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    		•  June paperback releases offer good choices for reading groups

    REVIEWS BY JULIE HALE

    Cover Maps for Lost Lovers
    Aslam's timely novel traces the lives of a group of Pakistani immigrants in modern-day London. Set in a part of the city that the group has renamed Dasht-e-Tanhaii, or the Wilderness of Solitude, the novel is centered on a pair of lovers, Jugnu and Chanda, who disregarded the laws of Islam to move in together without being married, and then disappeared under suspicious circumstances. Chanda's brothers are accused of murdering the pair in order to save the honor of their family. Jugnu's brother, Shamas, fights with his wife, Kaukab—a strict Muslim—over the scandal, which rocks the Pakistani community as a whole. Told from two opposing points of view—that of Shamas, who possesses a more liberal attitude toward the outside world, and the unyielding Kaukab—the narrative provides an insightful and realistic look at a community struggling to maintain long-held traditions in a changing world. Aslam's portrait of this society within a society is well-developed and richly detailed, and his exploration of the role of Pakistani women is especially striking. As the mystery of the missing couple is unraveled, Aslam skillfully explores the tension between two opposing cultures and sets of beliefs, creating a complex book with elements of suspense and romance that's exceptionally well-crafted and beautifully written. A reading group guide is available in print and online at www.readinggroupcenter.com.

    Cover The Wonder Spot
    Bank, the best-selling author of The Girls' Guide to Hunting and Fishing, returns with a charming and hilarious coming-of-age novel sure to please fans of her previous book. Sophie Applebaum, the narrative's main character, survives an angst-ridden adolescence in Surrey, Pennsylvania, then escapes to New York City, where she hopes to succeed as an editor. Needless to say, Sophie encounters some difficulties along the way as she adjusts to life in the big leagues. Bank begins the novel with a thoroughly appealing account of Sophie's teenage years in a middle-class Jewish family. A typical teenager, she grows up with two brothers, an introverted father and a good-hearted, traditional grandmother whose first concern is that Sophie find a suitable husband. After college, Sophie embarks on a new life in Manhattan, and her romantic entanglements, her attempts to enter the world of publishing, and the changes that affect her family back home—her mother has an affair; her grandmother slowly becomes senile—all cohere to form a wise, accomplished novel that's even stronger than Bank's first work. Not just another narrative for the 20-something generation, this is a lively, original book in which the author's considerable skills as a writer are fully on display. A reading group guide is included in the book.

    Cover Wild Dogs
    Humphreys' bold, unusual novel tells the story of six dog lovers who—due to circumstances beyond their control—have become separated from their beloved pets and are suffering unusual consequences. The group of six gathers each night in the woods, trying to find the dogs who have formed a feral pack. With each owner and canine comes a separate story, and Humphrey deftly weaves her tale from differing points of view. Alice, the narrator of the novel's first half, leaves her boyfriend after he gets rid of her dog. She then falls in love with a wildlife biologist who has a surprising story of his own. The other dog lovers include a skateboarder named Jamie, who is abused at home, Lily, a brain-damaged young woman, and Malcolm, a mysterious recluse. These disparate characters all share a common love for their lost pets, and during their nightly gatherings they grow close to each other in ways that wouldn't have been possible otherwise. This innovative novel explores the bond between man and animal, while offering smart insights into human relationships and the motives and desires that drive us all. Humphreys, the Canadian author of Afterimage and The Lost Garden, has created a novel that, through its expert use of different narrative voices, has earned her comparisons to William Faulkner. A reading group guide is included in the book.

    Has your club recently read an excellent book that sparked good group discussion? If so, BookPage would like to hear about it. Contact us at reading@bookpage.com with a description of the book and the reasons for your recommendation. We'll pass the top choices along to our readers.

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