“The spring winds of life / have tested your steel-blade soul,” wrote the Romanian-born poet and painter William Saphier in his 1920 poem, “Margrethe.” 

Such trials confront many of the protagonists in this month’s picks for the 10 best books. In the novels, an intrepid married couple homesteads in the Alaska wilderness; a girl survives an abusive boarding school; and humans, threatened with extinction, must adapt to living in the Antarctic.   

Among the nonfiction books, courage impels a journalist to protest China’s oppression of her people, the Uyghurs; drives a grieving man to steep himself in great art; and prompts a security expert to point out where the U.S. government is failing to protect its classified information. 

Whatever their path, the protagonists’ sturdy resolve serves as inspiration – and an opportunity to bolster our own understanding and compassion. 

1. Homestead, by Melinda Moustakis

Melinda Moustakis’ clear prose runs like a river through the lives of an ex-soldier and his bride who homestead 150 acres of Alaskan wilderness in the 1950s. Moustakis’ storytelling is both tranquil and turbulent, as she immerses the reader in the breathtaking landscape and the couple’s struggle. 

2. The House of Eve, by Sadeqa Johnson

In the 1950s, two Black women – high school student Ruby and college history major Eleanor – fall for men who threaten to derail their dreams. Sadeqa Johnson’s compassionate, cleareyed, and sometimes graphic page turner examines how women in desperate situations respond and move forward.

3. Stealing, by Margaret Verble