“When we think of the past it’s the beautiful things we pick out. We want to believe it was all like that.” – Margaret Atwood, The Handmaid’s Tale
Black-Owned: The Revolutionary Life of the Black Bookstore by Char Adams ★
nonfiction / history / books / politics.
In Black-Owned, Char Adams celebrates the living history of Black bookstores. Packed with stories of activism, espionage, violence, community, and perseverance, Black-Owned starts with the first Black-owned bookstore, which an abolitionist opened in New York in 1834, and after the bookshop’s violent demise, Black book-lovers carried on its cause. In the twentieth century, civil rights and Black Power activists started a Black bookstore boom nationwide. Malcolm X gave speeches in front of the National Memorial African Book Store in Harlem—a place dubbed “Speakers’ Corner”—and later, Black bookstores became targets of FBI agents, police, and racist vigilantes. Still, stores continued to fuel Black political movements.
Amid these struggles, bookshops were also places of celebration: Eartha Kitt and Langston Hughes held autograph parties at their local Black-owned bookstores. Maya Angelou became the face of National Black Bookstore Week. And today a new generation of Black activists is joining the radical bookstore tradition, with rapper Noname opening her Radical Hood Library in Los Angeles and several stores making national headlines when they were overwhelmed with demand in the Black Lives Matter era. As Adams makes clear, in a time of increasing repression, Black bookstores are needed now more than ever.
Full of vibrant characters and written with cinematic flair, Black-Owned is an enlightening story of community, resistance, and joy.
“…illuminating… invigorating… This will hold immense appeal for bibliophiles.” – Publishers Weekly
“…rich and well-researched… This pioneering study features exemplary research, deep explication of historical context, and engaging human-interest narratives… An excellent history…” – Laura Ellis, Library Journal, STARRED REVIEW
“Black-Owned is a timely and essential work… A must-read for anyone interested in entrepreneurship, history, or the vital role of independent bookstores in our communities.” – Natalie Pipkin, The Indie Next List
“Char Adam’s book is not only a love letter to Black bookstores, but also a deeply reported history of their role in the history of Black political movements. A story at the intersection of literature and liberation, Black-Owned will be a must-read for anyone who believes in the power of books.” – Jessie Gaynor, Literary Hub
Book of Lives: A Memoir of Sorts by Margaret Atwood ★
nonfiction / memoir / writing.
“Every writer is at least two beings: the one who lives, and the one who writes. Though everything written must have passed through their minds, or mind, they are not the same.”
Raised by ruggedly independent, scientifically minded parents – entomologist father, dietician mother – Atwood spent most of each year in the wild forest of northern Quebec. This childhood was unfettered and nomadic, sometimes isolated (on her eighth birthday: “It sounds forlorn. It was forlorn. It gets more forlorn.”), but also thrilling and beautiful.
From this unconventional start, Atwood unfolds the story of her life, linking seminal moments to the books that have shaped our literary landscape, from the cruel year that spawned Cat’s Eye to the Orwellian 1980s Berlin where she wrote The Handmaid’s Tale. In pages bursting with bohemian gatherings, her magical life with the wildly charismatic writer Graeme Gibson and major political turning points, we meet poets, bears, Hollywood actors and larger-than-life characters straight from the pages of an Atwood novel.
As we travel with her along the course of her life, more and more is revealed about her writing, the connections between real life and art – and the workings of one of our greatest imaginations.
“Engaging, wise, and marvelously witty—illuminating both the craft of writing and the art of living.” – Kirkus Reviews, STARRED REVIEW
“Luminous prose, a palpable lust for life, and an invaluable glimpse into the mind of a literary giant make this a must-read.” – Publishers Weekly, STARRED REVIEW
“Atwood’s zestfully detailed autobiography is an encompassing, surprising, and entertaining mix of vivid memories, keen and witty commentary, and slices of Canadian history. Virtuoso, protean, forthright, and astute… Atwood is one of the world’s most significant writers and her capacious memoir deeply illuminates her life and work just as The Handmaid’s Tale reaches its fortieth anniversary.” – Donna Seaman, Booklist, STARRED REVIEW
The Bridesmaid by Cate Quinn
fiction / suspense / mystery.
The Kensingtons invite you to the society wedding of the decade. There’s just one hitch. You might not make it out alive.
When a celebrity bridesmaid is murdered weeks before an exclusive society wedding, forensic attorney Holly Stone is drafted as an unlikely undercover replacement. As she works to unpick the lives of the notoriously private Kensington family, glamour-averse Holly discovers a new worst enemy in bridezilla Adrianna. Heir to a multimillion dollar fortune, Adrianna is set on throwing the event of the decade, and she won’t let anything get in her way.
But beneath the veneer of poise and sophistication, Adrianna and her bridesmaids have secrets worth killing for.
As the wedding day gets closer, it’s clear that one of the five hand-picked bridesmaids has committed murder – and a destination wedding is a perfect place to strike again. Soon, Holly finds herself on the playground of the rich and famous, but if she wants to find answers, she’ll have to make it out alive.
“A gripping psychological thriller filled with unresolved trauma and a dash of romance.” – Ronne Cox, Library Journal
“I am obsessed with this story, from the high society celebrity wedding to the forensic attorney solving the crime. I love a book that keeps me glued to the page, and Cate Quinn delivers that from the first chapter.” – Beth Seufer Buss, The Indie Next List
“This book is full of intrigue and suspense that will draw readers into the pitfalls of high-society life, where nothing matters more than your social media clicks and lavish parties. Great characters and a shocking ending.” – Karen Troutman, Library Reads
Conversations on Faith by Martin Scorsese with Antonio Spadaro
nonfiction / religion / philosophy.
From the legendary film director Martin Scorsese, a book in which he and Father Antonio Spadaro discuss the visionary filmmaker’s relationship to faith throughout his life.
From his Italian-American upbringing as a Catholic in New York to the meditations on religion, belief, and the divine found in his filmography, Martin Scorsese’s relationship to his faith has touched every aspect of his life and work.
When Italian journalist Father Antonio Spadaro and Martin Scorsese first sat down together in Scorsese’s home, neither could have predicted the depth of the conversation, intellectual exchange, or friendship that would result. While discussing the acclaimed director’s film Silence, about the persecution of Jesuits in Japan, they began a dialogue about faith that continues to this day.
In their often-profound conversations, he and Father Spadaro have left no stone unturned, discussing this relationship along with everything from Scorsese’s childhood to the concept of the soul. And as a result of their long friendship and communication, Scorsese met with Pope Francis. Readers will gain new insight into one of the most famous directors of the twentieth and twenty-first centuries in these honest, moving, and ultimately inspiring Conversations on Faith.
“…fascinating… Keen observations on faith from a cinema maestro.” – Kirkus Reviews
Cursed Daughters by Oyinkan Braithwaite ★
fiction / fantasy / mystery.
When Ebun gives birth to her daughter, Eniiyi, on the day they bury her cousin Monife, there is no denying the startling resemblance between the child and the dead woman. So begins the belief, fostered and fanned by the entire family, that Eniiyi is the actual reincarnation of Monife, fated to follow in her footsteps in all ways, including that tragic end.
There is also the matter of the family curse: “No man will call your house his home. And if they try, they will not have peace…” which has been handed down from generation to generation, breaking hearts and causing three generations of abandoned Falodun women to live under the same roof.
When Eniiyi falls in love with the handsome boy she saves from drowning, she can no longer run from her family’s history. As several women in her family have done before, she ill-advisedly seeks answers in older, darker spiritual corners of Lagos, demanding solutions. Is she destined to live out the habitual story of love and heartbreak? Or can she break the pattern once and for all, not only avoiding the spiral that led Monife to her lonely death, but liberating herself from all the family secrets and unspoken traumas that have dogged her steps since before she could remember?
Cursed Daughters is a brilliant cocktail of modernity and superstition, vibrant humor and hard-won wisdom, romantic love and familial obligation. With its unforgettable cast of characters, it asks us what it means to be given a second chance and how to live both wisely and well with what we’ve been given.
“[A] scintillating saga… Braithwaite’s use of magical realism is effortless and vivid… This is riveting.” – Publishers Weekly, STARRED REVIEW
“…captivating… This is a page-turner, pulling you in until the very end as Braithwaite delivers an original, concise, and tender story that delves into female relationships, the pursuit of happiness, and the interplay of tradition and unconventionality… a tale that lingers in the mind long after the novel is read.” – Enobong Tommelleo, Booklist, STARRED REVIEW
“[A] story drenched in supernatural unease and yet bursting with love; a tale that embraces the power of superstition, even as it fights to rid itself from it… Character-centered, compelling, and at times, terrifying, this book will leave its mark, even on those who think they don’t believe in curses.” – Becky Spratford, Library Journal, STARRED REVIEW
“Braithwaite packs a punch, without you even realising you’ve been smacked in the face, until you see the red mark left behind… This tale will crawl its way into your heart and curl up to die, leaving you with a weight inside. It’s not one for the fainthearted – and it’s not one to miss.” – Laura McCarthy, In Common
The Eleventh Hour: A Quintet of Stories by Salman Rushdie
fiction / fantasy.
Rushdie turns his extraordinary imagination to life’s final act with a quintet of stories that span the three countries in which he has made his work—India, England, and America—and feature an unforgettable cast of characters.
“In the South” introduces a pair of quarrelsome old men—Junior and Senior—and their private tragedy at a moment of national calamity. In “The Musician of Kahani,” a musical prodigy from the Mumbai neighborhood featured in Midnight’s Children uses her magical gifts to wreak devastation on the wealthy family she marries into. In “Late,” the ghost of a Cambridge don enlists the help of a lonely student to enact revenge upon the tormentor of his lifetime. “Oklahoma” plunges a young writer into a web of deceit and lies as he tries to figure out whether his mentor killed himself or faked his own death. And “The Old Man in the Piazza” is a powerful parable for our times about freedom of speech.
Do we accommodate ourselves to death, or rail against it? Do we spend our “eleventh hour” in serenity or in rage? And how do we achieve fulfillment with our lives if we don’t know the end of our own stories? The Eleventh Hour ponders life and death, legacy and identity with the penetrating insight and boundless imagination that have made Salman Rushdie one of the most celebrated writers of our time.
“Rushdie returns in full transfixing force… Rushdie’s spectacularly imaginative eleventh-hour cautionary tales are enthralling, sagacious, and resounding.” – Donna Seaman, Booklist, STARRED REVIEW
“…marvelous… Grounded in moving ruminations on the afterlife and what a person leaves behind, these stories sing.” – Publishers Weekly, STARRED REVIEW
“A provocative set of tales that, though with grim moments, celebrate life, language, and love in the face of death.” – Kirkus Reviews, STARRED REVIEW
The Great Work by Sheldon Costa
fiction / fantasy / historical fiction / western / horror.
Alone in a frontier town in the nineteenth-century Pacific Northwest, Gentle Montgomery is grieving his best friend. Liam was an alchemist, killed when he tried to capture a creature that shouldn’t exist: a giant salamander that drives men mad. When Gentle’s nephew, Kitt, arrives at his doorstep, the two set out together to track the monster down so they can use its blood in an alchemical formula that will bring Liam back to life.
It’s a hard and haunted journey. The salamander produces surreal nightmares and waking dreams of a blighted, burning future. And Gentle and Kitt soon find themselves pursued by a bloodthirsty hunter, a sadistic judge, and a doomsday cult, all of whom have their own plans for the river monster. Armed with nothing but Liam’s alchemical notebooks, they must not only find the salamander but learn to understand it—and the terrifying visions it causes—before it’s too late. And as Gentle struggles to comprehend this harrowing experience, it becomes clear that the Great Work of the alchemists may pale in comparison to the small work of human connection.
Sheldon Costa’s dark, vivid, and strangely hopeful debut novel is a supernatural adventure through the wilderness of friendship and the rotten heart of the early American empire.
“A sweet, thrilling fable about the toll of grief and what it takes to fill a monster-sized hole.” – Kirkus Reviews, STARRED REVIEW
“[An] astounding tale of alchemy, prophecy, and adventure… a series of wonderfully strange episodes, reminiscent in timbre of The Odyssey or Huckleberry Finn… This is a weird western done right: surprising, bizarre, occasionally grim, but ultimately life-affirming.” – Publishers Weekly, STARRED REVIEW
“Costa’s genre-defying debut novel is a philosophical page-turner about the end of the American frontier, the horrors of war, the greedy destruction of pristine wilderness, and the human connections that give hope and meaning to it all. Not to be missed.” – Krista Hutley, Booklist
Heart Life Music by Kenny Chesney with Holly Gleason
nonfiction / memoir / music.
Heart Life Music is a love letter to the journey: all the places I’ve gone and how we got here. This book takes you on the ride.
Knoxville. Moscow. Myrtle Beach. The Virgin Islands. Plentywood, Montana. Holmdel, New Jersey. Key West. New England. The Road. No Shoes Nation. Beyond.
We’ve had a lot of fun, a bunch of challenges, a few moments of wondering “what the hell?”—and more love than any artist deserves. You’re gonna meet so many people, some you’d never expect to see crossing my path, whether it’s the Wailers, Willie Nelson, John Madden, or Grace Potter. Maybe you won’t be surprised at all. I just know this: A whole lot has happened.
For anyone who’s found a piece of your life in any of my songs, this is for you. Open a cold drink, get out on your deck or your boat or wherever your happy space is, jump in, and live them along with me.
And if you’ve got dreams, whatever they are, know they don’t always come easy. But if you believe, do the hard work, and keep coming back, you’d be amazed at what can happen. I’m a pretty average guy, so look at this—know you might could do it, too.
It’s been a helluva trip around the sun.
“A plainspoken, pleasing success story from a hardworking artist” – Kirkus Reviews
“In this down-to-earth memoir, Chesney traces his ascent from small-town Tennessee to country music stardom… Chesney takes care to honor his roots throughout, giving due to the industry professionals and ‘road family’ who helped him succeed… Country music fans will be satisfied.” – Publishers Weekly
“The book captures the essence of ‘a Nashville that no longer exists,’ where aspiring artists flourish from nearly impossible dreams.” – Rachel Raposas, People
The Hidden City by Charles Finch
fiction / mystery / historical fiction.
It’s 1879, and Lenox is convalescing from the violent events of his last investigation. But a desperate letter from an old servant forces him to pick up the trail of a cold case: the murder of an apothecary seven years before, whose only clue is an odd emblem carved into the doorway of the building where the man was killed. When Lenox finds a similar mark at the site of another murder, he begins to piece together a hidden pattern which leads him into the corridors of Parliament, the slums of East London, and ultimately the very heart of the British upper class.
At the same time, Lenox must contend with the complexities of his personal life: a surprising tension with his steadfast wife, Lady Jane, over her public support of the early movement for women’s suffrage; the arrival of Angela Lenox, a mysterious young cousin from India, with an unexpected companion; the dizzying ascent of his brother, Sir Edmund Lenox, to one of the highest political posts in the land; the growing family of his young partners in detection, Polly and Dallington; and the return of the problems that have long bedeviled one of his closest friends, the dashing Scottish physician Thomas McConnell.
Featuring a beloved cast of characters, a top-notch puzzle, and Finch’s trademark humor and richness of historical detail, The Hidden City is a novel by a master at the top of his form.
“A fascinating, dangerous mystery.” – Kirkus Reviews
“…elegant… Finch offers a delightful mélange of crisscrossing subplots rooted in contemporaneous issues including colonialism, women’s suffrage, and poverty, and ensures that each thread enhances rather than distracts from the main mystery. Charles, meanwhile, remains a winning protagonist: intelligent and kind but never dull. This long-running series still has gas in the tank.” – Publishers Weekly
“…both an engrossing historical mystery and a revealing commentary on politics and social prejudices in 1870s London… Finch is a masterful writer whose meticulous research and gift for evoking people and places produces a richly layered, sweeping saga and a superb and mesmerizing historical mystery.” – Emily Melton, Booklist
The House Saphir by Marissa Meyer
fiction / young adult / fantasy / romance / mystery.
Mallory Fontaine is a fraud. Though she comes from a long line of witches, the only magic she possesses is the ability to see ghosts, which is rarely as useful as one would think. She and her sister have maintained the family business, eking out a paltry living by selling bogus spells to gullible buyers and conducting tours of the infamous mansion where the first of the Saphir murders took place.
Mallory is a self-proclaimed expert on Count Bastien Saphir―otherwise known as Monsieur Le Bleu―who brutally killed three of his wives more than a century ago. But she never expected to meet Bastien’s great-great grandson and heir to the Saphir estate. Armand is handsome, wealthy, and convinced that the Fontaine Sisters are as talented as they claim. The perfect mark. When he offers Mallory a large sum of money to rid his ancestral home of Le Bleu’s ghost, she can’t resist. A paid vacation at Armand’s country manor? It’s practically a dream come true, never mind the ghosts of murdered wives and the monsters that are as common as household pests.
But when murder again comes to the House Saphir, Mallory finds herself at the center of the investigation―and she is almost certain the killer is mortal. If she has any hope of cashing in on the payment she was promised, she’ll have to solve the murder and banish the ghost, all while upholding the illusion of witchcraft.
But that all sounds relatively easy compared to her biggest challenge: learning to trust her heart. Especially when the person her heart wants the most might be a murderer himself.
“Bloody brilliant!” – Kirkus Reviews, STARRED REVIEW
“[A] well-crafted fantasy novel full of mystery, intrigue, and magic… delightfully imaginative… a completely original rendition of Bluebeard the Pirate that deserves to be read.” – Erin Clemence, Mystery & Suspense
“Meyer’s bloody, beguiling version of the Bluebeard story is replete with a fraudulent witch, a handsome count, not one but two haunted mansions, four dead wives, and an array of mythical French monsters. The House Saphir is magical, spooky, and romantic and suspensefully unfolds through the actions of feisty characters with unexpectedly excellent comedic timing.” – Lynn Becker, Shelf Awareness, STARRED REVIEW
The Land in Winter by Andrew Miller
fiction / historical fiction.
December 1962: In a village deep in the English countryside, two neighboring couples begin the day. Local doctor Eric Parry commences his rounds in the village while his pregnant wife, Irene, wanders the rooms of their old house, mulling over the space that has grown between the two of them.
On the farm nearby lives Irene’s mirror image: witty but troubled Rita Simmons is also expecting. She spends her days trying on the idea of being a farmer’s wife, but her head still swims with images of a raucous past that her husband, Bill, prefers to forget.
When Rita and Irene meet across the bare field between their houses, a clock starts. There is still affection in both their homes; neither marriage has yet to be abandoned. But when the ordinary cold of December gives way—ushering in violent blizzards of the harshest winter in living memory—so do the secret resentments harbored in all four lives.
An exquisite, page-turning examination of relationships, The Land in Winter is a masterclass in storytelling—proof yet again that Andrew Miller is one of the most dazzling chroniclers of the human heart.
“[A] stunning portrait of domestic turmoil and post-WWII unease… A spectacularly vivid sense of gloom pervades the narrative… This has the feel of an instant classic.” – Publishers Weekly, STARRED REVIEW
“A masterful, acute, and very British novel, revealing the tensions of a time beset by winds of change.” – Kirkus Reviews, STARRED REVIEW
“Andrew Miller is a master of nuance, expert at exploring the various chambers of the human heart… For all its wintry setting and cold echoes of the past, and for all that it opens with a death in an asylum, this is not a bleak book. The people in it yearn and reach; they make mistakes, too – some of them terrible. But all the while, somehow, you feel – you hope – they might find a way through.” – Rachel Seiffert, The Guardian
Life on a Little-Known Planet: Dispatches from a Changing World by Elizabeth Kolbert ★
nonfiction / science / nature / climate.
“To be a well-informed citizen of Planet Earth,” Rolling Stone has advised, “you need to read Elizabeth Kolbert.” From her National Magazine Award-winning series The Climate of Man to her Pulitzer Prize-winning book The Sixth Extinction, Kolbert’s work has shaped the way we think about the environment in the twenty-first century. Collected in Life on a Little-Known Planet are her most influential and thought-provoking essays.
An intrepid reporter and a skillful translator of scientific idees, Kolbert expertly captures the wonders of nature and paints vivid portraits of the researchers and concerned citizens working to preserve them. She takes readers all around the globe, from an island in Denmark that’s succeeded in going carbon neutral, to a community in Florida that voted to give rights to waterways, to the Greenland ice sheet, which is melting in a way that has implications for everyone. We meet a biologist who believes we can talk to whales, an entomologist racing to find rare caterpillars before they disappear, and a climatologist who’s considered the “father of global warming,” amongst other scientists at the forefront of environmental protection.
The threats to our planet that Kolbert has devoted so much of her career to exposing have only grown more serious. Now is the time to deepen our understanding of the world we are in danger of losing.
“Essential.” – Emily Temple, Literary Hub
“Thought-provoking speculations about a world on the edge of violent change.” – Kirkus Reviews, STARRED REVIEW
“There is a great deal that humanity doesn’t know about how the world works, and expanding that knowledge may turn out to be crucial. A worthwhile and convenient collection from one of the best-known writers on climate change and the environment.” – Genevieve Williams, Library Journal
“Kolbert has radically informed the way modern audiences understand climate change, and her newest collection is no exception, zooming into stories of hope, activism, and innovation across the globe.” – Sophia Stewart, The Millions
The Long Low Whistle by Laurel Hightower
fiction / horror.
The sound of the whistle that split Patricia’s life in two still haunts her two decades later, its echoes leaving their indelible stamp on everything she does. The rift caused by her father’s unsolved death haunts her, pushing her to ever more dangerous attempts to put his memory to rest. Breaking into mausoleums in the dead of night isn’t how she pictured her life, but she’ll do almost anything to know what happened.
When a group of amateur cryptid hunters shows up in her small town, Trish doesn’t hesitate to take what might be her only chance to find answers, even if they’re searching in the last place she should be. A sealed, abandoned mine; tight underground passages filled with unseen creatures, and impenetrable darkness await the crew, but it’s the only path forward, and Trish won’t leave her father’s legacy buried, delving ever deeper into danger to where that whistle still moans.
“…terrifying… a horrifying claustrophobic cryptid tale that never lets up… truly spectacular… From the first sentence to the final period, Hightower had me hooked… a haunting, unforgettable read that still has me reeling.” – Justin Soderberg, Capes & Tights
“Fast-paced, claustrophobic, and visceral, featuring original monsters, superior worldbuilding, and lots of emotion, this is a must-read for fans of creature features and underground horror, but it will be especially poignant for those who are drawn to the power of grief horror. Hightower has crafted a cinematic, heart-wrenching, terrifying, and just plain fun horror story.” – Becky Spratford, Library Journal, STARRED REVIEW
“…I don’t think I have ever felt more stressed out and in suspense as I have reading this book… a triumph of sustained suspense, with the added flavor of grief horror that Laurel Hightower does so well… I was fighting [between] taking a break from reading because my blood pressure was so high and having to finish immediately because I was so worried about what was going to happen.” – @thehauntedbookstagram
The Look by Michelle Obama with Meredith Koop
nonfiction / fashion.
Beautifully illustrated with more than 200 photographs, including never-before-seen images, The Look is a stunning journey through Michelle Obama’s style evolution, in her own words for the first time.
In this celebration of style, from the moment she entered the public eye during her husband’s U.S. Senate campaign through her time as the first Black First Lady and today as one of this country’s most influential figures, Michelle Obama shares how she uses the beauty and intrigue of fashion to draw attention to her message.
Featuring the voices of Meredith Koop, Obama’s trusted stylist, as well as her makeup artist Carl Ray, hairstylists Yene Damtew, Johnny Wright, and Njeri Radway, and many of the designers who have dressed Obama for notable events, The Look brings readers behind the scenes not only to reveal how her most memorable looks came together but also to tell a powerful story about how we present ourselves.
Obama’s intimate and candid stories illuminate how her approach to dressing has evolved throughout her life—from the colorful sheath dresses, cardigans, and brooches she wore during her time as First Lady to the bold suits, denim, and braids of her post-White House life and all the active looks and beautiful gowns in between.
In The Look, Michelle Obama explores the joy and the purpose of fashion and beauty and how—when wielded with grace and care—they can uplift and affirm the values one holds most dear. Confidence, she concludes, cannot be put on. But when you’re wearing something that’s intentional or beloved, clothing can make you feel like the best version of yourself.
“[A] fashionista’s fantasy come true.” – Charley Burlock, Oprah Daily
“…Mrs. Obama writes about the many facets of her personal style, and about how she leveraged fashion to draw attention to causes she deemed most important, like education, military families and children’s health… In The Look, Mrs. Obama suggests that Black women’s personal style is often pulled in two directions: toward ‘respectability’ or toward authenticity.” – Gina Cherelus, New York Times
Luigi: The Making and the Meaning by John H. Richardson
nonfiction / current events / true crime / biography / politics / history / sociology.
The first book to explain why the world was primed for the Luigi Mangione moment, showing the history that led him to be embraced as an avenger with an affection not seen since Jesse James or Robin Hood.
The explosion of glee and sympathy for Luigi surprised everyone, but it was everywhere. Hours after the shooting of the United Healthcare executive, his company put out a message on Facebook saying their “hearts go out to Brian’s family and all who were close to him.” People replied with laughing emojis and comments like this one: “No one here is the judge of who deserves to live or die. That’s the job of the AI algorithm the insurance company designed to maximize profits on your health.” On TikTok, another commentator said, “Oh my god, y’all really raised the school shooter generation and now you’re asking us for sympathy?” she asks. “Welcome to a regular Tuesday at school in America.”
When he was arrested, TikTok exploded with more love for Luigi: “They could’ve been more gentle with him, he has back problems,” said one commentator. Others attempted to come to his rescue. “He is innocent, he was with me the whole time.” eBay said that while it had a policy prohibiting items that glorify violence, they were allowing the sale of items with the words “deny defend depose.” In Seattle, someone reprogrammed a couple of electric highway signs so they flashed: “One CEO down…many more to go.”
So where is all this coming from? Richardson has tracked the building blocks of this widespread alienation for three decades, finding it across not only the environmental movement but among those who reject capitalism itself, including the rules that govern everything from insurance to healthcare. He has followed the men and women who have gone to extremes to express that alienation, and studied the inspirations they found in other outlaws, most especially Ted Kaczynski (Luigi had posted a review of Kaczynski’s manifesto on Goodreads). The result is a book that will put Luigi in context and even illuminate how his appeal is likely to play out in the future.
“Richardson is grappling with dark issues, but his writing has a light touch, with personal anecdotes and even a certain humor… Richardson places the Mangione case squarely in the context of the perennial conflict between rich and poor that included the violent clashes between labor unions and robber barons in the late 19th century. Could we be on the verge of a new chapter? Luigi considers that possibility.” – Anne Bartlett, BookPage
“[A] book that is part investigation, part cultural X-ray… meticulously curated… Where Richardson succeeds is in linking the murder to America’s broader crisis of care. The shooting, he argues, forces the public to confront how moral injury has become part of the health care economy… riveting and uncomfortable… The book’s other through-line — our cultural romance with righteous violence — is terrifying… Richardson’s book may not resolve the ultimate question of whether its subject is hero, criminal or casualty. But it leaves us with a more pressing one: What does it say about America that we can no longer tell the difference?” – Jonathan M. Metzl, New York Times
Otherwise Engaged by Susan Mallery
fiction / romance.
When Shannon gets engaged, her beloved mom, Cindy, is the first person she wants to tell—and the last. Cindy’s engaged, too, and has already hinted at a double wedding. The image of a synchronized bouquet toss with her mom fills Shannon with horror. She’ll keep her engagement a secret until Cindy’s I-dos are done.
Victoria has never been proper enough for her mother, Ava, so she stopped trying. She lives on her own terms and amuses herself by pushing Ava’s buttons. Ava loves but doesn’t understand her stuntwoman daughter. When a movie-set mishap brings Victoria home, Ava longs to finally connect.
Chance brings the four women together at a wedding venue, where a shocking secret comes tumbling out. Twenty-four years ago, desperate teenager Cindy chose wealthy Ava to adopt her baby—then changed her mind at the very last second. The loss rocked Ava’s world, leaving her unable to open her heart to the daughter she did adopt, Victoria. As Shannon and Victoria deal with the fallout from the decisions their mothers made, they wrestle with whether who they are is different than who they might have become.
“Otherwise Engaged breathes life into a fascinating nature vs. nurture story, highlighting the mother-daughter bond.” – Amy Wilson, Novels Alive
“This is another great Susan Mallery character-driven novel that only she can write. Fans of hers will love this one.” – Red Carpet Crash
“Mallery digs into all the messy, precarious, sometimes volatile emotions of mother-daughter relationships and the impact they have on her characters’ lives. And, in this book, that impact is mighty… it held me enthralled throughout…” – PJ, The Romance Dish
Queen Esther by John Irving ★
fiction / historical fiction.
Esther Nacht is born in Vienna in 1905. Her father dies on board the ship to Portland, Maine; her mother is murdered by anti-Semites in Portland. Dr. Larch knows it won’t be easy to find a Jewish family to adopt Esther; in fact, he won’t find any family who’ll adopt her.
When Esther is fourteen, soon to be a ward of the state, Dr. Larch meets the Winslows, a philanthropic New England family with a history of providing foster care for unadopted orphans. The Winslows aren’t Jewish, but they despise anti-Semitism. Esther’s gratitude for the Winslows is unending; even as she retraces her roots back to Vienna, she never stops loving and protecting the Winslows. In the final chapter, set in Jerusalem in 1981, Esther Nacht is seventy-six.
John Irving’s sixteenth novel is a testament to his enduring ability to weave complex characters and intricate narratives that challenge and captivate. Queen Esther is not just a story of survival but a profound exploration of identity, belonging, and the enduring impact of history on our personal lives showcasing why Irving remains one of the world’s most beloved, provocative, and entertaining authors—a storyteller of our time and for all time.
“Queen Esther is typical Irving, and it’s amazing how he continues to produce fresh reads after 60 years of writing. He is this era’s Charles Dickens.” – Jim Kalin, Larchmont Chronicle
“Irving’s luminous prose embodies his singular gifts; the novel is expansive, darkly comic, melancholic, and deeply compassionate, conveying a profound empathy for his flawed characters. Countless literary references, lyrical flourishes, and allusions add depth to the Dickensian motif as Irving brilliantly blends moral ambiguity and emotional truth in this essential addition to his oeuvre.” – Bill Kelly, Booklist, STARRED REVIEW
“At its heart, Queen Esther is a gentle story about identity and family, the one we’re born into and the one that, if we’re fortunate, grows organically out a lifetime of loving relationships. It clearly reflects John Irving’s compassion and generosity of spirit, recognizing our flaws while still focusing on what’s best in us.” – Harvey Freedenberg, Shelf Awareness
“I needed this dose of old-school New England decency. Few skewer sanctimony quite like Irving at his best. More important: I fell in love, once again, with his people… Let 2026 be the year of an Irving revival. Of course, he’s never gone away; he has been publishing regularly since 1968. But we may need his singular sense of compassion now more than ever.” – Peter Orner, New York Times
Son of the Morning by Akwaeke Emezi
fiction / fantasy / romance.
Tenderhearted Galilee was raised by the Kincaids, a formidable clan of Black women sequestered deep in the weeping willows and dark rushing creeks of their land. Galilee has always known that she’s different—that there is an old and unknowable secret around her very existence. It has been a hollow ache inside her since her childhood, something she assumes she will always have to live with.
Until she meets Lucifer Helel. He’s fronting as the head of security for her wealthy friend Oriaku’s family, protecting a mysterious, ancient artifact, but from the moment she lays eyes on him, Gali knows he’s not human. From her first incendiary touch, Lucifer knows something even Gali herself doesn’t—that she isn’t human either.
Enter: Leviathan. As Lucifer’s most trusted prince of Hell, Levi is ruthless and determined to eliminate the intolerable danger that is Galilee before she brings death and disaster to those he loves. While unseen battles rage between Hell, Heaven, and earth, Lucifer and Galilee’s attraction threatens to bring all the structures of their existence crashing down around them.
Soon, loyalties will be shattered and reformed as Kincaid secrets clash with the princes of Hell, driving even the most powerful to their knees. Galilee Kincaid must decide if she will step into herself and embrace the consequences of power in this astonishing, seductive, and wildly original fantasy.
“[A] solid outing and an exciting new direction for Emezi.” – Publishers Weekly
“Emezi’s skillful storytelling is lush and evocative. Gali and Lucifer’s desire for each other is a ruinous love, and Emezi’s signature prose is haunting. In a time of overwhelming choices for romantasy books, this deeply seductive novel stands out with a visceral allure.” – Maria Martin, Library Journal, STARRED REVIEW
“[A] propulsive story that brims with sexy scenes and sensual detail… This breathtaking novel will have readers questioning the definitions of angel and devil, good and evil, right alongside Galilee.” – Jennifer M. Brown, Shelf Awareness
Swifterature: A Love Story: English Literature and Taylor Swift by Elly McCausland
nonfiction / music / literature / memoir.
A daring literary fusion of pop culture and feminism, Swifterature captures the special connection between English literature and the worldwide phenomenon of Taylor Swift.
The narrative is split into thirteen chapters that use Swift’s lyrics as departure points. The reader experiences the inspiring influence of English literature as Swift’s lens breathes new vitality and urgency into older texts. McCausland also writes about her own experiences as she copes with intense media scrutiny and is forced to defend her academic integrity.
She argues that Swift, through her self-conscious engagement with classic works of literature and her extraordinary popularity, invites us to reflect not only on the culture of our past but also of our present. Swifterature shows how Swift’s place on the world’s stage can teach us about many things, from feminism to politics, nature to childhood. In the process the book makes a compelling case that studying Taylor Swift also turns us into better readers, not only of literature but of ourselves and each other.
“For the legions of Swifties who long for their idol to be given her due for the depth and breadth of her songwriting, this is a delightfully comprehensive and wholly entertaining look at the literary dimensions of Swift’s oeuvre.” – Kristine Huntley, Booklist, STARRED REVIEW
“A piercing look at an undeniable phenomenon through a literary lens… This relentlessly smart book serves as the perfect introduction to literary theory for Swift’s fans, as well as a fascinating exploration of the pop-music phenomenon to outside observers—you don’t need to be a Swiftie to enjoy it (though it can’t hurt). Even if you’re a Swift aficionado, you’ll learn a lot from this enchanting book.” – Kirkus Reviews, STARRED REVIEW
We Did Ok, Kid: A Memoir by Anthony Hopkins
nonfiction / memoir / film / theater.
Born and raised in Port Talbot—a small Welsh steelworks town—amid war and depression, Sir Anthony Hopkins grew up around men who were tough, to say the least, and eschewed all forms of emotional vulnerability in favor of alcoholism and brutality. A struggling student in school, he was deemed by his peers, his parents, and other adults as a failure with no future ahead of him. But, on a fateful Saturday night, the disregarded Welsh boy watched the 1948 adaptation of Hamlet, sparking a passion for acting that would lead him on a path that no one could have predicted.
With candor and a voice that is both arresting and vulnerable, Sir Anthony recounts his various career milestones and provides a once-in-a-lifetime look into the brilliance behind some of his most iconic roles. His performance as Iago gets him admitted into the prestigious Royal Academy of Dramatic Art and places him under the wing of Laurence Olivier. He meets Richard Burton by chance as a young boy in his art teacher’s apartment, and later, backstage before a performance of Equus as an established actor meeting his hero. His iconic portrayal of Hannibal Lecter was informed by the creepy performance of Bela Lugosi in Dracula and the razor-sharp precision of his acting teacher. He pulls raw emotion from the stoicism of his father and grandfather for an unforgettable performance in King Lear.
Sir Anthony also takes a deeply honest look at the low points in his personal life. His addiction cost him his first marriage, his relationship with his only child, and nearly his life—the latter ultimately propelling him toward sobriety, a commitment he has maintained for nearly half a century. He constantly battles against the desire to move through life alone and avoid connection for fear of getting hurt—much like the men in his family—and as the years go by, he deals with questions of mortality, getting ready to discover what his father called The Big Secret.
Featuring a special collection of personal photographs throughout, We Did OK, Kid is a raw and passionate memoir from a complex, iconic man who has inspired audiences with remarkable performances for over sixty years.
“Unflinching.” – James Tarmy, Bloomberg
“It’s not a gossipy tell-all, but Hopkins’s memoir is gently reflective, perceptive, and memorable.” – Frederick J. Augustyn Jr., Library Journal, STARRED REVIEW
“This memoir from Academy Award–winning actor Hopkins comes across like some of his most memorable characters: quiet and restrained but with some darker stuff going on underneath… There’s minimal name-dropping and only sporadic celebrity gossip but significant honesty and thoughtful reminiscence, resulting in a rich, satisfying read.” – Kathleen McBroom, Booklist, STARRED REVIEW
Wings: The Story of a Band on the Run by Paul McCartney; edited by Ted Widmer
nonfiction / memoir / music / history.
An engrossing oral history of a band that came to define a generation, Wings: The Story of a Band on the Run tells the madcap story of Paul McCartney and his newly formed band, from their humble beginnings in the early 1970s to their dissolution barely a decade later. Drawn from over 500,000 words of interviews with McCartney, family and band members, and other key participants, Wings recounts―now with a half-century’s wisdom―the musical odyssey taken by a man searching for his identity in the aftermath of The Beatles’ breakup. Soon joined by his wife – American photographer Linda McCartney – on keyboard and vocals; drummer Denny Seiwell; and guitarist Denny Laine, McCartney sowed the seeds for a new band that would later provide the soundtrack of the decade.
Organized chronologically around McCartney, RAM, and nine Wings albums, the narrative begins when a twenty-seven-year-old superstar, rumored to be dead, fled with his new wife to a remote sheep farm in Scotland amid a sea of legal and personal rows. Despite the harsh conditions, the Scottish setting gave McCartney time to create, and it was here where this new band emerged. Wings then follows the group as they play unannounced shows at university halls, tour in a sheared-off double-decker bus with their children, survive a robbery on the streets of Nigeria, and eventually perform blockbuster stadium shows on their world tour, all while producing some of the most enduring music of the time.
With extraordinary recollections collected by Oscar-winning director Morgan Neville and edited into a genre-defining oral history by Ted Widmer, Wings transports the reader, as if on a magic carpet, to the grit and glamour of the 1970s. Pushing creative forms to produce a new history, even a Wings bible, the book refracts a bygone era in a totally new light. Introduced with a personal, heartfelt foreword by McCartney, the volume contains 150 black-and-white and color photographs, many previously unseen, as well as timelines, a gigography, and a full discography. Wings: The Story of a Band on the Run emerges as a work of soaring originality that presents a new art form all its own.
“Wings: The Story of a Band on the Run, drawn from 500,000 words of a gripping oral history, is [the band’s] vindication, a kicking against the pricks of under-appreciation and often willful misunderstanding… this history reminds us that Wings were much more than something to do for a lost Beatle.” – John Aizlewood, The i Paper
“[A] smooth, frictionless ride across the arc of McCarney’s ’70s career, when he continued to mint more hits, and secured a lock on a massive career that is presently in its 55th year.” – Marc Weingarten, Los Angeles Times
“…crammed with fascinating details and amusing observations… To be part of one all-time great band is more than most musicians could ever hope for. To be in two – well, that’s a kind of miracle.” – Neil McCormick, The Telegraph
Winning the Earthquake: How Jeannette Rankin Defied All Odds to Become the First Woman in Congress by Lorissa Rinehart
nonfiction / biography / history / politics.
Born on a Montana ranch in 1880, Jeannette Rankin knew how to ride a horse, make a fire, and read the sky for weather. But, most of all, she knew how to talk to people and unite them around a shared vision for America. It was this rare skill that led her to become the first woman ever elected to the U.S. House of Representatives. As her first act, Rankin put forth the legislation that would become the Nineteenth Amendment.
During her two terms, beginning in 1917 and in 1941, she introduced and lobbied for legislation strengthening women’s rights, protecting workers, supporting democratic electoral reform, and promoting peace through disarmament. As Congress’s fiercest pacifist, she used her vote to oppose the declaration of war against the German Empire in 1917 and the Japanese Empire in 1941, holding fast to her belief that “you can no more win a war than you can win an earthquake.”
A suffragist, peace activist, workers’ rights advocate, and champion of democratic reform who ran as a Republican, Rankin remained ever faithful to her beliefs, no matter the price she had to pay personally. Despite overcoming the entrenched boys’ club of oligarchic capitalists and career politicians to make enormous strides for women in politics, Rankin has been largely overlooked. In Winning the Earthquake, Lorissa Rinehart expertly recovers the compelling history behind this singular American hero, bringing her story back to life.
“…superb…” – Karen Bordonaro, Library Journal, STARRED REVIEW
“…illuminating… a gripping window into progressive political history and one woman’s defiance of sexist gatekeepers.” – Publishers Weekly
“Historian Rinehart has written a comprehensive and clear-eyed biography of this important American figure. In a time when a dismaying number of public figures across the spectrum pursue personal and political enrichment, Rankin’s courage of her convictions is inspiring. ” – Laurie Unger Skinner, Booklist
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