Staff Training Closure

The Library will be closed the morning of Friday, December 19 from 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. for staff training.

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The Shadow of the Wind

Carlos Ruiz Zafon

"Anyone who enjoys novels that are scary, erotic, touching, tragic and thrilling should rush right out to the nearest bookstore and pick up The Shadow of the Wind. Really, you should." —Michael Dirda, The Washington Post

“Wondrous...masterful...The Shadow of the Wind is ultimately a love letter to literature, intended for readers as passionate about storytelling as its young hero.” —Entertainment Weekly, Editor's Choice

“This is one gorgeous read.” —Stephen King

"I still remember the day my father took me to the Cemetary of Forgotten Books for the first time..."

Barcelona, 1945: A city slowly heals in the aftermath of the Spanish Civil War, and Daniel, an antiquarian book dealer’s son who mourns the loss of his mother, finds solace in a mysterious book entitled The Shadow of the Wind, by one Julián Carax. But when he sets out to find the author’s other works, he makes a shocking discovery: someone has been systematically destroying every copy of every book Carax has written. In fact, Daniel may have the last of Carax’s books in existence. Soon Daniel’s seemingly innocent quest opens a door into one of Barcelona’s darkest secrets—an epic story of murder, madness, and doomed love.

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The Secret Lives of Booksellers and Librarians

James Patterson

This "celebration of the world of books" (Kirkus) from New York Times bestselling author James Patterson is a collection of riveting stories celebrating the heroic efforts of the people who are on the front lines getting our books into the world.​



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."



"When the pandemic started, Patterson launched a movement, #SaveIndieBookstores [and] pledged half a million dollars, and, with the support of the American Booksellers Association and the Book Industry Charitable Foundation, the campaign ended up raising $1,239,595 from more than eighteen hundred donors...Somehow, the bookstore outlived the pandemic. Why? The Secret Lives of Booksellers and Librarians, compiled by James Patterson and Matt Eversmann, suggests a few reasons." - New Yorker

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The Repurposed Library

Lisa Occhipinti

We all love to read and learn from books, but The Repurposed Library takes our passion even further, presenting us with 33 projects to make--quite literally--out of books. For these projects, Lisa Occhipinti rescues and repurposes orphaned and outdated books from flea markets and library sales and turns them into new art objects and practical items for the home. Her creations range from artfully constructed mobiles, wreaths, and vases, to functional items like shelves, storage boxes, and even a Kindle keeper for those who want to replicate the sensation of holding a real book while reading from an e-reader. Projects utilize every imaginable part of a book--from hardback cover to individual pages--and are a DIY celebration of a new way to view a book's potential.

Praise for The Repurposed Library:

In an age when the bound book is an endangered species, [Occhipinti's] artwork is nicely topical. She now has a book of her own, The Repurposed Library, out this week from Stewart, Tabori & Chang. In it, she offers readers a how-to guide to making household objects from, well, books, like a mirror, a lamp and a fire screen, as well as the winsome mobile shown on the cover.
- The New York Times

 

Book hoarders rejoice: all those random children's books, encyclopedias, and unread paperbacks are about to find their purpose . . . Furnished with cheery photographs and numerous hand-drawn diagrams, this endearing book will appeal to veteran crafters and literati alike. 
-BUST magazine

"The book is really well-made, fittingly. The photography by Thayer Allyson Gowdy is wonderful and really shows off the projects--and everything in the background is as tastefully arranged as a Crate & Barrel catalog. . . . if you love books as objects, The Repurposed Library is a fun collection of project ideas."

 


--Wired.com

"We love how everyday objects like a colorful collection of vintage books can double as décor. . . . Th[e] cute wall-hung book ledge is easy to make and provides a perfect perch for treasured keepsakes. --Natural Home & Garden

 

 

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The Professor and the Madman

Simon Winchester

Mysterious (mistîe · ries), a. [f. L. mystérium Mysteryi + ous. Cf. F. mystérieux.] 
1. Full of or fraught with mystery; wrapt in mystery; hidden from human knowledge or understanding; impossible or difficult to explain, solve, or discover; of obscure origin, nature, or purpose.

It is known as one of the greatest literary achievements in the history of English letters. The creation of the Oxford English Dictionary began in 1857, took seventy years to complete, drew from tens of thousands of brilliant minds, and organized the sprawling language into 414,825 precise definitions. But hidden within the rituals of its creation is a fascinating and mysterious story--a story of two remarkable men whose strange twenty-year relationship lies at the core of this historic undertaking.

Professor James Murray, an astonishingly learned former schoolmaster and bank clerk, was the distinguished editor of the OED project. Dr. William Chester Minor, an American surgeon from New Haven, Connecticut, who had served in the Civil War, was one of thousands of contributors who submitted illustrative quotations of words to be used in the dictionary. But Minor was no ordinary contributor. He was remarkably prolific, sending thousands of neat, handwritten quotations from his home in the small village of Crowthorne, fifty miles from Oxford. On numerous occasions Murray invited Minor to visit Oxford and celebrate his work, but Murray's offer was regularly--and mysteriously--refused.

Thus the two men, for two decades, maintained a close relationship only through correspondence. Finally, in 1896, after Minor had sent nearly ten thousand definitions to the dictionary but had still never traveled from his home, a puzzled Murray set out to visit him. It was then that Murray finally learned the truth about Minor--that, in addition to being a masterful wordsmith, Minor was also a murderer, clinically insane--and locked up in Broadmoor, England's harshest asylum for criminal lunatics.

The Professor and the Madman is an extraordinary tale of madness and genius, and the incredible obsessions of two men at the heart of the Oxford English Dictionary and literary history. With riveting insight and detail, Simon Winchester crafts a fascinating glimpse into one man's tortured mind and his contribution to another man's magnificent dictionary.
 

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People of the Book

Geraldine Brooks

The bestselling novel that follows a rare manuscript through centuries of exile and war, from the author of The Secret Chord and of March, winner of the Pulitzer Prize.

Inspired by a true story, People of the Book is a novel of sweeping historical grandeur and intimate emotional intensity by an acclaimed and beloved author. Called “a tour de force” by the San Francisco Chronicle, this ambitious, electrifying work traces the harrowing journey of the famed Sarajevo Haggadah, a beautifully illuminated Hebrew manuscript created in fifteenth-century Spain. When it falls to Hanna Heath, an Australian rare-book expert, to conserve this priceless work, the series of tiny artifacts she discovers in its ancient binding—an insect wing fragment, wine stains, salt crystals, a white hair—only begin to unlock its deep mysteries and unexpectedly plunges Hanna into the intrigues of fine art forgers and ultranationalist fanatics.

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The Page Turner

Viola Shipman

"A tasty, dishy inside look at the world of publishing. Readers will be begging for a sequel!"--Mary Kay Andrews, New York Times bestselling author of Summers at the Saint



A young romance writer makes a discovery that throws her elitist family into chaos in this sharp, witty and entirely delightful family drama for fans of Elinor Lipman and Jennifer Weiner.



Emma Page grew up the black sheep in a bookish household, raised to believe that fine literature is the only worthy type of fiction. Her parents, self-proclaimed "serious" authors who run their own vanity press, The Mighty Pages, mingle in highbrow social circles that look down on anything too popular or mainstream, while her sister, Jess, is a powerful social media influencer whose stylish reviews can make or break a novel.



Hiding her own romance manuscript from her disapproving parents, Emma finds inspiration at the family cottage among the "fluff" they despise: the juicy summer romances that belonged to her late grandmother. But a chance discovery unearthed from her Gigi's belongings reveals a secret that has the power to ruin her parents' business and destroy their reputation in the industry--a secret that has already fallen into the hands of an unscrupulous publishing insider with a grudge to settle. Now Emma must decide--as much as she's dreamed of the day when her parents are forced to confront their own egos, can she really just sit back and watch The Mighty Pages be exposed and their legacy destroyed?



From the wealthy enclaves of the Hamptons to the sparkling shores of Lake Michigan, The Page Turner is a delectable glimpse inside the world of publishing, and Viola Shipman's most glittering achievement yet!

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Overdue

Amanda Oliver

"One part love letter, one part eulogy, Overdue tells the story of America's public library system . . . Amanda Oliver proves herself a vibrant new literary voice . . . This is a book for all book lovers." --Reza Aslan, author of Zealot: The Life and Times of Jesus of Nazareth

Who are libraries for, how have they evolved, and why do they fill so many roles in our society today?

Based on firsthand experiences from six years of professional work as a librarian in high-poverty neighborhoods of Washington, DC, as well as interviews and research, Overdue begins with Oliver's first day at an "unusual" branch: Northwest One.

Using her experience at this branch allows Oliver to highlight the national problems that have existed in libraries since they were founded: racism, segregation, and class inequalities. These age-old problems have evolved into police violence, the opioid epidemic, rampant houselessness, and lack of mental health care nationwide--all of which come to a head in public library spaces.

Can public librarians continue to play the many roles they are tasked with? Can American society sustain one of its most noble institutions?

Pushing against hundreds of years of stereotypes, romanticization, and discomfort with a call to reckoning, Overdue will change the way you think about libraries forever.

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An Overdue Match

Sarah Monzon

Can a librarian's matchmaking mischief lead to a love that rewrites their stories?

If the covers of every romance book ever published didn't convince librarian Evangeline Kelly that she isn't heroine material, her fiancé calling off their wedding when she lost her hair to alopecia did. But what's a girl head over heels for love to do when her feelings are unrequited? Matchmake, that's what. Armed with library patrons' check-out histories, she's determined to make at least one love connection--even if it's not her own. 

Tattoo artist Tai Davis is used to people judging him with a single glance, so it doesn't surprise him when the town's quirky new librarian believes his bad-boy reputation without giving him a chance. He can't help being intrigued by her, though, so when he discovers Evangeline's secret matchmaking scheme, he's not above striking a bargain with her. She just has to agree to one date with him for every time she uses his hometown knowledge to set up library patrons on a romantic rendezvous. The deal is made, but in the process, they both might learn you can't judge a book--or each other--by the cover. 

"With a uniquely heartfelt message, lovable characters, and laugh-out-loud moments, Sarah Monzon's novel is a delight!"--MELISSA FERGUSON, bestselling author of How to Plot a Payback

This is a sweet he-falls-first, opposites attract, matchmaker romantic comedy with disability representation. Perfect for fans of books about books and kisses-only romances.

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My Ideal Bookshelf

Thessaly La Force

The books that we choose to keep --let alone read-- can say a lot about who we are and how we see ourselves. In MY IDEAL BOOKSHELF, dozens of leading cultural figures share the books that matter to them most; books that define their dreams and ambitions and in many cases helped them find their way in the world. Contributors include Malcolm Gladwell, Thomas Keller, Michael Chabon, Alice Waters, James Patterson, Maira Kalman, Judd Apatow, Chuck Klosterman, Miranda July, Alex Ross, Nancy Pearl, David Chang, Patti Smith, Jennifer Egan, and Dave Eggers, among many others. With colorful and endearingly hand-rendered images of book spines by Jane Mount, and first-person commentary from all the contributors, this is a perfect gift for avid readers, writers, and all who have known the influence of a great book.

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Lula Dean's Little Library of Banned Books

Kirsten Miller

"Kirsten Miller has that rare ability to take a serious subject and make it very, very funny. I enjoyed this novel and you will too."--James Patterson

The provocative and hilarious summer read that will have book lovers cheering and everyone talking! Kirsten Miller, author of The Change, brings us a bracing, wildly entertaining satire about a small Southern town, a pitched battle over banned books, and a little lending library that changes everything.

Beverly Underwood and her arch enemy, Lula Dean, live in the tiny town of Troy, Georgia, where they were born and raised. Now Beverly is on the school board, and Lula has become a local celebrity by embarking on mission to rid the public libraries of all inappropriate books--none of which she's actually read. To replace the "pornographic" books she's challenged at the local public library, Lula starts her own lending library in front of her home: a cute wooden hutch with glass doors and neat rows of the worthy literature that she's sure the town's readers need.

What Lula doesn't know is that a local troublemaker has stolen her wholesome books, removed their dust jackets, and restocked Lula's library with banned books: literary classics, gay romances, Black history, witchy spell books, Judy Blume novels, and more. One by one, neighbors who borrow books from Lula Dean's library find their lives changed in unexpected ways. Finally, one of Lula Dean's enemies discovers the library and decides to turn the tables on her, just as Lula and Beverly are running against each other to replace the town's disgraced mayor.

That's when all the townspeople who've been borrowing from Lula's library begin to reveal themselves. That's when the showdown that's been brewing between Beverly and Lula will roil the whole town...and change it forever.

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The Love Scribe

Amy Meyerson

From the bestselling author of The Bookshop of Yesterdays comes a charming novel about a woman with a special gift--her stories help people fall in love.



When Alice's best friend, Gabby, is reeling from a breakup, Alice writes her a heartfelt story to cheer her up. While reading it in a café, Gabby, as if by magic, meets the man of her dreams. Thinking the story might have some special power to it, Gabby shares it with her sister and other friends, who all find instant love. Word of mouth spreads, and Alice stumbles upon a new calling--to be a love scribe.



But not all the love stories she writes unfold as expected. And while Alice tries to harness her extraordinary gift, she is summoned to a mansion in the woods where she encounters the reclusive Madeline Alger and her mysterious library. As Alice struggles to write a story for Madeline, her most challenging assignment yet, she's forced to confront her own guarded heart. Because maybe--just maybe--there's a love story waiting to be written for her, too.



Emotional, deeply imaginative and brimming with valuable life lessons, The Love Scribe explores love, fate and the power of stories when we choose to believe in them.

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Little Black Book

Kate Carlisle

San Francisco book-restoration expert Brooklyn Wainwright is on the case when a rare edition of Rebecca leads to murder in this latest installment of the New York Times bestselling Bibliophile Mystery series.

Brooklyn and her hunky husband, security expert Derek Stone, have just returned from a delightful trip to Dharma, where the construction of their new home away from home is well underway, when a little black book arrives in the mail from Scotland. The book is a rare British first edition of Rebecca, and there’s no return address on the package. The day after the book arrives, Claire Quinn shows up at Brooklyn and Derek’s home. Brooklyn met Claire when the two women worked as expert appraisers on the television show This Old Attic. Brooklyn appraised books on the show and Claire’s expertise was in antique British weaponry, but they bonded over their shared love of gothic novels.

Claire reveals that during a recent trip to Scotland she discovered her beloved aunt was missing and her home had been ransacked. Among her aunt’s belongings, Claire found the receipt for the package that wound up with Brooklyn and Derek. Claire believes both her own life and her aunt’s are in danger and worries that her past may be coming back to haunt her.

But just as Brooklyn and Derek begin to investigate, a man who Claire thinks was following her is found murdered, stabbed with a priceless jeweled dagger. With a death on their doorstep, Brooklyn and Derek page through the little black book, where they discover clues that will take them to the shadows of a medieval Scottish castle on the shores of Loch Ness. Under the watchful gaze of a mysterious laird and the irascible villagers who are suspicious of the strangers in their midst, Brooklyn and Derek must decode the secrets in Rebecca to keep their friend’s past from destroying their future....

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The Lions of Fifth Avenue

Fiona Davis

A Good Morning America Book Club Pick and a New York Times bestseller!

"A page-turner for booklovers everywhere! . . . A story of family ties, their lost dreams, and the redemption that comes from discovering truth."--Adriana Trigiani, bestselling author of The Shoemaker's Wife 

In New York Times bestselling author Fiona Davis's latest historical novel, a series of book thefts roils the iconic New York Public Library, leaving two generations of strong-willed women to pick up the pieces.

It's 1913, and on the surface, Laura Lyons couldn't ask for more out of life--her husband is the superintendent of the New York Public Library, allowing their family to live in an apartment within the grand building, and they are blessed with two children. But headstrong, passionate Laura wants more, and when she takes a leap of faith and applies to the Columbia Journalism School, her world is cracked wide open. As her studies take her all over the city, she is drawn to Greenwich Village's new bohemia, where she discovers the Heterodoxy Club--a radical, all-female group in which women are encouraged to loudly share their opinions on suffrage, birth control, and women's rights. Soon, Laura finds herself questioning her traditional role as wife and mother. And when valuable books are stolen back at the library, threatening the home and institution she loves, she's forced to confront her shifting priorities head on . . . and may just lose everything in the process.

Eighty years later, in 1993, Sadie Donovan struggles with the legacy of her grandmother, the famous essayist Laura Lyons, especially after she's wrangled her dream job as a curator at the New York Public Library. But the job quickly becomes a nightmare when rare manuscripts, notes, and books for the exhibit Sadie's running begin disappearing from the library's famous Berg Collection. Determined to save both the exhibit and her career, the typically risk-averse Sadie teams up with a private security expert to uncover the culprit. However, things unexpectedly become personal when the investigation leads Sadie to some unwelcome truths about her own family heritage--truths that shed new light on the biggest tragedy in the library's history.

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The Library of the Dead

T. L. Huchu

Now a USA TODAY bestseller!

Ilube Nommo Award 2022 for Best Novel

"An absolute delight . . . kept me totally hooked." – Genevieve Cogman, bestselling author of The Invisible Library 

Sixth Sense meets Stranger Things in T. L. Huchu's The Library of the Dead, a sharp contemporary fantasy following a precocious and cynical teen as she explores the shadowy magical underside of modern Edinburgh.


WHEN GHOSTS TALK
SHE WILL LISTEN

Ropa dropped out of school to become a ghostalker – and they sure do love to talk. Now she speaks to Edinburgh’s dead, carrying messages to those they left behind. A girl’s gotta earn a living, and it seems harmless enough. Until, that is, the dead whisper that someone’s bewitching children – leaving them husks, empty of joy and strength. It’s on Ropa’s patch, so she feels honor-bound to investigate. But what she learns will rock her world.

Ropa will dice with death as she calls on Zimbabwean magic and Scottish pragmatism to hunt down clues. And although underground Edinburgh hides a wealth of dark secrets, she also discovers an occult library, a magical mentor and some unexpected allies.

Yet as shadows lengthen, will the hunter become the hunted?

"A fast-moving and entertaining tale, beautifully written." – Ben Aaronovitch, bestselling author of Rivers of London

Edinburgh Nights series:
The Library of the Dead
Our Lady of Mysterious Ailments
The Mystery at Dunvegan Castle
The Legacy of Arniston House

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The Library of Shadows

Rachel Moore



 

Funny, moving, and heart-achingly real, this romantic romp and paranormal romcom debut--through a haunted library with trapdoors, ghosts, and memories--is full of great love that triumphs over even death, perfect for fans of Ninth House and Cemetery Boys.

Radcliffe Prep. The third most haunted school in the country, where a student disappearance isn't uncommon and no one dares stay in the library after dark. And Este Logano enrolls with the hopes of finding her dead father.

Not literally, of course. She doesn't believe in ghosts. Going to her dad's school just seems like her best hope at figuring out who he was.

But then Este meets Mateo, who is maybe--probably--definitely--a real ghost. And an annoying one at that.

When Mateo frames Este for the theft of a rare book from the library's secret spire and then vanishes, Este will have to track him down or risk being expelled and leaving Radcliffe early just like her father did.

Except following her father's footsteps might be more dangerous than Este ever anticipated. As she investigates the library with its secret passageways, hidden tunnels, and haunted halls, she learns that the student disappearances aren't just myth. And if she isn't careful, she'll be next.

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The Library of Lost and Found

Phaedra Patrick

From the author of Rise and Shine Benedict Stone, now an original movie on Hallmark.



"Sweet and resonant." --People, "Best New Books" Pick



A librarian's discovery of a mysterious book sparks the journey of a lifetime.



Librarian Martha Storm has always found it easier to connect with books than people--though not for lack of trying. She keeps careful lists of how to help others in her superhero-themed notebook. And yet, sometimes it feels like she's invisible.



All of that changes when a book of fairy tales arrives on her doorstep. Inside, Martha finds a dedication written to her by her best friend--her grandmother Zelda--who died under mysterious circumstances years earlier. When Martha discovers a clue within the book that her grandmother may still be alive, she becomes determined to discover the truth. As she delves deeper into Zelda's past, she unwittingly reveals a family secret that will change her life forever.



Filled with Phaedra Patrick's signature charm and vivid characters, The Library of Lost and Found is a heartwarming and poignant tale of how one woman must take control of her destiny to write her own happy ending.



Don't miss Phaedra Patrick's uplifting new novel, The Little Italian Hotel!



Check out these other heartwarming stories from Phaedra Patrick:

 

  • The Curious Charms of Arthur Pepper
  • Rise and Shine, Benedict Stone
  • The Secrets of Love Story Bridge
  • The Messy Lives of Book People



 

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The Library of Borrowed Hearts

Lucy Gilmore

A.J. Fikry meets The Bookish Life of Nina Hill in this charming, hilarious, and moving novel about the way books bring lonely souls together.

Two young lovers. Sixty long years. One bookish mystery worth solving.

Librarian Chloe Sampson has been struggling: to take care of her three younger siblings, to find herself, to make ends meet. She's just about at the end of her rope when she stumbles across a rare edition of a book from the 1960s. Deciding it's a sign of her luck turning, she takes it home with her--only to be shocked when her cranky hermit of a neighbor swoops in and offers to buy it for an exorbitant price. Intrigued, Chloe takes a closer look at the book only to find notes scribbled in the margins between two young lovers back when the book was new...one of whom is almost definitely Jasper Holmes, the curmudgeon next door.

When she begins following the clues left behind, she discovers this isn't the only old book in town filled with romantic marginalia. This kickstarts a literary scavenger hunt that Chloe is determined to see through to the end. What happened to the two tragic lovers who corresponded in the margins of so many different library books? And what does it have to do with the old, sad man next door--who only now has begun to open his home and heart to Chloe and her siblings?

In a romantic tale that spans the decades, Chloe discovers that there's much more to her grouchy old neighbor than meets the eye. And in allowing herself to accept the unexpected friendship he offers, she learns that some love stories begin in the unlikeliest of places.

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The Library Game

Gigi Pandian

In The Library Game, Tempest Raj and Secret Staircase Construction are renovating a classic detective fiction library that just got its first real-life mystery.

Tempest Raj couldn’t be happier that the family business, Secret Staircase Construction, is finally getting the recognition it deserves. Known for enchanting architectural features like sliding bookshelves and secret passageways, the company is now taking on a dream project: transforming a home into a public library that celebrates history's greatest fictional detectives. 

Though the work is far from done, Gray House Library’s new owner is eager to host a murder mystery dinner and literary themed escape room. But when a rehearsal ends with an actor murdered and the body vanishes, Tempest is witness to a seemingly impossible crime. Fueled by her grandfather’s Scottish and Indian meals, Tempest and the rest of the crew must figure out who is making beloved classic mystery plots come to life in a deadly game.

Multiple award winning author Gigi Pandian masterfully weaves wit and warmth in the Secret Staircase Mysteries. Readers will delight in the surprises Secret Staircase Construction uncovers behind the next locked door.

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The Library Book

Susan Orlean

A REESE WITHERSPOON x HELLO SUNSHINE BOOK CLUB PICK

A WASHINGTON POST TOP 10 BOOK OF THE YEAR * A NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER and NEW YORK TIMES NOTABLE BOOK OF 2018

“A constant pleasure to read…Everybody who loves books should check out The Library Book.” —The Washington Post

“CAPTIVATING…DELIGHTFUL.” —Christian Science Monitor * “EXQUISITELY WRITTEN, CONSISTENTLY ENTERTAINING.” —The New York Times * “MESMERIZING…RIVETING.” —Booklist (starred review)

A dazzling love letter to a beloved institution—and an investigation into one of its greatest mysteries—from the bestselling author hailed as a “national treasure” by The Washington Post.

On the morning of April 29, 1986, a fire alarm sounded in the Los Angeles Public Library. As the moments passed, the patrons and staff who had been cleared out of the building realized this was not the usual fire alarm. As one fireman recounted, “Once that first stack got going, it was ‘Goodbye, Charlie.’” The fire was disastrous: it reached 2000 degrees and burned for more than seven hours. By the time it was extinguished, it had consumed four hundred thousand books and damaged seven hundred thousand more. Investigators descended on the scene, but more than thirty years later, the mystery remains: Did someone purposefully set fire to the library—and if so, who?

Weaving her lifelong love of books and reading into an investigation of the fire, award-winning New Yorker reporter and New York Times bestselling author Susan Orlean delivers a mesmerizing and uniquely compelling book that manages to tell the broader story of libraries and librarians in a way that has never been done before.

In The Library Book, Orlean chronicles the LAPL fire and its aftermath to showcase the larger, crucial role that libraries play in our lives; delves into the evolution of libraries across the country and around the world, from their humble beginnings as a metropolitan charitable initiative to their current status as a cornerstone of national identity; brings each department of the library to vivid life through on-the-ground reporting; studies arson and attempts to burn a copy of a book herself; reflects on her own experiences in libraries; and reexamines the case of Harry Peak, the blond-haired actor long suspected of setting fire to the LAPL more than thirty years ago.

Along the way, Orlean introduces us to an unforgettable cast of characters from libraries past and present—from Mary Foy, who in 1880 at eighteen years old was named the head of the Los Angeles Public Library at a time when men still dominated the role, to Dr. C.J.K. Jones, a pastor, citrus farmer, and polymath known as “The Human Encyclopedia” who roamed the library dispensing information; from Charles Lummis, a wildly eccentric journalist and adventurer who was determined to make the L.A. library one of the best in the world, to the current staff, who do heroic work every day to ensure that their institution remains a vital part of the city it serves.

Brimming with her signature wit, insight, compassion, and talent for deep research, The Library Book is Susan Orlean’s thrilling journey through the stacks that reveals how these beloved institutions provide much more than just books—and why they remain an essential part of the heart, mind, and soul of our country. It is also a master journalist’s reminder that, perhaps especially in the digital era, they are more necessary than ever.

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The Librarianist

Patrick deWitt

NATIONAL BESTSELLER

From bestselling and award-winning author Patrick deWitt comes the story of Bob Comet, a man who has lived his life through and for literature, unaware that his own experience is a poignant and affecting narrative in itself.

Bob Comet is a retired librarian passing his solitary days surrounded by books and small comforts in a mint-colored house in Portland, Oregon. One morning on his daily walk he encounters a confused elderly woman lost in a market and returns her to the senior center that is her home. Hoping to fill the void he's known since retiring, he begins volunteering at the center. Here, as a community of strange peers gathers around Bob, and following a happenstance brush with a painful complication from his past, the events of his life and the details of his character are revealed.

Behind Bob Comet's straight-man façade is the story of an unhappy child's runaway adventure during the last days of the Second World War, of true love won and stolen away, of the purpose and pride found in the librarian's vocation, and of the pleasures of a life lived to the side of the masses. Bob's experiences are imbued with melancholy but also a bright, sustained comedy; he has a talent for locating bizarre and outsize players to welcome onto the stage of his life.

With his inimitable verve, skewed humor, and compassion for the outcast, Patrick deWitt has written a wide-ranging and ambitious document of the introvert's condition. The Librarianist celebrates the extraordinary in the so-called ordinary life, and depicts beautifully the turbulence that sometimes exists beneath a surface of serenity.

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The Incident of the Book in the Nighttime

Vicki Delany

Bookshop owner Gemma Doyle heads to London for a wedding, but when a body is found in connection with a rare book, Gemma sets out to sleuth the slaying in bestselling author Vicki Delany's tenth Sherlock Holmes Bookshop mystery.

Gemma Doyle and her friends have packed their bags and headed to London for her sister Pippa’s wedding. Waiting for her in the hotel lobby is none other than Gemma’s ex-husband, Paul Erikson. Paul has a rare book he wants her to see—calling it “the real deal”—so Gemma agrees to meet him at their old shop, Trafalgar Fine Books, the following day. But when Gemma arrives, accompanied by Grant, a rare book dealer, they find Paul dead in his office.

Paul had been down on his luck, but Gemma never expected this. Had he borrowed money from people he shouldn’t have? And where is the valuable book he was so anxious for Gemma to see? It’s nowhere to be found in the shop. Because of their previous relationship, Gemma feels she owes something to Paul and vows to find his killer.

As Gemma and her best friend Jayne Wilson follow Paul’s trail of friends, enemies, clients, and ex-lovers through London to Yorkshire, she realizes the puzzle of Paul’s last days is more twisted than she originally thought.

This mystery is anything but elementary, and Gemma and Jayne have to use all their wit to get to the bottom of it before their time in London—or in life—is over.

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The In-Between Bookstore

Edward Underhill

"What would you tell your teen self if you could go back in time? Underhill's tender, innovative debut is the smartest take on this trope I've ever read. . . and for the record, I read it in a single sitting. A beautiful, thoughtful study of how we find our truest selves, and whom we choose to trust with that gift." -- Jodi Picoult, #1 New York Times bestselling author

A poignant and enchanting novel about a magical bookstore that transports a trans man through time and brings him face-to-face with his teenage self, offering him the chance of a lifetime to examine his life and identity to find a new beginning.

When Darby finds himself unemployed and in need of a fresh start, he moves back to the small Illinois town he left behind. But Oak Falls has changed almost as much as he has since he left.

One thing is familiar: In Between Books, Darby's refuge growing up and eventual high school job. When he walks into the bookstore now, Darby feels an eerie sense of déjà vu--everything is exactly the same. Even the newspapers are dated 2009. And behind the register is a teen who looks a lot like Darby did at sixteen. . . who just might give Darby the opportunity to change his own present for the better--if he can figure out how before his connection to the past vanishes forever.

The In-Between Bookstore is a stunning novel of love, self-discovery, and the choices that come with both, for anyone who has ever wondered what their life might be like if they had the chance to go back and take a bigger, braver risk.

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How to Read Literature Like a Professor [Third Edition]

Thomas C. Foster



 

Thoroughly revised and expanded for a new generation of readers, this classic guide to enjoying literature to its fullest--a lively, enlightening, and entertaining introduction to a diverse range of writing and literary devices that enrich these works, including symbols, themes, and contexts--teaches you how to make your everyday reading experience richer and more rewarding.

While books can be enjoyed for their basic stories, there are often deeper literary meanings beneath the surface. How to Read Literature Like a Professor helps us to discover those hidden truths by looking at literature with the practiced analytical eye--and the literary codes--of a college professor.

What does it mean when a protagonist is traveling along a dusty road When he hands a drink to his companion When he's drenched in a sudden rain shower Thomas C. Foster provides answers to these questions as he explores every aspect of fiction, from major themes to literary models, narrative devices, and form. Offering a broad overview of literature--a world where a road leads to a quest, a shared meal may signify a communion, and rain, whether cleansing or destructive, is never just a shower--he shows us how to make our reading experience more intellectually satisfying and fun.

The world, and curricula, have changed. This third edition has been thoroughly revised to reflect those changes, and features new chapters, a new preface and epilogue, as well as fresh teaching points Foster has developed over the past decade. Foster updates the books he discusses to include more diverse, inclusive, and modern works, such as Angie Thomas's The Hate U Give; Emily St. John Mandel's Station Eleven; Neil Gaiman's Neverwhere; Elizabeth Acevedo's The Poet X; Helen Oyeyemi's Mr. Fox and Boy, Snow, Bird; Sandra Cisneros's The House on Mango Street; Zora Neale Hurston's Their Eyes Were Watching God; Maggie O'Farrell's Hamnet; Madeline Miller's Circe; Pat Barker's The Silence of the Girls; and Tahereh Mafi's A Very Large Expanse of Sea.

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The Historian

Elizabeth Kostova

An "innovative" (The New Yorker) retelling of the story of Dracula. Told with the flourish and poise of a talented storyteller, Kostova turns the age-old tale into a compelling "late night page-turner" (San Francisco Chronicle)
When a young woman discovers a cache of ancient letters, she is thrown into the turbulent history of her parents' dark pasts. Uncovering a labyrinthine trail of clues, she begins to reconstruct a staggering history of deceit and violence. 

Debut novelist Elizabeth Kostova creates an adventure of monumental proportions, a relentless tale that blends fact and fantasy, history and the present, with an assurance that is almost unbearably suspenseful and utterly unforgettable.

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The Forgotten Garden

Kate Morton

From the internationally bestselling author of The House at Riverton, an unforgettable new novel that transports the reader from the back alleys of poverty of pre-World War I London to the shores of colonial Australia where so many made a fresh start, and back to the windswept coast of Cornwall, England, past and present 

A tiny girl is abandoned on a ship headed for Australia in 1913. She arrives completely alone with nothing but a small suitcase containing a few clothes and a single book -- a beautiful volume of fairy tales. She is taken in by the dockmaster and his wife and raised as their own. On her twenty-first birthday they tell her the truth, and with her sense of self shattered and with very little to go on, "Nell" sets out on a journey to England to try to trace her story, to fi nd her real identity. Her quest leads her to Blackhurst Manor on the Cornish coast and the secrets of the doomed Mountrachet family. But it is not until her granddaughter, Cassandra, takes up the search after Nell's death that all the pieces of the puzzle are assembled. At Cliff Cottage, on the grounds of Blackhurst Manor, Cassandra discovers the forgotten garden of the book's title and is able to unlock the secrets of the beautiful book of fairy tales. 

This is a novel of outer and inner journeys and an homage to the power of storytelling. The Forgotten Garden is fi lled with unforgettable characters who weave their way through its spellbinding plot to astounding effect. 

Morton's novels are #1 bestsellers in England and Australia and are published in more than twenty languages. Her fi rst novel, The House at Riverton, was a New York Times bestseller.

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Fahrenheit 451

Ray Bradbury

Celebrate the fiftieth anniversary of this timeless classic with a special edition featuring a new introduction by the author and a message that is more relevant today than when it was first published. Since the late 1940s, Ray Bradbury has been revered for his works of science fiction and fantasy. With more than five million copies in print, Fahrenheit 451 -- originally published in 1953 -- remains his most acclaimed work.

Fahrenheit 451 is the temperature at which book paper burns. Fahrenheit 451 is a novel set in the (perhaps near) future when "firemen" burn books forbidden by a totalitarian "brave new world" regime. The hero, according to Mr. Bradbury, is "a book burner who suddenly discovers that books are flesh-and-blood ideas and cry out silently when put to the torch." Today, when libraries and schools in this country and all over the world are still "burning" certain books, Fahrenheit 451 remains a brilliantly readable and suspenseful work of even greater impact and timeliness.

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The Eyre Affair

Jasper Fforde

Great Britain circa 1985: time travel is routine, cloning is a reality (dodas are the resurrected pet of choice), and literature is taken very, very seriously. Based on an imaginary world where time and reality bend in the most convincing and original way since The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, The Eyre Affair is a delightful rabbit hole of a read: once you fall in you may never come back. England is a virtual police state where an aunt can get lost (literally) in Wordsworth poems, militant Baconians roam freely spreading the gospel that Bacon, not Shakespeare, penned those immortal works. And forging Byronic verse is a punishable offense. This is all business as usual for brainy, bookish (and heat-packing) Thursday Next, a renowned Special Operative in literary detection -- that is, until someone begins murdering characters from works of literature. When this madman plucks Jane Eyre from the pages of Bronte's novel Thursday faces the challenge of her career. Aided and abetted by characters that include her time-traveling father, an executive of the all-powerful Goliath Corporation, and Edward Rochester himself, Thursday must track down the world's Third Most Wanted criminal and enter the novel herself to avert a heinous act of literary homicide. A brilliantly outlandish and absorbing caper destined to become a classic adventure tale, The Eyre Affair is an irresistible thriller and the introduction to the imagination of a most distinctive writer. In Jasper Fforde's singular fictional universe no literary character is safe from crime. And for Special Operative Thursday Next this is only the beginning ...

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The Echo of Old Books

Barbara Davis

A novel about the magical lure of books and summoning the courage to rewrite our stories by the Amazon Charts bestselling author of The Keeper of Happy Endings and The Last of the Moon Girls.

Rare-book dealer Ashlyn Greer's affinity for books extends beyond the intoxicating scent of old paper, ink, and leather. She can feel the echoes of the books' previous owners--an emotional fingerprint only she can read. When Ashlyn discovers a pair of beautifully bound volumes that appear to have never been published, her gift quickly becomes an obsession. Not only is each inscribed with a startling incrimination, but the authors, Hemi and Belle, tell conflicting sides of a tragic romance.

With no trace of how these mysterious books came into the world, Ashlyn is caught up in a decades-old literary mystery, beckoned by two hearts in ruins, whoever they were, wherever they are. Determined to learn the truth behind the doomed lovers' tale, she reads on, following a trail of broken promises and seemingly unforgivable betrayals. The more Ashlyn learns about Hemi and Belle, the nearer she comes to bringing closure to their love story--and to the unfinished chapters of her own life.

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The Department of Rare Books and Special Collections

Eva Jurczyk

INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER

"A rare treat for readers. I loved this book!"--Matthew Sullivan, author of Midnight at the Bright Ideas Bookstore

"Who doesn't love a mystery involving rare books and bad librarians?" --Karen Joy Fowler, New York Times bestselling author

Anxious People meets the delights of bookish fiction in a stunning debut following a librarian whose quiet life is turned upside down when a priceless manuscript goes missing. Soon she has to ask: what holds more secrets in the library--the ancient books shelved in the stacks, or the people who preserve them?

Liesl Weiss long ago learned to be content working behind the scenes in the distinguished rare books department of a large university, managing details and working behind the scenes to make the head of the department look good. But when her boss has a stroke and she's left to run things, she discovers that the library's most prized manuscript is missing.

Liesl tries to sound the alarm and inform the police about the missing priceless book, but is told repeatedly to keep quiet, to keep the doors open and the donors happy. But then a librarian unexpectedly stops showing up to work. Liesl must investigate both disappearances, unspooling her colleagues' pasts like the threads of a rare book binding as it becomes clear that someone in the department must be responsible for the theft. What Liesl discovers about the dusty manuscripts she has worked among for so long--and about the people who care for and revere them--shakes the very foundation on which she has built her life.

The Department of Rare Books and Special Collections is a sparkling book-club read about a woman struggling to step out from behind the shadows of powerful and unreliable men, and reveals the dark edge of obsession running through the most devoted bookworms.

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The Busybody Book Club

Freya Sampson

They can’t even agree on what to read, so how are they going to solve a murder?

Having recently moved from London to a small Cornish seaside village, Nova Davies started a book club at the local community center, but so far it’s a disaster. The five members disagree on everything, and to make matters worse, a significant sum of money is stolen during one of the meetings, putting the much-loved community center at risk.

Suspicion for the theft falls on book club member Michael, especially when he disappears and a dead body turns up at his house. But the book club has their own theories. Agatha Christie superfan Phyllis is determined to prove Michael’s been framed, while romance reader Arthur believes there’s a mystery woman involved, and teenage sci-fi fan Ash thinks dark forces are at play. 

While trying to locate Michael, solve the murder and recover the stolen money, each of them has their own secrets to protect. But despite the danger closing in, they won’t rest until they’ve cracked the case and gotten everyone safe at home with a book, where they belong.

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The Boxcar Librarian

Brianna Labuskes



 

Inspired by true events, a thrilling Depression-era novel from the author of The Librarian of Burned Books about a woman's quest to uncover a mystery surrounding a local librarian and the Boxcar Library--a converted mining train that brought books to isolated rural towns in Montana.

When Works Progress Administration (WPA) editor Millie Lang finds herself on the wrong end of a potential political scandal, she's shipped off to Montana to work on the state's American Guide Series--travel books intended to put the nation's destitute writers to work.

Millie arrives to an eclectic staff claiming their missed deadlines are due to sabotage, possibly from the state's powerful Copper Kings who don't want their long and bloody history with union organizers aired for the rest of the country to read. But Millie begins to suspect that the answer might instead lie with the town's mysterious librarian, Alice Monroe.

More than a decade earlier, Alice Monroe created the Boxcar Library in order to deliver books to isolated mining towns where men longed for entertainment and connection. Alice thought she found the perfect librarian to staff the train car in Colette Durand, a miner's daughter with a shotgun and too many secrets behind her eyes.

Now, no one in Missoula will tell Millie why both Alice and Colette went out on the inaugural journey of the Boxcar Library, but only Alice returned.

The three women's stories dramatically converge in the search to uncover what someone is so desperately trying to hide: what happened to Colette Durand.

Inspired by the fascinating, true history of Missoula's Boxcar Library, the novel blends the story of the strong, courageous women who survived and thrived in the rough and rowdy West with that of the power of standing together to fight for workers' lives. And through it all shines the capacity of books to provide connection and light to those who need it most.



 

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Bookshops & Bonedust

Travis Baldree

An Instant #1 New York Times, USA Today, and Indie Bestseller
A Barnes & Noble Best Fantasy Book of 2023
An Amazon Best Science Fiction and Fantasy Book of 2023

When an injury throws a young, battle-hungry orc off her chosen path, she may find that what we need isn't always what we seek. 

Set in the world of New York Times bestselling Legends & Lattes, Travis Baldree's Bookshops & Bonedust takes us on a journey of high fantasy, first loves, and secondhand books.

Viv's career with the notorious mercenary company Rackam's Ravens isn't going as planned.

Wounded during the hunt for a powerful necromancer, she's packed off against her will to recuperate in the sleepy beach town of Murk—so far from the action that she worries she'll never be able to return to it.

What's a thwarted soldier of fortune to do?

Spending her hours at a beleaguered bookshop in the company of its foul-mouthed proprietor is the last thing Viv would have predicted, but it may be both exactly what she needs and the seed of changes she couldn't possibly imagine.

Still, adventure isn't all that far away. A suspicious traveler in gray, a gnome with a chip on her shoulder, a summer fling, and an improbable number of skeletons prove Murk to be more eventful than Viv could have ever expected.

“Take a break from epic battles and saving the world. This is a low-stakes fantasy that delivers exactly what's advertised: a wholesome, cozy novel that feels like a warm hug. This is my new comfort read.”—Genevieve Gornichec, author of The Witch's Heart, on Legends & Lattes

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A Bookshop of One's Own

Jane Cholmeley

What was it like to start a feminist bookshop, in an industry dominated by men? How could a lesbian thrive in Thatcher's time, with the government legislating to restrict her rights? How do you run a business when your real aim is to change the world?

Silver Moon was the dream of three women – a bookshop with the mission to promote the work of female writers and create a much-needed safe space for any woman. Founded in 1980s London against a backdrop of homophobia and misogyny, it was a testament to the power of community, growing into Europe's biggest women's bookshop and hosting a constellation of literary stars from Margaret Atwood and Maya Angelou to Angela Carter. While contending with day-to-day struggles common to other booksellers, plus the additional burdens of misogyny and the occasional hate crime, Jane Cholmeley and her booksellers created a thriving business. But they also played a crucial and relatively unsung part in one the biggest social movements of our time.

A Bookshop of One's Own is a fascinating slice of social history from the heart of the women's liberation movement, from a true feminist and lesbian icon. Written with heart and humour, it reveals the struggle and joy that comes with starting an underdog business, while being a celebration of the power women have to change the narrative when they are the ones holding the pen.

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The Bookshop of Hidden Dreams

Karen Hawkins

A brand new novel in the “sometimes whimsical, often insightful, always absorbing” (Shelf Awareness) Dove Pond series that follows a gifted historian investigating the mystery of a love story lost to time.

When an antique tin of love letters is found hidden in her family home, noted historian Tay Dove rushes home to Dove Pond to investigate. Tay is still reeling from a romantic betrayal, so she’s relieved to refocus her energies on her latest project: a biography of her great-great-grandmother Sarafina, a star reporter who began her career in Dove Pond in the late 19th century before abruptly leaving town.

Tay believes the letters could be the key in solving what happened, but they only add to her questions—especially when they reveal a forbidden love affair with William Day, a wild youth who took part in a notorious train robbery. Some answers might be found in eighty-year-old Rose Day’s bookshop, which doubles as a town archive, but Rose is curiously resistant to give Tay access. Just when Tay thinks she’s reached a dead end, she finds an unlikely ally in Rose’s grandson, Luke, a fellow puzzle lover. Together, they set out to uncover what really happened all those years ago…and find the truth behind a love story that could be more precious than gold.

Perfect for fans of Alice Hoffman and Sarah Addison Allen, The Bookshop of Hidden Dreams proves that adventure is always waiting to be found, especially within the pages of a book.

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The Bookshop

Evan Friss

A NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER

Goodreads Choice Award Winner in History & Biography 

One of Time’s 100 Must-Read Books of 2024

"A spirited defense of this important, odd and odds-defying American retail category." —The New York Times

"It is a delight to wander through the bookstores of American history in this warm, generous book." —Emma Straub, New York Times bestselling author and owner of Books Are Magic

An affectionate and engaging history of the American bookstore and its central place in American cultural life, from department stores to indies, from highbrow dealers trading in first editions to sidewalk vendors, and from chains to special-interest community destinations

Bookstores have always been unlike any other kind of store, shaping readers and writers, and influencing our tastes, thoughts, and politics. They nurture local communities while creating new ones of their own. Bookshops are powerful spaces, but they are also endangered ones. In The Bookshop, we see the stakes: what has been, and what might be lost.

Evan Friss’s history of the bookshop draws on oral histories, archival collections, municipal records, diaries, letters, and interviews with leading booksellers to offer a fascinating look at this institution beloved by so many. The story begins with Benjamin Franklin’s first bookstore in Philadelphia and takes us to a range of booksellers including the Strand, Chicago’s Marshall Field & Company, the Gotham Book Mart, specialty stores like Oscar Wilde and Drum and Spear, sidewalk sellers of used books, Barnes & Noble, Amazon Books, and Parnassus. The Bookshop is also a history of the leading figures in American bookselling, often impassioned eccentrics, and a history of how books have been marketed and sold over the course of more than two centuries—including, for example, a 3,000-pound elephant who signed books at Marshall Field’s in 1944.

The Bookshop is a love letter to bookstores, a charming chronicle for anyone who cherishes these sanctuaries of literature, and essential reading to understand how these vital institutions have shaped American life—and why we still need them.

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The Bookseller of Florence

Ross King

The bestselling author of Brunelleschi's Dome and Michelangelo and the Pope's Ceiling captures the excitement and spirit of the Renaissance in this chronicle of the life and work of "the king of the world's booksellers" and the technological disruption that forever changed the ways knowledge spread.

 

The Renaissance in Florence conjures images of beautiful frescoes and elegant buildings--the dazzling handiwork of the city's skilled artists and architects. But equally important for the centuries to follow were geniuses of a different sort: Florence's manuscript hunters, scribes, scholars, and booksellers, who blew the dust off a thousand years of history and, through the discovery and diffusion of ancient knowledge, imagined a new and enlightened world.

 

At the heart of this activity, which bestselling author Ross King relates in his exhilarating new book, was a remarkable man: Vespasiano da Bisticci. Born in 1422, he became what a friend called "the king of the world's booksellers." At a time when all books were made by hand, over four decades Vespasiano produced and sold many hundreds of volumes from his bookshop, which also became a gathering spot for debate and discussion. Besides repositories of ancient wisdom by the likes of Plato, Aristotle, and Quintilian, his books were works of art in their own right, copied by talented scribes and illuminated by the finest miniaturists. His clients included a roll-call of popes, kings, and princes across Europe who wished to burnish their reputations by founding magnificent libraries.

 

Vespasiano reached the summit of his powers as Europe's most prolific merchant of knowledge when a new invention appeared: the printed book. By 1480, the king of the world's booksellers was swept away by this epic technological disruption, whereby cheaply produced books reached readers who never could have afforded one of Vespasiano's elegant manuscripts.

 

A thrilling chronicle of intellectual ferment set against the dramatic political and religious turmoil of the era, Ross King's brilliant The Bookseller of Florence is also an ode to books and bookmaking that charts the world-changing shift from script to print through the life of an extraordinary man long lost to history--one of the true titans of the Renaissance.

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Books to Die For

John Connolly

The world’s greatest mystery writers on the world’s greatest mystery novels: 

Michael Connelly on The Little Sister . . . 

Kathy Reichs on The Silence of the Lambs . . . 

Mark Billingham on The Maltese Falcon . . . 

Ian Rankin on I Was Dora Suarez . . . 

With so many mystery novels to choose among, and so many new titles appearing each year, where should a reader start? What are the classics of the genre? Which are the hidden gems? 

In the most ambitious anthology of its kind yet attempted, the world’s leading mystery writers have come together to champion the greatest mystery novels ever written. In a series of personal essays that often reveal as much about the authors and their own work as they do about the books that they love, 119 authors from 20 countries have created a guide that will be indispensable for generations of readers and writers. From Agatha Christie to Lee Child, from Edgar Allan Poe to P. D. James, from Sherlock Holmes to Hannibal Lecter and Philip Marlowe to Lord Peter Wimsey, Books to Die For brings together the cream of the mystery world for a feast of reading pleasure, a treasure trove for those new to the genre and for those who believe that there is nothing new left to discover. This is the one essential book for every reader who has ever finished a mystery novel and thought . . . 

I want more! 

*** 

“Why does the mystery novel enjoy such enduring appeal? There is no simple answer. It has a distinctive capacity for subtle social commentary, a concern with the disparity between law and justice, and a passion for order, however compromised. Even in the vision of the darkest of mystery writers, it provides us with a glimpse of the world as it might be, a world in which good men and women do not stand idly by and allow the worst aspects of human nature to triumph without opposition. It can touch upon all these facets while still entertaining the reader.” 

—From the introduction of Books to Die For

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Books

Martyn Lyons

From the first scribbling on papyrus to the emergence of the e-book, this wide-ranging overview of the history of the book provides a fascinating look at one of the most efficient, versatile, and enduring technologies ever developed. The author traces the evolution of the book from the rarefied world of the hand-copied and illuminated volume in ancient and medieval times, through the revolutionary impact of Gutenberg's invention of the printing press, to the rise of a publishing culture in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, and the subsequent impact of new technologies on this culture.

Many of the great individual titles of the past two millennia are discussed as well as the range of book types and formats that have emerged in the last few hundred years, from serial and dime novels to paperbacks, children's books, and Japanese manga. The volume ends with a discussion of the digital revolution in book production and distribution and the ramifications for book lovers, who can't help but wonder whether the book will thrive--or even survive--in a form they recognize.

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The Booklover's Library

Madeline Martin

"A must-read for booklovers." --Chanel Cleeton, New York Times bestselling author of Next Year in Havana



A heartwarming story about a mother and daughter in wartime England and the power of books that bring them together, by the bestselling author of The Last Bookshop in London.



In Nottingham, England, widow Emma Taylor finds herself in desperate need of a job. She and her beloved daughter Olivia have always managed just fine on their own, but with the legal restrictions prohibiting widows with children from most employment opportunities, she's left with only one option: persuading the manageress at Boots' Booklover's Library to take a chance on her with a job.



When the threat of war in England becomes a reality, Olivia must be evacuated to the countryside. In the wake of being separated from her daughter, Emma seeks solace in the unlikely friendships she forms with her neighbors and coworkers, and a renewed sense of purpose through the recommendations she provides to the library's quirky regulars. But the job doesn't come without its difficulties. Books are mysteriously misshelved and disappearing and the work at the lending library forces her to confront the memories of her late father and the bookstore they once owned together before a terrible accident.



As the Blitz intensifies in Nottingham and Emma fights to reunite with her daughter, she must learn to depend on her community and the power of literature more than ever to find hope in the darkest of times.

 

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Booked for Murder

P. J. Nelson

Lilian Jackson Braun Award finalist, Indie Next pick, Library Reads pick, SIBA Read This Next! selection -Madeline Brimley returns to the small town Georgia bookstore she inherited, discovering that small towns hold deadly secrets.

Madeline Brimley left small town Georgia many years ago to go to college and pursue her dreams on the stage. Her dramatic escapades are many but success has eluded her, leaving her at loose ends. But then she gets word that not only has her beloved, eccentric Aunt Rose passed, but she's left Madeline her equally eccentric bookstore housed in an old Victorian mansion in the small college town of Enigma. But when she arrives in her beat-up Fiat to claim The Old Juniper Bookstore, and restart her life, Madeline is faced with unexpected challenges. The gazebo in the back yard is set ablaze and a late night caller threatens to burn the whole store down if she doesn't leave immediately. 

But Madeline Brimley, not one to be intimidated, ignores the threats and soldiers on. Until there's another fire and a murder in the store itself. Now with a cloud of suspicion falling over her, it's up to Madeline to untangle the skein of secrets and find the killer before she herself is the next victim.

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The Book Thief

Markus Zusak

A "New York Times" bestseller for seven years running that's soon to be a major motion picture, this Printz Honor book by the author of "I Am the Messenger" is an unforgettable tale about the ability of books to feed the soul.

Set during World War II in Germany, Markus Zusak's groundbreaking novel is the story of Liesel Meminger, a foster girl living outside of Munich. Liesel scratches out a meager existence for herself by stealing when she encounters something she can't resist-books. With the help of her accordion-playing foster father, she learns to read and shares her stolen books with her neighbors during bombing raids as well as with the Jewish man hidden in her basement before he is marched to Dachau. 
The country is holding its breath. Death has never been busier, and will become busier still.

"The Book Thief" is a Common Core Exemplar Text.

 

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The Book That Held Her Heart

Mark Lawrence

Two people once connected by a vast and mysterious library are now separated and must overcome time and distance to reunite and bring peace to their worlds, in the final book of the Library Trilogy.

The fate of an infinite library hangs on one book, a book that holds the power to break the unbreakable. In the face of such forces, fragile things like hearts, worlds, and even family seem certain to fail.

The people most vital to Livira are scattered across time and space—lost, divided into factions, in mortal peril. Somehow she must bring them together and resolve the unresolvable argument that fuels the library’s war.

The bond between Livira and Evar has stretched and stretched again. Can it hold at the end, when things fall apart? Can it unite them against impossible odds?

This is the last chapter, the final page. The end threatens and no one—not characters, readers, or even the author—will emerge unscathed.

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The Book of Lost Names

Kristin Harmel

INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER

Inspired by an astonishing true story from World War II, a young woman with a talent for forgery helps hundreds of Jewish children flee the Nazis in this unforgettable historical novel from the New York Times bestselling author of the “epic and heart-wrenching World War II tale” (Alyson Noel, #1 New York Times bestselling author) The Winemaker’s Wife.

Eva Traube Abrams, a semi-retired librarian in Florida, is shelving books one morning when her eyes lock on a photograph in a magazine lying open nearby. She freezes; it’s an image of a book she hasn’t seen in sixty-five years—a book she recognizes as The Book of Lost Names.

The accompanying article discusses the looting of libraries by the Nazis across Europe during World War II—an experience Eva remembers well—and the search to reunite people with the texts taken from them so long ago. The book in the photograph, an eighteenth-century religious text thought to have been taken from France in the waning days of the war, is one of the most fascinating cases. Now housed in Berlin’s Zentral- und Landesbibliothek library, it appears to contain some sort of code, but researchers don’t know where it came from—or what the code means. Only Eva holds the answer—but will she have the strength to revisit old memories and help reunite those lost during the war?

As a graduate student in 1942, Eva was forced to flee Paris after the arrest of her father, a Polish Jew. Finding refuge in a small mountain town in the Free Zone, she begins forging identity documents for Jewish children fleeing to neutral Switzerland. But erasing people comes with a price, and along with a mysterious, handsome forger named Rémy, Eva decides she must find a way to preserve the real names of the children who are too young to remember who they really are. The records they keep in The Book of Lost Names will become even more vital when the resistance cell they work for is betrayed and Rémy disappears.

An engaging and evocative novel reminiscent of The Lost Girls of Paris and The Alice Network, The Book of Lost Names is a testament to the resilience of the human spirit and the power of bravery and love in the face of evil.

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The Book of Form and Emptiness

Ruth Ozeki

Winner of the Women’s Prize for Fiction

“No one writes like Ruth Ozeki—a triumph.” —Matt Haig, New York Times bestselling author of The Midnight Library

“Inventive, vivid, and propelled by a sense of wonder.” —TIME

“If you’ve lost your way with fiction over the last year or two, let The Book of Form and Emptiness light your way home.” —David Mitchell, Booker Prize-finalist author of Cloud Atlas 

A boy who hears the voices of objects all around him; a mother drowning in her possessions; and a Book that might hold the secret to saving them both—the brilliantly inventive new novel from the Booker Prize-finalist Ruth Ozeki

One year after the death of his beloved musician father, thirteen-year-old Benny Oh begins to hear voices. The voices belong to the things in his house—a sneaker, a broken Christmas ornament, a piece of wilted lettuce. Although Benny doesn't understand what these things are saying, he can sense their emotional tone; some are pleasant, a gentle hum or coo, but others are snide, angry and full of pain. When his mother, Annabelle, develops a hoarding problem, the voices grow more clamorous.
 
At first, Benny tries to ignore them, but soon the voices follow him outside the house, onto the street and at school, driving him at last to seek refuge in the silence of a large public library, where objects are well-behaved and know to speak in whispers. There, Benny discovers a strange new world. He falls in love with a mesmerizing street artist with a smug pet ferret, who uses the library as her performance space. He meets a homeless philosopher-poet, who encourages him to ask important questions and find his own voice amongst the many.
 
And he meets his very own Book—a talking thing—who narrates Benny’s life and teaches him to listen to the things that truly matter.
 
With its blend of sympathetic characters, riveting plot, and vibrant engagement with everything from jazz, to climate change, to our attachment to material possessions, The Book of Form and Emptiness is classic Ruth Ozeki—bold, wise, poignant, playful, humane and heartbreaking.

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Book Love

Debbie Tung

Bookworms rejoice! These charming comics capture exactly what it feels like to be head-over-heels for hardcovers. And paperbacks! And ebooks! And bookstores! And libraries!

Book Loveis a gift book of comics tailor-made for tea-sipping, spine-sniffing, book-hoarding bibliophiles. Debbie Tung's comics are humorous and instantly recognizable--making readers laugh while precisely conveying the thoughts and habits of book nerds.

Book Love is the ideal gift to let a book lover know they're understood and appreciated.

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The Book Haters' Book Club

Gretchen Anthony

"This sparkling novel starts with high energy and unique characters that move from one surprise to another." --Ann Garvin, USA TODAY bestselling author 

All it takes is the right book to turn a Book Hater into a Book Lover...

That was what Elliot--the beloved co-owner of Over the Rainbow Bookshop--believed before his untimely passing. He always had the perfect book suggestion for the self-proclaimed Book Hater. Now his grief-ridden business partner, Irma, has agreed to sell the cozy Over the Rainbow to condo developers.

But others won't give up the bookshop without a fight. When Irma breaks the news to her daughters, Bree and Laney, and Elliot's romantic partner, Thom, they are aghast. Over the Rainbow has been Bree and Laney's sanctuary since childhood, and Thom would do anything to preserve Elliot's legacy. Together they conspire to save the bookshop, even if it takes some snooping, gossip and minor sabotage.

Filled with humor, family hijinks and actual reading recommendations, The Book Haters' Book Club is the ideal feel-good read. It's a love letter to everyday heroes--those booksellers and librarians dedicated to putting the right books in the right hands every day.

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The Book Charmer

Karen Hawkins

New York Times bestselling author Karen Hawkins crafts an unforgettable story about a sleepy Southern town, two fiercely independent women, and a truly magical friendship.

Sarah Dove is no ordinary bookworm. To her, books have always been more than just objects: they live, they breathe, and sometimes they even speak. When Sarah grows up to become the librarian in her quaint Southern town of Dove Pond, her gift helps place every book in the hands of the perfect reader. Recently, however, the books have been whispering about something out of the ordinary: the arrival of a displaced city girl named Grace Wheeler.

If the books are right, Grace could be the savior that Dove Pond desperately needs. The problem is, Grace wants little to do with the town or its quirky residents—Sarah chief among them. It takes a bit of urging, and the help of an especially wise book, but Grace ultimately embraces the challenge to rescue her charmed new community. In her quest, she discovers the tantalizing promise of new love, the deep strength that comes from having a true friend, and the power of finding just the right book.

“A mesmerizing fusion of the mystical and the everyday” (Susan Andersen, New York Times bestselling author), The Book Charmer is a heartwarming story about the magic of books that feels more than a little magical itself. Prepare to fall under its spell.

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Book and Dagger

Elyse Graham

The untold story of the academics who became OSS spies, invented modern spycraft, and helped turn the tide of the war

At the start of WWII, the U.S. found itself in desperate need of an intelligence agency. The Office of Strategic Services (OSS), a precursor to today's CIA, was quickly formed--and, in an effort to fill its ranks with experts, the OSS turned to academia for recruits. Suddenly, literature professors, librarians, and historians were training to perform undercover operations and investigative work--and these surprising spies would go on to profoundly shape both the course of the war and our cultural institutions with their efforts.

In Book and Dagger, Elyse Graham draws on personal histories, letters, and declassified OSS files to tell the story of a small but connected group of humanities scholars turned spies. Among them are Joseph Curtiss, a literature professor who hunted down German spies and turned them into double agents; Sherman Kent, a smart-mouthed history professor who rose to become the head of analysis for all of Europe and Africa; and Adele Kibre, an archivist who was sent to Stockholm to secretly acquire documents for the OSS. These unforgettable characters would ultimately help lay the foundations of modern intelligence and transform American higher education when they returned after the war.

Thrillingly paced and rigorously researched, Book and Dagger is an inspiring and gripping true story about a group of academics who helped beat the Nazis--a tale that reveals the indelible power of the humanities to change the world.

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The Book

Keith Houston

“Everybody who has ever read a book will benefit from the way Keith Houston explores the most powerful object of our time. And everybody who has read it will agree that reports of the book’s death have been greatly exaggerated.”—Erik Spiekermann, typographer
 

We may love books, but do we know what lies behind them? In The Book, Keith Houston reveals that the paper, ink, thread, glue, and board from which a book is made tell as rich a story as the words on its pages—of civilizations, empires, human ingenuity, and madness. In an invitingly tactile history of this 2,000-year-old medium, Houston follows the development of writing, printing, the art of illustrations, and binding to show how we have moved from cuneiform tablets and papyrus scrolls to the hardcovers and paperbacks of today. Sure to delight book lovers of all stripes with its lush, full-color illustrations, The Book gives us the momentous and surprising history behind humanity’s most important—and universal—information technology.

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Bibliostyle

Nina Freudenberger

A visual delight and an inspiration for every bibliophile with a growing home library, this dream-and-drool design book features some of the most jaw-dropping book collections of homeowners around the world.

NAMED ONE OF JO’S FALL FAVORITES IN MAGNOLIA JOURNAL

Interior designer Nina Freudenberger, New Yorker writer Sadie Stein, and Architectural Digest photographer Shade Degges give readers a peek at the private libraries and bookshelves of passionate readers all over the world, including Larry McMurtry, Silvia Whitman of Shakespeare and Co., Gay and Nan Talese, and Emma Straub. Throughout, gorgeous photographs of rooms with rare collections, floor-to-ceiling shelves, and stacks upon stacks of books inspire readers to live better with their own collections.

Praise for Bibliostyle

“Featuring enviable private libraries and packed floor-to-ceiling shelves, this beautiful volume makes a compelling case for books as décor.”New York
 
“Freudenberger spotlights the splendid, enviable personal libraries of literary figures whose owners obviously care about their book collections and have actually read them, too.”The Boston Globe

“This is a coffee table book that makes you think as well as admire and desire.”Sydney Herald
 
“Offers a look into the fabulous homes of book lovers the world over, showcasing how their interior design is built around the tomes they love most.”CN

“The photographs of rooms with rare collections, floor-to-ceiling shelves, and stacks upon stacks of books will inspire readers to live better with their own collections.”Publishers Weekly
 
“Nina Freudenberger teams with Sadie Stein of The New Yorker and photographer Shade Degges of Architectural Digest to showcase beautiful photographs of the private libraries of book lovers from all over the world.”BookRiot

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Battle of the Bookstores

Ali Brady

Rivalry and romance spark when two bookstore managers who are opposites in every way find themselves competing for the same promotion.

Despite managing bookstores on the same Boston street, Josie Klein and Ryan Lawson have never interacted much—Josie’s store focuses on serious literature, and Ryan’s sells romance only. But when the new owner of both stores decides to combine them, the two are thrust into direct competition. Only one manager will be left standing, decided by who turns the most profit over the summer. 

Efficient and detail-oriented Josie instantly clashes with easygoing and disorganized Ryan. Their competing events and contrasting styles lead to more than just frustration—the sparks between them might just set the whole store on fire. Their only solace during this chaos is the friendship they’ve each struck up with an anonymous friend in an online book forum. Little do they know they’re actually chatting with each other. 

As their rivalry heats up in real life, their online relationship grows, and when the walls between their stores come tumbling down, Josie and Ryan realize not all’s fair in love and war. And maybe, if they’re lucky, happily ever afters aren’t just for the books.

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All the Lost Places

Amanda Dykes

When all of Venice is unmasked, one man's identity remains a mystery . . . 

1807
When a baby is discovered floating in a basket along the quiet canals of Venice, a guild of artisans takes him in and raises him as a son, skilled in each of their trades. Although the boy, Sebastien Trovato, has wrestled with questions of his origins, it isn't until a woman washes ashore on his lagoon island that answers begin to emerge. In hunting down his story, Sebastien must make a choice that could alter not just his own future, but also that of the beloved floating city.

1904
Daniel Goodman is given a fresh start in life as the century turns. Hoping to redeem a past laden with regrets, he is sent on an assignment from California to Venice to procure and translate a rare book. There, he discovers a city of colliding hope and decay, much like his own life, and a mystery wrapped in the pages of that filigree-covered volume. With the help of Vittoria, a bookshop keeper, Daniel finds himself in a web of shadows, secrets, and discoveries carefully kept within the stones and canals of the ancient city . . . and in the mystery of the man whose story the book does not finish: Sebastien Trovato.

"Introspective, surprising, and achingly beautiful."--Booklist starred review

"Dykes's pen is fused with magic and poetry. Every word's a gentle wave building into the splendor that is All the Lost Places, where struggles for identity and a place to belong find hope between the pages of a timeless story."--J'NELL CIESIELSKI, bestselling author of The Socialite

"Luscious writing, authentic characters, and an ending that satisfies to the core of the spirit, this novel is another winner from Amanda Dykes."--HEIDI CHIAVAROLI, Carol Award-winning author of Freedom's Ring and Hope Beyond the Waves

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The Thursday Murder Club

Richard Osman

Soon to be a Major Motion Picture

The first installment in the beloved and New York Times bestselling series from Richard Osman, also author of We Solve Murders 

Four septuagenarians with a few tricks up their sleeves
A female cop with her first big case
A brutal murder
Welcome to...
THE THURSDAY MURDER CLUB

In a peaceful retirement village, four unlikely friends meet weekly in the Jigsaw Room to discuss unsolved crimes; together they call themselves the Thursday Murder Club. 

When a local developer is found dead with a mysterious photograph left next to the body, the Thursday Murder Club suddenly find themselves in the middle of their first live case. 

As the bodies begin to pile up, can our unorthodox but brilliant gang catch the killer, before it's too late?

“Witty, endearing and greatly entertaining.” —Wall Street Journal

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The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo

Taylor Jenkins Reid

“Riveting, heart-wrenching, and full of Old Hollywood glamour, The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo is one of the most captivating reads of 2017.” —BuzzFeed

“The epic adventures Evelyn creates over the course of a lifetime will leave every reader mesmerized. This wildly addictive journey of a reclusive Hollywood starlet and her tumultuous Tinseltown journey comes with unexpected twists and the most satisfying of drama.” —PopSugar

In this entrancing novel “that speaks to the Marilyn Monroe and Elizabeth Taylor in us all” (Kirkus Reviews), a legendary film actress reflects on her relentless rise to the top and the risks she took, the loves she lost, and the long-held secrets the public could never imagine.

Aging and reclusive Hollywood movie icon Evelyn Hugo is finally ready to tell the truth about her glamorous and scandalous life. But when she chooses unknown magazine reporter Monique Grant for the job, no one is more astounded than Monique herself. Why her? Why now?

Monique is not exactly on top of the world. Her husband has left her, and her professional life is going nowhere. Regardless of why Evelyn has selected her to write her biography, Monique is determined to use this opportunity to jumpstart her career.

Summoned to Evelyn’s luxurious apartment, Monique listens in fascination as the actress tells her story. From making her way to Los Angeles in the 1950s to her decision to leave show business in the ‘80s, and, of course, the seven husbands along the way, Evelyn unspools a tale of ruthless ambition, unexpected friendship, and a great forbidden love. Monique begins to feel a very real connection to the legendary star, but as Evelyn’s story near its conclusion, it becomes clear that her life intersects with Monique’s own in tragic and irreversible ways.

“Heartbreaking, yet beautiful” (Jamie Blynn, Us Weekly), The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo is “Tinseltown drama at its finest” (Redbook): a mesmerizing journey through the splendor of old Hollywood into the harsh realities of the present day as two women struggle with what it means—and what it costs—to face the truth.

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Every Borrowed Beat

Erin Stewart

A romance that takes an unflinching look at not only the realities of heart failure, but at memory, grief, guilt, and what it means to live—in a "poignant yet funny" (Booklist) read that's "alternately heart-wrenching and heartwarming" (Kirkus)--from the award-winning author of The Words We Keep 

What if the heart that saved your life also held the secrets of another's?

* "With its perfect blend of chronic illness representation, mental health exploration, and romance, this is sure to appeal to fans of books like John Green’s The Fault in Our Stars . . . a standout addition to the genre."--SLJ, starred review

Sydney Wells should have died. She was supposed to die.

She never expected, after years of waiting, to receive a heart transplant. Now, seventeen-year-old Sydney doesn’t know what to do with her life. Her daily routine consisted of staying indoors, eating heart-healthy foods, and posting about her transplant list experiences on TheWaitingList with her long-distance BFF (and heart failure buddy) Chloe. 

Now, Sydney latches onto the one thing that gives her meaning: learning as much as she can about the person whose heart she inherited. After finding the family of her likely-donor, Mia, Sydney falls deep into her world—and may also be falling for Mia's best friend, Clayton. 

But Sydney isn’t the only one hiding something. Mia’s brother Tanner won’t talk to Clayton, and Clayton won’t tell Sydney why. And hundreds of miles away, Chloe’s health has taken a turn for the worse. Sydney needs to face what’s in her heart—the truth, the guilt, and the future—before it’s too late.

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Fable for the End of the World

Ava Reid

The Last of Us meets The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes in this stand-alone dystopian romance about survival, sacrifice, and love that risks everything.

By encouraging massive accumulations of debt from its underclass, a single corporation, Caerus, controls all aspects of society.

Inesa lives with her brother in a half-sunken town where they scrape by running a taxidermy shop. Unbeknownst to Inesa, their cruel and indolent mother has accrued an enormous debt--enough to qualify one of her children for Caerus's livestreamed assassination spectacle: the Lamb's Gauntlet.

Melinoë is a Caerus assassin, trained to track and kill the sacrificial Lambs. The product of neural reconditioning and physiological alteration, she is a living weapon, known for her cold brutality and deadly beauty. She has never failed to assassinate one of her marks.

When Inesa learns that her mother has offered her as a sacrifice, at first she despairs--the Gauntlet is always a bloodbath for the impoverished debtors. But she's had years of practice surviving in the apocalyptic wastes, and with the help of her hunter brother she might stand a chance of staying alive.

For Melinoë, this is a game she can't afford to lose. Despite her reputation for mercilessness, she is haunted by painful flashbacks. After her last Gauntlet, where she broke down on livestream, she desperately needs redemption.

As Mel pursues Inesa across the wasteland, both girls begin to question everything: Inesa wonders if there's more to life than survival, while Mel wonders if she's capable of more than killing.

And both wonder if, against all odds, they might be falling in love.

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I Am Made of Death

Kelly Andrew

From bestselling author Kelly Andrew comes the most electrifying dark romance of the decade...

 

Following the death of his father, Thomas Walsh had to grow up quickly, taking on odd-jobs to keep food on the table and help pay his gravely ill mother's medical bills. When he's offered a highly paid position as an interpreter for an heiress who exclusively signs, Thomas -- the hearing child of a Deaf adult -- jumps at the opportunity.

But the job is not without its challenges. Thomas is expected to accompany Vivienne wherever she goes, but from the start, she seems determined to shake him. To make matters worse, her parents keep her on an extremely short leash. She is not to go anywhere without express permission. She is not to deviate from her routine.

She is, most importantly, not to be out after dark.

A selective-mute, Vivienne Farrow hasn't said a word in years -- not since going missing in Red Rock Canyon when she was four years old. No one knows quite what happened to her out in the dark. They only know that the sound of her voice is now as deadly as a poison. Anyone who hears her speak suffers a horrible death.

Ever since that fatal family vacation, Vivienne has been desperately searching for a way to regain control of both her voice and her body. Because the face staring out of the mirror isn't hers. It's something with teeth.

Thankfully, Vivienne has a plan. She's finally found someone who claims to be able to perform a surgical exorcism. She just needs to find a way to get rid of Thomas first. But Thomas can't afford to walk away, nor is he willing to abandon the mysterious girl he's quickly falling for, no matter what dark powers threaten to swallow them both whole.

 

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Dear Manny

Nic Stone

NATIONAL BESTSELLER • From the New York Times bestselling author of Dear Martin comes the thrilling final installment of the series, set in college. Jared (white, Justyce's roommate, woke) is running for Junior class president. With his antiracism platform, he's a shoo-in. But he's up against the new girl, Dylan. Will Jared have to choose between his head and his heart?

Jared Peter Christensen is running for president (of the Junior Class Council at his university, but still). His platform is solid—built on increased equity and inclusion in all sectors of campus life—and he’s got a good chance of beating the deeply conservative business major he’s running against.

But then a transfer student enters the race and calls Jared out for his big-talk/little-action way of moving. But what’s the right way to bring about change? As the campaign heats up, feelings are caught, and juicy secrets come to light, and Jared writes letters to his deceased friend Manny, hoping to make sense of his confusion. What’s a white boy to do when love and politics collide?

New York Times bestselling author Nic Stone writes from a new perspective in this exciting final chapter of the Dear Martin series that examines privilege, love, and our political climate.

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Sunrise on the Reaping

Suzanne Collins

The phenomenal fifth book in the Hunger Games series!

 

When you've been set up to lose everything you love, what is there left to fight for?

 

As the day dawns on the fiftieth annual Hunger Games, fear grips the districts of Panem. This year, in honor of the Quarter Quell, twice as many tributes will be taken from their homes.

 

Back in District 12, Haymitch Abernathy is trying not to think too hard about his chances. All he cares about is making it through the day and being with the girl he loves.

 

When Haymitch's name is called, he can feel all his dreams break. He's torn from his family and his love, shuttled to the Capitol with the three other District 12 tributes: a young friend who's nearly a sister to him, a compulsive oddsmaker, and the most stuck-up girl in town. As the Games begin, Haymitch understands he's been set up to fail. But there's something in him that wants to fight . . . and have that fight reverberate far beyond the deadly arena.

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Kirby's Lessons for Falling (in Love)

Laura Gao



 

"I'm once again blown away by Laura Gao's ability to make me relate to someone completely different from myself. Get ready to experience the epic highs and lows of high school rock climbing." --Sonora Reyes, National Book Award finalist and bestselling author of The Lesbiana's Guide to Catholic School

Once dubbed the Queen of Balance as her school's top rock climber, Kirby Tan suffers an injury that sidelines her for the rest of the season. Now she's forced to join the newspaper club for some desperately needed extra credit. Worse, she's recruited by crystal-wearing, tarot-reading Bex Santos for her astrology-based love advice column. As Kirby reluctantly agrees to orchestrate "matches made in heaven" with Bex, she begins to wonder if their own stars could be aligned. But loving who she wants isn't so easy when her family and church community are on the line. Can Kirby pull off her greatest balancing act yet

From Laura Gao, the acclaimed creator of Messy Roots, comes an authentic slow-burn romance and coming-of-age story perfect for fans of Heartstopper, lovers of astrology and tarot, and anyone looking for answers on the right way to fall (in love).

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A Wizard of Earthsea: A Graphic Novel

Ursula K. Le Guin

Ursula K. Le Guin's timeless and revered A Wizard of Earthsea, reimagined in this richly expansive graphic novel by acclaimed artist Fred Fordham, creator of the stunning graphic novel adaptations of To Kill a Mockingbird and Brave New World. "The magic of Earthsea is primal; the lessons of Earthsea remain as potent, as wise, and as necessary as anyone could dream." -Neil Gaiman Ged was the greatest sorcerer in Earthsea, but in his youth he was the reckless Sparrowhawk. In his hunger for power and knowledge, he tampered with long-held secrets and unleashed a terrible shadow upon the world. This is the tumultuous tale of his testing, how he mastered the mighty words of power, tamed an ancient dragon, and crossed death's threshold to restore the balance. Experience the bestselling first adventure in Ursula K. Le Guin's Earthsea Cycle as a masterfully crafted graphic novel. Fred Fordham brings new life to Le Guin's iconic fantasy classic with his breathtaking illustrations and thoughtful text adaptation. Available as a paper-over-board edition with foil and embossing on the cover.

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The Legend of Korra: The Mystery of Penquan Island

Kiku Hughes

Mako and Bolin set off towards Penquan Island in the Fire Nation to find answers to a case—and maybe a little bit of their past along the way.

When a strange missing persons case falls into his lap, Mako is forced to choose between his job and doing what he feels is right! An upturned room and an unhelpful witness aren’t promising starts to the investigation, but when his brother Bolin comes across a surprising clue that ties their own mother to the case, the pair embark on a journey to the small, rustic island of Penquan. The island’s inhabitants seem to have things to hide, and the brothers are determined to get to the bottom of it—even if it means uncovering uncomfortable parts of their family’s past.

Written by Eisner-nominated graphic novelist Kiku Hughes (Displacement) with artists Alex Monik (The Legend of Korra: Patterns in Time) and Diana Sousa (Critical Role: Vox Machina Origins) in collaboration with Avatar: The Last Airbender and The Legend of Korra co-creators Michael Dante DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko!

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The Secrets of Underhill

Kali Wallace

A young apprentice fights to save an ancient grove of magical trees in this page-turning fantasy adventure, perfect for middle grade fans of Kelly Barnhill and Jessica Townsend.

Nick Sixsmith has spent her whole life on the road. The daughter of a traveling arborist, she moves from town to town with her mother, caring for the ironwood groves that people rely upon for survival. When a dangerous blight threatens these magical trees, the Sixsmiths must journey to the city of Mistwood for answers.

Nick can’t wait to explore everything Mistwood has to offer: the bustling markets, the neighborhoods nestled behind a roaring waterfall, and the vast ancestral grove of ironwood trees. But dark secrets simmer beneath the surface as people start to disappear and tensions in the city reach a boiling point.

As the mystery grows, Nick and her new friends must follow the trail where it leads them—underground, to a strange and enchanting place called Underhill. Only there, among the roots of the ancestral grove, will Nick find a way to save the ironwood trees and the city she’s come to love.

This immersive fantasy adventure combines vivid world-building with timely themes of environmentalism, and young readers will be riveted until the final page.

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The City of Lost Cats

Tanya Lloyd Kyi

A stubborn young girl named Fiona stumbles upon an abandoned house full of stray cats, just as it is threatened by a demolition team, a leadership crisis, and two potentially malicious parakeets. Can Fiona save the house and all its inhabitants? A new middle-grade novel by critically acclaimed author Tanya Lloyd Kyi.

When Fiona wanders into an abandoned mansion down by the harbor, she discovers the house is full of stray cats (and two chaotic parakeets). Fiona feels a great deal of sympathy for the animals; she understands what it's like to need a safe home. Ever since her parents died, she's been struggling to adjust to the tiny apartment where she and her Aunt Tanis now live. And Aunt Tanis has little time to spare for Fiona, between her job at The Municipal Hall and her horrible, hair-gelled boyfriend. 

When the mansion is threatened by a demolition team, Fiona is determined to save "The City" and its residents. But the cats have their own priorities. Cot (short for Cottonball Fluffikins Magnificent III, a name he refuses to acknowledge) has lived in the mansion for two years and is the self-proclaimed king. He's convinced the demolition effort has been organized by the recently arrived parakeets. Those birds have got to go! 

Cot's feline rival, Piper, is sure she can intimidate the demolition team and force them to leave, if Fiona will simply stay out of her way. And the parakeets . . . well, the parakeets just want to go home.

As the demolition team begins tearing down the house next door, Fiona looks for any help she can find — at the library, the butcher shop, and even at The Municipal Hall. Can the efforts of one small girl and an assortment of animals stop a luxury condo development? Can they create something better in its place? 

It's going to take some quick thinking on the part of Fiona, not to mention the cooperation of all the cats, to give The City a future.

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Mountain Upside Down

Sara Ryan

A funny and heartfelt LGBTQIA+ middle grade novel set against the backdrop of family drama and a library funding campaign in a small town.

Alex Eager lives in Faillin, OR with her grandmother, a retired librarian. Life should be great for Alex, since she finally worked up the courage to ask her best friend PJ if they could be more than friends and she said yes. But their new relationship will have to be long distance, because PJ is moving. On top of that, Alex is worried that something is wrong with her increasingly forgetful grandmother. And to make matters worse, Faillin is holding a referendum on library funding, and things aren’t looking good. Will anything good for Alex ever last?

Mountain Upside Down is a beautifully crafted story of a thirteen-year-old girl finding her place in her family and her community. It’s a queer-positive story that doesn’t center coming out. It’s a story of a library’s role in a community that doesn’t feature book banning. And it’s a story of long-held family secrets and resentment that focuses not on final resolution but learning how to communicate again.

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The Favorites

Layne Fargo

To the world, they were a scandal. To each other, an obsession.

NATIONAL BESTSELLER • An epic love story set in the sparkling, savage sphere of elite figure skating, starring a woman determined to carve her own path on and off the ice

“Part Wuthering Heights and part Daisy Jones & The Six, this novel is as brilliantly choreographed as a gold medal performance and will keep you guessing until its last page.”—Jodi Picoult, New York Times bestselling author of Wish You Were Here

She might not have a famous name, funding, or her family’s support, but Katarina Shaw has always known that she was destined to become an Olympic skater. When she meets Heath Rocha, a lonely kid stuck in the foster care system, their instant connection makes them a formidable duo on the ice. Clinging to skating—and each other—to escape their turbulent lives, Kat and Heath go from childhood sweethearts to champion ice dancers, captivating the world with their scorching chemistry, rebellious style, and roller-coaster relationship.

Until a shocking incident at the Olympic Games brings their partnership to a sudden end.

As the ten-year anniversary of their final skate approaches, an unauthorized documentary reignites the public obsession with Shaw and Rocha, claiming to uncover the “real story” through interviews with their closest friends and fiercest rivals. Kat wants nothing to do with the documentary, but she can’t stand the thought of someone else defining her legacy. So, after a decade of silence, she’s telling her story: from the childhood tragedies that created her all-consuming bond with Heath to the clash of desires that tore them apart. Sensational rumors have haunted their every step for years, but the truth may be even more shocking than the headlines.

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Mister Norton's New Hat

Huw Lewis Jones

With a message of kindness and an accumulative text that begs to be read aloud, this is a future classic in the making.

One Monday morning, Horace Norton finds that a mouse has made a house in his hat. Now, this is something of a surprise . . .and it’s only the start of a wild week for the kind and calm Mister Norton, who, with each passing day, discovers more and more animals have moved in with him. From birds in his bicycle basket to squirrels in his shoes, not to mention the collection of cats curled up in his coat!

What will Mister Norton do when the animals take over his bathroom, his bed – and even HIS BEARD?

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Pizza Dreams Do Come True

Cam Higgins

Meet Ratnip, an adorable rat who goes on adventures that are equal parts sweet and icky! In this second book of the new chapter book series from the author of Good Dog, Ratnip searches for pizza on the city streets. 

What goes together better than rats and pizza? Ratnip even lives in an abandoned pizza parlor. But one night, when the pizza craving hits him, he can’t find so much as a single leftover crust in the trash. There’s only one thing to do: make his own pizzas! How hard could it be?

With easy-to-read language and illustrations on almost every page, the Ratnip chapter books are perfect for beginning readers.

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The Three Smelly Goats Gruff

Chris Grabenstein



 

Stinky's Stories is the hilarious four-book, highly illustrated chapter book series from New York Times bestselling authors Chris and J.J. Grabenstein. In this third installment in the series, Stinky the skunk tells the story of the Three Smelly Goats Gruff, a reimagining of the classic fable "The Three Billy Goats Gruff"--except this time, the fairy tale is told from the troll's point of view.

It's story time at the Hickleberry Elementary School Library! Mrs. Emerson, the librarian, has just read "The Three Billy Goats Gruff" to the class. But after the fun is done and Mrs. Emerson has left, Stinky the stuffed skunk and his stuffy friends come to life. The kids need to know what happened to the grumpy troll after the goats pushed him off the bridge. Lucky for them, Stinky has the scoop!

Find out in the hilarious chapter book series from New York Times bestselling authors Chris and J.J. Grabenstein, with illustrations in every chapter from Alex Patrick. Reading has never been so stinky!

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Will's Race for Home

Jewell Parker Rhodes

A New York Times bestseller!



★ "Rhodes deftly captures a unique aspect of this historical event, with a perspective that is often under-represented in historical fiction. A poignant and honest look at the trials of racism that defined the historic land rush; a must-buy." -School Library Journal, starred review



Bestselling and award-winning author Jewell Parker Rhodes goes West in this thrilling adventure story about a son and his father who set out to win land during the Oklahoma Land Rush-if they can survive the journey. 



It's 1889, barely twenty-five years after the Emancipation Proclamation, and a young Black family is tired of working on land they don't get to own.



So when Will and his father hear about an upcoming land rush, they set out on a journey from Texas to Oklahoma, racing thousands of others to the place where land is free--if they can get to it fast enough. But the journey isn't easy--the terrain is rough, the bandits are brutal, and every interaction carries a heavy undercurrent of danger.



And then there's the stranger they encounter and befriend: a mysterious soldier named Caesar, whose Union emblem brings more attention--and more trouble--than any of them need.



All three are propelled by the promise of something long denied to them: freedom, land ownership, and a place to call home--but is a strong will enough to get them there?

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Pet Sitter

Kelly Starling Lyons

From the award-winning author of the Jada Jones chapter books comes an illustrated spin-off series perfect for STEM fans!

When Miles and his classmates welcome a few frogs as class pets, it's a reminder that what he really wants more than anything is a dog to call his own. But his parents don't think he's ready, and his attempts to show them that he truly can care for critters all end in disaster. Can Miles pull it together and prove that he's responsible enough for a pet once and for all?

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The Stick and Other Stories

Jarvis

Is there ever such a thing as being too considerate? It's another comedy of errors in this fourth set of stories featuring Jarvis's lovable duo.

"Bird, why are you blowing in my face?" said Bear.
"I'm just stretching my cheeks," said Bird. "Important to stretch your cheeks."

Bear and Bird are the kind of friends who just want to make each other happy. So when Bird realizes Bear has had a leaf stuck to his face all day, she goes to comical extremes not to embarrass him--even if it means encouraging a new trend. And when they both grab the same excellent stick on a windy day, they outdo each other trying to give it back--until Bear comes up with a better use for their imagination. Whether following a hilariously--and touchingly--circular path on Swapsy Day or discovering there are as many times of day as there are things to do, Jarvis's classic pair fuses humor and heart in another quartet of adventures.

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Away

Megan E. Freeman

A group of children investigate the threat that prompted large-scale evacuations in this powerful and dramatic companion novel to the New York Times bestselling Alone told in multiple POVs.

After an imminent yet unnamed danger forces people across Colorado to leave their homes, a group of kids including an aspiring filmmaker and a budding journalist find themselves in the same evacuation camp. As they cope with the aftermath of having their world upended, they grow curious about the mysterious threat. 

And as they begin to investigate, they start to discover that there’s less truth and more cover-up to what they’re being told. Can they get to the root of the conspiracy, expose the bad actors, and bring an end to the upheaval before it’s too late?

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Attack of the Stinky Fish Monster

Jaden Kent

In this second book in the Ella and Owen series, the dragon siblings find themselves face-to-face with a stinky fish monster!

Ella and Owen return home to discover something horrible: They forgot their mom's birthday! They set out on a new adventure to collect the ingredients to make her a birthday cake, but Ella and Owen don't get very far before finding themselves face-to-face with a grumpy wizard, a glittery pixie, and a stinky fish monster!

Will the dragon twins be able to defeat the stinky fish monster and give their mom the best birthday present ever?

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Bea Mullins Takes a Shot

Emily Deibert

When a 7th grader is forced to join her school's hockey team, she discovers unexpected friendships and a budding crush on the team captain. This fierce and heartfelt queer romance explores the courage to face your fears, even when your dreams are on thin ice.

Some goals are worth falling for. 

After a lifetime of humiliating sports experiences, Bea Mullins knows the best way to survive middle school is to stick to the sidelines. When PE is suddenly canceled, though, Bea is forced to join an after-school activity...which is how she ends up as a member of the Glenwood Geese, her middle school's first all-girls hockey team. 

Bea would be happy sitting on the bench, but she doesn't want to let down her best friend, Celia. Plus, the more time Bea spends on the rinks, the more she comes to enjoy her teammates, especially the incredibly talented--and incredibly cool--co-captain Gabi. But when low funding puts the Geese in danger of never playing again, Bea realizes she may lose everything she didn't know she wanted.

A hilarious and heartfelt middle-grade contemporary about first crushes and fierce friendships from debut author Emily Deibert.

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It's Watching

Lindsay Currie

A chilling middle school novel from the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Mystery of Locked Rooms, three kids must discover who—or what—is terrorizing them after receiving an ominous meme on Halloween night. 

"A creepy, freaky, fun-as-anything tale."—Chuck Wendig, New York Times bestselling author of Dust & Grim

On Halloween night, Josie and her two best friends, Jackson and Alison, sneak into the infamously haunted Bachelor’s Grove cemetery. They are hoping to prove the existence of a famous ghost to secure coveted editorial spots on the school newspaper. Instead, they are chased out by a security guard before they gather any evidence…or so they think.

Later, a sinister meme appears on their phones. It’s an image of the “phantom farmhouse,” an evil apparition rumored to appear to unlucky visitors at Bachelor's Grove—luring them in…and never letting them out—with the words I’m watching dripping down the screen.

Soon, strange and scary things begin to happen all around them. When a second meme from the same number arrives, this time with a countdown, they realize they have only three days to figure out who is terrorizing them. As they investigate, the trio must use their journalistic skills to uncover the truth, or risk becoming a part of the graveyard’s sinister past forever.

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Amy Looks Before She Leaps

Callie Barkley

In the twenty-ninth book of the Critter Club series, Amy meets a blind stray cat!

When Amy finds a stray cat who’s blind, she throws all her time and effort into caring for her. She even wants to skip sleepovers with the Critter Club! But eventually, Amy discovers that the cat can do lots of things on her own, too. It’s time for the Critter Club to help the cat find a new, loving forever home.

With easy-to-read language and illustrations on almost every page, The Critter Club chapter books are perfect for beginning readers.

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Besties Prank War

Kayla Miller

From the New York Times bestselling World of Click by Kayla Miller comes a graphic novel about besties Trent and Sawyer. When they accidentally start a classwide prank war, the boys need to get especially crafty if they're going to come out on top--with all of their friendships intact.

Trent and Sawyer make their Besties series debut with a bang and a crash! These two friends never back down from a challenge, whether it presents itself at the skate park or in the school hallway, but will that determination get them in over their heads?

Between helping with their friend Tyler's RPG campaign, catching streams of pro skateboarder Trixie Sampson's new video series, and--oh yeah--homework, Trent and Sawyer are more than a little busy...but when Trixie announces a competition that might result in the boys getting to meet her and her crew, how could they resist entering?!

The duo become single-minded in their quest to be the lucky "Trixsters" to win the prize, but it's not easy pulling off the perfect prank and capturing it on video. With their friends growing resentful of being unwilling targets and after drawing the ire of the class prank queen, Nat, the buddies soon find themselves losing at their own game. As an all-out prank war spins out of control, Trent and Sawyer realize they might have pranked themselves by starting it.

New York Times bestselling author Kayla Miller, coauthor Jeffrey Canino, and illustrator Sarah Turner, with her playful and expressive art style, deliver another vibrant and unique portrayal of middle school friendship in this latest title in the Besties series.

Read more about Olive & friends in the World of Click books!

Click Graphic Novels:

Click

Act

Camp

Clash

Crunch

Break

Stuck



 

Besties Graphic Novels:

Besties: Work It Out

Besties: Find Their Groove

Besties: Prank War

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Sea Legs

Jules Bakes

Set sail for adventure! Dive in to this hilarious and moving middle grade graphic memoir about friendship, growing up, and life at sea.

 

Janey's family is about to set sail for the adventure of a lifetime! The only problem? Janey must leave her school, her life, her best friend, the entire country behind for new adventures -- coral reefs, colorful markets, and new cultures. Life at sea is exhilarating, but there's a major downside: when you're raising anchor every few days with sights on a new harbor, it's almost impossible to make new friends.

 

Finally, Janey meets the cool and aloof Astrid -- a fellow boat kid who's equally starved for friendship. But Astrid can be a challenging friend to navigate, and beyond that, hurricane season has only just begun . . . .

 

At turns laugh-out-loud hilarious and heartbreakingly poignant, this stunning middle grade graphic memoir charts both the turbulence and joys of growing up.

 

 

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Spy Ski School the Graphic Novel

Stuart Gibbs

The New York Times bestselling Spy School series continues in graphic novel form with the fourth book as Ben Ripley enrolls in ski school, where the slopes—and the stakes—get really steep.

Thirteen-year-old Ben Ripley is not exactly the best student spy school has ever seen—he keeps flunking Advanced Self Preservation. But outside of class, Ben is pretty great at staying alive. His enemies have kidnapped him, shot at him, locked him in a room with a ticking time bomb, and even tried to blow him up with missiles. And he’s survived every time. After all that unexpected success, the CIA has decided to activate Ben for real.

The Mission: Become friends with Jessica Shang, the daughter of a suspected Chinese crime boss, and find out all her father’s secrets.

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A Song for You and I

K. O'Neill

Being a ranger means adventure, action, and protecting the weak. But who protects the ranger when they lose their way? From the bestselling author of The Moth Keeper and the Tea Dragon Society comes a must read MG graphic novel for fans of soft sweeping fantasy romances.

Rowan knows exactly what they want: to be a ranger, protecting their village alongside their trusted flying horse Kes. But when Rowan's eagerness to show off their worth gets Kes injured, Rowan is suddenly unsure if they're capable of being the protector they've always dreamed of becoming. 

With Kes needing to heal, Rowan is assigned a slow and winding expedition across the outlying lands. Paired with a lackadasical sheep hearder Leone, Rowan only finds frustration as they seem to fail even the simplest tasks. But Leone's own struggles, and endless support brings a new possibility to Rowan. Could their unlikely friendship be something more? And if it is, will Rowan be able to leave Leone behind to pursue being a ranger once Kes is healed?

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Cloud Puppy Game On

Kelly Leigh Miller

Cloud Puppy—part puppy, part cloud, and all adorable—explores the immersive world of video games with her friends in this second book in a delightful graphic chapter book series that’s Narwhal and Jelly meets The Amazing World of Gumball!

Cloud Puppy loves playing Valley of Runes, a cozy farming video game. But when Jack says that his favorite games are better, Cloud Puppy begins to feel badly about the things that she likes…until she learns that Jack has never even played Valley of Runes!

Cloud Puppy challenges her picky pal to a trade to share their favorite games. But Jack has other plans: he thinks it will be fun to surprise Cloud Puppy with a scary simulator. But it’s his first time playing it, too, and it’s more frightening than he thought! Can the friends find a game they both enjoy without getting too spooked?

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Dream Count

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

'Reads like a feminist War and Peace. A magnificent novel' THE SUNDAY TIMES 'A complex, multi-layered beauty of a book. Extraordinary' NEW STATESMAN

A publishing event ten years in the making - a searing, exquisite new novel by the bestselling and award-winning author of Americanah and We Should All Be Feminists - the story of four women and their loves, longings and desires.

'The major publication milestone of 2025' OBSERVER

'The return of a literary titan' TELEGRAPH

CHOSEN AS A SUNDAY TIMES, GUARDIAN, OBSERVER, FINANCIAL TIMES, INDEPENDENT, TELEGRAPH, GQ and COSMOPOLITAN BOOK OF 2025.

Chiamaka is a Nigerian travel writer living in America. Alone in the midst of the pandemic, she recalls her past lovers and grapples with her choices and regrets. Zikora, her best friend, is a lawyer who has been successful at everything until -- betrayed and brokenhearted -- she must turn to the person she thought she needed least. Omelogor, Chiamaka's bold, outspoken cousin, is a financial powerhouse in Nigeria who begins to question how well she knows herself. And Kadiatou, Chiamaka's housekeeper, is proudly raising her daughter in America - but faces an unthinkable hardship that threatens all she has worked to achieve.

In Dream Count, Adichie trains her fierce eye on these women in a sparkling, transcendent novel that takes up the very nature of love itself. Is true happiness ever attainable or is it just a fleeting state? And how honest must we be with ourselves in order to love, and to be loved? A trenchant reflection on the choices we make and those made for us, on daughters and mothers, on our interconnected world, Dream Count pulses with emotional urgency and poignant, unflinching observations on the human heart, in language that soars with beauty and power. It confirms Adichie's status as one of the most exciting and dynamic writers on the literary landscape.

'Expect everyone to be talking about this one' INDEPENDENT

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The Antidote

Karen Russell

From Pulitzer finalist, MacArthur Fellowship recipient, and bestselling author of Swamplandia! and Vampires in the Lemon Grove Karen Russell: a gripping dust bowl epic about five characters whose fates become entangled after a storm ravages their small Nebraskan town

The Antidote opens on Black Sunday, as a historic dust storm ravages the fictional town of Uz, Nebraska. But Uz is already collapsing—not just under the weight of the Great Depression and the dust bowl drought but beneath its own violent histories. The Antidote follows a "Prairie Witch,” whose body serves as a bank vault for peoples’ memories and secrets; a Polish wheat farmer who learns how quickly a hoarded blessing can become a curse; his orphan niece, a basketball star and witch’s apprentice in furious flight from her grief; a voluble scarecrow; and a New Deal photographer whose time-traveling camera threatens to reveal both the town’s secrets and its fate.

Russell's novel is above all a reckoning with a nation’s forgetting—enacting the settler amnesia and willful omissions passed down from generation to generation, and unearthing not only horrors but shimmering possibilities. The Antidote echoes with urgent warnings for our own climate emergency, challenging readers with a vision of what might have been—and what still could be.

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A Harvest of Hearts

Andrea Eames

In the beloved tradition of Howl’s Moving Castle meets The House in the Cerulean Sea, a whimsical and unforgettable cozy fantasy about adventure, common sense, and the power of love, as a cheeky butcher's daughter, a befuddlingly handsome sorcerer, and his clever talking cat unlock magical secrets in the dark heart of their kingdom…

“Down-to-earth and completely irresistible, Foss is fantastic, as is her talking cat! A Harvest of Hearts is that rare story that feels both classic and unique at the same time. I loved it!” —Sarah Beth Durst, New York Times bestselling author of The Spellshop

Everyone in Foss Butcher’s village knows what happens when the magic-workers come; they harvest human hearts to use in their spells. That’s just how life in her kingdom works. But Foss, plain, clumsy, and practical as a boot, never expected anyone would want hers. 

When a sorcerer snags a piece of Foss’s heart without meaning to, she is furious. For once a heart is snagged, the experience is . . . well, unpleasant. So, Foss finds herself stomping toward the grand City to keep his enchanted House and demands that he fixes her before she keels over and dies, or whatever happens when hearts are Snagged. 

But the sorcerer, Sylvester, is not what she expected. Petulant, idle, and new to his powers, Sylvester has no clue how to undo the heart-taking, or how to do much of anything really, apart from sulk. Foss’s only friend is a talking cat and even the House’s walls themselves have moods. 

As Foss searches for a cure, she accidentally uncovers that there is much more to the heart-taking—and to the magic-workers themselves—than she could have ever imagined. . . .

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The Dream Hotel

Laila Lalami

NATIONAL BESTSELLER ● READ WITH JENNA BOOK CLUB PICK AS FEATURED ON TODAY ● From Laila Lalami—the Pulitzer Prize and National Book Award finalist and a “maestra of literary fiction” (NPR)—comes a riveting and utterly original novel about one woman’s fight for freedom, set in a near future where even dreams are under surveillance.

Sara has just landed at LAX, returning home from a conference abroad, when agents from the Risk Assessment Administration pull her aside and inform her that she will soon commit a crime. Using data from her dreams, the RAA’s algorithm has determined that she is at imminent risk of harming the person she loves most: her husband. For his safety, she must be kept under observation for twenty-one days.

The agents transfer Sara to a retention center, where she is held with other dreamers, all of them women trying to prove their innocence from different crimes. With every deviation from the strict and ever-shifting rules of the facility, their stay is extended. Months pass and Sara seems no closer to release. Then one day, a new resident arrives, disrupting the order of the facility and leading Sara on a collision course with the very companies that have deprived her of her freedom.

Eerie, urgent, and ceaselessly clear-eyed, The Dream Hotel artfully explores the seductive nature of technology, which puts us in shackles even as it makes our lives easier. Lalami asks how much of ourselves must remain private if we are to remain free, and whether even the most invasive forms of surveillance can ever capture who we really are.

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Summer in the City

Alex Aster

'Hotter than the rest of your TBR' Cosmo
'Pure, steamy fun, and the perfect summer read! I adored every word, and I hope Alex Aster never stops writing romance!!' Ali Hazelwood, author of The Love Hypothesis

From the New York Times bestselling author of the Lightlark Saga, this is Alex Aster's debut romance novel.

Twenty-seven-year-old screenwriter, Elle, has the chance of a lifetime to write a big-budget movie set in New York City. The only problem? She's had writer's block for months, and her screenplay is due by the end of the summer.

Desperate for inspiration, Elle returns to NYC – the city she hates – and tries to throw herself into her writing. But then she meets her new neighbour: Parker Warren. He's the city's favourite handsome tech billionaire and he's also the guy Elle hooked up with in a stairwell two years ago. When seeing him again turns into a night of hate-fuelled writing, Elle realises Parker might just be her twisted muse. 

So, when Parker needs to fake a steady relationship during his company's precarious acquisition and Elle needs to research a list of classic date spots in the city for her screenplay, they suddenly find they might just be exactly what each other needs. 

Summers always end, and so will this agreement.
It's all pretend. 
Promise.
Until it isn't.

'A fun, stay-up-late-to-finish read!' Abby Jimenez, author of Just for the Summer

Readers love Summer in the City...
'All I have to say is WOW' *****
'I absolutely adored this book' *****
'I'm in love with Parker Warren' *****
'This will surely be a favourite of 2025' *****
'I cannot recommend this book enough' *****

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The Strawberry Patch Pancake House

Laurie Gilmore

Fall in love with the brand new spring romance set in Dream Harbor, from the bestselling author of The Pumpkin Spice Cafe and The Cinnamon Bun Book Store

'A charming break from reality' Publishers Weekly



 

As a world-renowned chef, single dad Archer never planned on moving to a small town, let alone running a pancake restaurant. But Dream Harbor needs a new chef, and Archer needs a community to help raise his daughter, Olive.

Iris has never managed to hold down a job for more than a few months. So when it's suggested that Archer is looking for a live-in nanny, she almost runs in the opposite direction.

Now, Iris finds herself in a whole new world. One where her gorgeous new boss lives right across the hall and likes to cook topless... Keeping everything strictly professional should be easy, right?

The Strawberry Patch Pancake House is a cozy romantic mystery with a single dad and found family dynamic, a small-town setting and a HEA guaranteed!

Tropes

  • Single Dad
  • Forced Proximity
  • Slow Burn
  • Found Family

Praise for Laurie Gilmore

'Gives off the same level of endorphins as taking a sip of an actual pumpkin spice latte... all the makings of a top tier Hallmark movie that happens to include a nice dash of spice' People

'With a name this cute and a cover this autumnal, how could I not cozy up with my blanket and relax with this adoring book?' New York Post

'Wonderful story with tears, laughter, mysteries, uncertainty and happiness' ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

'Compelling, cozy and delightful narrative' ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

'A charming small town romance with sizzling chemistry and plenty of spice' ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

'I LOVED THIS SO BAD. The vibes of the small town were immaculate' ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

'This book makes my heart happy!' ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

'The perfect kind of romance for me' ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

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Wild Side

Elsie Silver

She's always dreamed of her wedding day. And those dreams never included saying "I do" to a man she hates.

But when Tabitha's nephew's guardianship is contested, she decides she'll do whatever it takes to keep him in Rose Hill. Even if it means marrying the enemy.

Rhys Dupris.

A man who is secretive, broody, and completely infuriating. A man whose work takes him away for weeks on end and brings him back covered in mysterious bruises--ones he won't talk about. In fact, Tabitha and Rhys barely talk at all.

Which would be fine, except when he's not talking, he's staring. And the way he looks at her is borderline indecent.

The tension between them has always been palpable. But living under the same roof is a dangerous temptation.

Tabitha swore she would never forgive him. But that was before she knew the man behind the mask. The one who's fierce and protective. The one who's gentle and patient. The one who shows up for her and her nephew when they need him most.

He's not at all who she thought he was.

And that makes hating her husband so much harder...and loving him just a little too easy.

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You Killed Me First

John Marrs

"Electrifying and page-turning, John Marrs is not to be missed."--#1 New York Times bestselling author Freida McFadden

"This is trademark John Marrs and then some."--Sunday Times bestselling author Andrea Mara

Three women. Three smouldering secrets. Who will make it out alive?

It's 5 November, and a woman awakens to a nightmare. Bound and gagged, she lies trapped in the heart of a towering bonfire. As the smoke thickens, panic sets in - she's moments away from being engulfed in flames. How did it come to this?

Rewind eleven months: Margot, a faded TV star, and her long-suffering friend Anna watch as glamorous Liv and her flawless family move into their street. The three women soon fabricate the perfect pretence of friendship, but each harbours her own deadly secret - and newcomer Liv senses something is terribly wrong beneath the polished exteriors.

As cracks widen in the veneer of perfection and lies escalate out of control, tension ignites. Bonfire Night is approaching and someone is set to burn...But who will it be?

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Count My Lies

Sophie Stava

“The very definition of a page-turner! This smart, original, twisty story had me gripped from the first to the last page.” —Liane Moriarty, New York Times bestselling author 

A read-in-one-night suspense thriller narrated by a compulsive liar whose little white lies allow her to enter into the life and comfort of a wealthy married couple who are harboring much darker secrets themselves. For the millions of us still chasing those gone girls, this is perfect for fans of Lisa Jewell, Lucy Foley, and Laura Dave.

Sloane Caraway is a liar.

Harmless lies, mostly, to make her self-proclaimed sad, little life a bit more interesting.

So when Sloane sees a young girl in tears at a park one afternoon, she can’t help herself—she tells the girl’s (very attractive) dad she’s a nurse and helps him pull a bee stinger from the girl’s foot.

With this lie, and chance encounter, Sloane becomes the nanny for the wealthy, and privileged Jay and Violet Lockhart. The perfect New York couple, with a brownstone, a daughter in private school, and summers on Block Island.

But maybe Sloane isn’t the only one lying, and all that’s picture-perfect harbors a much more dangerous truth. To say anything more is to spoil the most exciting, twisty, and bitingly smart suspense novel to come out in years.

The thing about lies is that they add up, form their own truth and a twisted prison of a world. And in Count My Lies, Sophie Stava spins a breakneck, unputdownable thriller about the secrets we keep, and the terrifying dangers that lurk just under the images we spend so much time trying to maintain.

Careful what you lie for.

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Nobody's Fool

Harlan Coben

A year after the devastating events that took place in Fool Me Once, Harlan Coben's bestselling thriller and #1 Netflix series, a secret from former Detective Sami Kierce's college days comes back to haunt him. Present day is hard enough for the disgraced Kierce, but his past isn't through with him yet...

Sami Kierce, a young college grad backpacking in Spain with friends, wakes up one morning, covered in blood. There's a knife in his hand. Beside him, the body of his girlfriend. Anna. Dead. He doesn't know what happened. His screams drown out his thoughts--and then he runs.

Twenty-two years later, Kierce, now a private investigator, is a new father who's working off his debts by doing low level surveillance jobs and teaching wannabe sleuths at a night school in New York City. One evening, he recognizes a familiar face at the back of the classroom. Anna. It's unmistakably her. As soon as Kierce makes eye contact with her, she bolts. For Kierce there is no choice. He knows he must find this woman and solve the impossible mystery that has haunted his every waking moment since that terrible day.

His investigation will bring him face-to-face with his past--and prove, after all this time, he's nobody's fool.

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This Book Will Bury Me

Ashley Winstead

From the national bestselling author of In My Dreams I Hold a Knife and Midnight is the Darkest Hour comes a chilling, compulsive story of five amateur sleuths, whose hunt for an elusive killer catapults them into danger as the world watches.

It's the most famous crime in modern history. But only she knows the true story.

After the unexpected death of her father, college student Jane Sharp longs for a distraction from her grief. She becomes obsessed with true crime, befriending armchair detectives who teach her how to hunt killers from afar. In this morbid internet underground, Jane finds friendship, purpose, and even glory...

So when news of the shocking deaths of three college girls in Delphine, Idaho takes the world by storm, and sleuths everywhere race to solve the crimes, Jane and her friends are determined to beat them. But the case turns out to be stranger than anyone expected. Details don't add up, the police are cagey, and there seems to be more media hype and internet theorizing than actual evidence. When Jane and her sleuths take a step closer, they find that every answer only begs more questions, and begin to suspect their killer may be smarter and more prolific than any they've faced before. Placing themselves in the center of the story starts to feel more and more like walking into a trap...

Told one year after the astounding events that concluded the case and left the world reeling, when Jane has finally decided to break her silence about what really happened, she tells the true story of the Delphine Massacres. And what she has to confess will shock even the most seasoned true crime fans...

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When the Moon Hits Your Eye

John Scalzi

New York Times bestseller John Scalzi flies you to the moon with his most fantastic tale to date: When the Moon Hits Your Eye

The moon has turned into cheese.

Now humanity has to deal with it.

For some it’s an opportunity. For others it’s a moment to question their faith: In God, in science, in everything. Still others try to keep the world running in the face of absurdity and uncertainty. And then there are the billions looking to the sky and wondering how a thing that was always just there is now... something absolutely impossible.

Astronauts and billionaires, comedians and bank executives, professors and presidents, teenagers and terminal patients at the end of their lives -- over the length of an entire lunar cycle, each get their moment in the moonlight. To panic, to plan, to wonder and to pray, to laugh and to grieve. All in a kaleidoscopic novel that goes all the places you’d expect, and then to so many places you wouldn’t.

It’s a wild moonage daydream. Ride this rocket.

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Finlay Donovan Digs Her Own Grave

Elle Cosimano

From New York Times bestseller and Edgar-Award nominee Elle Cosimano, comes Finlay Donovan Digs Her Own Grave—the hugely anticipated next installment in the fan-favorite Finlay Donovan series.

Finlay Donovan may have skeletons in her closet . . . but at least there's not a body in her backyard.

Finlay Donovan and her nanny/partner-in-crime, Vero, have not always gotten along with Finlay’s elderly neighbor, Mrs. Haggerty, the community busybody and president of the neighborhood watch. But when a dead body is discovered in her backyard, Mrs. Haggerty needs their help. At first a suspect, Mrs. Haggerty is cleared by the police, but her house remains an active crime scene. She has nowhere to go . . . except Finlay’s house, right across the street.

Finlay and Vero have no interest in getting involved in another murder case—or sacrificing either of their bedrooms. After all, they’ve dealt with enough murders over the last four months to last a lifetime and they both would much rather share their beds with someone else.

When the focus of the investigation widens to include Finlay’s ex-husband, Steven, though, Finlay and Vero are left with little choice but to get closer to Mrs. Haggerty and uncover her secrets . . . before the police start digging up theirs. But who will solve the mystery first?

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Wild Dark Shore

Charlotte McConaghy

An ENTHRALLING new novel from the NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLING author of Migrations and Once There Were Wolves 

"A WILDLY TALENTED writer." ―Emily St. John Mandel

A family on a remote island. A mysterious woman washed ashore. A rising storm on the horizon.

Dominic Salt and his three children are caretakers of Shearwater, a tiny island not far from Antarctica. Home to the world’s largest seed bank, Shearwater was once full of researchers, but with sea levels rising, the Salts are now its final inhabitants. Until, during the worst storm the island has ever seen, a woman mysteriously washes ashore.

Isolation has taken its toll on the Salts, but as they nurse the woman, Rowan, back to strength, it begins to feel like she might just be what they need. Rowan, long accustomed to protecting herself, starts imagining a future where she could belong to someone again. 

But Rowan isn’t telling the whole truth about why she set out for Shearwater. And when she discovers sabotaged radios and a freshly dug grave, she realizes Dominic is keeping his own secrets. As the storms on Shearwater gather force, they all must decide if they can trust each other enough to protect the precious seeds in their care before it’s too late—and if they can finally put the tragedies of the past behind them to create something new, together.

A novel of breathtaking twists, dizzying beauty, and ferocious love, Wild Dark Shore is about the impossible choices we make to protect the people we love, even as the world around us disappears.

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All the Other Mothers Hate Me

Sarah Harman

"The missing boy is 10-year-old Alfie Risby, and to be perfectly honest with you, he's a little shit."

Florence Grimes is a thirty-one-year-old party girl who always takes the easy way out. Single, broke and unfulfilled after the humiliating end to her girl band career, she has only one reason to get out of bed each day: her ten-year-old son Dylan. But then Alfie Risby, her son’s bully and the heir to a vast frozen food empire, mysteriously vanishes during a class trip, and Dylan becomes the prime suspect. Florence, for once, is faced with a task she can’t quit: She’s got to find Alfie and clear her son’s name, or risk losing Dylan forever.

The only problem? Florence has no discernible skills, let alone detective ones, and all the other school moms hate her. Oh, and Florence has a reason to suspect Dylan might not be as innocent as she’d like to believe…

Hilarious and twisted, propulsive and furious, All the Other Mothers Hate Me is the must-read book of 2025.

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The River Has Roots

Amal El-Mohtar

The River Has Roots is the hugely anticipated solo debut of the New York Times bestselling and Hugo Award winning author Amal El-Mohtar. Follow the river Liss to the small town of Thistleford, on the edge of Faerie, and meet two sisters who cannot be separated, even in death.

The hardcover edition features beautiful interior illustrations and a foil case stamp.

"Half delicious murder ballad, half beguiling love story." —Holly Black • "An absolute must-read." —T. Kingfisher • "Every sentence sings!" —Sarah Beth Durst • "Utterly enchanting." —Fonda Lee • "A story that outlasts itself." —Alix E. Harrow • "Truly exquisite." —Zoraida Córdova • "A beautiful, musical, and loving story." —Emma Törzs

“Oh what is stronger than a death? Two sisters singing with one breath.”

In the small town of Thistleford, on the edge of Faerie, dwells the mysterious Hawthorn family.

There, they tend and harvest the enchanted willows and honour an ancient compact to sing to them in thanks for their magic. None more devotedly than the family’s latest daughters, Esther and Ysabel, who cherish each other as much as they cherish the ancient trees.

But when Esther rejects a forceful suitor in favor of a lover from the land of Faerie, not only the sisters’ bond but also their lives will be at risk...

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Promise Me Sunshine

Cara Bastone

How do you find yourself after you lose the one you loved the most? 

Grieving the loss of her best friend, a young woman’s life is turned upside down when she meets a grumpy stranger who swears he can help her live again, in this heartwarming, slow-burn romance by the author of Ready or Not.

Lenny’s a bit of a mess at the moment. Ever since cancer stole away her best friend, she has been completely lost. She’s avoiding her concerned parents, the apartment she shared with her best friend, and the ever-laminated “live again” list of things she’s promised to do to survive her grief. But maybe if she acts like she has it all together, no one will notice she’s falling apart.

The only gigs she can handle right now are temporary babysitting jobs, and she just landed a great one, helping overworked, single mom Reese and her precocious daughter, Ainsley. The only catch: Ainsley’s uncle, Miles, always seems to be around, and is kind of. . . a walking version of the grumpy cat meme. Worse – he seems to be able to see right through her.

Surprisingly, Miles knows a lot about grief and he offers Lenny a proposition. He’ll help her complete everything on her “live again” list if she’ll help him connect with Ainsley and overcome his complicated relationship with Reese. Lenny doubts anything can fill the void her best friend has left behind, but between late night ferry rides, midnight ramen, and a well-placed shoulder whenever she needs it, Miles just won’t stop showing up for her. Turns out, sometimes your life has to end to find your new beginning.

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Saltwater

Katy Hays

On glittering Capri, anything can be a mirage. And no one holds a grudge like family.

From the New York Times bestselling author of The Cloisters comes an electrifying thriller about an opulent family retreat to Italy that’s shattered by the resurfacing of a decades-old crime.

“Perfect for fans of White Lotus, this is a spring break murder mystery for the ages.”—People

In 1992, Sarah Lingate is found dead below the cliffs of Capri, leaving behind her three-year-old daughter, Helen. Despite suspicions that the old-money Lingates are involved, Sarah’s death is ruled an accident. And every year, the family returns to prove it’s true. But on the thirtieth anniversary of Sarah’s death, the Lingates arrive at the villa to find a surprise waiting for them—the necklace Sarah was wearing the night she died.

Haunted by the specter of that night, the legendary Lingate family unity is pushed to a breaking point, and Helen seizes the opportunity. Enlisting the help of Lorna Moreno, a family assistant, the two plot their escape from Helen’s paranoid, insular family. But when Lorna disappears and the investigation into Sarah’s death is reopened, Helen has to confront the fact that everyone who was on Capri thirty years ago remains a suspect—her controlling father, Richard; her rarely lucid aunt, Naomi; her distant uncle, Marcus; and their circle of friends, visitors, and staff. Even Lorna, her closest ally, may not be who she seems.

As long-hidden secrets about that night boil to surface, one thing becomes clear: Not everyone will leave the island alive.

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