<p>Have you read “Rain of Gold” by Victor Villasenor (no idea how to make a tilde)? It has some themes in common with Glass Castle and a loose affiliation with your destination, a poor Mexican family moving to the US in the early 1900s.</p>
<p>For super-light and amusing reading, “Uganda be Kidding Me” by Chelsea Handler fits. I needed it after slogging my way through a Salman Rushdie novel.</p>
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<p>Loved Stephen King’s 11/22/63! It was definitely a long read, but the story kept me intrigued the whole time. I was going to suggest Unbroken - but you’ve already got that one read! I suggest that book to every person I meet. It definitely went on my top 10 list of all time favorites. </p>
<p>Another vote for 11/22/63.</p>
<p>Would be be ungracious of me to pipe in with a dissenting view of 11/22/63? I really hated that book. In fact, it launched me into a reading slump that took months for me to overcome. I’m speaking up here because the book was so universally acclaimed that I want to let other secret-11/22/63-haters out there that you are not alone!</p>
<p>Ok, well if we are on to book hating, I don’t get what all the fuss is about The Goldfinch. So tedious and I didn’t like the main character (but I did like his sidekick.)</p>
<p>@LBowie I am half-way through Goldfinch for a book club. It was hard to get in to at first, but I am enjoying how the story is unfolding. I am not a fan of overly descriptive prose, so it has taken awhile to get in to the author’s writing style. One minute I love the characters, but then one minute I hate them. I can’t make up my mind. </p>
<p>We have some similar taste as I loved the three books you mentioned as really enjoying. I am going to suggest White Oleander, Into Thin Air (if you haven’t already read it), Wild, and my favorite John Irving, A Widow for One Year. Another terrific memoir-type book is A Beautiful Boy, but it is a bit of a heartbreaker.</p>
<p>Enjoy your vacation and please let us know what you end up reading!!</p>
<p>p.s. Boys in the Boat (recommended above) is really high on my list to get to - - I’ve heard many good things about it!!</p>
<p>Yes, have read Into Thin Air. Probably will go check out A beautiful boy from the library soon…sounds like a before vacation read and we have a close friend dealing with some substance abuse issues.</p>