Many readers are drawn to a specific “doorway” in their reading choices, and one reading preference is for a book’s setting. Sometimes referred to as “worldbuilding”, the setting anchors the story in a place and often a time. Writers who evoke skillful settings make you feel like you are right there in the story.
No wonder, then, that the beautiful Pacific Northwest is the setting for so many novels. Our vistas here are vivid: you can almost taste the impending rain and smell cedar trees in the air. Spring brings the sound of Canada geese calling back and forth, the sight of daffodil shoots breaking through the ground, and an appreciation for those extra few minutes of daylight bracketing our days. Below are novels, many of which are award winners, with settings in the Pacific Northwest.
A teen with physical limitations dreams of life outside her small mining town in WA.
Two young people from Glasgow end up in frontier Washington Territory in 1878.
Paris Peralta, suspected of killing her husband, must confront her dark past.
A true crime blogger befriends and interviews a woman acquitted of two cold case murders.
In 1921, a gun moll flees Harlem and takes refuge in Portland’s only black hotel.
At the 1909 Seattle World’s Fair, a half-Chinese orphan is offered as a raffle prize.
Love and Other Consolation Prizes
A gentle farmer forms a family with two pregnant, runaway teenagers.
Teenage Bee goes to the literal ends of the earth to find her volatile, troubled mother when she disappears.
The lyrical biography of a fictional town on the Oregon coast.
Heartwarming story of Henry Lee, set in Seattle and the Japanese American internment camps of WWII.
Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet
Based on the true story of a homeless father/daughter who lived in Portland’s largest urban park for years.
An old dog tries to bring his family back together before his time on earth is finished.
A teenage boy grows up and learns about marine biology in Puget Sound.
A courtroom drama centered on the history of residents of a small island in the Puget Sound.
-Blog post by Senior Collection Development Librarian Beth Wood. This article was originally published as part of her weekly column, Check It Out, in The Columbian.
This is just a small sampling of the many new titles added each week to the Fort Vancouver Regional Library District collection. Visit the district’s 15 locations, our website at www.fvrl.org, or call (360) 906-5000 to reserve titles or find additional listings.
FICTION
“The Jilted Countess” by Loretta Ellsworth
“Warning Signs” by Tracy Sierra
“Cold Zero” by Brad Thor
NONFICTION
“A Hymn to Life: Shame Has to Change Sides” by Gisèle Pelicot
“Guilt Free: Reclaiming Your Life from Unreasonable Expectations” by Jennifer Reid
“The Forever Strong Playbook” by Gabrielle Lyon
CHILDREN
“Hummingbird’s Big Trip” by G. Brian Karas
“Big Feelings, Little Feelings: Get to Know Your Emotions” by Andrea Mills
“The Mysterious Magic of Lighthouse Lane” by Erin Stewart
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