“When people say impossible, they usually mean improbable.” – Leigh Bardugo, Siege and Storm
The Age of Magical Overthinking: Notes on Modern Irrationality by Amanda Montell ★
nonfiction / psychology / self help / sociology.
Utilizing the linguistic insights of her “witty and brilliant” (Blyth Roberson, author of America the Beautiful?) first book Wordslut and the sociological explorations of her breakout hit Cultish, Amanda Montell now turns her erudite eye to the inner workings of the human mind and its biases in her most personal and electrifying work yet.
“Magical thinking” can be broadly defined as the belief that one’s internal thoughts can affect unrelated events in the external world: Think of the conviction that one can manifest their way out of poverty, stave off cancer with positive vibes, thwart the apocalypse by learning to can their own peaches, or transform an unhealthy relationship to a glorious one with loyalty alone. In all its forms, magical thinking works in service of restoring agency amid chaos, but in The Age of Magical Overthinking, Montell argues that in the modern information age, our brain’s coping mechanisms have been overloaded, and our irrationality turned up to an eleven.
In a series of razor sharp, deeply funny chapters, Montell delves into a cornucopia of the cognitive biases that run rampant in our brains, from how the “Halo effect” cultivates worship (and hatred) of larger than life celebrities, to how the “Sunk Cost Fallacy” can keep us in detrimental relationships long after we’ve realized they’re not serving us. As she illuminates these concepts with her signature brilliance and wit, Montell’s prevailing message is one of hope, empathy, and ultimately forgiveness for our anxiety-addled human selves. If you have all but lost faith in our ability to reason, Montell aims to make some sense of the senseless. To crack open a window in our minds, and let a warm breeze in. To help quiet the cacophony for a while, or even hear a melody in it.”
“A delicious blend of cultural criticism and personal narrative…” – Panio Gianopoulos, Next Big Idea Club
“[An] engaging package suitable for anyone who wants to better understand the chaos of our modern society. Montell’s take on how irrationality went mainstream is informed by erudite wit and an eye for telling images.” – Kirkus Reviews, STARRED REVIEW
“This is a playful and smart exploration of all our very human foibles and the stories we tell ourselves as we try to make sense of the world.” – Isabelle McConville, Barnes & Noble
“Refreshingly entertaining and informative… Montell aims to inspire online users to identify and counter ingrained tendencies toward superstition, groupthink, and mental shortcuts. She exemplifies the power of compelling stories by employing her own memorable metaphors and disclosures as an invitation to consider more deeply what we choose to consume and share.” – Joelle Egan, Booklist
All You Need Is Love: The Beatles in Their Own Words: Unpublished, Unvarnished, and Told by the Beatles and Their Inner Circle by Peter Brown & Steven Gaines
nonfiction / biography / music.
All You Need Is Love is a groundbreaking oral history of the one of the most enduring musical acts of all time. The material is comprised of intimate interviews with Paul McCartney, Yoko Ono, George Harrison, Ringo Starr, their families, friends and business associates that were conducted by Beatles intimate Peter Brown and author Steven Gaines in 1980-1981 during the preparation of their international bestseller, The Love You Make, which spent f
our months on the New York Times bestseller list in 1983 and remains the biggest selling biography worldwide about the Beatles
Only a small portion of the contents of these transcribed interviews have ever been revealed. The interviews are unique and candid. The information, stories, and experiences, and the authority of the people who relate to them, have historic value. No collection like this can ever be assembled again.
In addition to interviews with Paul, Yoko, Ringo and George, Brown and Gaines also include interviews from ex-wives Cynthia Lennon, Pattie Harrison Clapton, and Maureen Starkey, as well as the major social and business figures of the Beatles’ inner circle. Among other sought-after information the interviews contribute definitively as to why the Beatles broke up.
“Beatles fans will be impatient to get their hands on this.” – Publishers Weekly
“This is not a mere appreciation book, it digs into the highs and lows for a complete profile of the iconic band.” – Isabelle McConville, Barnes & Noble
“Brown and Gaines’s new book, All You Need Is Love, goes even deeper into Beatle lore than their first… startling… When asked about finding the truth amid contrasting accounts in an oral history, Brown turned philosophical. ‘It depends on where you’re sitting,’ he said.” – Ben Sisario, New York Times
A Better World by Sarah Langan
fiction / suspense / mystery.
You’ll be safe here. That’s what the tour guide tells the Farmer-Bowens when they visit Plymouth Valley, a walled-off company town with clean air, pantries that never go empty, and blue-ribbon schools. On a very trial basis, the company offers to hire Linda Farmer’s husband, Russell, a numbers genius, and relocate her whole family to this bucolic paradise for the .0001 percent. Though Linda will have to sacrifice her medical career back home, the family jumps at the opportunity. They’d be crazy not to take it. With the outside world falling apart, this might be the Farmer-Bowens’ last chance.
But fitting in takes work. The pampered locals distrust outsiders, snubbing Linda, Russell, and their teen twins. And the residents fervently adhere to a group of customs and beliefs called Hollow… but what exactly is Hollow?
It’s Linda who brokers acceptance, by volunteering her medical skills to the most influential people in town through their pet charity, ActHollow. In the months afterward, everything seems fine. Sure, Russell starts hyperventilating through a paper bag in the middle of the night, and the kids have become secretive, but living in Plymouth Valley is worth sacrificing their family’s closeness, isn’t it? At least they’ll survive. The trouble is, the locals never say what they think. They seem scared. And Hollow’s ominous culminating event, the Plymouth Valley Winter Festival, is coming.
Linda is warned by her husband and her powerful new friends to stop asking questions. But the more she learns, the more frightened she becomes. Should the Farmer-Bowens be fighting to stay, or fighting to get out?
Sarah Langan’s latest novel, A Better World, is gleefully ruthless in its dissection of wealth, power, and privilege, timely in its depiction of a self-destructing world—and it is a prescient warning to us all.
“Langan’s satirical observations shine…” – Becky Meloan, Washington Post
“[An] apocalyptic thriller that becomes more terrifying with every turn of the page… Langan layers themes of ostracism, manipulation, and family dynamics that will resonate with readers.” – Cari Dubiel, Booklist, STARRED REVIEW
“Blending suspense, tragedy, and flashes of comedy, Langan keeps her cards close to the vest as the Farmer-Bowens’ perfect escape morphs into a sinister trap. This deeply disturbing tale will keep readers up at night.” – Publishers Weekly
Daughter of Mine by Megan Miranda
fiction / suspense / mystery.
When Hazel Sharp, daughter of Mirror Lake’s longtime local detective, unexpectedly inherits her childhood home, she’s warily drawn back to the town—and people—she left behind almost a decade earlier. But Hazel’s not the only relic of the past to return: a drought has descended on the region, and as the water level in the lake drops, long-hidden secrets begin to emerge… including evidence that may help finally explain the mystery of her mother’s disappearance.
“Miranda has arguably written her best book to date, and she has another guaranteed best seller on her hands.” – Jeff Ayers, Library Journal, STARRED REVIEW
“…awesome… another stunning psychological thriller from one of the most insightful writers around.” – Molly Odintz, CrimeReads
“Small-town claustrophobia and intimacies alike propel this twist-filled psychological thriller.” – Kirkus Reviews, STARRED REVIEW
The Familiar by Leigh Bardugo ★
fiction / fantasy / historical fiction / romance.
In a shabby house, on a shabby street, in the new capital of Madrid, Luzia Cotado uses scraps of magic to get through her days of endless toil as a scullion. But when her scheming mistress discovers the lump of a servant cowering in the kitchen is actually hiding a talent for little miracles, she demands Luzia use those gifts to improve the family’s social position.
What begins as simple amusement for the nobility takes a perilous turn when Luzia garners the notice of Antonio Pérez, the disgraced secretary to Spain’s king. Still reeling from the defeat of his armada, the king is desperate for any advantage in the war against England’s heretic queen—and Pérez will stop at nothing to regain the king’s favor.
Determined to seize this one chance to better her fortunes, Luzia plunges into a world of seers and alchemists, holy men and hucksters, where the lines between magic, science, and fraud are never certain. But as her notoriety grows, so does the danger that her Jewish blood will doom her to the Inquisition’s wrath. She will have to use every bit of her wit and will to survive—even if that means enlisting the help of Guillén Santángel, an embittered immortal familiar whose own secrets could prove deadly for them both.
“…sharp realism mixes with a genuine feeling of enchantment to create a top tier historical fantasy.” – Publishers Weekly, STARRED REVIEW
“Lush, gorgeous, precise language and propulsive plotting sweep readers into a story as intelligent as it is atmospheric.” – Kirkus Reviews, STARRED REVIEW
“Bardugo masterfully weaves magical realism with historical fiction and romance, which makes this book impossible to put down.” – Leigh Berburg, Library Journal, STARRED REVIEW
“The Familiar highlights all of the things that make Bardugo so well loved… Fans of historical fantasy, tortured love interests, and Bardugo’s Grishaverse will fall hard for this new novel… [The Familiar] is sure to dazzle.” – Leah von Essen, Booklist, STARRED REVIEW
The Gathering by C.J. Tudor
fiction / horror / suspense / mystery.
In a small Alaska town, a boy is found with his throat ripped out and all the blood drained from his body. The inhabitants of Deadhart haven’t seen a killing like this in twenty-five years. But they know who’s responsible: a member of the Colony, an ostracized community of vampyrs living in an old mine settlement deep in the woods.
Detective Barbara Atkins, a specialist in vampyr killings, is called in to officially determine if this is a Colony killing—and authorize a cull. Old suspicions die hard in a town like Deadhart, but Barbara isn’t so sure. Determined to find the truth, she enlists the help of a former Deadhart sheriff, Jenson Tucker, whose investigation into the previous murder almost cost him his life. Since then, Tucker has become a recluse. But he knows the Colony better than almost anyone.
As the pair delve into the town’s history, they uncover secrets darker than they could have imagined. And then another body is found. While the snow thickens and the nights grow longer, a killer stalks Deadhart, and two disparate communities circle each other for blood. Time is running out for Atkins and Tucker to find the truth: Are they hunting a bloodthirsty monster… or a twisted psychopath? And which is more dangerous?
“…wildly imaginative… Tudor leverages her snowbound setting for maximum atmosphere, and never lets her high-concept premise overwhelm patient character development. This frostbitten procedural is a bloody good time.” – Publishers Weekly, STARRED REVIEW
“Tudor spins a web of plot lines in which it is a pleasure to be caught. The novel is well written and propulsive, with Tudor staying at the top of her game… a compulsive and fantastic read.” – Jeremiah Paddock, Library Journal
“…brilliantly imagined… Tudor is a masterful storyteller, and here she does some of her finest work, approaching vampyr mythology from an exciting new angle and creating some of her most memorable human characters.” – David Pitt, Booklist
Ghost Station by S.A. Barnes
fiction / horror / science fiction / mystery.
An abandoned plant. A hidden past. A deadly danger.
Psychologist Dr. Ophelia Bray has dedicated her life to the study and prevention of ERS—the most famous case of which resulted in the brutal murders of twenty-nine people. It’s personal to her, and when she’s assigned to a small exploration crew who recently suffered the tragic death of a colleague, she wants to help. But as they begin to establish residency on an abandoned planet, it becomes clear that crew is hiding something.
And Ophelia’s crewmates are far more interested in investigating the eerie, ancient planet and unraveling the mystery behind the previous colonizers’ hasty departure than opening up to her.
That is, until their pilot is discovered gruesomely murdered. Is this Ophelia’s worst nightmare starting—a wave of violence and mental deterioration from ERS? Or is it something even more sinister?
Terrified that history will repeat itself, Ophelia and the crew must work together to figure out what’s happening. But trust is hard to come by… and the crew isn’t the only one keeping secrets.
“[A] slow-simmering creepfest… In this golden era of sci-fi horror, Barnes leads the charge with her thoughtfully crafted characters, top-notch pacing and an ever-present sense of dread.” – BookPage
“Fans of the original Alien film will enjoy this tense psychological-horror story set in a far-flung future as the crew tries to identify the forces at play while navigating the atrocities of their corporate employer, which they know all too well.” – Terrence Miltner, Booklist
“The horrors of the isolation and loneliness of space travel are enhanced by Barnes’s writing, as she only allows readers to see Ophelia’s unreliable point of view and utilizes slow-burn pacing to perfection, expertly building the world and relentlessly intensifying the dread. Barnes simultaneously slips in small doses of terror that get and stay under readers’ skin, until the entire narrative explodes and holds them entranced for its final act.” – Becky Spratford, Library Journal
The House of Broken Bricks by Fiona Williams
fiction.
Tess is a Londoner whose relationship with Richard transports her from a Jamaican diaspora in the city to the English countryside, where predatory birds hover over fields, buses run twice a day, neighbors barter honey for cider, and no one looks like her.
As Tess and Richard settle in, the dramatic arrival of their fraternal twins—one who presents as black and the other as white—recasts the family dynamic, stirring up complicated feelings and questions of belonging. Tess yearns for the comforting chaos of life as it once was, instead of Max and Sonny tracking dirt through the kitchen where cooking Caribbean food becomes her sole comfort. And Richard obsesses over getting his crops planted rather than deal with the conversation he cannot bear to have.
In Fiona Williams’ quartet of unforgettable, alternating perspectives, secrets and vines clamber over the house’s broken red bricks, and although its inhabitants seem to be withering, Sonny knows that something is stirring… As the seasons change and the cracks let in more light, the family might just be able to start to heal.
“A subtle, complex, and gorgeously written delight.” – Kirkus Reviews, STARRED REVIEW
“[A] lyrical and haunting debut… Readers will be moved.” – Publishers Weekly
“[An] imaginative exploration of interior and exterior space… gripping… Williams balances sharp storytelling with empathetic emotional depth… This is a tale that boldly reaffirms the particulars of each human being while capturing the universal struggles families go through in coping with doubt, dislocation, grief, and isolation.” – Shoba Viswanathan, Booklist
How to End a Love Story by Yulin Kuang
fiction / romance.
Helen Zhang hasn’t seen Grant Shepard once in the thirteen years since the tragic accident that bound their lives together forever.
Now a bestselling author, Helen pours everything into her career. She’s even scored a coveted spot in the writers’ room of the TV adaptation of her popular young adult novels, and if she can hide her imposter syndrome and overcome her writer’s block, surely the rest of her life will fall into place too. LA is the fresh start she needs. After all, no one knows her there. Except…
Grant has done everything in his power to move on from the past, including building a life across the country. And while the panic attacks have never quite gone away, he’s well liked around town as a screenwriter. He knows he shouldn’t have taken the job on Helen’s show, but it will open doors to developing his own projects that he just can’t pass up.
Grant’s exactly as Helen remembers him—charming, funny, popular, and lovable in ways that she’s never been. And Helen’s exactly as Grant remembers too—brilliant, beautiful, closed off. But working together is messy, and electrifying, and Helen’s parents, who have never forgiven Grant, have no idea he’s in the picture at all.
When secrets come to light, they must reckon with the fact that theirs was never meant to be any kind of love story. And yet… the key to making peace with their past—and themselves—might just lie in holding on to each other in the present.
“Screenwriter and director Kuang will break readers’ hearts and then put them back together with her brilliantly written debut romance… an exceptional love story replete with all the witty banter and electric chemistry any romance reader could ever crave.” – John Charles, Booklist, STARRED REVIEW
“Told in alternating points of view, this captivating novel is a sexy and emotional read that deals with the aftereffects of trauma in a realistic and heartrending way.” – Migdalia Jimenez, Library Journal, STARRED REVIEW
“Kuang handles her characters’ complex emotions with sensitivity and skill, and makes the chemistry between Helen and Grant leap off the page. Readers will have no trouble rooting for these two.” – Publishers Weekly
I’ll Give You a Reason: Stories by Annell López
fiction.
I’ll Give You a Reason explores the lives of immigrants and first-generation Americans searching for their American Dream in the Ironbound, an ethnic enclave and immigrant haven in Newark, New Jersey, a place once best known for its high murder rate. This story collection illustrates the complicated beauty of Newark and the lives of its diverse residents. A young widow goes on her first date since her husband’s death and finds herself hunting a bear in the woods with a near stranger. A high school student helps her mother pack up her photography studio after her classmates discover her mom’s nude photos. An unhappy wife compares her mother’s love spells and rituals to her own efforts to repair her strained marriage. A self-conscious college student discovers a porn star who shares her name and becomes obsessed with her doppelganger’s freedom and comfort with her own body.
The characters in this short story collection tread the waters of race, political unrest, sexuality and intimacy, religion, body image, Blackness, colorism, and gentrification, searching for their identities and a sliver of joy and connection.
“[An] impressive collection… These stories credibly portray the experience of trying to rise above the constraints of one’s circumstances.” – Publishers Weekly
“The book evokes the feeling of setting foot in Newark, taking in not only its sights and sounds but also the complicated and beautiful lives of the people who live there. Heartfelt stories of a city and the people within it, lovingly pieced together.” – Kirkus Reviews
“This Newark, New Jersey-set collection centers themes of race, identity, connection, and belonging through powerful characters, whose vibrancy pop from the page.” – Lupita Aquino, Today
The Last Phi Hunter by Salinee Goldenberg
fiction / fantasy / romance.
Ex, the youngest member of the Phi Hunters Order, has spent his life slaying the ghosts and demons of Suyoram Kingdom. While he takes great pride in his mystical trade, collecting dwindling bounties and peddling butchered spirit organs lacks the glory he craves. He’s determined to hunt down Shar-Ala, a demon of nightmares, of madness – who has eluded even Ex’s masters.
In a provincial village along the way, Arinya, a charming muay-boran champion, manages to save Ex him from a brutal ass-kicking, despite being nine months pregnant. In return, she asks him to escort her through the dangerous, spirit-filled forest, where ghosts salivate over the scent of the unborn.
Feeling responsible for Arinya’s safety, Ex vows to help her return home. But as more of Arinya’s secrets emerge, and the elusive demon nears, Ex must face dangers from both men and monsters, or lose not only the respect and sanctuary of his guild, but also the woman he’s trying not to fall in love with.
The Last Phi Hunter is a mythic dark fantasy, equal parts smart, exhilarating, and delightfully fun.
“[A] memorable romantasy debut… Goldenberg fills her protagonists’ journey with twists, gory fight scenes, and lighthearted romance. There’s plenty to enjoy in this inventive dark fantasy.” – Publishers Weekly
“[A] fantastic debut… captivating and impressive… immerses readers in a richly detailed world of Thai folklore, weaving a spellbinding tale of magic, adventure, and love that will leave you eager for more.” – Anthony Degliomini, FanFiAddict
The Limits by Nell Freudenberger ★
fiction.
From Mo’orea, a tiny volcanic island off the coast of Tahiti, a French biologist obsessed with saving Polynesia’s imperiled coral reefs sends her teenage daughter to live with her ex-husband in New York. By the time fifteen-year-old Pia arrives at her father Stephen’s luxury apartment in Manhattan and meets his new, younger wife, Kate, she has been shuttled between her parents’ disparate lives—her father’s consuming work as a surgeon at an overwhelmed New York hospital, her mother’s relentless drive against a ticking ecological clock—for most of her life. Fluent in French, intellectually precocious, moving between cultures with seeming ease, Pia arrives in New York poised for a rebellion, just as COVID sends her and her stepmother together into near total isolation.
A New York City schoolteacher, Kate struggles to connect with a teenager whose capacity for destruction seems exceeded only by her privilege. Even as Kate fails to parent Pia—and questions her own ability to become a mother—one of her sixteen-year-old students is already caring for a toddler full time. Athyna’s love for her nephew, Marcus, is a burden that becomes heavier as she struggles to finish her senior year online. Juggling her manifold responsibilities, Athyna finds herself more and more anxious every time she leaves the house. Just as her fear of what is waiting for her outside her Staten Island community feels insupportable, an incident at home makes her desperate to leave.
When their lives collide, Pia and Athyna spiral toward parallel but inescapably different tragedies. Moving from a South Pacific “paradise,” where rage still simmers against the colonial government and its devastating nuclear tests, to the extreme inequalities of twenty-first century New York City, The Limits is an unforgettably moving novel about nation, race, class, and family. Heart-wrenching and humane, a profound work from one of America’s most prodigiously gifted novelists.
“Deeply moving… An astonishingly realistic portrayal of everyday people facing the challenges of modern life.” – Kristyn Kusek Lewis, Real Simple
“Each character’s challenges are significant on scales intimate and global and their wrestling with secrets, anger, and fear grows increasingly suspenseful in this lambent, deeply sympathetic, and thought-provoking novel.” – Donna Seaman, Booklist, STARRED REVIEW
“[A] clear-eyed exploration of loss, love, and the difficulty (and hope) inherent in human connection… Sensitive, luminous, and sometimes wryly funny, The Limits is a nuanced portrait of the difficult, worthwhile work of connecting with others–even during a global disaster.” – Noah Gibson, Shelf Awareness
“The novel addresses race, class, education and access without coming off as heavy-handed; it feels reflective of how circumstance determines our real-world choices… In The Limits, Freudenberger deftly employs the questions posed by climate change, seafloor mining and the struggle of modern medicine in the face of the unknown to shape the story.” – Freya Sachs, BookPage, STARRED REVIEW
Native Nations: A Millennium in North America by Kathleen DuVal
nonfiction / history.
Long before the colonization of North America, Indigenous Americans built diverse civilizations and adapted to a changing world in ways that reverberated globally. And, as award-winning historian Kathleen DuVal vividly recounts, when Europeans did arrive, no civilization came to a halt because of a few wandering explorers, even when the strangers came well armed.
A millennium ago, North American cities rivaled urban centers around the world in size. Then, following a period of climate change and instability, numerous smaller nations emerged, moving away from rather than toward urbanization. From this urban past, egalitarian government structures, diplomacy, and complex economies spread across North America. So, when Europeans showed up in the sixteenth century, they encountered societies they did not understand—those having developed differently from their own—and whose power they often underestimated.
For centuries afterward, Indigenous people maintained an upper hand and used Europeans in pursuit of their own interests. In Native Nations, we see how Mohawks closely controlled trade with the Dutch—and influenced global markets—and how Quapaws manipulated French colonists. Power dynamics shifted after the American Revolution, but Indigenous people continued to command much of the continent’s land and resources. Shawnee brothers Tecumseh and Tenskwatawa forged new alliances and encouraged a controversial new definition of Native identity to attempt to wall off U.S. ambitions. The Cherokees created institutions to assert their sovereignty on the global stage, and the Kiowas used their power in the west to regulate the passage of white settlers across their territory.
In this important addition to the growing tradition of North American history centered on Indigenous nations, Kathleen DuVal shows how the definitions of power and means of exerting it shifted over time, but the sovereignty and influence of Native peoples remained a constant—and will continue far into the future.
“…both majestic in scope and intimate in tone… No single volume can adequately depict the gamut of Indigenous cultures, but DuVal’s comes close… Native Nations belongs on the same shelf as Blackhawk’s magisterial work and Charles Mann’s 1491.” – Hamilton Cain, Star Tribune
“[A] prodigiously researched and enlightening study… a profoundly empowered history of Native America.” – Publishers Weekly, STARRED REVIEW
“Throughout, DuVal is clear and cogent, and her foregrounding of Indigenous achievements and careful delineation of ongoing struggles for personal and collective autonomy offer a useful and illuminating corrective to past histories. A revelatory account of the power and influence of Indigenous peoples in North America.” – Kirkus Reviews, STARRED REVIEW
The Ritual Effect: From Habit to Ritual, Harness the Surprising Power of Everyday Actions by Michael Norton
nonfiction / self-help / psychology.
Our lives are filled with repetitive tasks meant to keep us on track—what we come to know as habits. Over time, these routines (for example, brushing your teeth or putting on your right sock first) tend to be performed automatically. But when we’re more mindful about these actions—when we focus on the precise way they are performed—they can instead become rituals. Shifting from a “habitual” mindset to a “ritual” mindset can convert ordinary acts from black and white to technicolor.
Think of the way you savor a certain beverage, the care you take with a particular outfit that gets worn only on special occasions, the unique way that your family gathers around the table during holidays, or the secret language you enjoy with your significant other. To some, these behaviors may seem quirky, but because rituals matter so deeply to us on a personal level, they imbue our lives with purpose and meaning. Drawing on a decade of original research, Norton shows that rituals play a role in healing communities experiencing a great loss, marking life’s major transitions, driving a stadium of sports fans to ecstasy, and helping us rise to challenges and realize opportunities.
Compelling, insightful, and practical, The Ritual Effect reminds us of the intention-filled acts that drive human behavior and create surprising satisfaction and enjoyment.
“A good-humored, gentle exhortation to transform the ordinary into the extraordinary and add a little magic to our lives.” – Kirkus Reviews
The Secret Lives of Booksellers and Librarians: True Stories of the Magic of Reading by James Patterson & Matt Eversmann
nonfiction / biography / books.
To be a bookseller or librarian…
You have to play detective.
Be a treasure hunter. A matchmaker. An advocate. A visionary.
A person who creates “book joy” by pulling a book from a shelf, handing it to someone and saying, “You’ve got to read this. You’re going to love it.”
Step inside The Secret Lives of Booksellers and Librarians and enter a world where you can feed your curiosities, discover new voices, find whatever you want or require. This place has the magic of rainbows and unicorns, but it’s also a business. The book business.
Meet the smart and talented people who live between the pages—and who can’t wait to help you find your next favorite book.
“…comfort food for bookworms.” – Publishers Weekly
“A celebration of the world of books… [testifies] to the extraordinary camaraderie among bookstore owners and the deep satisfaction of creating a vibrant community for readers.” – Kirkus Reviews
“…moving and compelling… All of the contributors are, of course, avid readers themselves, and their enthusiasm for books is contagious… A noteworthy addition to the literature lauding the foot soldiers involved in getting books out to readers.” – Ellen Gilbert, Library Journal
Somehow: Thoughts on Love by Anne Lamott
nonfiction / essays / self-help / religion.
“Love is our only hope,” Anne Lamott writes in this perceptive new book. “It is not always the easiest choice, but it is always the right one, the noble path, the way home to safety, no matter how bleak the future looks.”
In Somehow: Thoughts on Love, Lamott explores the transformative power that love has in our lives: how it surprises us, forces us to confront uncomfortable truths, reminds us of our humanity, and guides us forward. “Love just won’t be pinned down,” she says. “It is in our very atmosphere” and lies at the heart of who we are. We are, Lamott says, creatures of love.
In each chapter of Somehow, Lamott refracts all the colors of the spectrum. She explores the unexpected love for a partner later in life. The bruised (and bruising) love for a child who disappoints, even frightens. The sustaining love among a group of sinners, for a community in transition, in the wider world. The lessons she underscores are that love enlightens as it educates, comforts as it energizes, sustains as it surprises.
Somehow is Anne Lamott’s twentieth book, and in it she draws from her own life and experience to delineate the intimate and elemental ways that love buttresses us in the face of despair as it galvanizes us to believe that tomorrow will be better than today. Full of the compassion and humanity that have made Lamott beloved by millions of readers, Somehow is classic Anne Lamott: funny, warm, and wise.
“Lamott brings her signature wit and warmth to these effervescent meditations on matters of the heart… A topic that might feel trite in the hands of a lesser writer takes on fresh meaning in Lamott’s, thanks to her ability to distill complex truths with a deceptive lightness. This rings true.” – Publishers Weekly, STARRED REVIEW
“Lamott’s many readers are loyal, and this will be an easy sell. But pass it on, too, to people who may not even realize that they are searching for ways to connect with and love others.” – Candace Smith, Booklist, STARRED REVIEW
“Lamott newbies will find this a kind view of loving oneself and others despite our collective imperfections.” – Kirkus Reviews
A Sweet Sting of Salt by Rose Sutherland
fiction / fantasy / historical fiction.
When a sharp cry wakes Jean in the middle of the night during a terrible tempest, she’s convinced it must have been a dream. But when the cry comes again, Jean ventures outside and is shocked by what she discovers—a young woman in labor, drenched to the bone in the bitter cold and able to speak barely a word of English.
Although Jean is the only midwife for miles around, she’s at a loss for who this woman is or where she’s from; Jean can only assume that she must be the new wife of the neighbor up the road, Tobias. And when Tobias does indeed arrive at her cabin in search of his wife, Muirin, Jean’s questions continue to multiply. Why has he kept his wife’s pregnancy a secret? And why does Muirin’s open demeanor change completely the moment she’s in his presence?
Though Jean learned long ago that she should stay out of other people’s business, her growing concern—and growing feelings—for Muirin mean that she can’t simply set her worries aside. But when the answers she finds are more harrowing than she ever could have imagined, she fears she may have endangered herself, Muirin, and the baby. Will she be able to put things right and save the woman she loves before it’s too late, or will someone have to pay for Jean’s actions with their life?
“Sutherland’s atmospheric, feminist retelling of the selkie wife folk tale is a mesmerizing debut.” – Becky Meloan, Washington Post
“…Jean’s relationships with Muirin and the few other townsfolk she trusts are pleasantly sweet, and the thrilling climax and satisfying resolution are well worth the extended development. Fans of folkloric fantasy should check this out.” – Publishers Weekly
“Sutherland’s breathtaking debut is a moody, tense, queer love story… Readers who enjoy fiction inspired by fairy tales and folklore will be entranced.” – Nanette Donohue, Booklist, STARRED REVIEW
The Wide Wide Sea: Imperial Ambition, First Contact and the Fateful Voyage of Captain James Cook by Hampton Sides
nonfiction / history / biography.
On July 12th, 1776, Captain James Cook, already lionized as the greatest explorer in British history, set off on his third voyage in his ship the HMS Resolution. Two-and-a-half years later, on a beach on the island of Hawaii, Cook was killed in a conflict with native Hawaiians. How did Cook, who was unique among captains for his respect for Indigenous peoples and cultures, come to that fatal moment?
Hampton Sides’ bravura account of Cook’s last journey both wrestles with Cook’s legacy and provides a thrilling narrative of the titanic efforts and continual danger that characterized exploration in the 1700s. Cook was renowned for his peerless seamanship, his humane leadership, and his dedication to science-–the famed naturalist Joseph Banks accompanied him on his first voyage, and Cook has been called one of the most important figures of the Age of Enlightenment. He was also deeply interested in the native people he encountered. In fact, his stated mission was to return a Tahitian man, Mai, who had become the toast of London, to his home islands. On previous expeditions, Cook mapped huge swaths of the Pacific, including the east coast of Australia, and initiated first European contact with numerous peoples. He treated his crew well, and endeavored to learn about the societies he encountered with curiosity and without judgment.
Yet something was different on this last voyage. Cook became mercurial, resorting to the lash to enforce discipline, and led his two vessels into danger time and again. Uncharacteristically, he ordered violent retaliation for perceived theft on the part of native peoples. This may have had something to do with his secret orders, which were to chart and claim lands before Britain’s imperial rivals could, and to discover the fabled Northwest Passage. Whatever Cook’s intentions, his scientific efforts were the sharp edge of the colonial sword, and the ultimate effects of first contact were catastrophic for Indigenous people around the world. The tensions between Cook’s overt and covert missions came to a head on the shores of Hawaii. His first landing there was harmonious, but when Cook returned after mapping the coast of the Pacific Northwest and Alaska, his exploitative treatment of the Hawaiians led to the fatal encounter.
At once a ferociously-paced story of adventure on the high seas and a searching examination of the complexities and consequences of the Age of Exploration, The Wide Wide Sea is a major work from one of our finest narrative nonfiction writers.
“Lusciously detailed and insightful history, masterfully told.” – Kirkus Reviews, STARRED REVIEW
“Beautifully written and impeccably researched, The Wide Wide Sea will delight readers new to the topic as well as those versed in earlier looks at James Cook and his milieu.” – James Pekoll, Booklist
“With an admirably light touch, Sides teases out his convincing thesis amid a riveting day-by-day narrative of the voyage and fascinating asides on such matters as the fierce anthropological debate over whether the Hawaiians really considered Cook to be the god Lono. This exquisitely crafted and novelistic portrait of the mercurial captain enthralls.” – Publishers Weekly, STARRED REVIEW
The Wives: A Memoir by Simone Gorrindo
nonfiction / memoir.
When her new husband joins an elite Army unit, Simone Gorrindo is uprooted from New York City and dropped into Columbus, Georgia. With her husband frequently deployed, Simone is left to find her place in this new world, alone—until she meets the wives.
Gorrindo gives us an intimate look into the inner lives of a remarkable group of women and a tender, unflinching portrait of a marriage. A love story, an unforgettable coming-of-age tale, and a bracing tour of the intractable divisions that plague our country today, The Wives offers a rare and powerful gift: a hopeful stitch in the fabric of a torn America.
“…powerfully candid… a haunting, beautifully written celebration of found sisterhood.” – Publishers Weekly, STARRED REVIEW
“Gorrindo’s memoir is a gorgeously rendered peek behind the curtain of military life, as she recounts reckoning with her husband’s participation in violence—and examining why his job exists at all. Her family’s sacrifices will leave readers thinking long after the final pages.” – Courtney Eathorne, Booklist, STARRED REVIEW
“A fearless, engaging, and important memoir about how one person’s decision to serve in the military affects their entire family. Readers will learn the true meaning of military service through the wider lens of its impact on families and communities.” – Jessica A. Bushore, Library Journal, STARRED REVIEW
“Gorrindo’s prose is inviting and fluid, and her storytelling is intimate and vivid… What comes across powerfully in Gorrindo’s telling is the labor of accommodation and compliance… Away from their wives — in dramatic, unseen landscapes; on secret, dangerous missions — the husbands are changing. But back at home, their wives are changing, too, and Gorrindo argues for the importance of their transformations in her engaging, evocative memoir.” – Susan Burton, New York Times
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