Shannon's USA Road Trip Round 2

Create Your Own Visited States Map

✔Arizona: Dinosaurs - outside of Phoenix (read in 2023)
✔California: American Mermaid - Hollywood (read in 2024)
✔Florida: The Light Pirate - Fictional town of Rudder, Florida. (read in 2023)
✔Idaho: Beulah - Fictional small town of Beulah, Idaho. (read in 2023)
✔Iowa: The Houseboat - Fictional small town of Oscar, Iowa. (read in 2023)
✔Maine: Looking Glass Sound - Fictional coastal town (read in 2024)
✔Maryland: Kindred - Plantation in 19th-century Maryland. (reread in 2024)
✔Massachusetts: No Gods, No Monsters - In and around Boston. (read in 2022)
✔Minnesota: This Town Sleeps - Small town of Geshig. (read in 2023)
✔Mississippi: The Trees - Small town of Money. (read in 2023)
✔Montana: Lone Women - Very small town of Big Sandy. (read in 2023)
✔New Hampshire: I Have Some Questions for You - Boarding school. (read in 2024)
✔New York: Vladimir - Upstate liberal arts college. (read in 2023)
✔North Carolina: Three Graves Full - Small town of Stillwater. (read in 2024)
✔Ohio: The End of the Road - Small town/farm in rural Ohio. (read in 2023)
✔Oregon: Hummingbird Salamander - Guessing this was the setting as it was never specified; I may trade this out if I happen to read a book more explicitly set in Oregon. (read in 2022)
✔Rhode Island: The Pallbearers' Club - A large portion is set in Providence, but also some is set in Beverly, Massachusetts. (read in 2023)
✔South Carolina: How to Sell a Haunted House - Set mainly in Charleston. (read in 2023)
✔Tennessee: Summer Sons - Set at Vanderbilt University in Nashville. (read in 2023)
✔Washington: Remarkably Bright Creatures - Small coastal town of Sowell Bay on the Puget Sound. (read in 2023)
✔Washington DC: Never Saw Me Coming - Stand-in for Delaware

Here is where I'll list potential candidates for reading. Books I actually read will go on the map in the first post.

Alabama: Homegoing
Alaska: The Great Alone
Arkansas: True Grit
Colorado: Plainsong
Connecticut: The Cherry Robbers
Georgia: The Kingdoms of Savannah (reread)
Illinois: So Big
Indiana: The Stone Diaries
Kansas:???
Kentucky:???
Louisiana: The Vanishing Half
Michigan:???
Missouri:???
Nebraska: O Pioneers
Nevada: The Better Liar
New Jersey:???
New Mexico:???
Oklahoma: That Old Ace in the Hole
Pennsylvania: Appointment in Samarra
Rhode Island: Notes on Your Sudden Disappearance
South Dakota/North Dakota: combine?
Texas:???
Utah:???
Vermont:???
Virginia:???
West Virginia:???
Wisconsin:???
Wyoming:???

Kudos for starting your second road trip. Do you chose books set in a particular state regardless of where the author is from? I've been trying to choose books both set in the state and with a native author. Hard in these times when people move so much.

>3 labfs39: Yes, it's generally easier to discover the setting for a book than track down an author's home state, unless the author happens to be from my home state and I know that about them. I imagine your method might be easier with older books where the authors are likely more associated with their state.

Oregon: Hummingbird Salamander by Jeff VanderMeer

A hard-boiled detective novel set in a vaguely apocalyptic near future. The setting is only specified as the Pacific Northwest, but from context I can tell a lot of the book is set in Oregon. However, I may trade this one out if I happen to read another book more explicitly set in Oregon.

Massachusetts: No Gods, No Monsters by Cadwell Turnbull

An urban fantasy set mainly around Boston, Massachusetts

Washington: Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt

A family story with some chapters narrated by an octopus set in a small town called Sowell Bay on Puget Sound

Rhode Island: The Pallbearers' Club by Paul Tremblay

Set partly in Providence and partly in Beverly, Massachusetts

New York: Vladimir by Julia May Jonas

Set at an upstate liberal arts college.

Maine: Gwendy's Magic Feather by Richard Chizmar

Stephen King's famous town of Castle Rock, Maine

South Carolina: How to Sell a Haunted House by Grady Hendrix

Set mostly in Charleston, South Carolina

Tennessee: Summer Sons by Lee Mandelo

Set in Nashville, Tennessee

Florida: The Light Pirate by Lily Brooks-Dalton

Set in the fictional town of Rudder, Florida

Idaho: Beulah by Christi Nogle

Set in the fictional small town of Beulah, Idaho

Iowa: The Houseboat by Dane Bahr

Set in the fictional small town of Oscar, Iowa

Ohio: The End of the Road by Andrew Welsh-Huggins

Set in a small town and on a farm in rural Amish country, Ohio

Arizona: Dinosaurs by Lydia Millet

Set outside of Phoenix.

Mississippi: The Trees by Percival Everett

Set in the small town of Money

>16 sturlington:
Excellent read! Took me completely by surprise.

>17 Willoyd: I really enjoyed it. Totally bonkers but also very emotionally effective.

>18 sturlington: Totally agree. Really opened my eyes though to that whole affair - emphasised by the recent film. I've bought a couple of his other books to try - I never cease to be amazed how many American writers who are obviously well know on that side of the pond are virtually unknown here in the UK. My tour is proving a revelation (I read Faulkner - who, of course, is well know here but still not at the same level - for Mississippi, and was blown away - just brilliant).

Montana: Lone Women by Victor LaValle

Set in the frontier town of Big Sandy.

Minnesota: This Town Sleeps by Dennis E. Staples

Set in the small Native American reservation town of Geshig.

North Carolina: Three Graves Full by Jamie Mason

The setting wasn't explicitly named as North Carolina, but the author lives here and the book is tagged North Carolina, and since I'm very familiar with the setting, it definitely could take place here, so I'm counting it.

New Hampshire: I Have Some Questions for You by Rebecca Makkai.

Set in a boarding school in rural New Hampshire.

California: American Mermaid by Julia Langbein

Set in Hollywood and Los Angeles.

Maryland: Kindred by Octavia Butler.

Set on 19th-century plantation.

Washington DC: Never Saw Me Coming by Vera Kurian

Stand-in for Delaware.

Maine: Looking Glass Sound by Catriona Ward

I replaced my earlier selection because the sense of place is so much stronger in this novel.