(1) Lara Tupper has a new book out this month called Off Island that is my favorite kind of historical fiction novel, one that weaves in a contemporary story line.
In Off Island, Tupper creates an imagined history of artist Paul Guaguin, famed for his vibrant paintings from the South Seas, visiting an island off the coast of Maine. A hundred years later, a contemporary painter finds the paintings and letters Gauguin left behind, and learns maybe Guaguin also left a family in Maine.
TEASER
The tails of the Pastor's coat flapped as he watched the sun sink behind the buffer island, a slash of red caught in the hermit's broken window. Like the light was stuck there.
Off Island by Lara Tupper, from Encircle Publications.
(2) Billy Lombardo's novel, Morning Will Come, launches this month as well. It's the story of a couple with three kids learning to cope after their oldest daughter disappears. I admit it sounds so sad I haven't dived in. But I've dipped my toes and it looks more hopeful than it sounds.
Morning Will Come by Billy Lombardo, from Tortoise Books.
TEASER
She'd loop her arm through his and maybe he wouldn't lock his arm, maybe he would loosen it and keep it there for the two-block walk to his apartment, Maybe he would say he missed her.
SLOW BLOGGING WEEK!
I didn't get much posted the past week because things have been hopping at work. Catlin Gabel, a private school here in Portland, released a report last month identifying nine child molesters who worked at the school from the 1960s to 2016. My law partner and I specialize in representing sexual abuse survivors. We filed a lawsuit yesterday on behalf of one of the Catlin Gabel survivors.
Teaser Tuesdays is hosted by The Purple Booker. Participants share a two-sentence teaser from the book they are reading or featuring. Please remember to include the name of the book and the author. You can share your teaser in a comment below, or with a comment or link at the Teaser Tuesday site, where you can find the official rules for this weekly event.
