Beneath the Book Club: It’s time to choose our May read and I can’t wait to see which one you pick!

By the way, this isn't me.

By SARA VANDEN BERGE

Another month of reading is upon us and I have found three interesting books to choose from for May.

For the first time, I have an autobiography on our list that sounds fascinating, and, of course, I had to include one from favorite beach-reads author Elin Hildebrand.

And if a big family saga is your thing, perhaps you’ll like the third book on this list.

Let’s get into it.

1. The Rumor by Elin Hilderbrand

“A friendship is tested in this "thrilling" page-turner from New York Times bestselling author Elin Hilderbrand” - Us Weekly

WHAT GOODREADS SAYS: “Madeline King and Grace Pancik are best friends and the envy of Nantucket for their perfect marriages, their beautiful kids, their Saturday night double dates with their devoted husbands.

“But this summer, something's changed, and if there's anything Nantucket likes better than cocktails on the beach at sunset, it's a good rumor. 

“And rumor has it... that Madeline, a novelist, is battling writer's block, with a deadline looming, bills piling up, and blank pages driving her to desperation — and a desperately bad decision; and that Grace, hard at work to transform her backyard into a garden paradise, has been collaborating a bit more closely than necessary with her ruggedly handsome landscape architect. 

“As the gossip escalates, and they have the possible loss of the happy lives they've worked so hard to create, Grace and Madeline try mightily to set the record straight — but the truth might be even worse than rumor has it.”

2. Educated by Tara Westover

4.5 on Goodreads, Goodreads Choice Award winner, No. 1 bestseller on Amazon, winner of reader’s favorite memoir & autobiography

WHAT GOODREADS SAYS: “Tara Westover was 17 the first time she set foot in a classroom.

“Born to survivalists in the mountains of Idaho, she prepared for the end of the world by stockpiling home-canned peaches and sleeping with her 'head-for-the-hills bag.'

“In the summer she stewed herbs for her mother, a midwife and healer and in the winter she salvaged in her father's junkyard.

“Her father forbade hospitals, so Tara never saw a doctor or nurse. Gashes and concussions, even burns from explosions, were all treated at home with herbalism.

“The family was so isolated from mainstream society that there was no one to ensure the children received an education and no one to intervene when one of Tara's older brothers became violent.

“Then, lacking any formal education, Tara began to educate herself. She taught herself enough mathematics and grammar to be admitted to Brigham Young University, where she studied history, learning for the first time about important world events like the Holocaust and the civil rights movement.

“Her quest for knowledge transformed her, taking her over oceans and across continents, to Harvard and to Cambridge. Only then would she wonder if she'd traveled too far, if there was still a way home.

“Educated is an account of the struggle for self-invention. It is a tale of fierce family loyalty and of the grief that comes with severing the closest of ties.

“With the acute insight that distinguishes all great writers, Westover has crafted a universal coming-of-age story that gets to the heart of what an education is and what it offers: the perspective to see one's life through new eyes and the will to change it.”

3. The Bright Years by Sarah Damoff

4.5 on Goodreads

WHAT GOODREADS SAYS: “One family. Four generations. A secret son. A devastating addiction.

"A Texas family is met with losses and surprises of inheritance, but they’re unable to shake the pull back toward each other in this big-hearted family saga perfect for readers of Mary Beth Keane and Claire Lombardo.

“Ryan and Lillian Bright are deeply in love, recently married, and now parents to a baby girl, Georgette. But Lillian has a son she hasn’t told Ryan about, and Ryan has an alcohol addiction he hasn’t told Lillian about, so Georgette comes of age watching their marriage rise and fall.

“When a shocking blow scatters their fragile trio, Georgette tries to distance herself from reminders of her parents. Years later, Lillian’s son comes searching for his birth family, so Georgette must return to her roots, unearth her family’s history, and decide whether she can open up to love for them—or herself—while there’s still time.

“Told from three intimate points of view, The Bright Years is a tender, true-to-life novel that explores the impact of each generation in a family torn apart by tragedy but, over time, restored by the power of grace and love.”

So, Beneath the Book Clubbers, which one do you want to read? Vote for your favorite on Facebook now.

We will host our online discussion on Thursday, May 29.