Recommendations based on The Day the Falls Stood Stillby Cathy Marie Buchanan

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

  1. The Painted Girls

    by Cathy Marie Buchanan
    Set in Belle Époque Paris, follows the lives of two sisters who become ballet dancers and their relationship with Edgar Degas.

    1878 Paris. Following their father's sudden death, the van Goethem sisters find their lives upended. Without his wages, and with the small amount their laundress mother earns disappearing into the ... (Goodreads)

  2. The Invention of Wings

    by Sue Monk Kidd
    A powerful story about a girl's journey to freedom, despite the limitations of slavery.

    Writing at the height of her narrative and imaginative gifts, Sue Monk Kidd presents a masterpiece of hope, daring, the quest for freedom, and the desire to have a voice in the world—and it is now ... (Goodreads)

  3. Our Souls at Night

    by Kent Haruf
    An elderly couple's exploration of love, loneliness, and companionship.

    A spare yet eloquent, bittersweet yet inspiring story of a man and a woman who, in advanced age, come together to wrestle with the events of their lives and their hopes for the imminent future. In ... (Goodreads)

  4. The Sound of Glass

    by Karen White
    A widow inherits a house from her husband's grandmother, uncovering family secrets and a tragic past.

    The, New York Times, bestselling author of, A Long Time Gone, now explores a Southern family’s buried history, which will change the life of the woman who unearths it, secret by shattering secret. It ... (Goodreads)

  5. The Snow Child

    by Eowyn Ivey
    A couple's dream of a child comes true in the Alaskan wilderness, but with unexpected consequences.

    Alaska, 1920: a brutal place to homestead, and especially tough for recent arrivals Jack and Mabel. Childless, they are drifting apart–he breaking under the weight of the work of the farm; she ... (Goodreads)

  6. The Lifeboat

    by Charlotte Rogan
    After a shipwreck, a group of survivors struggle to survive on a lifeboat, revealing their true nature as they fight for survival.

    The sinking of an ocean liner leaves a newly married woman battling for survival in this powerful debut novel. Grace Winter, 22, is both a newlywed and a widow. She is also on trial for her life. In ... (Barnes & Noble)

  7. The Stone Angel

    by Margaret Laurence
    An elderly woman reflects on her life and relationships with family, friends, and society.

    In a series of vignettes , The Stone Angel tells the story of Hagar Shipley, a 90-year-old woman struggling to come to grips with a life of intransigence and loss. The themes of pride and the ... (Wikipedia)

  8. The Kitchen Boy: A Novel of the Last Tsar

    by Robert Alexander
    A fictional retelling of the last days of the Romanovs, through the eyes of their kitchen boy.

    Drawing from decades of work, travel, and research in Russia, Robert Alexander re-creates the tragic, perennially fascinating story of the final days of Nicholas and Alexandra as seen through the ... (Goodreads)

  9. The Whistling Season

    by Ivan Doig
    A coming-of-age story set in rural Montana in 1909, following a family's struggles and triumphs during the homesteading era.

    "Can't cook but doesn't bite." So begins the newspaper ad offering the services of an "A-1 housekeeper, sound morals, exceptional disposition" that draws the hungry attention of widower Oliver ... (Goodreads)

  10. The Pilot's Wife

    by Anita Shreve
    A woman's journey of overcoming personal tragedy to find strength and courage.

    The novel is about Kathryn Lyons, whose husband, Jack Lyons, dies in a plane crash over the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Malin Head , Ireland. As she and her daughter Mattie try to cope with this ... (Wikipedia)

  11. Secret Daughter

    by Shilpi Somaya Gowda
    An Indian woman's journey to find her daughter and redeem her past.

    Somer's life is everything she imagined it would be — she's newly married and has started her career as a physician in San Francisco — until she makes the devastating discovery she never will be able ... (Goodreads)

  12. The Orchardist

    by Amanda Coplin
    A story of a reclusive orchardist and his unlikely friendships that help him find redemption.

    Set in the untamed American West, a highly original and haunting debut novel about a makeshift family whose dramatic lives are shaped by violence, love, and an indelible connection to the land. You ... (Goodreads)

  13. A Lesson Before Dying

    by Ernest J. Gaines
    A young black man is sentenced to death in the 1940s South, and a teacher helps him find dignity before his execution.

    The story begins with the murder of Mr. Grope by two black men. An innocent bystander named Jefferson is charged with and convicted of the murder. He is sentenced to death. In his trial, Jefferson's ... (Wikipedia)

  14. Tears of the Giraffe

    by Alexander McCall Smith
    A humorous and heartwarming story of the lives of the inhabitants of a Botswana village.

    Newly engaged Mma Ramotswe is not impressed with Mr JLB Matekoni's maid, Florence Pena. Unknown to him, she has been sleeping in his bed with her men friends. Obvious to Mma Ramotswe is that she does ... (Wikipedia)

  15. Ahab's Wife, or The Star-Gazer

    by Sena Jeter Naslund
    A woman's journey of self-discovery, defying society's expectations and finding her own path.

    A magnificent, vast, and enthralling saga, Sena Jeter Naslund's Ahab's Wife is a remarkable epic spanning a rich, eventful, and dramatic life. Inspired by a brief passage in Moby Dick , it is the ... (Goodreads)

  16. The Kitchen House

    by Kathleen Grissom
    A young Irish girl is taken in by a plantation family in Virginia and becomes entangled in the lives of the slaves who work there.

    When a white servant girl violates the order of plantation society, she unleashes a tragedy that exposes the worst and best in the people she has come to call her family. Orphaned while onboard ship ... (Goodreads)

  17. The Language of Flowers

    by Vanessa Diffenbaugh
    A young woman's journey of healing and redemption through the power of flowers.

    The Victorian language of flowers was used to convey romantic expressions: honeysuckle for devotion, asters for patience, and red roses for love. But for Victoria Jones, it’s been more useful in ... (Goodreads)

  18. The Book of Negroes

    by Lawrence Hill
    A gripping tale of resilience and courage, tracing the life of a woman kidnapped in Africa and sold into slavery in North America.

    The Book of Negroes (based on the novel Someone Knows My Name) will be BET's first miniseries. The star-studded production includes lead actress Aunjanue Ellis (Ray, The Help), Oscar winner Cuba ... (Goodreads)

  19. Ordinary Grace

    by William Kent Krueger
    A Midwestern family's journey of grief and healing, grappling with tragedy and the power of grace.

    “That was it. That was all of it. A grace so ordinary there was no reason at all to remember it. Yet I have never across the forty years since it was spoken forgotten a single word.” New Bremen, ... (Goodreads)

  20. Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet

    by Jamie Ford
    A touching story of the intersection of love, family, and culture during World War II.

    Henry Lee, the son of Chinese parents in Seattle , Washington, is the only Asian child at his elementary school. His father makes him wear an "I Am Chinese" button so he will not be mistaken for a ... (Wikipedia)

  21. How to Save a Life

    by Sara Zarr
    Two girls from different worlds come together after a tragedy and learn to navigate grief, forgiveness, and the complexities of family.

    Jill MacSweeney just wishes everything could go back to normal. But ever since her dad died, she’s been isolating herself from her boyfriend, her best friends—everyone who wants to support her. And ... (Goodreads)

  22. The Lost Husband

    by Katherine Center
    After her husband's death, a woman moves to her aunt's goat farm with her children and finds love and healing in unexpected ways.

    "Dear Libby, It occurs to me that you and your two children have been living with your mother for – Dear Lord! -- two whole years, and I'm writing to see if you'd like to be rescued." The letter ... (Goodreads)

  23. The Alice Network

    by Kate Quinn
    Two women in WWI join forces to unravel secrets of a spy network in search of a missing girl.

    The plot follows pregnant American college student Charlie St. Clair in the aftermath of World War II , as she travels around France looking for her missing cousin, Rose. Her story intersects with ... (Wikipedia)

  24. Rules of Civility

    by Amor Towles
    An ambitious young woman looks to make her mark in 1930s New York, learning the complex rules of high society.

    This sophisticated and entertaining first novel presents the story of a young woman whose life is on the brink of transformation. On the last night of 1937, twenty-five-year-old Katey Kontent is in a ... (Goodreads)

  25. Save the Date

    by Morgan Matson
    A wedding planner's daughter navigates her own family drama and romantic entanglements during her sister's wedding weekend.

    “The cinema-worthy rom-com of your summer reading dreams.” —,Bustle, “A sparkling summer story ideal for teens who are on that bittersweet cusp of change.” —,Booklist, “[A] romantic comedy of ... (Barnes & Noble)

  26. The Revised Fundamentals of Caregiving

    by Jonathan Evison
    A man becomes a caregiver for a disabled teenager and embarks on a road trip, discovering the true meaning of life and friendship.

    The book (and adapted film) follow a 39 year old man who has experienced personal tragedy and is currently climbing out of depression and grief. His estranged wife has been waiting for months for him ... (Wikipedia)

  27. Snow Flower and the Secret Fan

    by Lisa See
    Story of two women in 19th-century China, exploring the power of female friendship.

    In rural Hunan province called Puwei (nicknamed the Common Beauty Village), a county in China, Lily is destined to become a, laotong, pair with Snow Flower, a girl of the same age from Tongkou (the ... (Wikipedia)

  28. Phoebe and Her Unicorn

    by Dana Simpson
    A young girl named Phoebe befriends a unicorn named Marigold Heavenly Nostrils and together they embark on magical adventures.

    Do you believe in unicorns? Phoebe does. She has no choice ... one day she skipped a rock across a pond, and hit a unicorn in the face. Improbably, this resulted in a lasting friendship between ... (Goodreads)

  29. Between, Georgia

    by Joshilyn Jackson
    A small town is torn apart by a feud between two families, and a young girl caught in the middle must choose where her loyalties lie.

    Nonny Frett understands the meaning of the phrase "in between a rock and a hard place" better than any woman alive. She's got two mothers, "one deaf-blind and the other four baby steps from flat ... (Goodreads)

  30. The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency

    by Alexander McCall Smith
    An empowering story of female friendship, courage, and detective work in Botswana.

    Precious Ramotswe has only just set up shop as Botswana's No.1 (and only) lady detective when she is hired to track down a missing husband, uncover a con man, and follow a wayward daughter. However, ... (Goodreads)