love all the romantic angst, but that part didn't put me off the book in the way it might have if I was less hooked on other elements. The main hook was the inside view of what goes on in restaurant kitchens. I was also cheering for Georgia in her search for self-confidence and self-acceptance.

I also didn't love the many mentions of luxury brands and expensive New York City shops. (I'm dubious about the ability to tell that a business card was printed at a certain stationer just by the heft and sheen of the paper.) This name-dropping seems to be unavoidable in chick lit. The frequent references to Georgia's frizzy hair annoyed me too, since I got it the first time; her hair is difficult to control. Once would have been enough, but it was closer to once every chapter, usually with a frizz rating. Except for chapter 20, where we hear about a friend's hair for a change - "Her black hair hung in ropy, dreadlike chunks, completing the boho-chic look she was currently cultivating. The coif had probably set her back three hundred bucks at her chichi Madison Avenue salon."

Everything wraps up neatly for Georgia (and her hair) at the end. Food, friends, fiance, job hunting, single life, a faithful dog, New York, Italy and a happy ending. What else do you need?