Exit West by Mohsin Hamid

This is a refugee story.  Gentle, reserved Saeed loves his family and his country.  Nadia is fiercely independent and dreams of a place away from all the ceaseless, senseless fighting.  They meet in a class that is miraculously still happening in a safe part of their war torn city. As the war escalates, they learn of "doors" that will lead them away.  This is not about the dangerous traveling part of their journey as going through the door immediately deposits them in the next camp, abandoned building shared by other refugees, tent city, etc.  They eventually arrive in the refugee area of a non-welcoming London.  There is a dystopian futuristic feel of the book if you accept that the refugee driven turmoil of today will likely remain for years to come.  Mostly it is about what happens to two loving people as they lose a sense of self and country as refugees.  A lot to think about in only 226 pages.

The River of Doubt:Theodore Roosevelt's Darkest Journey by Candice Millard

In 1914, following a failed attempt to get back into the Presidency, Theodore Roosevelt decided to explore an uncharted tributary of the Amazon - the River of Doubt.  He and his entourage, which included his son, encountered unfriendly natives and unnavigable rapids. They battled malaria and near starvation.  It was an amazing journey.  But another part of the story was the strength and character of Roosevelt himself.  Whatever you think of his politics, there is much to be admired about him in this epic tale.

The Swans of Fifth Avenue by Melanie Benjamin

This was a book hat I thought was frivolous until I realized that t was as much fact as fiction.  When Truman Capote was at his height as a literary celebrity, he gathered around him many of the women of New York's most prominent families - his swans.  He sailed on their yachts, lounged by the pools at their summer homes, was the life of their parties - and shared their secrets.  Searching for a story that would match In Cold Blood, he betrays their trust.  The results - tragic.

Sing, Unburied, Sing by Jesmyn Ward

Jojo and his younger sister are being raised by their maternal grandparents in a poor coastal town in Mississippi.  Their mother Leonie is too overwhelmed by life and drugs to pay attention.  Their white father is about to be released from prison so Leonie takes the children to bring him home.  In the times it takes them to make the journey, a world of hurt is revealed.  The grief is all real but Jojo is also visited by the ghosts of Leonie's brother who died a early tragic death and a young boy with an early connection to his grandfather.  This book is a beautiful and eloquently written window into a life from which my white privilege with forever protect me.  I wish it was historical fiction but unfortunately it is not.  Winner of the 2017 National Book Award.

The Weight of Ink by Rachel Kadish

At almost 600 pages, this novel seems intimidating but there are sooooo many story lines to follow that all those pages may be necessary.  It is primarily the story of two women separated by centuries.  First is Ester Valesquez  - born in Portugal in the 1600's, Jewish and most uniquely educated.  She runs from the Inquisition to Amsterdam and then London where she is hired as a scribe to an important rabbi.  But Ester's mind is not made for copying someone else's words.  She has ideas and thoughts of her own. Ideas that she hopes are worthy of a discourse with Spinoza - except that she is a woman and not likely to be taken seriously.  Helen Watt's story is of a contemporary British academic struggling with failing health.  She has a love of Jewish history and a determination to find a crowning achievement to tbalance he struggle she has faced finding respect in her male dominated world.  What brings them together is the discovery of a set of ancient documents hidden in the staircase of an old London home.  They are signed "Aleph" but as Helen and her mostly annoying assistant, American grad student Aaron Levy, search for Aleph's identity, they discover something much more profound.  And then there is the plague and Shakespeare and multiple backstories of loves lost and strengths found.  I guess 600 pages is what is needed.

Ruthless Tide by Al Roker

In the 1880's a group of steel industry millionaires decided to build a dam just upriver from the industrial city of Johnstown.  They wanted to create a summer recreational area for the proud creators of the Gilded Age.  Known as the South Fork Fishing and Hunting Club, membership was limited to the likes of Carnegie, Frick and Mellon.  They could have made sure the dam had a means to release water should the need arise.  They could have provided a working spillway.  They did neither.  So on May 31, 1889, following days of torrential rains, the earthen dam gave way devastating the towns below.  Thousands died.  Thousands more lost everything.  Roker draws heavily on the stories left by a core of survivors and other books about the Johnstown flood.  Like many of the other books, there is an emphasis placed on the refusal of the club or its members to accept any responsibility.  The Johnstown Flood was a pivotal event in the way the public and eventually history viewed the wealthy industrialists.  Surprisingly well written, I still think the David McCullough version is my favorite.

Carrying Albert Home by Homer Hickam

Subtitle: The Somewhat true story of a Man, His Wife, and Her Alligator.
The man and wife in this case are the author's parents.  Homer senior was a coal miner in Coalwood, West Virginia.  Elsie was his high school sweetheart who reluctantly returned from an escape in Florida to marry him.  Albert is the alligator.  When Albert outgrows his cement "pond", Homer and Elsie decide to take him back to Florida where his life began until Buddy Ebsen - the Buddy Ebsen - sent the alligator to Elsie as a wedding gift.  But it is the 1930's and the only affordable way to go is a road trip.  Homer thinks the roundtrip will take 10 days but what he doesn't realize is that Elsie has other plans.  And so the adventure begins complete with bank robbers, a pet rooster, and an encounter with John Steinbeck.  Theoretically, the story is based on real events but I'm sure the truth is stretched  quite a bit.  No matter - the heart of the story is the relationship between Homer and Elsie.  Sometimes funny. sometimes too over the top - each chapter is single adventure making it a great road trip read.