Book Recommendations

As Bright as Heaven

by Susan Meissner

In 1918, Philadelphia was a city teeming with promise. Even as its young men went off to fight in the Great War, there were opportunities for a fresh start on its cobblestone streets. Into this bustling town, came Pauline Bright and her husband, filled with hope that they could now give their three daughters--Evelyn, Maggie, and Willa--a chance at a better life.

The Kidnapping of Edgardo Mortara

by David I. Kertzer 

The extraordinary story of how the Vatican's imprisonment of a six-year-old Jewish boy in 1858 helped to bring about the collapse of the popes' worldly power in Italy. 

The Wartime Sisters

by Lynda Cohen Loigman 

For fans of Lilac Girls, the next powerful novel from the author of Goodreads Choice Awards semifinalist The Two-Family House about two sisters working in a WWII armory, each with a deep secret.

The Lost Girls of Paris

by Pam Jenoff

From the author of the runaway bestseller The Orphan’s Tale comes a remarkable story of friendship and courage centered around three women and a ring of female secret agents during World War II. 

The Marriage of Opposites

by Alice Hoffman

A forbidden love story set on the tropical island of St. Thomas about the extraordinary woman who gave birth to painter Camille Pissarro — the Father of Impressionism.  

The Muralist

by B Shapiro 

Auction-house employee Danielle Abrams investigates the unsolved disappearance of her famous artist great-aunt when she discovers enigmatic paintings hidden behind Abstract Expressionist works created decades earlier.

The Extraordinary Life of Sam Hell

by Robert Dugoni 

Sam Hill always saw the world through different eyes. Born with red pupils, he was called “Devil Boy” or Sam “Hell” by his classmates; “God’s will” is what his mother called his ocular albinism. Her words were of little comfort, but Sam persevered, buoyed by his mother’s devout faith, his father’s practical wisdom, and his two other misfit friends.

Genealogy

by Mae Wood

At thirty-three and with her future unclear, Ali Waller finds her way home again. A box of long-forgotten love letters written to her great-grandmother holds the unlikely key to Ali finding her new path.