When it comes to celebrating relationships, we tend to think of romantic relationships. But this week, for Bookstr’s Three to Read, we’re bringing you the best recommendations for upcoming releases that focus on all kinds of friendships. This week’s selections prove how friendship can endure despite any circumstance, no matter if it’s with your family or someone you haven’t seen in decades. We hope these reads remind you to cherish your friends and that platonic bonds can be just as important as romantic relationships.
HOT PICK
My Friends by Fredrik Backman
SYNOPSIS:
Twenty-five years ago, a group of teenagers is brought together to a seaside town where they spend the summer becoming each other’s reason to wake up every morning. They find love and happiness and commit rebellious acts together. The four teenagers are only 15 when they meet, but they come to rely on each other as a shelter from their difficult home lives. During the summer, a painting is born, which is now in 18-year-old Luisa’s possession. It sparks a desire in Luisa to uncover the figures depicted in the back of the painting, leading her on an unexpected journey to find its birthplace and decide what to do with it.
WHY:
From one of the most brilliant literary fiction minds of the 21st century, this upcoming novel by Fredrik Backman is sure to tug at the heartstrings once again. With My Friends, Backman explores the intersection of art and timeless friendship, a bond so profound between four teenagers who have yet to find themselves. It will make you laugh, cry, and cherish the characters as if they were your own friends.
COFFEE SHOP READ
Kills Well with Others by Deanna Raybourn
SYNOPSIS:
Four professional killers — Helen, Mary Alice, Natalie, and Billie — are ready to get back into the field. They’ve taken the year off, but they are getting restless, itching to kill again. When The Museum, an elite assassin organization, summons the four women to track down an Eastern European gangster who’s killing their agents, they must face their biggest challenge yet. The mission takes them across the globe as they track the most elusive killer in their careers, who always seems to know their next move. Can they root out the mole and complete their mission before they become the next victims?
WHY:
Raybourn brings a brilliant, comedic spin on a classic crime thriller about four older women working at an assassin agency. One of the book’s most endearing qualities is its lighthearted focus on female friendships, specifically with an older cast. Despite their age, they are still growing and learning. That means their friendship is also evolving, as they have to figure out how to work together as old friends and coworkers. This book is perfect for those wanting a cozy yet gritty crime thriller centering on female friendships.
DARK HORSE
The Emperor of Gladness by Ocean Vuong
Trigger Warning: This book contains discussions of suicide and mental health. Please exercise personal care while reading.
SYNOPSIS:
In East Gladness, 19-year-old Hai is ready to leap off a bridge, ready to end it all. Only Grazina, an elderly widow who calls out to him just in time, keeps him grounded. Without anything else left, Hai becomes her caretaker, and thus, a most unlikely friendship develops between the two that changes Hai’s perspective on himself, his family, and his community.
WHY:
Ocean Vuong is back with another powerhouse of a novel. Emperor of Gladness asks the reader what second chances look like amidst a heart-rending relationship between two unlikely people who become each other’s means of survival. It’s the heaviest read on this list in terms of emotional vulnerability and heartache, but you won’t want to miss out.
That’s it for this week’s Three to Read. We hope you decide to pick one (or more) of these reads up! Tune in next week for a new curated Three to Read list.
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