Staff Picks: Fabulous Fiction from U-M Alum

Sat, 02/17/2024 - 3:13pm by emjane

The Helen Zell Writers Program, University of Michigan’s MFA program, has an impressive alumni list, who—would you believe it—have written some impressively good books! Here are a few of my favorites.

The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett | Request Now

Twin sisters Desiree and Stella both leave home at 16 and their lives, which up until that point had been lived in tandem, dramatically diverge. Told from shifting perspectives between Desiree, Stella, and their daughters, The Vanishing Half spans generations to tell an engaging story of identity, family, and connection.

This has been a selection for two different book clubs I belong to, and there’s a reason it’s an excellent choice. The Vanishing Half is a relatively fast-paced read with ample grey area that makes for stimulating discussion!

 

 

 

Owner of a Lonely Heart by Beth Nguyen | Request Now

This literary autobiography by Beth Nguyen focuses particularly on her relationship—or lack of one—with her mother. The book begins “Over the course of my life, I have known less than twenty-four hours with my mother,” and uses the time she spent with her mother, and the absence of her, as the structure of her memoir of childhood and young adulthood. Growing up a Vietnamese immigrant in Michigan in the 1980s, Nguyen was primarily raised by her father, grandmother, and stepmother. She shares her story non-chronologically, but is a deft writer who never left me wondering “wait, when are we now?” The book is not long, but no words are wasted; it’s the good kind of dense.  

 

 

 

Bloods Bones and Butter by Gabrielle Hamilton| Request Now

Restauranteur Gabrielle Hamilton didn’t go to school to be a chef—she got that MFA, remember?—but kitchens and cooking played a key role throughout her life and are the lens through which this memoir is explored. Hamilton is frequently not a sympathetic narrator, but writes honestly about her decisions and actions. She has evocative descriptions, particularly of food, and Ann Arbor makes a few cameos as well!

Reviews of this memoir are mixed—Hamilton’s brashness and sometimes scattered writing style puts some readers off—but as a lover of food and complicated people, I enjoyed it and still come back to it in my memory more than a decade after it was published.
 

 

Circling the Sun by Paula McLain| Request Now

One of Paula McLain’s literary specialties is writing biographical fiction, and Circling the Sun is my favorite of the genre. Following Beryl Markham, a woman aviator in colonial Africa, Circling the Sun thrusts the reader into the world of Out of Africa. Beryl, raised by her father in the land of the Kipsigis tribe, is a strong-willed, daring protagonist, particularly satisfying traits for a woman living in the 1920s. Filled with adventure, tumultuous love, and descriptions of the wilderness of Kenya, Circling the Sun is a tasty immersive read. Why not pair it with a watch (or rewatch) of Out of Africa for a full experience? Not a historical fiction person? Her thriller When the Stars Go Dark is a 5-star read!