Sisterland
By Curtis Sittenfeld
Adult New Fiction - Main Level - SITTENFELD

Identical twin sisters Violet and Daisy are psychic. They can sense things that are about to happen. This story is told from Daisy’s perspective, back and forth between their childhood and the present, when they are adults.

Vi has predicted a huge earth quake to take place where they live in St. Louis, Missouri. National television has picked up the story, making Vi somewhat of a celebrity. Daisy, who in adulthood goes by her middle name of Kate, turned off her “senses” after her daughter was born, so she does not know if Vi’s prediction is true – but she does trust her. Vi may be a bit of a loose cannon, wild and unpredictable, but Kate knows her.

This is a story of family loyalty and obligation.  I’ve loved all of Sittenfeld’s books (especially Prep – read that one first!), and this one is a winner too.

Uprising

Uprising
By Margaret Peterson Haddix
Teen Fiction - Main Level - HADDIX

This is a book about the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire of 1911. It is told in three voices: Bella is an immigrant teenager from Italy. She came to America in order to get a job and send money back to her starving family in Italy.  Yetta is a Jewish teenager from Russia. She and her sister Rahel fled from Russia to escape the pogroms, and hope to save enough money to bring the rest of their family to America too.  Jane is the daughter of a wealthy factory owner in New York. All three girls find themselves a part of the suffragist movement, and also striking for better working conditions. While this book is shelved in the Teen Zone, it is every bit as much a book for adult readers. One of the best books I've read all year!