A bonk on the head or seemingly innocent bite from a mosquito and suddenly you can’t remember your own name. It’s hard to imagine not knowing where you live, whom you love or what your favorite foods are. A popular theme in both books and movies, come along on a journey and learn how the brain retains its long- and short-term memories. These are characters I hope YOU will not forget!
All the Flowers in Paris
by Sarah Jio
It’s a beautiful spring day when Caroline awakens in a Paris hospital. Lucky to be alive after a bicycle accident, Caroline is filled with fear when she is diagnosed with amnesia. The doctors hope she will regain her identity over time. Caroline learns she had no friends or close family and lived a reclusive existence. As she begins to enjoy a friendship with the handsome, charming bistro owner, she is suddenly finding new meaning in life and has no desire to return to her solitary ways. With the serendipitous discovery of old letters hidden in her rooms, she focuses on a different puzzle. Caroline learns that while Nazis occupied Paris, the lovely Celine lived in this very same apartment. Celine ran a florist shop until a brutal officer threatened her family and everything they treasured. As Caroline deciphers both the past and present, she learns that new beginnings are possible if they are given a chance to bloom.
Remind Me Again What Happened
by Joanna Luloff
Claire, a globe-trotting journalist, wakes up in a hospital in the Florida Keys. She does not know how she arrived. Claire remembers details of her childhood, her parents’ lives and even her grandparents. But yesterday, last month, last year — nothing. Her passport reveals she recently arrived via India and doctors confirm the swelling surrounding her brain was caused by Japanese encephalitis, a virus spread by a mosquito bite. Her husband Charlie and best friend Rachel help glue her life back together. As Claire is guided through photographs and stories, buried secrets of love and regret come bubbling to the surface. Are these their memories or hers? Narrated from three different perspectives, this emotional roller coaster through time examines the value and beauty of our precious past.
I Found You
by Lisa Jewell
Near her cottage in East Yorkshire, Alice finds a man sitting by himself in the pouring rain. Her children and best friend disapprove of her nosing around, but Alice cannot abandon this man in the middle of a storm. His unkempt appearance, lack of identification and memory loss do not match the kind look in his eyes, his sweet face. In London, Lily is a newlywed, a recent immigrant and finds herself completely alone. Her husband never returned from work. Terrified, she contacts the police but they do not trust her story. Decades ago there was a tragedy involving an argument and suspicious drowning. A teenaged brother and sister on vacation found themselves deeply entangled in a drama they could not escape. These three stories collide on a blustery day with Alice in the eye of this suspenseful storm.
