“Only the very weak-minded refuse to be influenced by literature and poetry.” – Cassandra Clare, Clockwork Angel
The Bell in the Fog by Lev AC Rosen
fiction / mystery / historical fiction.
San Francisco, 1952. Detective Evander “Andy” Mills has started a new life for himself as a private detective—but his business hasn’t exactly taken off. It turns out that word spreads fast when you have a bad reputation, and no one in the queer community trusts him enough to ask an ex-cop for help.
When James, an old flame from the war who had mysteriously disappeared, arrives in his offices above the Ruby, Andy wants to kick him out. But the job seems to be a simple case of blackmail, and Andy’s debts are piling up. He agrees to investigate, despite everything it stirs up.
The case will take him back to the shadowy, closeted world of the Navy, and then out into the gay bars of the city, where the past rises up to meet him, like the swell of the ocean under a warship. Missing people, violent strangers, and scandalous photos that could destroy lives are a whirlpool around him, and Andy better make sense of it all before someone pulls him under for good.
“In his second Andy Mills mystery, The Bell in the Fog, author Lev AC Rosen outdoes himself… an atmospheric historical novel as well as a gritty noir mystery that will thrill both readers who already love Andy Mills and those meeting him for the first time.” – Elyse Discher, BookPage, STARRED REVIEW
“…gripping… Andy is an appealing—if melancholy—protagonist, and Rosen’s candid portrayal of the casual cruelties perpetrated on queer people in the 1950s provides a novel and edifying foundation for a traditional mystery. Readers will be ready for the next Mills adventure as soon as this one ends.” – Publishers Weekly
Better Hate Than Never by Chloe Liese
fiction / romance / comedy.
Katerina Wilmot and Christopher Petruchio shared backyards as kids, but as adults they won’t even share the same hemisphere. That is, until Kate makes a rare visit home, and their fiery animosity rekindles into a raging inferno.
Despite their friends’ and families’ pleas for peace, Christopher is unconvinced Kate would willingly douse the flames of their enmity. But when a drunken Kate confesses she’s only been hostile because she thought he hated her, Christopher vows to make peace with Kate once and for all. Tempting as it is to be swept away by her nemesis-turned-gentleman, Kate isn’t sure she can trust his charming good-guy act.
When Christopher’s persistence and Kate’s curiosity lead to an impassioned kiss, they realize “peace” is the last thing that will ever be possible between them. As desire gives way to deeper feelings, Kate and Christopher must decide if it’s truly better to hate than to never risk their hearts—or if they already gave them away long ago.
“[A] sweetly sexy love story that not only includes a paean to the joys of fall flavors, particularly in the form of doughnuts, but also addresses the challenges of living with ADHD with insight and compassion.” – John Charles, Booklist, STARRED REVIEW
“Another lovely contemporary romance from author Liese, who, with Christopher’s migraines and Kat’s ADHD, continues to realistically and lovingly showcase chronic health conditions and disabilities in her novels.” – Elizabeth Gabriel, Library Journal
“Liese brings this unexpected couple to vibrant life, making a case for how their differences can work together beautifully. Shakespeare fans will enjoy the clever nods to the classic throughout, but readers won’t need to be familiar with the original to be swept away by this enemies-to-lovers tale.” – Publishers Weekly
Blackouts by Justin Torres ★
fiction.
Short-listed for the 2023 National Book Award for Fiction.
Out in the desert in a place called the Palace, a young man tends to a dying soul, someone he once knew briefly but who has haunted the edges of his life: Juan Gay. Playful raconteur, child lost and found and lost, guardian of the institutionalized, Juan has a project to pass along, one built around a true artifact of a book—Sex Variants: A Study of Homosexual Patterns—and its devastating history. This book contains accounts collected in the early twentieth century from queer subjects by a queer researcher, Jan Gay, whose groundbreaking work was then co-opted by a committee, her name buried. The voices of these subjects have been filtered, muted, but it is possible to hear them from within and beyond the text, which, in Juan’s tattered volumes, has been redacted with black marker on nearly every page. As Juan waits for his end, he and the narrator recount for each other moments of joy and oblivion; they resurrect loves, lives, mothers, fathers, minor heroes. In telling their own stories and the story of the book, they resist the ravages of memory and time. The past is with us, beside us, ahead of us; what are we to create from its gaps and erasures?
A book about storytelling—its legacies, dangers, delights, and potential for change—and a bold exploration of form, art, and love, Justin Torres’s Blackouts uses fiction to see through the inventions of history and narrative. A marvel of creative imagination, it draws on testimony, photographs, illustrations, and a range of influences as it insists that we look long and steadily at what we have inherited and what we have made—a world full of ghostly shadows and flashing moments of truth. A reclamation of ransacked history, a celebration of defiance, and a transformative encounter, Blackouts mines the stories that have been kept from us and brings them into the light.
“Inquisitive, pensive, and delightfully puzzling… [Torres] continues to display immense literary talent and a knack for distinctive storytelling.” – Jim Piechota, Bay Area Reporter
“…intimate, playful… a rich, poetic reclamation of cultural inheritance.” – The Guardian
“…fascinating, inventive… Torres’s intricate web of narratives is gripping from beginning to end. His richly drawn characters are passionate, but painfully self-aware. Attempts to erase or pigeonhole these characters do not rob them of their compassion for each other and the author’s compassion for them. There are echoes of Manuel Puig and of Lawrence Sterne’s Tristram Shandy. Blackouts is a worthy successor to its classic antecedents.” – John M. Clum, New York Journal of Books
“Torres’ literary acrobatics culminate in ‘A Sort of Postface,’ a meta-afterword that, despite insisting ‘Blackouts is a work of fiction,’ spectacularly displays his remarkable manipulations of fiction and reality.” – Terry Hong, Booklist, STARRED REVIEW
Blood Memory: The Tragic and Improbable Resurrection of the American Buffalo by Dayton Duncan & Ken Burns
nonfiction / history / nature.
The American buffalo—our nation’s official mammal—is an improbable, shaggy beast that has found itself at the center of many of our most mythic and sometimes heartbreaking tales. The largest land animals in the Western Hemisphere, they are survivors of a mass extinction that erased ancient species that were even larger. For nearly 10,000 years, they evolved alongside Native people who weaved them into every aspect of daily life; relied on them for food, clothing, and shelter; and revered them as equals.
Newcomers to the continent found the buffalo fascinating at first, but in time they came to consider them a hindrance to a young nation’s expansion. And in the space of only a decade, they were slaughtered by the millions for their hides, with their carcasses left to rot on the prairies. Then, teetering on the brink of disappearing from the face of the earth, they would be rescued by a motley collection of Americans, each of them driven by different—and sometimes competing—impulses. This is the rich and complicated story of a young republic’s heedless rush to conquer a continent, but also of the dawn of the conservation era—a story of America at its very best and worst.
“Some names just make you pay attention to a book, and Ken Burns is one such name. Accompanying a two-part documentary about the same topic, this is an exhaustive look at the natural history of the American Buffalo population featuring gorgeous photos and illustrations to pair with Burns’ natural gift for writing narrative nonfiction.” – Barnes & Noble
“The enlightening interviews place a welcome emphasis on Native American perspectives, and the lavish photography demonstrates both the buffalo’s majesty and the horrific scale of their slaughter. This will bring readers to tears, then fill them with hope.” – Publishers Weekly, STARRED REVIEW
“Duncan chronicles how this epic massacre outright destroyed and profoundly altered Indigenous lives. Fortunately, this tale of conquest, bloodshed, and environmental disaster is also a story of resilience and resistance as Duncan profiles diverse men and women who rescued the buffalo from extinction and others involved in the ongoing pursuit of justice for crimes against Native Americans.” – Donna Seaman, Booklist, STARRED REVIEW
Bluebeard’s Castle by Anne Biller
fiction / horror / romance.
When the successful British mystery writer Judith Moore meets Gavin, a handsome and charming baron, at a birthday party on the Cornish coast, his love transforms her from a bitter, lonely young woman into a romance heroine overnight. After a whirlwind honeymoon in Paris, he whisks her away to a secluded Gothic castle. But soon she finds herself trapped in a nightmare, as her husband’s mysterious nature and his alternation between charm and violence become increasingly frightening.
As Judith battles both internal and external demons, including sexual ambivalence, psychological self-torture, gaslighting, family neglect, alcoholism, and domestic abuse, she becomes increasingly addicted to her wild beast of a husband. Why do women stay in abusive relationships? The answer can be found in the tortured mind of the protagonist, whose richly layered fantasy life parallels that of the female Gothic romance reader. Filled with dark humor and evocative imagery, Bluebeard’s Castle is a subversive take on modern romance and Gothic erotica.
“A perfect literary debut for a one-of-a-kind filmmaker. And that cover!” – Sophia M. Stewart, The Millions
“Anna Biller’s sly feminist dissection of gothic tropes is as lush and layered as her cinema… Biller skillfully portrays the gaslighting and abuse that reduce her heroine to making excuses for her boorish husband.” – Molly Odintz, CrimeReads
“Bluebeard’s Castle is a truly great novel… it’s a delightful page-turner; multilayered and multi-dimensional. While a book of this nature is a risk in any era, it’s safe to say that Anna Biller can now add novelist to her sensational register of artistic achievements.” – Super Amanda, We Are Cult
The Burnout by Sophie Kinsella
fiction / romance / comedy.
She can do anything… just not everything.
Sasha has had it. She cannot bring herself to respond to another inane, “urgent” (but obviously not at all urgent) email or participate in the corporate employee joyfulness program. She hasn’t seen her friends in months. Sex? Seems like a lot of effort. Even cooking dinner takes far too much planning. Sasha has hit a wall.
Armed with good intentions to drink kale smoothies, try yoga, and find peace, she heads to the seaside resort she loved as a child. But it’s the off season, the hotel is in a dilapidated shambles, and she has to share the beach with the only other occupant: a grumpy guy named Finn, who seems as stressed as Sasha. How can she commune with nature when he’s sitting on her favorite rock, watching her? Nor can they agree on how best to alleviate their burnout (Sasha: manifesting, wild swimming; Finn: drinking whisky, getting pizza delivered to the beach).
When curious messages, seemingly addressed to Sasha and Finn, begin to appear on the beach, the two are forced to talk—about everything. How did they get so burned out? Can either of them remember something they used to love? (Answer: surfing!) And the question they try and fail to ignore: what does the energy between them—flaring even in the face of their bone-deep exhaustion—signify?
“Kinsella’s latest is a light and easy read… perfect for a summer day. The relationship’s growth and the novel’s nostalgic small-town vibe recall Emily Henry’s Book Lovers.” – Chelsie Harris, Library Journal
“…Kinsella peppers in plenty of humor as the protagonists share childhood memories and reach for happiness together. The banter is snappy, but what really sets this romance apart is its message of carving out time for life’s simple pleasures. Kinsella’s fans will not be disappointed.” – Publishers Weekly
Every Man for Himself and God Against All: A Memoir by Werner Herzog; translated by Michael Hofmann ★
nonfiction / memoir / film.
Werner Herzog was born in September 1942 in Munich, Germany, at a turning point in the Second World War. Soon Germany would be defeated and a new world would have to be made out of the rubble and horrors of the war. Fleeing the Allied bombing raids, Herzog’s mother took him and his older brother to a remote, rustic part of Bavaria where he would spend much of his childhood hungry, without running water, in deep poverty. It was there, as the new postwar order was emerging, that one of the most visionary filmmakers of the next seven decades was formed.
Until age 11, Herzog did not even know of the existence of cinema. His interest in films began at age 15, but since no one was willing to finance them, he worked the night shift as a welder in a steel factory. He started to travel on foot. He made his first phone call at age 17, and his first film in 1961 at age 19. The wildly productive working life that followed—spanning the seven continents and encompassing both documentary and fiction—was an adventure as grand and otherworldly as any depicted in his many classic films.
Every Man for Himself and God Against All is at once a personal record of one of the great and self-invented lives of our time, and a singular literary masterpiece that will enthrall fans old and new alike. In a hypnotic swirl of memory, Herzog untangles and relives his most important experiences and inspirations, telling his story for the first and only time.
“[As] epic and chaotic as his best films.” – Jessica Ferri, Los Angeles Times
“Herzog in all his extravagant, perspicacious glory… Throughout, Herzog is witty and captivating as he recollects all kinds of odd, curious, and outlandish events, people, and injuries… Fans and neophytes alike will relish the opportunity to delve deeply into Herzog’s fascinating mind.” – Kirkus Reviews, STARRED REVIEW
“It’s impossible to read Werner Herzog’s Every Man For Himself and God Against All without hearing the director’s stunned monotone recount a strange package dropped from an airplane behind his childhood home, or his stint on The Simpsons. (Herzog, until 2002, didn’t realize it was a TV show.) Like his films, it’s episodic, offbeat and casually revealing.” – Christopher Borrelli, Chicago Tribune
“[His] memoir is as singular as his films, rich with weird and indelible images (‘The whole slope behind the house was suddenly alive with weasels’) and poetic ruminations (‘Could I not break the spell that prevented her from dying?’)… What makes the new book special in the Herzog canon is how it collapses time, such that disparate moments in history — from town criers to the internet, peasants’ scythes to robot farmers — collide on the highways of his mind.” – Zak Cheney-Rice, Vulture
Family Meal by Bryan Washington ★
fiction.
Cam is living in Los Angeles and falling apart after the love of his life has died. Kai’s ghost won’t leave Cam alone; his spectral visits wild, tender, and unexpected. When Cam returns to his hometown of Houston, he crashes back into the orbit of his former best friend, TJ, and TJ’s family bakery. TJ’s not sure how to navigate this changed Cam, impenetrably cool and self-destructing, or their charged estrangement. Can they find a way past all that has been said – and left unsaid – to save each other? Could they find a way back to being okay again, or maybe for the first time?
When secrets and wounds become so insurmountable that they devour us from within, hope and sustenance and friendship can come from the most unlikely source. Spanning Los Angeles, Houston, and Osaka, Family Meal is a story about how the people who know us the longest can hurt us the most, but how they also set the standard for love. With his signature generosity and eye for food, sex, love, and the moments that make us the most human, Bryan Washington returns with a brilliant new novel.
“Disparate characters come together for nourishment in this poignant story about how grief and food make family of us all.” – Adrienne Westenfeld, Esquire
“In his second novel (after Memorial), NYPL Young Lion Washington offers a heart-shaking, scorchingly honest study of the damage we do ourselves, the lure of addictive behavior, and the courage it takes to face one’s anguish… A group portrait that strikingly captures both pain and healing; highly recommended.” – Barbara Hoffert, Library Journal, STARRED REVIEW
“Washington brings his tough but fragile characters to life with quietly powerful prose, as when TJ reflects, ‘I didn’t want to be accepted or tolerated. I wanted to just be.’ Readers will be deeply moved.” – Publishers Weekly, STARRED REVIEW
“Washington writes about loneliness and despair with the kind of care I crave; instead of dipping into nihilism, his characters continue to try and understand one another. Even if there is turning inward, there is always turning toward, a constant reaching, reaching.” – Julia Haas, Literary Hub
The Final Witness: A Kennedy Secret Service Agent Breaks His Silence After Sixty Years by Paul Landis
nonfiction / memoir / history / true crime / biography.
Dallas, Texas. November 22, 1963. Shots ring out at Dealey Plaza. The president is struck in the head by a rifle bullet. Confusion reigns.
Special Agent Paul Landis is in the follow-up car directly behind JFK’s and is at the president’s limo as soon as it stops at Parkland Memorial Hospital. He is inside Trauma Room #1, where the president is pronounced dead. He is on Air Force One with the president’s casket on the flight back to Washington, DC; an eyewitness to Lyndon Johnson taking the oath of office. What he saw is indelibly imprinted upon his psyche. He writes and files his report. And yet… Agent Landis is never called to testify to the Warren Commission. The one person who could have supplied key answers is never asked questions.
By mid-1964, the nightmares from Dallas remain, and he resigns. It isn’t until the fiftieth anniversary that he begins to talk about it, and he reads his first books on the assassination.
Landis learns about the raging conspiracy theories—and realizes where they all go wrong.
“…gripping…” – Liz McNeil & Virginia Chamlee, People
“The account of Paul Landis, one of the Secret Service agents just feet away from John F. Kennedy when he was struck down, could change the understanding of what happened in Dallas in 1963… he was there, a firsthand witness, and it is rare for new testimony to emerge six decades after the fact.” – Peter Baker, New York Times
“A former Secret Service agent recalls the assassination of President John F. Kennedy and makes startling claims about the number of shots fired… Landis’s winsome portrait of the First Family takes on a gripping, visceral immediacy when he narrates his experiences in Kennedy’s Dallas motorcade on the day of the assassination and makes a paradigm-shifting assertion about the ‘magic bullet’… The recreation of the fatal day is vivid, but Landis’s claims require further investigation.” – Publishers Weekly
The Hive and the Honey: Stories by Paul Yoon
fiction.
A boy searches for his father, a prison guard on Sakhalin Island. In Barcelona, a woman is tasked with spying on a prizefighter who may or may not be her estranged son. A samurai escorts an orphan to his countrymen in the Edo Period. A formerly incarcerated man starts a new life in a small town in upstate New York and attempts to build a family.
The Hive and the Honey is a bold and indelible collection by celebrated author Paul Yoon, one that portrays the vastness and complexity of diasporic communities, with each story bringing to light the knotty inheritances of their characters. How does a North Korean defector connect with the child she once left behind? What are the traumas that haunt a Korean settlement in Far East Russia?
Lauded as a “quotidian-surreal craft-master” (New York magazine), Yoon’s stunning stories are laced with beauty and cruelty, and The Hive and the Honey is the work of an author writing at the very height of his powers.
“This is an elegant exploration of life’s brutal and beautiful moments.” – Publishers Weekly
“[A] complex look at alienation, identity, and the lasting effects of war… Yoon’s attention to historic detail makes these tales of displaced people all the more affecting.” – Shannon Carlin, Time
“Yoon’s new short story collection is another spare, controlled masterpiece… The last pages (again) come too soon.” – Terry Hong, Booklist, STARRED REVIEW
A Holly Jolly Ever After by Julie Murphy & Sierra Simone
fiction / romance / comedy.
Kallum Lieberman is the funny one™. As the arguably lesser of the three former members of the boy band INK, he enjoyed his fifteen minutes of fame and then moved home where he opened a regional pizza chain called Slice, Slice, Baby! He’s living his best dad bod life, hooking up with bridesmaids at all his friends’ weddings. But after an old one-off sex tape is leaked and quickly goes viral, Kallum decides he’s ready to step into the spotlight again, starring in a sexy Santa biopic for the Hope Channel.
Winnie Baker did everything right. She married her childhood sweetheart, avoided the downfalls of adolescent stardom, and transitioned into a stable adult acting career. Hell, she even waited until marriage to have sex. But after her perfect life falls apart, Winnie is ready to redefine herself—and what better way than a steamier-than-a-steaming-hot-mug-of-cider Christmas movie?
With decade old Hollywood history between them, Winnie and Kallum are both feeling hesitant about their new situation as costars… especially Winnie who can’t seem to fake on screen pleasure she’s never experienced in real life. She’s willing to do the pleasure research—for science and artistic authenticity, of course. And there’s no better research partner than her bridesmaid sex tape hall of fame costar, Kallum. But suddenly, Kallum’s teenage crush on Winnie is bubbling to the surface and Winnie might be catching feelings herself.
They say opposites attract, but is this holly jolly ever after really ready for its close-up?
“A gloriously spicy holiday romance that is hilarious and heart wrenching — celebrating holiday joy while tackling topics like religion and purity culture. Holly Jolly is a trademark balance of laughter, spice, and everything nice!” – Jenni Marchisotto, Indie Next
“Murphy and Simone present another superbly written, splendidly witty holiday romance featuring another pair of expertly nuanced protagonists and a plot that flawlessly balances sizzling sensual heat and sweet romantic affection while joyfully celebrating body positivity.” – John Charles, Booklist, STARRED REVIEW
“Skillful, sympathetic writing weaves the conflict seamlessly into the storyline, creating a novel that will make readers laugh, cry, and cheer. This sexy, joyful romantic comedy from Murphy and Simone is a delightful read.” – Heather Miller Cover, Library Journal, STARRED REVIEW
The Leftover Woman by Jean Kwok ★
fiction / mystery / suspense.
Jasmine Yang arrives in New York City from her rural Chinese village without money or family support, fleeing a controlling husband, on a desperate search for the daughter who was taken from her at birth—another female casualty of China’s controversial One Child Policy. But with her husband on her trail, the clock is ticking, and she’s forced to make increasingly risky decisions if she ever hopes to be reunited with her daughter.
Meanwhile, publishing executive Rebecca Whitney seems to have it all: a prestigious family name and the wealth that comes with it, a high-powered career, a beautiful home, a handsome husband, and an adopted Chinese daughter she adores. She’s even hired a nanny to help her balance the demands of being a working wife and mother. But when an industry scandal threatens to jeopardize not only Rebecca’s job but her marriage, this perfect world begins to crumble and her role in her own family is called into question.
The Leftover Woman finds these two unforgettable women on a shocking collision course. Twisting and suspenseful and surprisingly poignant, it’s a profound exploration of identity and belonging, motherhood and family. It is a story of two women in a divided city—separated by severe economic and cultural differences yet bound by a deep emotional connection to a child.
“Jean Kwok established herself as a writer to watch with her stunning [novel], Searching for Sylvie Lee, and her upcoming novel is just as emotional, beautiful, and haunting… Kwok has woven an impeccably plotted domestic thriller that culminates in a profoundly satisfying ending, and I must insist that everyone pick this one up.” – Molly Odintz, CrimeReads
“…propulsive… Kwok ratchets up the tension between Rebecca and Lucy, making for an engrossing and suspenseful plot.” – Publishers Weekly
“[A] heart-wrenching examination of transracial adoption and its influence in the lives of a Chinese American child and the two mothers who love her… The resulting intersection of their lives makes this book not only a suspenseful read, but also an introspective journey into the bonds of family, country, class, and race.” – Lauren Puckett-Pope, Elle
“Kwok brings her signature lyrical prose to the novel, while suspense simmers in the background. The dangerous club Jasmine works for and the presence of the snakeheads indicate the high stakes, yet there are also tender moments, showing the power of the love both women have for their daughter. Highly recommended.” – Cari Dubiel, Booklist, STARRED REVIEW
Madonna: A Rebel Life by Mary Gabriel ★
nonfiction / biography / music.
With her arrival on the music scene in the early 1980s, Madonna generated nothing short of an explosion—as great as that of Elvis or the Beatles—taking the nation by storm with her liberated politics and breathtaking talent. Within two years of her 1983 debut album, a flagship Macy’s store in Manhattan held a Madonna lookalike contest featuring Andy Warhol as a judge, and opened a department called “Madonna-land.”
But Madonna was more than just a pop star. Everywhere, fans gravitated to her as an emblem of a new age, one in which feminism could shed the buttoned-down demeanor of the 1970s and feel relevant to a new generation. Amid the scourge of AIDS, she brought queer identities into the mainstream, fiercely defending a person’s right to love whomever—and be whoever—they wanted. Despite fierce criticism, she never separated her music from her political activism. And, as an artist, she never stopped experimenting. Madonna existed to push past boundaries by creating provocative, visionary music, videos, films, and live performances that changed culture globally.
Deftly tracing Madonna’s story from her Michigan roots to her rise to super-stardom, master biographer Mary Gabriel captures the dramatic life and achievements of one of the greatest artists of our time.
“A Rebel Life brings home not just [Madonna’s] obvious willpower and strength, but her fearlessness and sheer intelligence. How does female creativity age? Does it even have to? As ever, Madonna will show us the way.” – Suzanne Moore, The Telegraph
“The work of a cultural historian rather than a fan, this meticulous study puts the shape-shifting star in proper context… It’s a mark of Gabriel’s skill that she has managed to wrestle this complex, sprawling, eventful life into a book that rarely flags and conveys its subject’s wider significance without tipping into hagiography. We come to understand Madonna the person as well as Madonna the concept: a woman who, for a generation, embodied female artistic, sexual and financial liberation.” – Fiona Sturges, The Guardian
“…Gabriel’s thorough and engaging biography follows the artist from her resounding first album in 1983 through every turn… Gabriel is a wonderfully empathic writer, attuned to emotional nuances as well as the public side of her complex subject, resulting in a minutely detailed, lushly evocative portrait as Madonna’s story continues.” – June Sawyers, Booklist, STARRED REVIEW
“Drawing on extensive research, Gabriel paints a satisfyingly nuanced portrait of a trailblazing musician who never shied from controversy, whether the issue was her ‘corsets and push-up bras and garter belts’ that scandalized fans and enraged feminists or her 1980s advocacy for AIDS awareness. The singer’s myriad admirers won’t be disappointed.” – Publishers Weekly
The Mysteries by Bill Watterson & John Kascht
fiction / graphic novel / fantasy.
From Bill Watterson, bestselling creator of the beloved comic strip Calvin and Hobbes, and John Kascht, one of America’s most renowned caricaturists, comes a mysterious and beautifully illustrated fable about what lies beyond human understanding.
In a fable for grown-ups by cartoonist Bill Watterson, a long-ago kingdom is afflicted with unexplainable calamities. Hoping to end the torment, the king dispatches his knights to discover the source of the mysterious events. Years later, a single battered knight returns.
For the book’s illustrations, Watterson and caricaturist John Kascht worked together for several years in unusually close collaboration. Both artists abandoned their past ways of working, inventing images together that neither could anticipate—a mysterious process in its own right.
“A bold artistic statement of extraordinary depth. With a dark palette and striking caricatures, this captivating fable explores the limits of our understanding and the hubris of humankind. An instant classic that stays with you.” – Barnes & Noble
The New Brownies’ Book: A Love Letter to Black Families by Karida Brown & Charly Palmer
nonfiction / essays / poetry / fiction / art / history / current events.
Inspired by the groundbreaking work of W.E.B. Du Bois, this beautiful collection brings together an outstanding roster of Black creative voices to honor, celebrate, and foster Black excellence.
The New Brownies’ Book reimagines the very first publication created for African American children in 1920 as a must-have anthology for a new generation. Expanding on the mission of the original periodical to inspire the hearts and minds of Black children across the country, esteemed scholar Karida L. Brown and award-winning artist Charly Palmer have gathered the work of more than fifty contemporary Black artists and writers. The result is a book bursting with essays, poems, photographs, paintings, and short stories reflecting on the joy and depth of the Black experience—an immersive treasure trove that reminds readers of all ages that Black is brilliant, beautiful, and bold.
Opinions: A Decade of Arguments, Criticism, and Minding Other People’s Business by Roxane Gay
nonfiction / essays / politics.
Since the publication of the groundbreaking Bad Feminist and Hunger, Roxane Gay has continued to tackle big issues embroiling society—state-sponsored violence and mass shootings, women’s rights post-Dobbs, online disinformation, and the limits of empathy—alongside more individually personalized matters: can I tell my co-worker her perfume makes me sneeze? Is it acceptable to schedule a daily 8 am meeting? In her role as a New York Times opinion section contributor and the publication’s “Work Friend” columnist, she reaches millions of readers with her wise voice and sharp insights.
Opinions is a collection of Roxane Gay’s best nonfiction pieces from the past ten years. Covering a wide range of topics—politics, feminism, the culture wars, civil rights, and much more—with an all-new introduction in which she reflects on the past decade in America, this sharp, thought-provoking anthology will delight Roxane Gay’s devotees and draw new readers to this inimitable talent.
“Each piece on its own is worthy of attention. Taken collectively, this title is not to be missed.” – Audrey Snowden, Library Journal
“Nothing is off limits, as Gay uses her insightful wit and deep insights to dissect everything from the Fast and the Furious franchise to Trump to Janelle Monae, and weighs in on the Roseanne reboot, why she hates the beach, and more.” – Yolanda Machado, Entertainment Weekly
“This is a must-read for not only fans of Gay’s work, but for everyone interested in reading intellectual, accessible, and important takes on timely topics.” – Allison Escoto, Booklist, STARRED REVIEW
Roman Stories by Jhumpa Lahiri; translated by Todd Portnowitz ★
fiction.
Rome—metropolis and monument, suspended between past and future, multi-faceted and metaphysical—is the protagonist, not the setting, of these nine tales in the first short story collection by the Pulitzer Prize–winning master of the form since her number one New York Times best seller Unaccustomed Earth, and a major literary event.
In “The Boundary,” one family vacations in the Roman countryside, though we see their lives through the eyes of the caretaker’s daughter, who nurses a wound from her family’s immigrant past. In “P’s Parties,” a Roman couple, now empty nesters, finds comfort and community with foreigners at their friend’s yearly birthday gathering—until the husband crosses a line. And in “The Steps,” on a public staircase that connects two neighborhoods and the residents who climb up and down it, we see Italy’s capital in all of its social and cultural variegations, filled with the tensions of a changing visibility and invisibility, random acts of aggression, the challenge of straddling worlds and cultures, and the meaning of home.
These are splendid, searching stories, written in Jhumpa Lahiri’s adopted language of Italian and seamlessly translated by the author and by Knopf editor Todd Portnowitz. Stories steeped in the moods of Italian master Alberto Moravia and guided, in the concluding tale, by the ineluctable ghost of Dante Alighieri, whose words lead the protagonist toward a new way of life.
“[A] dazzling collection… These unembroidered yet potent stories shine.” – Publishers Weekly, STARRED REVIEW
“A brilliant return to the short story form by an author of protean accomplishments… Filled with intelligence and sorrow, these sharply drawn glimpses of Roman lives create an impressively unified effect.” – Kirkus Reviews, STARRED REVIEW
“[A] delectable, sun-washed treat… the stories have the beating heart of the city itself, a place of magnificent decay and vibrant, varied life.” – Chloe Schama, Vogue
“Rome with its echoing past and mercurial present is a potently evocative setting for Lahiri’s exquisitely incisive, richly empathetic, and profoundly resonant stories.” – Donna Seaman, Booklist, STARRED REVIEW
So Many People, Mariana by Maria Judite de Carvalho; translated by Margaret Jull Costa
fiction.
Long discounted by a literary culture that actively rejected women’s writing, Maria Judite de Carvalho’s biting and bitterly funny work has since exploded across the world. Collecting the entirety of her short works written between 1959 and 1967, when the Salazar dictatorship and the rigid edicts of the Catholic church reigned, the stories in So Many People, Mariana might as well have been written today. These are tough, unflinching accounts of women trapped by a culture that values them as workers or wives but not as people. And if they do escape their circumstances, they are, more often than not, irrevocably punished by the world.
So Many People, Mariana is an introduction to a major international writer at the height of her power. Translated by the renowned Margaret Jull Costa, Carvalho leads readers into the dark side of life under patriarchal capitalism, writing “as precisely and without sentiment as an autopsy” (New York Review of Books).
“In stark, unsentimental prose, the late Portuguese literary powerhouse studies class, society, and gender with surgical precision.” – Sophia M. Stewart, The Millions
“Melancholic, contemplative, and often heartbreaking…” – Eileen Gonzalez, Foreword Reviews
“A definitive collection of stories by a Portuguese master of the form. The stories that make up this remarkable volume are united by their quiet intensity, their commitment to internal turmoil, and their enduring interest in the lives, hopes, and miseries that are unique to women… Elegant stories full of a dry and subtle wit, intricately observed scenes, and a full range of emotion.” – Kirkus Reviews, STARRED REVIEW
Sword Catcher by Cassandra Clare
fiction / fantasy / romance.
In the vibrant city-state of Castellane, the richest of nobles and the most debauched of criminals have one thing in common: the constant search for wealth, power, and the next hedonistic thrill.
Kel is an orphan, stolen from the life he knew to become the Sword Catcher—the body double of a royal heir, Prince Conor Aurelian. He has been raised alongside the prince, trained in every aspect of combat and statecraft. He and Conor are as close as brothers, but Kel knows that his destiny is to die for Conor. No other future is possible.
Lin Caster is one of the Ashkar, a small community whose members still possess magical abilities. By law, they must live behind walls within the city, but Lin, a physician, ventures out to tend to the sick and dying of Castellane. Despite her skills, she cannot heal her best friend without access to forbidden knowledge.
After a failed assassination attempt brings Lin and Kel together, they are drawn into the web of the mysterious Ragpicker King, the criminal ruler of Castellane’s underworld. He offers them each what they want most; but as they descend into his world of intrigue and shadow, they discover a conspiracy of corruption that reaches from the darkest gutters of Castellane to the highest tower of its palaces. As long-kept secrets begin to unravel, they must ask themselves: Is knowledge worth the price of betrayal? Can forbidden love bring down a kingdom? And will their discoveries plunge their nation into war—and the world into chaos?
“…enchanting… this multilayered epic is sure to be a hit with Clare’s many fans.” – Publishers Weekly
“A luscious story about fierce loyalty, powerful friendship, illusory love, and a unique brand of heroism.” – Andrea Dyba, Library Journal
“The tangle of political disputes and shadowy plots that leads to Kel and Lin crossing paths is not only thick enough to make the several hundred pages fly by, it will leave readers eager for a series full of twists and turns. Clare expertly balances the needs of a satisfying plot with dropping tantalizing hints of what’s to come in future installments. Her worldbuilding is instantly immersive, and the many characters are all detailed and memorable, so swapping between storylines flows easily for the reader. A wonderfully enjoyable series opener.” – Kirkus Reviews
Touched by Walter Mosley ★
fiction / fantasy.
Martin Just wakes up one morning after what feels like, and might actually be, a centuries-long sleep with two new innate pieces of knowledge: Humanity is a virus destined to destroy all existence. And that he is the Cure.
Martin, his wife, and his two children are the only Black family on their neighborhood block in the Hollywood hills of Los Angeles. Suddenly, Martin is both father and Antibody, husband and Cure, occasionally slipping into an alternate consciousness – equipped with unprecedented physical strength – to violently defend them.
The family is stalked by Tor Waxman – the pale, white-haired embodiment of death who wears a dapper suit, carries a
cane, and seeks to destroy all life with his fatal touch. Martin must convince his family of the danger and get them to engage with him in a battle beyond all imagining.
Mosley effortlessly marries the sublime and the pedestrian: from monumental battles with truly universal stakes to the banality of standoffs with neighborhood police patrols, and the quotidian yet joyfully intimate conversations the family shares at home while gathered for dinner. With his boundless talent and skilled range, Walter Mosley brings an ethereal, incisive look at a primal struggle driven by the spirit of the universe, in the vein of masters Octavia Butler, N.K. Jemisin, and Jeff VanderMeer. Expansive and innovative, sexy and satirical, Touched brilliantly imagines the
ways in which human life and technological innovation threaten existence itself.
“Dystopian fantasy with an edge of satire from one of the best to ever do it? Yes please.” – Jonny Diamond, Literary Hub
“[Reads] like a Black Mirror episode set against the Hollywood Hills… Fast-moving action and jaw-dropping twists move this slim volume along at a dizzying rate.” – Kirkus Reviews
“A hard-hitting, topical story that fans of Mosley will enjoy.” – Laura Hiatt, Library Journal
“[A] weird, philosophical book that packs a lot into fewer than 200 pages, exploring racial inequality, an unjust justice system, family relationships, and expansive ideas about the nature of humanity. ” – Susan Maguire, Booklist
Wrath Becomes Her by Aden Polydoros
fiction / young adult / historical fiction / horror.
Vera was made for vengeance.
Lithuania, 1943. A father drowns in the all-consuming grief of a daughter killed by the Nazis. He can’t bring Chaya back from the dead, but he can use kishuf — an ancient and profane magic — to create a golem in her image. A Nazi killer, to avenge her death.
When Vera awakens, she can feel her violent purpose thrumming within her. But she can also feel glimpses of a human life lived, of stolen kisses amidst the tragedy, and of a grisly death. And when she meets Akiva, she recognizes the boy with soft lips that gave warm kisses. But these memories aren’t hers, and Vera doesn’t know if she gets—or deserves—to have a life beyond what she was made for.
Vera’s strength feels limitless—until she learns that there are others who would channel kishuf for means far less noble than avenging a daughter’s death. As she confronts the very basest of humanity, Vera will need more than what her creator gave her: Not just a reason to fight, but a reason to live.
“A haunting and thoughtful World War II tale with a dark, magical bent.” – Kirkus Reviews
“Polydoros’ historical horror fantasy, informed by Jewish mythology, is a terrifying, thought-provoking book that will linger in the reader’s mind for a long time.” – Marija Lukic, Booklist
“Without sacrificing emotional impact or contemporary resonance, Polydoros implements frequently explored Jewish lore surrounding golems with a fresh and inventive angle. Relentlessly disconcerting ambiance adds to the novel’s eerie feel, making for an engrossing alternate history adventure.” – Publishers Weekly
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