The 'dark side' of suburbia has been a running theme in American literature for at least a couple of decades. The theme has many forms: existential boringness, the soul-sucking blandness of conformity or as an evil secret lurking behind a too-pleasant veneer. On this episode, the Bibliofiles dive into a discussion about how suburban life is represented in literature and recommend new and noteworthy releases.
Kaite Stover, Director of readers' Services, Kansas City Public Library
- Our House by Louise Candlish
- Truly Madly Guilty by Liane Moriarty
- The Deep End of the Ocean by Jacquelyn Mitchard
- Behind Closed Doors by B.A. Paris
- Iggie’s House by Judy Blume
- What She Knew by Gilly Macmillan
- The Slap by Christos Tsiolkas
- We Need To Talk About Kevin by Lionel Shriver
- The Dinner by Herman Koch
Jeffrey Ann Goudie, freelance journalist and book critic
- Little Fires Everywhere by Celeste Ng
- Our Little Racket by Angelica Baker
- The Ladies of Levittown by Gene Horowitz
- Heartland by Sarah Smarsh
- Unsheltered by Barbara Kingsolver
- The Library Book by Susan Orlean
Dan Margolies, health and education editor at KCUR and all-around book enthusiast
- Mrs. Bridge by Evan Connell
- Mr. Bridge by Evan Connell
- The Swimmer by John Cheever
- Goodbye, Columbus by Philip Roth
- American Pastoral by Philip Roth
- A plethora of works by John Updike
- The Year of Lear: Shakespeare in 1606 by James Shapiro
- Letters to My Palestinian Neighbor by Yossi Klein Halevi
- Tailspin by Stephen Brill
- Hero of the Empire: The Boer War, a Daring Escape, and the Making of Winston Churchill by Candice Millard
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