REVIEW: The Banned Books Club by Brenda Novak

The Banned Books Club by Brenda Novak: Gia Rossi returns home to Wakefield, Iowa after being away for a long time. Her sister Margot has asked her come come help with the care of their terminal mother. Gia feels guilty that she has left Margot to take care of their mother when she has a family of her own.

Gia’s return is not only difficult when she sees how frail her mother is, but she becomes enmeshed it the reason she left home right after high school. Mr. Hart, who had been a favorite English teacher, talked her into coming to his home while he was alone to discuss why he had given her a very poor grade on a paper. She later accused him of sexual misconduct. This lead to trial that ruined Mr. Hart’s career and family and divided the town on what really happened. Mr. Hart is still proclaiming he was innocent and his estranged family have their own views.

The Banned Books Club that Gia started in high school is still around. Even they are divided on the past. I enjoyed the attention the author paid to how censoring and banning of books is still a huge issue many places.

As if things weren’t as stressful and conflicted, Margot leaves town with no note or call. Gia realizes her sister has her own problems and needs help. Things are much different than what are presented in everyday life.

Along the way, Gia knows she has to make peace with the past and the present. It takes love and acceptance of a different future to give her that.
Brenda Novak does well in all her novels to present family with all its drama and romance that often brings healing and a better life. This novel hits all the perfect notes and leaves the reader with a feeling of hope.

THE BANNED BOOKS CLUB is a standalone. The author has written many of those in her prolific career. Her series are a great way to delve deeper into families and friends. Her well written stories have garnered many fans over the years. Brenda is very caring and attuned to her fans. There is book group, reading challenges and subscription monthly book boxes that expose to authors you may not have tried before.

Book Info:

Publication: September 1, 2024 | MIRA |

Despite their strained relationship, when Gia Rossi’s sister, Margot, begs her to come home to Wakefield, Iowa, to help with their ailing mother, Gia knows she has no choice. After her rebellious and at-times-tumultuous teen years, Gia left town with little reason to look back. But she knows Margot’s borne the brunt of their mother’s care and now it’s Gia’s turn to help, even if it means opening old wounds.

As expected, Gia’s homecoming is far from welcome. There’s the Banned Books Club she started after the PTA overzealously slashed the high school reading list, which is right where she left it. But there is also Mr. Hart, her former favorite teacher. The one who was fired after Gia publicly and painfully accused him of sexual misconduct. The one who prompted Gia to leave behind a very conflicted town the minute she turned eighteen. The one person she hoped never to see again.

When Margot leaves town without explanation, Gia sees the cracks in her sister’s “perfect” life for the first time and plans to offer support. But as the town, including members of the book club, takes sides between Gia and Mr. Hart, everything gets harder. Fortunately, she learns that there are people she can depend on. And by standing up for the truth, she finds love and a future in the town she thought had rejected her.