Marie, a bastard relative of Eleanor of Aquitaine, is sent by the queen to a run-down, poverty stricken nunnery in rural England. With a good deal of brains, brawn and faith, Marie turns the convent into a thriving, safe, populated home. Matrix is the story of Marie’s accomplishments as well as her struggles.

Groff’s second novel takes some work. There are many 12th century English/religious words that sent me to the dictionary. Also, it wasn’t until Marie becomes abbess and good things start happening at the convent (at least a third of the way into the novel) that I really felt invested in Matrix. If you are willing to put up with these “obstacle,” you will be rewarded. It should be noted that Matrix is a women’s book-there are no male characters!

One hundred and sixteen year old Sam Cunningham reviews his life with God as he lies in bed in a nursing home he has lived in for twenty some years. From his growing up years in Louisiana to his role as a sniper in WWI, Sam chats with God about what he regrets and what he is proud of. He goes on to discuss marriage and fatherhood and becomes insightful about what he failed to see as a parent and a husband.

Pulitzer Prize winner Robert Olen Butler has written a decent book, but I felt that it lacked creativity and was somewhat predictable.

This is the story of a slave family, a Creek family and a white family. The narrative goes back and forth from 1734 to 2007, describing their problems, their cruelties and their intermarriages. Although there are many diverse characters in The Love Songs of W.E.B. DuBois, the main character is Ailey Pearl Garfield. She is the youngest of three daughters, and her parents are African American and accomplished. Ailey experiments with life until she discovers who she is and what she is meant to achieve.

Honoree Fanonne Jeffers calls her debut novel a Black feminist novel, but it is so much more. The Love Songs of W.E.B. Dubois is a family saga, a work of historical fiction, a coming of age novel and a terrific read.

James Rebanks comes from a family of farmers in The Lake District in England. He observes the evolution of farming. His grandfather’s farm planted and raised a variety of crops, much of them for the farmer’s family. Farming today has become an industry which specializes in one product or animal using heavy machinery to produce huge quantities. Rebanks inherits the family farm and works diligently to get it back to the way the land and the animals will benefit long term.

I realize my description of Pastoral Song makes it sound dull and didactic, but Rebanks’ prose makes this work of nonfiction highly readable and enjoyable. Pastoral Song is part environmental warning and part homage to the small and diverse working farms of the world.

Yui has lost her mother and daughter in the Japanese tsunami of 2011. Uncertain how to deal with her all encompassing grief, she learns of a phone booth far from where she lives in Tokyo that mourners use as a symbolic way to talk to the dead. During her first journey there, she meets a surgeon who has lost his wife to cancer. From that day on, they make the pilgrimage together once a month.

Messina’s novel is a fine example of how some individuals cope with grief, love and loss. Although one would think The Phone Booth at the Edge of the World would be a terribly depressing read; it truly isn’t. It’s a work filled with hope and is life affirming. The Phone Booth at the Edge of the World is a beautiful, heartfelt gem.

On May 6, 1882 two men, Lord Frederick Cavendish and Thomas Burke, were brutally stabbed to death by a violent group intent on obtaining Home Rule for Ireland. It was understandable why Burke would be the group’s target, but Cavendish was a fair man who sympathized with the plight of the Irish. The Irish Assassins describes the Irish-English conflict that led up to the Phoenix Park murders and what occurred as a result of the two killings.

Julie Kavabagh’s book is filled with a cast of interesting historical figures as well known as Queen Victoria and Charles Parnell to less famous but just as compelling characters, such as James Carey and John Mallon. If you are interested in the history of Ireland, you will want to read The Irish Assassins.

Every summer I read a classic that I have never read before. This summer is a little different. I read George Saunders’ most recent work which discusses seven Russian short stories: 3 by Chekhov, 2 by Tolstoy, 1 by Gogol and 1 by Turgenev. Saunders’ approach to these authors and their works is humorous, self-effacing and easy to understand. He takes examples from his life as a writer, a teacher and an average human being. After reading A Swim in a Pond in the Rain I had a greater respect for the four Russian authors even though I had already admired them. I also sincerely wished that I could take a class, any class, that George Saunders was teaching.

This is the story of Eleanor. She is orphaned at 16, becomes a semi-famous children’s author at the age of 19, buys a run down house in New Hampshire and then marries Cam, a good looking, loving, free spirit. In the early 80’s they have three children. Life seems almost too good to be true until an accident involving their youngest child triggers trouble between Eleanor and Cam as well as her relationship with her older children.

Count the Ways is an easy, enjoyable, somewhat predictable read. I liked Maynard’s novel; however, there were times when Eleanor’s musings about marriage and parenthood got on my nerves, I wanted the author to keep the plot moving and drop the descriptions of introspection.

Catherine Raven is a loner. She lives in rural Montana in a two room home she built with the help of a few friends. She has a Phd in biology, but prefers living alone with nature rather than working at a university or doing research in a city. One day a mangy orange fox arrives on her doorstep. She feeds him egg yolks, and although foxes are known to shun humans, this fox returns to Raven’s home almost daily at about the same time. Her relationship with this creature helps Raven understand herself better and become more of a social animal.

Catherine Raven is a fine writer. Her descriptions of her surroundings, her life and the humans and animals she comes in contact with are detailed and easy to visualize. However, you won’t find Fox & I too enjoyable if nature isn’t your thing.

Spence Robin is an esteemed English professor at Columbia University. Pru is a student of his from an observant Jewish home in Columbus, Ohio. They fall in love, get married and raise Sarah who plans on becoming a medical doctor. Their family life seems almost picture perfect until in his mid50’s, Spence begins to act odd-forgetting things and losing important items. Morningside Heights follows Spence and Pru as they try to keep their marriage intact as it is falling apart.

Although the theme of Morningside Heights has been told often in plays, novels and movies in the past decade, Henkin makes living with Alzheimer’s seem like a new, fresh topic. His characterizations are realistic and empathetic. I suffered right along with Pru Robin as she desperately tried to meet the numerous challenges she has to face.