Recommendations based on Today Will Be Differentby Maria Semple

* statistically, based on millions of data-points provided by fellow humans

  1. Britt-Marie Was Here

    by Fredrik Backman
    A woman's quest for independence and self-discovery, learning to embrace life and take risks.

    The plot of the novel focuses on a "nag-hag" woman who has recently left her cheating husband and has taken on a job in the city of Borg, working at the recreation center. The city itself is barely a ... (Wikipedia)

  2. Commonwealth

    by Ann Patchett
    Intertwining story of two families across multiple generations, and how their lives become intertwined.

    It started at Franny Keating’s christening party. Bert Cousins wasn’t even invited, but looking for an excuse to get out of the house, away from his three noisy children and pregnant wife for a few ... (Wikipedia)

  3. What Alice Forgot

    by Liane Moriarty
    A woman wakes up with amnesia and must reconstruct her life, rediscovering truths hidden in her past.

    FROM THE #1, NEW YORK TIMES, BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF, THE HUSBAND'S SECRET, AND, BIG LITTLE LIES,. A “cheerfully engaging”(,Kirkus Reviews,) novel for anyone who’s ever asked herself, “How did I get ... (Barnes & Noble)

  4. Station Eleven

    by Emily St. John Mandel
    Post-apocalyptic exploration of a world drastically changed after a pandemic.

    An audacious, darkly glittering novel set in the eerie days of civilization’s collapse,, Station Eleven, tells the spellbinding story of a Hollywood star, his would-be savior, and a nomadic group of ... (Barnes & Noble)

  5. Life After Life

    by Kate Atkinson
    A woman lives multiple lives, reflecting on choices and consequences and the power of love.

    The novel has an unusual structure, repeatedly looping back in time to describe alternative possible lives for its central character, Ursula Todd, who is born on 11 February 1910 to an ... (Wikipedia)

  6. Homegoing

    by Yaa Gyasi
    Spanning centuries, the intertwining stories of two African sisters, their descendants, and the legacy of slavery.

    Effia is raised by her mother, Baaba, who is cruel to her. Nevertheless she works hard to please her mother. Known as a beauty, Effia is intended to be married to the future chief of her village, but ... (Wikipedia)

  7. The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian

    by Sherman Alexie
    A young Native American boy's struggles to survive in a difficult world.

    The book follows a fourteen-year-old boy living with his family on the Spokane Indian Reservation near Wellpinit, Washington for a school year. It is told in episodic diary style, moving from the ... (Wikipedia)

  8. Beartown

    by Fredrik Backman
    A small-town hockey team and its community grapple with the consequences of a traumatic event.

    Peter Andersson, in his forties, is the general manager of the ice hockey club in Beartown, a small town located somewhere in Sweden. Peter grew up in Beartown and was a junior hockey star. He went ... (Wikipedia)

  9. The Shadow Land

    by Elizabeth Kostova
    A young American woman searches for a family lost in Bulgaria, uncovering secrets and confronting the country's dark past.

    From the #1 bestselling author of The Historian comes an engrossing novel that spans the past and the present and unearths the dark secrets of Bulgaria, a beautiful and haunted country. A young ... (Goodreads)

  10. The Woman in Cabin 10

    by Ruth Ware
    An intrepid reporter embarks on a luxury cruise, uncovering a dark and dangerous mystery.

    INSTANT, NEW YORK TIMES, AND, USA TODAY, BESTSELLER, , FROM THE AUTHOR OF, IN A DARK, DARK WOOD, , Featured in TheSkimm, , An, Entertainment Weekly, “Summer Must List” Pick, , A, New York Post, ... (Barnes & Noble)

  11. The Marriage Plot

    by Jeffrey Eugenides
    A young woman's exploration of love, life, and her place in the world.

    It's the early 1980s - the country is in a deep recession, and life after college is harder than ever. In the cafés on College Hill, the wised-up kids are inhaling Derrida and listening to the ... (Goodreads)

  12. Be Frank With Me

    by Julia Claiborne Johnson
    A touching story of a young girl's bond with her eccentric guardian, set in Hollywood.

    AN AMERICAN BOOKSELLERS ASSOCIATION ADULT DEBUT HONOR BOOK WINNER OF THE AUDIE AWARD FOR BEST FEMALE NARRATOR, LOS ANGELES TIMES, BESTSELLER A sparkling talent makes her fiction debut with this ... (Barnes & Noble)

  13. The Underground Railroad

    by Colson Whitehead
    An escaped slave's daring escape to freedom, fighting against the brutality of slavery.

    The story is told in the third person, focusing mainly on Cora. Scattered single chapters also focus on Cora's mother Mabel, the slavecatcher Ridgeway, a reluctant slave sympathizer named Ethel, and ... (Wikipedia)

  14. There There

    by Tommy Orange
    A powerful novel that follows the lives of twelve Native Americans living in Oakland, California, as they prepare for a powwow.

    The book begins with an essay by Orange, detailing "brief and jarring vignettes revealing the violence and genocide that Indigenous people have endured, and how it has been sanitized over the ... (Wikipedia)

  15. Vinegar Girl

    by Anne Tyler
    A retelling of Shakespeare's "The Taming of the Shrew" set in modern day Baltimore.

    Pulitzer Prize winner and American master Anne Tyler brings us an inspired, witty and irresistible contemporary take on one of Shakespeare’s most beloved comedies. Kate Battista feels stuck. How did ... (Goodreads)

  16. Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore

    by Robin Sloan
    A young man's exploration of an unusual bookstore, unlocking a world of secrets.

    The Great Recession has shuffled Clay Jannon away from life as a San Francisco web-design drone and into the aisles of Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore, but after a few days on the job, Clay ... (Goodreads)

  17. Cane River

    by Lalita Tademy
    An epic tale tracing the history of four generations of African-American women in Louisiana.

    A, New York Times, bestseller and Oprah's Book Club Pick-the unique and deeply moving saga of four generations of African-American women whose journey from slavery to freedom begins on a Creole ... (Goodreads)

  18. We Are Okay

    by Nina LaCour
    A teenage girl's journey to confront her past and find closure.

    You go through life thinking there’s so much you need…,Until you leave with only your phone, your wallet, and a picture of your mother. Marin hasn’t spoken to anyone from her old life since the day ... (Goodreads)

  19. The Last Child

    by John Hart
    A suspenseful mystery about a family's search for their missing son, uncovering a dark conspiracy.

    Winner of the 2010 Edgar Award for Best Novel, John Hart's, New York Times, bestselling debut,, The King of Lies, announced the arrival of a major talent. With, Down, River, he surpassed his earlier ... (Barnes & Noble)

  20. The Story of a New Name

    by Elena Ferrante
    Two young women's search for identity and independence in a patriarchal society.

    In 2012, Elena Ferrante's My Brilliant Friend introduced readers to the unforgettable Elena and Lila, whose lifelong friendship provides the backbone for the Neapolitan Novels. The Story of a New ... (Goodreads)

  21. The Stars Are Fire

    by Anita Shreve
    A woman’s struggle to survive devastating wildfires in the post-WWII era.

    In October 1947, after a summer-long drought, fires break out all along the Maine coast from Bar Harbor to Kittery and are soon racing out of control from town to village. Five months pregnant, Grace ... (Goodreads)

  22. Kitchens of the Great Midwest

    by J. Ryan Stradal
    A heartwarming tale of interconnected lives, all connected by their shared love of food.

    The novel centers around Eva, a culinary prodigy born with a “once-in-a-generation palate” to a chef father and a sommelier mother. Though growing up in poverty and facing numerous challenges, by age ... (Wikipedia)

  23. The Curious Charms of Arthur Pepper

    by Phaedra Patrick
    An elderly man embarks on an unexpected journey of self-discovery and healing.

    Look for Phaedra Patrick’s newest perfectly charming read, The Secrets of Love Story Bridge . “An endearing celebration of life.” -RealSimple.com Perfect for fans of A Man Called Ove , this curiously ... (Barnes & Noble)

  24. The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry

    by Gabrielle Zevin
    Life of an isolated bookseller is transformed when an unexpected visitor brings unexpected joy.

    “Marvelously optimistic about the future of books and bookstores and the people who love both.”—, The Washington Post, A. J. Fikry’s life is not at all what he expected it to be. He lives alone, his ... (Barnes & Noble)

  25. The Paper Magician

    by Charlie N. Holmberg
    A young woman's journey of self-discovery, learning the power of paper magic.

    Ceony Twill arrives at the cottage of Magician Emery Thane with a broken heart. Having graduated at the top of her class from the Tagis Praff School for the Magically Inclined, Ceony is assigned an ... (Goodreads)

  26. Skipping Christmas

    by John Grisham
    A family forgoes their traditional holiday celebration, leading to unexpected adventures.

    The story focuses on how Luther and Nora Krank try to avoid the frenzy traditionally experienced during the Christmas holiday. On the Sunday after Thanksgiving , the two take their daughter Blair to ... (Wikipedia)

  27. We Need to Talk About Kevin

    by Lionel Shriver
    A mother's struggle to come to terms with the monstrous acts of her disturbed son.

    In the wake of a school massacre conducted by Kevin Khatchadourian, the 15-year-old son of Franklin Plaskett and Eva Khatchadourian, Eva begins writing letters to Franklin in November 2000. She ... (Wikipedia)

  28. The Silver Star

    by Jeannette Walls
    Two sisters embark on an epic journey across the U.S. in search of their long-lost mother.

    It is 1970 in a small town in California. “Bean” Holladay is twelve and her sister, Liz, is fifteen when their artistic mother, Charlotte, takes off to find herself, leaving her girls enough money to ... (Goodreads)

  29. Heartburn

    by Nora Ephron
    A woman's journey of redemption after her husband's infidelity.

    The narrator of the novel is Rachel Samstat (based on Nora Ephron), a food writer who is married to Mark Feldman (based on Carl Bernstein), a political journalist. Rachel is a Jewish New Yorker who ... (Wikipedia)

  30. After You

    by Jojo Moyes
    A woman comes to terms with her grief, navigating the pain and joy of life after loss.

    From the, New York Times, bestselling author of, The Giver of Stars, discover the love story that captured over 20 million hearts in, Me Before You,, After You, and, Still Me,. “You’re going to feel ... (Goodreads)