Category: Full List of New Arrivals

ADULT FICTION

“All the Light We Cannot See” by Anthony Doerr – “Doerr’s magnificently drawn story seems at once spacious and tightly composed. It rests, historically, during the occupation of France during WWII, but brief chapters told in alternating voices give the overall–and long–narrative a swift movement through time and events. We have two main characters, each one on opposite sides in the conflagration that is destroying Europe. Marie-Louise is a sightless girl who lived with her father in Paris before the occupation; he was a master locksmith for the Museum of Natural History. When German forces necessitate abandonment of the city, Marie-Louise’s father, taking with him the museum’s greatest treasure, removes himself and his daughter and eventually arrives at his uncle’s house in the coastal city of Saint-Malo. Young German soldier Werner is sent to Saint-Malo to track Resistance activity there, and eventually, and inevitably, Marie-Louise’s and Werner’s paths cross. It is through their individual and intertwined tales that Doerr masterfully and knowledgeably re-creates the deprived civilian conditions of war-torn France and the strictly controlled lives of the military occupiers.” — Hooper, Brad. AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2014.

“Blossom Street Brides” by Debbie Macomber – “Macomber continues her long-running knitting series set on Blossom Street with Lauren Elliott learning that her younger, married sister is pregnant. Lauren determines that she will never be a mother if she stays with her long-term boyfriend. After seeing a baby blanket in the window of A Good Yarn, Lauren decides to knit one for her sister’s baby, and there she meets the recently married Bethanne, whose new husband, Max, who lives in California, shows up with attractive bad boy Rooster, the antithesis of Lauren’s ex-boyfriend. Meanwhile, Casey, the adopted teen daughter of Lydia, the proprietor of A Good Yarn, is experiencing horrible nightmares, while her grandmother is losing her mind to dementia. The yarn store is barely meeting its expenses when, suddenly, baskets of knitting with A Good Yarn labels start turning up around town with an invitation to help knit a scarf for charity. Macomber’s nondenominational-inspirational women’s novel, with its large cast of characters will resonate with fans of the popular series but may leave new readers with the feeling of being strangers at the party.” –Tixier Herald, Diana. AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2014.

“The Eye of the Day” by Dennison Smith – “When a brutal explosion in a cottage town in Vermont brings together Amos, a disfigured handyman, and Aubrey, the cosseted son of a wealthy New England family, neither has any idea this event will shape them forever. As their lives touch again over the years, these unlikely friends forge a bond that survives war and peace, love and loss.” — inside front cover

“Hell Bent for Leather” by Julie Ann Walker – “When bar owner Delilah Fairchild’s Uncle Theo disappears, she turns to the Black Knights, a Chicago Special Ops group working undercover as motorcycle aficionados, for help, even though this means being in close proximity to Bryan “Mac” McMillan. She’s had a gigantic crush on Mac for the past four years, while he’s pretended to ignore her. Thanks to Mac’s father’s grief over being abandoned by his wife and subsequent bankruptcy due to his search for her, Mac has sworn off sexy, glitzy women he thinks are like her. His aversion gives new meaning to commitment phobia, yet he is helplessly drawn to Delilah. Walker’s plot twists involving how the two find her uncle and then rescue Delilah, who is also taken, fight over jurisdiction with the CIA, and finally get together makes for one of the funniest military romances ever written and an instant favorite in Walker’s already excellent Black Knight series. Action-packed with hilarious dialogue, terrorists, testosterone-laden protagonists, a brave dog, and very, very good sex scenes, Hell for Leather is a wonderful read.” Chelton, Mary K., AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2014.

“The Kill Switch” by James Rollins and Grant Blackwood – “A Russian scientist with a weapon that could wreak havoc upon the world; a chilling historical mystery; a breakneck race against time–the usual kinds of ingredients, in other words, for one of Rollins’ Sigma Force novels. But this one’s a bit different: it stars former Army Ranger Tucker Wayne and his working dog, Kane (introduced in Bloodline, 2012), and it spends more time than usual exploring the relationships of its lead characters. Rollins, who was a practicing veterinarian before turning to full-time writing, makes Kane, a Belgian Malinois (they look a lot like German shepherds), a fully participating character in the story, similar to the way Jonathan Maberry makes Ghost a character in the Joe Ledger novels. Coauthor Blackwood is best known for the three Fargo novels he wrote with Clive Cussler, but his solo trilogy featuring covert op Briggs Tanner, published 2001-03, gives him solid grounding for this novel. Fans of the Sigma Force series will definitely enjoy this one, and readers who have occasionally wished Rollins would slow down a bit and spend some time with his characters will get their wish.” — Pitt, David. AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2014.

“Radiance of Tomorrow: A Novel” by Ishmael Beah – “In his best-selling A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier (2007), Beah wrote of his traumatic experience as victim and perpetrator in Sierra Leone’s civil war. Now he works with Human Rights Watch and UNICEF in New York, and in this searing first novel, he tells of a young immigrant returning with his family to his native village seven years after the recent civil war. He finds both hope and horror, the latter driven by the overwhelming internal corruption, the former by the resilience of the people he encounters. He sees skulls and chopped hands, the remains of massacre. But there is the wonder of clean drinking water. A foreign company’s diamond mining, supported by the government, is leaving the village people displaced, houses shattered, the air thick with pollution, ancient burial grounds destroyed. A parent must see her child go to bed hungry, night after night. How much will people do for jobs to feed their families? The power of the story is in the close-up, heartbreaking detail of the struggle for survival, the cruelty, and also the kindness.” — Rochman, Hazel. AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2013.

“Save the Date” by Mary Kay Andrews – “The latest charming summer romance from best-selling Andrews (Ladies’ Night, 2013) arrives just in time for wedding and beach-reading season. Savannah florist Cara Kryzik is making a name for herself designing society weddings, and her latest event, planning an enormous country wedding between two important southern families, will allow her to pay back the loan her father gave her. Divorced not long ago, she may be ready to finally reopen her heart, and by some sweet chance, local heartthrob Jack Finnerty keeps popping up at her weddings. Though Andrews does rely on a few contemporary-romance conventions–a protagonist with a fun, feminine job; a down-to-earth hero from a well-connected family; and a misunderstanding that nearly keeps them apart–her lively and expansive variations on tried-and-trusted tropes are fresh and pleasing. Readers will cheer Cara on as she deals with a runaway bride and a smarmy and cutthroat competing florist, and all will swoon over her steamy scenes with Jack, right up to the wholly satisfying happy ending.” — Walker, Aleksandra. AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2014.

“Shadow Spell” by Nora Roberts – “Cabhan is coming. The latest charming summer romance from best-selling Andrews (Ladies’ Night, 2013) arrives just in time for wedding and beach-reading season. Savannah florist Cara Kryzik is making a name for herself designing society weddings, and her latest event, planning an enormous country wedding between two important southern families, will allow her to pay back the loan her father gave her. Divorced not long ago, she may be ready to finally reopen her heart, and by some sweet chance, local heartthrob Jack Finnerty keeps popping up at her weddings. Though Andrews does rely on a few contemporary-romance conventions–a protagonist with a fun, feminine job; a down-to-earth hero from a well-connected family; and a misunderstanding that nearly keeps them apart–her lively and expansive variations on tried-and-trusted tropes are fresh and pleasing. Readers will cheer Cara on as she deals with a runaway bride and a smarmy and cutthroat competing florist, and all will swoon over her steamy scenes with Jack, right up to the wholly satisfying happy ending.HIGH-DEMAND BACKSTORY: The latest from perennial blockbuster novelist Andrews launches with a 250,000 print run and a high tide of national promotions in print and on all other media platforms. Walker, Aleksandra. 400p. AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2014.Despite the best efforts of Connor O’Dwyer and his circle of family and friends, the sorcerer will not stop until he has his revenge against the descendants of dark witch Sorcha. Since Connor, his sister Branna, and their cousin, Iona Sheehan, are the latest group of three to have inherited Sorcha’s powers, they are all number one on Cabhan’s hit list. Everyone’s safety depends on working together to defeat Cabhan, but much to his surprise, Connor finds himself distracted by Meara Quinn. The two have always enjoyed a terrific working relationship, until an unexpected kiss reveals the true passion they feel for each other. Pursuing a romantic relationship with Meara, however, is a risk. Not only could Connor lose her friendship; getting closer to Meara could make her an easy target for Cabhan. Roberts has a real flair for seamlessly melding day-to-day domestic details and the supernatural, and the second in her Cousins O’Dwyer trilogy not only delivers a satisfying love story but also effectively sets things up for the coming final confrontation with Cabhan.” — Charles, John. AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2014

“The Son” by Philip Meyer – “Spanning nearly two hundred years, The Son is the story of our founding mythology, of the men and women who tore a country from the wilderness and paid in blood by subsequent generations. An epic in the tradition of Faulkner and Melville, this is the work of a writer at the height of his power.” —  Kevin Powers

“Wolf” by Mo Hayder – “In Hayder’s best Jack Caffery thriller yet, a worn-out Jack is feeling all the years he has put into police service and his never-ending quest to find out what happened to his long-lost brother. The novel opens with a young girl finding a stray dog with a ripped note tucked into its collar that states, “Help us.” A vagrant known as the Walking Man witnesses this and promises the young girl that he will help the dog. Never one to give out information willingly, the Walking Man surprisingly contacts Jack–offering up a trade: find out who needs help and, in return, the Walking Man will give Jack some closure about his brother. This deal with the devil sets off a home invasion novel unlike no other. The Anchor-Ferrers, a wealthy family with secrets and issues of their own, are being held hostage in their estate. Will Jack find them in time? And why was this family chosen in the first place? VERDICT Dark and twisty, this gripping crime novel by an Edgar Award winner is an outstanding read, whether Jack is a new character to the reader or an old friend. For fans of John Connolly or Robert Crais.” —  Marianne Fitzgerald, Severna Park H.S., MD. LIBRARY JOURNAL,

“The Woman Who Lost Her Soul” by Bob Shacochis – “A skilled journalist …Shacochis thinks big, and his new novel … is truly magisterial. It opens with humanitarian lawyer Tom Harrington investigating the death of Jackie Scott, a feisty photojournalist who once whipped him around in Haiti. But Harrington turns out to be a relatively minor player in large-scale story dating back to the end of World War II, as the beheading of young Stjepan Kovacevic’s Iron Cross father signals coming changes in the Balkans and the world at large. Thus are sown the seeds of Stjepan’s hatred for all things communist, Muslim, and, finally, not gloriously righteous Christian West. Flash forward, and Stjepan is U.S. diplomat Steve Chambers, training the teenage daughter he covets to shift personas in the act of serving her country. Eventually, she’s the woman who loses her soul, as “America…at war behind the drapery of shadows and secrets” has lost its soul. Throughout, we see how policy is shaped by both the historical and the blindingly personal. VERDICT Densely detailed yet immensely readable, this eye-opener (which could have been titled “Why We Are in the Middle East”) is essential reading.”–Barbara Hoffert, Library Journal. 640p. LIBRARY JOURNAL, c2013.

 ADULT MYSTERY

“Field of Prey: A Novel” by John Sandford – “In bestseller Sandford’s suspenseful 24th Lucas Davenport novel …, an amorous couple’s chance discovery of a body in an abandoned cistern near Red Wing, Minn., becomes a major investigation when authorities begin excavating and the body count reaches 17 and threatens to go higher. With Bob Shaffer of the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension heading the investigation, and Davenport and Goodhue County deputy Catrin Mattsson assisting, they begin looking for a serial killer/rapist who’s been operating for at least 10 years in the cluster of small towns near the cistern. When a lead investigator is killed and another targeted, the pressure builds. Meanwhile, a pair of sadists plot deadly and taunting actions to confuse the investigators, and Davenport searches desperately for a clue that will help narrow the search to manageable numbers. As always, Sandford has tricks to play to confound readers before the tension rises and leads to a violent and surprising conclusion.” —  Agent: Esther Newberg, ICM.  PUBLISHERS WEEKLY, c2014.

“The Son” by Jo Nesbo – “On the surface, Nesbo’s gripping new stand-alone might seem like another installment of the Harry Hole series but featuring a new cast of characters. A serial killer is at work in Oslo, and a maverick cop with his share of personal demons is on his trail. But beneath that surface, there is a complex psychological thriller churning its way into the reader’s nightmares. Sonny Lofthus is in prison for crimes he didn’t commit but for which he has agreed to take the fall–in exchange for an unending supply of heroin. The drugs are Sonny’s way of dealing with the knowledge that his father, an apparent suicide, was a dirty cop. As the novel begins, however, Sonny has new information about his father’s death and has engineered a daring escape from prison. His revenge-fueled plan is to kill those responsible for the crimes he was convicted of by re-creating the murders with the real killers now the victims. The more we learn about Sonny, the more we root for him to evade capture, either by the police or by the crime lord who wants him dead. Juggling point of view between Sonny, Simon Kefas (the cop chasing him), and the various corrupt officials who risk exposure the longer Sonny is free, Nesbo thwarts our every attempt to draw conclusions about both what happened in the past and who is the least guilty among the principals. There is an element of the classic film noir Breathless at work here but with more characters of varying shades of gray whose fates hinge on numerous moving parts. A terrific thriller but also a tragic, very moving story of intertwined characters swerving desperately to avoid the dead ends in their paths.” —  Ott, Bill. AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2014.

“Standing in Another Man’s Grave” by Ian Rankin – “Rankin’s iconic Edinburgh copper, John Rebus, …is now a civilian reviewing old police files in this satisfying crime thriller…. Rebus butts heads with Fox, an investigator in Complaints, who loathes “old style” cops like Rebus who may have bent the rules to get results. When Nina Hazlitt shows up at Rebus’s office, she tells him about her missing daughter, Sally, who disappeared on the A9 roadway in 1999. Though Rebus is initially skeptical, Hazlitt’s persistence slowly pays off. Rebus starts taking seriously her theories that the subsequent disappearances of other young women along the A9 are connected, and a task force is formed, including Det. Insp. Siobhan Clarke, Rebus’s protegee. The police comb through old case files, and Rebus logs many a mile in his battered Saab, driving the length of the A9 through Scotland, on the hunt for the killer. Rankin’s ear for dialogue and sense of place is as keen as ever, complementing his twisted plot. Rebus fans will be pleased to find him as cantankerous as ever, smoking and drinking as if time in the policing world has stood still.” — PUBLISHERS WEEKLY, c2013.

“Stone Cold” by C. J. Box – “…Joe Pickett is back at his job as game warden with a pay increase, retention of his seniority, and the title of “special liaison to the executive branch.” Joe is once again working on a special assignment for Wyoming governor Rulon, who has an unhappy relationship with the federal government. To keep the Feds from running roughshod over his state and its citizens, Rulon sends Joe to Medicine Wheel County to investigate quietly a mysterious man named Wolfgang Templeton who might be operating an elite murder-for-hire operation. What Joe uncovers is a tangled puzzle of philanthropy, murder, and corrupt county and state officials, mixed together with the reappearance of his old friend Nate Romanowski and Joe’s mother-in-law, Missy Vankueran. Never one to hesitate, Joe jumps right into the fray. At the same time Joe’s mind is also with daughter Sheridan’s challenges at the university and foster daughter April’s obsession with a rodeo star. VERDICT …Nonstop action, a twisty plot, and great characters make his latest a must-read for fans of this series.” —  Patricia Ann Owens, LIBRARY JOURNAL, c2014.

“Unlucky 13” by James Patterson – “San Francisco Detective Lindsay Boxer is loving her life as a new mother. …Then the FBI sends Lindsay a photo of a killer from her past, and her happy world is shattered. The picture captures a beautiful woman at a stoplight. But all Lindsay sees is the psychopath behind those seductive eyes: Mackie Morales, the most deranged and dangerous mind the Women’s Murder Club has ever encountered. …In this pulse-racing, emotionally charged novel by James Patterson, the Women’s Murder Club must find a killer–before she finds them first.” — Amazon.com

ADULT BIOGRAPHY

“Hard Choices” by Hilary Rodham Clinton – “A subtle, finely calibrated work….Hard Choices is a statesmanlike document…with succinct and often shrewd appraisals of the complex web of political, economic and historical forces in play around the world, and the difficulties American leaders face in balancing strategic concerns with ‘core values.’ The tone is calm and measured, with occasional humorous asides, like describing an offer by Vladimir V. Putin, the Russian leader, to take Bill Clinton along on a polar-bear tagging expedition.”(Michiko Kakutani The New York Times)

“Karl Marx: A Nineteenth-Century Life” by Jonathan Sperber – “Brilliant, original, and beautifully written, Jonathan Sperber’s biography of Marx dazzles. Neither a prophet nor a purveyor of a political system gone awry, Marx emerges in these pages as a man struggling, personally and intellectually, with the profound issues of his own time. With insight and erudition, Sperber weaves Marx’s life and time seamlessly together, and gives us the first deeply researched, engaging biography of Marx in more than three decades” — (Helmut Smith, author of The Butcher’s Tale: Murder and Anti-Semitism in a German Town)

ADULT NON-FICTION

“Capital in the Twenty-First Century” by Thomas Piketty – “The book aims to revolutionize the way people think about the economic history of the past two centuries. It may well manage the feat…It is, first and foremost, a very detailed look at 200 years’ worth of data on the distribution of income and wealth across the rich world (with some figures for large emerging markets also included). This mountain of data allows Piketty to tell a simple and compelling story…The database on which the book is built is formidable, and it is difficult to dispute his call for a new perspective on the modern economic era, whether or not one agrees with his policy recommendations… We are all used to sneering at communism because of its manifest failure to deliver the sustained rates of growth managed by market economies. But Marx’s original critique of capitalism was not that it made for lousy growth rates. It was that a rising concentration of wealth couldn’t be sustained politically. Ultimately, those of us who would like to preserve the market system need to grapple with that sort of dynamic, in the context of the worrying numbers on inequality that Piketty presents.” (The Economist 2014-01-09)

“Command and Control: Nuclear Weapons, the Damascus Accident, and the Illusion of Safety” by Eric Schlosser – ” Nuclear bombs must be handled with the proper care, yet that is not always the case. Mentioning harrowing mishaps in the history of the American atomic arsenal, Schlosser singles out one for detailed dramatization, the explosion in 1980 of a Titan II missile. Some airmen were killed and injured, but since the warhead didn’t detonate, the safety system appeared to have worked. Color Schlosser skeptical, for, as he recounts this accident, which began with a mundane incident–a dropped tool that punctured the missile–he delves into nuclear weapon designs. Those are influenced by the requirement that the bomb must always detonate when desired and never when not. Citing experts in the technology of nuclear weaponry who have pondered the “never” part of the requirement, Schlosser highlights their worry about an accidental nuclear explosion. Underscored by cases of dropped, burned, and lost bombs, the problem of designing a safe but reliable bomb persists (see also The Bomb, 2009, by weapons engineer Stephen Younger). Well researched, reported, and written, this contribution to the nuclear-weapons literature demonstrates the versatility of Schlosser, author of Fast Food Nation (2001).” –Taylor, Gilbert. AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2013.

“No Place to Hide” by Glenn Greenwald – “Journalist and former constitutional lawyer Greenwald (With Liberty and Justice for Some) examines the impact of the revelations in the National Security Agency (NSA) documents leaked to him by Edward Snowden. It’s a fascinating read as Greenwald, a longtime writer on issues of national security and Guardian columnist at the time, describes his interactions with the whistle-blower and provides an erudite, complete time line of the events pre- and postpublication of the classified information. Greenwald dismisses the “collect it all” policy of the NSA, maintaining that its overarching surveillance powers–routinely collecting and quantifying data on billions of communications worldwide–don’t prevent acts of terror. Drawing on political theory and psychology, Greenwald likewise explains that the argument that law-abiding citizens aren’t affected is fundamentally flawed, because even the simple threat of universal surveillance impacts human behavior. He is scathing in his analysis of the “establishment media” (Washington Post, New York Times, etc.), both for what he views as deference to the U.S. government on matters of publication and their coverage of the leak, including the question of whether he himself is a journalist–or merely a “blogger” or “activist”–afforded constitutional press protection. In his analysis, the author breaks down the dense NSA subject matter and uses excerpts and slides from the documents to illustrate his points, making this work readable for even those unfamiliar with the technical concepts. VERDICT Greenwald’s delineation of the NSA’s actions, as well as his arguments for the right of privacy and a robust adversarial press, makes this book a must-read.” —  Amanda Mastrull, Library Journal. LIBRARY JOURNAL, c2014.

ADULT AUDIO BOOK

“The Tempest” by William Shakespeare

BLUE/DVD

“American Hustle”
“The Best Years of our Lives”
“Breakfast at Tiffany’s”
“The Hunger Games: Catching Fire”
“The Grand Budapest Hotel”
“Gravity”
“Jurrasic Park”
“The Pirate Fairy”
“Searching for SugarMan”
“Some Like it Hot”
“Twelfth Night” 

ADULT MUSIC

“Live at the Village Vanguard” with Marc Ribot

BOARD BOOK

“Clip-Clop” by Nicola Smee
“Eating the Rainbow” by Star Bright Books
“Hug” by Jez Alborough

PICTURE BOOK

” A Bad Case of Stripes” by David Shannon
“Alice the Fairy” by David Shannon
The Baby BeeBee Bird” by Diane Redfield Massie
“Elizabeth, Queen of the Seas” by Lynne Cox
“E-I-E-I-O How Old MacDonald Got His Farm (with a Little Help from a Hen)” by Judy Sierra
“How to Lose a Lemur” by Frann Preston-Gannon
“I Went Walking” by Sue Williams
“Meet the Parents” by Peter Bently
“Lola at the Library” by Anna McQuinn
“Little Owl’s Night” by Divya Srinaviasan
“One Tiny Turtle” by Nicola Davies
“Otis and the Puppy” by Loren Long
“Pinkalicious” by Victoria Kann and Elizabeth Kann
“The Pout-Pout Fish Goes to School” by Deborah Diesen
“This is a Moose” by Richard T. Morris
“Wilfred Gordon McDonald Partridge” by Mem Fox

JUVENILE AUDIO BOOK

“The Hero’s Guide to Being an Outlaw” by Christopher Healy

JUVENILE FICTION

“The Boy Problem (Notes and Predictions by Tabitha Reddy)” by Kami Kinard – “Grades 4-8. Full of asides about classmates and the kind of detailed gossip only 11 to 13-year-olds can truly follow, this giddy, giggly book reads like a diary and is aimed at tween girls who like their literature frothy. Tabbi, short for Tabitha, is a middle-school student looking for the right guy, a crush who will elevate her status and help her put aside the feeling that she is just a third wheel when she hangs out with her bestie Kara and Kara’s boyfriend, Chip. But how is she going to find the guy of her dreams? Tabbi is sure that everything, from the cheese that slid off her pizza and formed the shape of a male face (well, kind of) to a Magic 8 Ball, will predict her future. Stick-figure drawings, charts, and lists break up the text and give Tabbi’s story a Diary of a Wimpy Kid vibe. When a fund-raiser featuring cupcakes leads Tabbi to a happy ending, those who love romance will celebrate.” — Cruze, Karen. AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2014.

“The Great Trouble: A Mystery of London, the Blue Death, and a Boy Called Eel” by Deborah Hopkinson – “This story of the 1854 cholera outbreak in London is told through the eyes of a 13-year-old orphan. Among other jobs, Eel works as an errand boy at the Lion Brewery, cares for Dr. John Snow’s animals, and moonlights as a “mudlark,” scavenging the Thames for scraps of coal and other things to sell. Eel struggles to survive as he is falsely accused of stealing by his boss at the brewery, tries to stay clear of his evil stepfather, and watches his neighbors fall ill and die. In desperation, he turns to the only man he knows who can help: Dr. Snow. Weaving historical personages such as Dr. Snow and the Reverend Henry Whitehead with fictional characters, Hopkinson illuminates a pivotal chapter in the history of public health. Dr. Snow believed that cholera was spread by contaminated water, not by bad air or “miasma,” which was the popular theory at the time. With the help of Eel and his friends, he convinces an emergency committee that the water from the Broad Street pump is responsible and has the handle removed, thereby curtailing the outbreak. Although detailing a dire period in history, Eel tells his story in a matter-of-fact and accessible manner, making his story palatable and entertaining.” — Ragan O’Malley, Saint Ann’s School, Brooklyn, NY. SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL, c2013.

“How to Speak Dragonese” by Cressida Cowell – “Gr 3-5. Chief’s son Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III, his friend Fishlegs, and his cranky dragon, Toothless, get separated from their class during ‘Boarding-An-Enemy-Ship’ practice. The peaceful fishing boat they are supposed to attack turns out to be a prowling Roman galley, crewed by some of the Empire’s least- distinguished legions. The invaders are plotting to provoke war among the Viking factions by kidnapping the heirs of Hiccup’s own Happy Hooligans and the Amazonian Bog-Burglar tribe. Then, while the locals are occupied, the Romans plan to make off with the entire dragon population of the islands. With the help of Bog-Burglar girl warrior Camicazi and the bumblebee-sized dragon Ziggerastica, the boys must find a way to counter the treacherous plan before they all end up facing combat to the death in the local arena. There is a lot of raucous humor and mock-heroic dialogue; ridiculous names add to the fun. The theme of brains over brawn is well defined. Warriors, Roman and Viking alike, are loud-mouthed, bullying braggarts, easy targets for clever, scrawny Hiccup.” — Elaine E. Knight, Lincoln Elementary Schools, IL. CAHNERS PUBLISHING, c2006.

“One Came Home” by Amy Timberlake – “Grades 6-9. To find out what really happened to her purportedly dead sister, sharpshooting 13-year-old Georgie Burkhardt and her sister’s one-time suitor Billy McCabe follow the trail of pigeon hunters and discover far worse going on near Placid, Wisconsin, in 1871. Georgie tells her story in a first-person narrative that rings true to the time and place. She is smart, determined, and not a little blind to the machinations of adults around her, including Billy, who has been sent by Georgie’s storekeeper grandfather to follow her and keep her safe. She does notice that Billy is well made, but this is no love story; it’s a story of acceptance, by Georgie, her family, and her small town. Timberlake weaves in the largest passenger pigeon nesting ever seen in North America, drought and fatal fires along Lake Michigan that year, a currency crisis that spawned counterfeiters, and advice on prairie travel from an actual handbook from the times. Historical fiction and mystery combine to make this a compelling adventure, and an afterword helps disentangle facts from fiction.” — Isaacs, Kathleen. AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2012.

“The Outcasts: Brotherband Chronicles, Book 1” — “Gr. 5-9. Set in the Skandia, an alternate, medieval Scandinavia, the opening volume of the Brotherband Chronicles introduces Hal, who has always felt like an outsider but never more so than at the beginning of his warrior training. Two groups of 16-year-olds are chosen first by their leaders, while Hal’s group consists of the eight misfits left over. Selected as their leader, he gradually grows into the role, taking advantage of their individual talents and compensating for their weaknesses. Just as they seem to gain the upper hand after grueling military training and intense competitions on land and at sea, a humiliating setback reminds Hal’s brotherband of the training’s purpose and sends them off to settle a score with a real-world enemy. In this offshoot of the popular Ranger’s Apprentice series, Flanagan sets the stage for new adventures, peoples it with a large cast of well-developed characters, and tells a compelling coming-of-age story. Given the glossary of sailing terms that opens the book and Hal’s pride in the boat he has helped build and design, readers can expect tales on the high seas. In addition, the new series offers a complex, believable world, a rich sense of camaraderie among thoroughly likable characters, and life-or-death challenges leavened with lighter moments.” — Carolyn Phelan. AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2011.

“Paperboy” by Vince Vawter – “Grades 6-8. It’s hot in Memphis during the summer of 1959–in all kinds of ways. Things heat up for the book’s 11-year-old narrator when he takes over his pal Rat’s paper route; meeting new people is a horror for the boy because he stutters. He only really feels comfortable with Rat and Mam, the African American maid who takes care of him when his parents are away, which is often. But being the paperboy forces him to engage in the world and to ask for payments from customers, like pretty, hard-drinking Mrs. Worthington and Mr. Spiro, who gives the boy the confidence to voice his questions and then offers answers that–wondrously–elicit more questions. Others intrude on his life as well. In a shocking scene, Ara T, the dangerous, disturbing junk man tries to take something precious from the boy. In some ways, the story is a set piece, albeit a very good one: the well-crafted characters, hot Southern summer, and coming-of-age events are reminiscent of To Kill a Mockingbird. But this has added dimension in the way it brilliantly gets readers inside the head of a boy who stutters. First-time author Vawter has lived this story, so he is able to write movingly about what it’s like to have words exploding in your head with no reasonable exit. This paperboy is a fighter, and his hope fortifies and satisfies in equal measure.” —  Cooper, Ilene.  AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2013.

“P.S. Be Eleven” by Rita Williams-Garcia – “Ages 8-12. Delphine and her sisters return to Brooklyn from visiting their estranged mother, Cecile, a poet who sent them off every day to a camp run by the Black Panthers in Williams-Garcia’s Newbery Honor-winning One Crazy Summer. It wasn’t the California vacation they expected, but the experience rocked their world. Big Ma, their grandmother, is no longer just a stern taskmaster, she’s an oppressor. Delphine, who again narrates, loses interest in magazines like Tiger Beat and Seventeen: “When there’s Afros and black faces on the cover, I’ll buy one,” she tells a storeowner. Reflecting society at large in 1968, change and conflict have the Gaither household in upheaval: Pa has a new girlfriend, Uncle Darnell returns from Vietnam a damaged young man, and the sixth-grade teacher Delphine hoped to get has been replaced by a man from Zambia. Though the plot involves more quotidian events than the first book, the Gaither sisters are an irresistible trio. Williams-Garcia excels at conveying defining moments of American society from their point of view–this is historical fiction that’s as full of heart as it is of heartbreak.” —  (June).  PUBLISHERS WEEKLY, c2013.

JUVENILE BIOGRAPHY

“Knucklehead: Tall Tales & Mostly True Stories About Growing Up Scieszka” by Jon Scieszka – “Gr. 4-7 In this arch, glib, unapologetically shame-free outing, Scieszka, who grew up as the second of six sons, has written an autobiography about boys, for boys and anyone else interested in baseball, fire, and peeing on stuff. The format of the book is perfectly suited to both casual and reluctant readers. The text is divided into two- to three-page nonsequential chapters and peppered with scrapbook snapshots and comic-book-ad reproductions. The accessibly irreverent language pushes the boundaries of moderation even as it reflects a sort of skewed wholesomeness. But the real testosterone payoff here is in the stories, which range from losing battles with fractious parochial-school nuns to taking turns watching little brothers (wherein the author watched brother number six eat a cigarette butt and charged neighborhood kids to watch him do it again). By themselves, the chapters entertain with abrupt, vulgar fun. Taken together, they offer a look at the makings of one very funny author– and a happy answer to the dreaded autobiography book report.” —  Thom Barthelmess. AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2008.

“Nelson Mandela: Words and Paintings” by Kadir Nelson – “This picture-book biography matches Mandela’s outsize achievements with large, powerful images, resulting in a presentation that will seize and hold readers’ attention. The front cover features a portrait of Mandela that fills the space. His pleasant but determined expression immediately projects a sense of strength. The title and author move to the back cover so as not to compete with the opening image. A stark graphic design incorporating black, green, yellow, and red, colors from the South African flag, on the title page helps set the stage for the narrative. Nelson’s paintings range from poignant, when Mandela’s mother tells him good-bye as he leaves home for more education at the age of nine, to exuberant, when Mandela and 100 men arrested for protesting apartheid respond by dancing and singing, to inspiring, when people organize rallies demanding his release. When freedom finally comes, “a colorful sea of people” celebrate. Mandela’s heroic struggle might be new to many children today, and Nelson’s dynamic treatment provides enough detail to give a sense of the man and to acknowledge his important place in history.”– Lucinda Snyder Whitehurst, St. Christopher’s School, Richmond, VA. SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL, c2013.

JUVENILE NON-FICTION

“African Animal Alphabet” by Beverly and Dereck Joubert – “This alphabet book features vivid photographs of African animals. Readers will recognize a cheetah, elephant, and lion, but this husband-and-wife naturalist team also highlights unsung species like the tsessebe, the umbrette, and the dung beetle. Even X finds a match: ‘Xenopus bullfrogs like to sit in water that is extra shallow.’ Appended animal facts and a glossary for words like ‘vociferous’ underscore the book’s dual focus on diverse animal characteristics and language development.” — PUBLISHERS WEEKLY, c2011.

“Chasing Cheetahs: The Race to Save Africa’s Fastest Cats” by Sy Montgomery – “Grades 5-8. The latest entry in the Scientists in the Field series finds award-winning collaborators Montgomery and Bishop visiting a cheetah reclamation preserve in Tanzania for close-up looks at how orphaned or injured animals are rescued, nurtured, and prepared (when possible) for release back into the wild. Along with sharp views of the facility’s experts and student volunteers working with cheetahs and taking general wildlife counts, Bishop provides plenty of stunning cheetah photography–both full-body and head shots–to beautifully complement Montgomery’s detailed descriptions of daily routines, research projects, and medical procedures. The text also extends its coverage of wildlife conservation issues in explanations of how the facility’s passionately dedicated head, Laurie Marker, works to turn local herders from being part of the problem to becoming part of the solution by working to save these beautiful, threatened creatures. This is yet another engaging, well-designed entry into an essential series.” Peters, John. AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2014.

“Everything On It” by Shel Silverstein – “Shel Silverstein, beloved author of the acclaimed and bestselling poetry collections Where the Sidewalk Ends, A Light in the Attic, and Falling Up, will have a brand-new book of poetry published by HarperCollins Children’s Books in September 2011. This is only the second original book to be published since Silverstein’s passing in 1999. With more than one hundred and thirty never-before-seen poems and drawings completed by the cherished American artist and selected by his family from his archives, this collection will follow in the tradition and format of his acclaimed poetry classics.” — Amazon.com

“Mr. Lincoln’s High-Tech War: How the North Used the Telegraph, Railroads, Surveillance Balloons, Iron-Clads, High-Powered Weapons, and More to Win the Civil War” by Thomas B. Allen and Roger MacBride Allen – “Gr. 6-10 The prologue to this intriguing book points out that although Lincoln grew up using tools and farm implements that his great-great- great-great-grandfather would have recognized, his own generation saw their world irrevocably changed by technological innovations, and he was the only President ever to be granted a patent (for a device to lift boats over shoals). Well researched and clearly written, the book discusses the course of the Civil War in terms of the development of new technology, from the ironclad and the submarine to the rapid-fire, repeating rifle and the use of railroads to carry troops and supplies. When the telegraph carried news from the front and Lincoln’s orders to his generals, the term ‘commander in chief’ became more than an honorary title for the president. The many illustrations include captioned black-and-white reproductions of period prints, paintings, and photos as well as clearly labeled drawings. Sidebars comment on such topics as the mass production of armaments. A lengthy bibliography, a discussion of online resources, and source notes for quotes are appended. Readers whose knowledge of the Civil War comes from historical novels and battle-by-battle historical accounts will gain a fascinating perspective on why the war progressed as it did and how it was ultimately won.” — Carolyn Phelan.  AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2008.

“Trees, Leaves and Bark” by Diane L. Burns – “An introduction to the world of insects, caterpillars, and butterflies including identification information, educational activities, and fun facts.Invites young naturalists to spot wildlife. Safety tips are provided and interesting activities are sugested. Color illustrations enhance the presentation.” —-HORN BOOKS (Tracks, Scats and Signs)

“You Read to Me, I’ll Read to You: Very Short Scary Tales to Read Together” by Mary Ann Hoberman – “PreS-Gr. 2. The fourth uproarious poetry picture book in Hoberman and Emberley’s popular You Read to Me, I’ll Read to You series continues the pattern of simple, rhyming, illustrated stories for two voices. This time, though, the stories are not playful, fractured versions of old rhymes and tales; they are new shivery tales to read together. The clear words with gorgeously gruesome, comic-style pictures tell of wild action and monster characters as lurid as they come–ghouls, ogres, zombies, skeletons, phantoms–all of them readers. In one double-page spread, the ghost and the mouse living together in a house are enemies, scared of each other, until they make up and read together. One spread is ‘Trick or Treat,’ and of course, this collection is a must for Halloween sharing. ‘Gory’ rhymes with ‘story.” (Reviewed May 1, 2007). Hazel Rochman.  AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2007.

“The Young Birder’s Guide to Birds of North America” by Bill Thompson III – “Gr 6 Up–As other guides have appeared in recent years, birders have latched on to their favorites, but none is aimed so directly at the fledgling birder as this one. The 300 species most likely to be encountered in North America are described on a page each (“adult” field guides usually list several related species per spread), accompanied by a color photo of the bird, two if males and females have different plumage. Notes on habitat and what to look for (markings) and listen for (songs, calls) will help birders confirm sightings. The taxonomic arrangement, covering from waterfowl to finches, is similar to many field guides, so it will be easy for novices to graduate from this title to more extensive guides. The list of resources includes organizations, field guides, audio guides, periodicals, and, in a nod to the times, apps. A great title for both school and public libraries.”–Teresa R. Faust, Vermont Department of Libraries, Berlin. SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL, c2012.

YOUNG ADULT

“The 5th Wave” by Rick Yancey – “Yancey makes a dramatic 180 from the intellectual horror of his Monstrumologist books to open a gripping SF trilogy about an Earth decimated by an alien invasion. … A rare survivor of the invasion, 16-year-old Cassie, armed with an M16 rifle and her younger brother’s teddy bear, is trying to reunite with her brother and escape the “Silencer” (assassin) trying to kill her. Meanwhile, 17-year-old “Zombie,” an unwitting military recruit, is facing a crisis of conscience. The story’s biggest twists aren’t really surprises; the hints are there for readers to see. Yancey is more interested in examining how these world-shaking revelations affect characters who barely recognize what their lives have become. As in the Monstrum-ologist series, the question of what it means to be human is at the forefront–in the words of cartoonist Walt Kelly, “We have met the enemy and he is us.”  –Agent: Brian DeFiore, DeFiore and Co. PUBLISHERS WEEKLY, c2013.

“Far Far Away” by Tom McNeal – “Grades 7-10. So it begins: What follows is the strange and fateful tale of a boy, a girl, and a ghost. Ghostly Jacob Grimm, of the famous Brothers, narrates this tale of Jeremy and Ginger and their near-tragic encounter with town baker Sten Blix, whose long-held grudges figure in the disappearance of several village children. Unappreciated as a youngster, Blix has elevated revenge to a sweet art, and he holds Jeremy, Ginger, and an additional victim, Frank Bailey, in a hidden dungeon under the bakery, while Jacob desperately tries to tell parents and friends of the predicament. If he fails, the three may become grist in the baker’s next batch of Prince Cakes. Reminiscent of Hansel and Gretel and rife with allusions to the Brothers Grimm tales, this is a masterful story of outcasts, the power of faith, and the triumph of good over evil. McNeal’s deft touch extends to the characterizations, where the ritual speech of traditional tales (Listen, if you will) establishes Jacob’s phantasmagoric presence amid the modernist American West. There are moments of horror (as there were in the Brothers Grimm original tales), but they are accomplished through the power of suggestion. Details aplenty about Jacob and his famous sibling make this a fiction connector to both fairy tales and Grimm biographies, too.”  –Welch, Cindy. AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2013.

ADULT FICTION

“The Graveyard of Memories” by Barry Eisler – “What makes a legendary assassin? For John Rain, it was the lessons of love, war, and betrayal he learned in Tokyo in 1972.

Fresh from the killing fields of Southeast Asia, Rain works as a bagman under the watchful eye of his CIA handler, delivering cash to corrupt elements of the Japanese government. But when a delivery goes violently wrong, Rain finds himself in the crosshairs of Japan’s most powerful yakuza clan. To survive, Rain strikes a desperate deal with his handler: take out a high-profile target in the Japanese government in exchange for the intel he needs to eliminate his would-be executioners.

“An Officer and a Spy” by Robert Harris – “Harris’ instantly absorbing thriller reanimates the Dreyfus Affair of 1895 through Colonel Georges Picquart, who exposed the conspiracy to frame Dreyfus for supplying the Germans with French Army secrets. After serving as the minister of war’s observer at Dreyfus’ military trial, Picquart is promoted to lead the army’s espionage unit. Picquart immerses himself in the dark work and quickly discovers evidence of another soldier leaking information to the German attache. When he’s denied permission to launch a sting operation, Picquart joins forces with a Surete (police) detective to gather evidence through an unofficial surveillance scheme. Convinced that the secret evidence that convicted Dreyfus implicates his current target instead, Picquart investigates further and finds a conspiracy originating in the army’s top ranks. In the anti-Semitic climate of this pivotal period in French society, Picquart’s insistence that Dreyfus “the Jew” may be innocent creates dangerous, powerful enemies. Harris combats the predictability that can haunt fictional accounts of well-known events by teasing out the tale through Picquart’s training in espionage and investigation, his unsanctioned detecting, and the complex intrigues he navigates to secure a reexamination of Dreyfus’ case. Great for fans of Ken Follett, John le Carre, Louis Bayard, Caleb Carr, and Martin Cruz Smith, all of whom also portray historical intrigues and investigations with intricate detail and literary skill… Tran, Christine. AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2013.

“The Husband’s Secret” by Liane Moriarty – “Australian author Moriarty… puts three women in an impossible situation and doesn’t cut them any slack. Cecilia Fitzpatrick lives to be perfect: a perfect marriage, three perfect daughters, and a perfectly organized life. Then she finds a letter from her husband, John-Paul, to be opened only in the event of his death. She opens it anyway, and everything she believed is thrown into doubt. Meanwhile, Tess O’Leary’s husband, Will, and her cousin and best friend, Felicity, confess they’ve fallen in love, so Tess takes her young son, Liam, and goes to Sydney to live with her mother. There she meets up with an old boyfriend, Connor Whitby, while enrolling Liam in St. Angela’s Primary School, where Cecilia is the star mother. Rachel Crowley, the school secretary, believes that Connor, St. Angela’s PE teacher, is the man who, nearly three decades before, got away with murdering her daughter–a daughter for whom she is still grieving. Simultaneously a page-turner and a book one has to put down occasionally to think about and absorb, Moriarty’s novel challenges the reader as well as her characters, but in the best possible way.” — Agent: Faye Bender, Faye Bender Literary Agency. PUBLISHERS WEEKLY, c2013.

The Invention of Wings by Sue Monk Kidd – “Inspired by the true story of early-nineteenth-century abolitionist and suffragist Sarah Grimke, Kidd paints a moving portrait of two women inextricably linked by the horrors of slavery. Sarah, daughter of a wealthy South Carolina plantation owner, exhibits an independent spirit and strong belief in the equality of all. Thwarted from her dreams of becoming a lawyer, she struggles throughout life to find an outlet for her convictions. Handful, a slave in the Grimke household, displays a sharp intellect and brave, rebellious disposition. She maintains a compliant exterior, while planning for a brighter future. Told in first person, the chapters alternate between the two main characters’ perspectives, as we follow their unlikely friendship (characterized by both respect and resentment) from childhood to middle age. While their pain and struggle cannot be equated, both women strive to be set free–Sarah from the bonds of patriarchy and Southern bigotry, and Handful from the inhuman bonds of slavery. Kidd is a master storyteller, and, with smooth and graceful prose, she immerses the reader in the lives of these fascinating women as they navigate religion, family drama, slave revolts, and the abolitionist movement. ” –Price, Kerri.  AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2013.

“Thirty Girls” by Susan Minot – “Rebels in the Lord’s Resistance Army in Uganda burst into a convent dormitory, seize 139 schoolgirls, and march them off into the night. Sister Giulia follows and bravely argues for their release. She returns with 109. The outlaws keep 30, including smart, courageous Esther. Jane, an American writer and youngish widow, visits a friend in Kenya, sexy, generous Lana, and takes up with Harry, who is passionate about paragliding–a poetic and apt embodiment of the illusion of freedom: though you feel exhilarated in flight, you are at the mercy of forces beyond your control. Jane is on her way to Uganda to speak with young women at a camp for traumatized children who escaped their enslavement to the psychotic rebels. Lana, Harry, a wealthy American businessman, and a French documentarian decide, cavalierly, to accompany her. In her first novel in more than a decade, spellbinding Minot (Rapture, 2002; Evening, 1998), a writer of exquisite perception and nuance, contrasts Esther’s and Jane’s radically different, yet profoundly transforming journeys in a perfectly choreographed, slow-motion, devastatingly revealing collision of realities. So sure yet light is Minot’s touch in this master work, so piercing yet respectful her insights into suffering and strength, that she dramatizes horrific truths, obdurate mysteries, and painful recognition with both bone-deep understanding and breathtaking beauty.” — Seaman, Donna. AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2014.

MYSTERY

“Cell” by Robin Cook – “By combining plausible developments in artificial intelligence with current concerns about the number of available general practitioners, Cook (Nano) has produced one of his better recent thrillers. L.A. radiology resident George Wilson is racked with guilt after his fiancee, Kasey Lynch, dies of hypoglycemia as he was sleeping next to her. As he prepares to begin his final year of residency, a former med school colleague and occasional lover, Paula Stonebrenner, invites George to attend a rollout of iDoc, a smartphone app that functions as an individualized primary-care physician, which uses sensors to continually monitor vital signs and provide instantaneous diagnosis and treatment. The concept seems too good to be true, and that apprehension proves warranted when several test subjects of the app die unexpectedly, leading George to become obsessed with ascertaining the cause. The truth behind the deaths is both logical and surprising, and enables Cook to engage with serious medical ethics issues.” —  PUBLISHERS WEEKLY, c2013.

“Concealed In Death” by J. D. Robb – “The rundown building has good bones. That is exactly why Roarke bought it. The problem is the building has some real bones in it as well. While breaking through an interior wall to kick off the renovation, Roarke discovers bones wrapped in plastic. A quick call to his wife, Lieutenant Eve Dallas of the New York Police and Security Department, brings Eve and her team to the site. Eventually, 12 bodies are found in the building. With the help of the department’s new forensic anthropologist, Eve is able to pinpoint the time of the murders to 15 years earlier when the building served as the Sanctuary, a shelter for troubled and/or homeless teens. When Eve begins tracing the lives of each of the young girls who died there, she not only finds herself tracking a killer, but she also discovers a startling connection between the crimes and someone in her own life. The latest nail-biting installment in Robb’s long-running Eve Dallas series features the same skillfully drawn characters and masterful way with suspense that have ensnared readers since Naked in Death (1995).” —  Charles, John. AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2014.

“The Humans” by Matt Haig – “The alien comes to Earth from Vonnadoria, an almost incomprehensibly advanced world; he comes with a sinister purpose, both to destroy and to collect information, hoping to rob human beings of their future. Assuming the person of Professor Andrew Martin, a celebrated mathematician who has made a dangerous discovery, he sets coldly and calculatedly to work. But there is a problem: though disgusted at first by humans, whom he regards as motivated only by violence and greed, he gradually comes to understand that humans are more complex than that, and, most dangerous to his mission, he discovers music, poetry, and . . . love. Becoming increasingly sympathetic to humans, he will ultimately do the unthinkable. The ever-imaginative Haig…has created an extraordinary alien sensibility and, though writing with a serious purpose (the future is at stake), has great good fun with the being’s various eyebrow-raising blunders as he struggles to emulate human behavior. Haig strikes exactly the right tone of bemusement, discovery, and wonder in creating what is ultimately a sweet-spirited celebration of humanity and the trials and triumphs of being human. The result is a thought-provoking, compulsively readable delight.” — Cart, Michael.  AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2013.

“The MInor Adjustment Beauty Salon” by Alexander McCall Smith – “The titles of many of the No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency novels … often have a wonderfully cheery tone. The latest title is brilliant in its hopefulness, implying, as it does, that a person may only be a mere tweak away from beauty. This hopeful attitude is exemplified by Mma Ramotswe, the owner and operator of Botswana’s only detective agency, who resolutely tackles the problems people bring to her in her small, out-of-the-way office under an acacia tree. The clients’ problems showcase the usual suspects of greed, envy, sloth–all the vices that cause trouble for others. This time, the owner of the nearest town’s new beauty salon receives a tiny thing, a feather from a ground hornbill bird. But this artifact is a traditional way of conveying hate. This is followed by a highly effective smear campaign. The other case Mma Ramotswe works on here concerns an heir to a great cattle farm who may actually be an imposter. Mma Ramotswe must track the truth alone because her assistant Mma Makutsi is absent (no plot spoiler here). As usual, these novels are only a bit about actual mysteries. They’re leisurely, wonderfully crafted descriptions of life in the agency and at home, the beauties of Botswana, and the joys, big and small, of life. This latest is, especially, a tribute to enduring friendship.” — Fletcher, Connie. 256p. AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2013.

BIOGRAPHY

“Duty: Memoirs of a Secretary of War” by Robert M. Gates – “Forthright, impassioned…highly revealing about decision making in both the Obama and Bush White Houses…[Gates’] writing is informed not only by a keen sense of historical context, but also by a longtime Washington veteran’s understanding of how the levers of government work or fail to work. Unlike many careful Washington memoirists, Gates speaks his mind on a host of issues…[he] gives us his shrewd take on a range of foreign policy matters, an understanding of his mission to reform the incoherent spending and procurement policies of the Pentagon, and a tactile sense of what it was like to be defense secretary during two wars.”
—Michiko Kakutani, The New York Times

“The End of Your Life Book Club” by WIll Schwalbe – “Schwalbe and his mother accidentally formed a book club in a cancer-treatment waiting room. As they discuss what they will read while Mary Anne is treated for pancreatic cancer, they deepen their already strong relationship. Schwalbe didn’t plan to write this memoir as he was living it, so it’s mostly nuggets of emotionally important remarks in the context of the development of his mother’s illness. Will’s love and respect for his mother shine through in the story of a remarkable woman’s life, from how she helped refugees to her seeking to build libraries in Afghanistan. With 21 years of book-publishing experience, Schwalbe quickly introduces the books themselves in one or two paragraphs. The works they read offer a way to approach topics they otherwise wouldn’t discuss, and the focus is more on what the books reveal than what happens in them. This touching and insightful memoir about the slow process of dying will appeal to readers of Tuesdays with Morrie (1997) and The Last Lecture (2008) but also to people who love delving into books and book discussions. Like Mary Anne, who reads the ending first, you know how this book is going to end, but although it is a story about death, it is mostly a celebration of life and of the way books can enrich it.” — Thoreson, Bridget. AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2012.

“The Glass Castle” by Jeanette Walls – “Walls, who spent years trying to hide her childhood experiences, allows the story to spill out in this remarkable recollection of growing up. From her current perspective as a contributor to MSNBC online, she remembers the poverty, hunger, jokes, and bullying she and her siblings endured, and she looks back at her parents: her flighty, self-indulgent mother, a Pollyanna unwilling to assume the responsibilities of parenting, and her father, troubled, brilliant Rex, whose ability to turn his family’s downward-spiraling circumstances into adventures allowed his children to excuse his imperfections until they grew old enough to understand what he had done to them–and to himself. His grand plans to build a home for the family never evolved: the hole for the foundation of the ‘The Glass Castle,’ as the dream house was called, became the family garbage dump, and, of course, a metaphor for Rex Walls’ life. Shocking, sad, and occasionally bitter, this gracefully written account speaks candidly, yet with surprising affection, about parents and about the strength of family ties–for both good and ill.” — Stephanie Zvirin.  AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2005.

“This is the Story of a Happy Marriage” by Ann Patchett – “This is the story of how best-selling novelist Patchett (State of Wonder, 2011) became a writer. … (she) assembles a retrospective set of 22 sterling personal essays to form an episodic, piquant, instructive, and entertaining self-portrait. She reflects on her family, life on a Tennessee farm, literary discipline and inspiration, and her failed first marriage. Her second marriage is central to her hilarious account of an RV road trip, and the full measure of Patchett’s toughness and daring surfaces in “The Wall,” a riveting account of her father, a captain when he retired after 30 years on the Los Angeles police force, coaching her as she takes the grueling admission test for the Los Angeles Police Academy. A self-described “workhorse” who has even opened an independent bookstore, Patchett is a commanding and incisive storyteller, whether her tales are true or imagined.” — Seaman, Donna. AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2013.

ADULT NON-FICTION

“Fodor’s Montreal & Quebec City 2014” – Montreal and Quebec City are treasured destinations for American travelers: a corner of France in North America. This guide, with rich color photographs throughout, capture the French-speaking cities’ universal appeal, from sidewalk cafes to winter sports and traditional French cuisine.” — Amazon

“Guinness World Records 2014” by Guinness World Records – “Guinness World Records 2014 brings together thousands of the planet’s most awe-inspiring people, pets and products, including new record-holders such as a skateboarding goat, a 15-meter-long robot dragon, the world’s furriest cat and a king-size drumkit that needs five people to play it!” — Amazon

“National Geographic Guide to the National Parks of the United States, 7th Edition” by National Geographic – “The National Geographic Guide to National Parks of the United States will prove indispensable on a summer drive through this great country. Packed with more color photographs (380) and detailed color maps (80) than any other parks guidebook on the market, this handy, practical guide …. offers comprehensive information on the crown jewels of the national park system-the 58 scenic national parks that conserve and protect the flora and fauna in some of our nation’s last wilderness areas. This guide helps travelers design custom trips depending on the time and interests they have. The parks are grouped region by region so that vacationers can plan trips to one or more central location. Each chapter is introduced by a map and a geographical profile, followed by the parks in alphabetical order. Individual parks start with a portrait of the natural wonders available, their history, and the ecological setting and stresses they face.Full of useful and practical information.” — National Geographic Editors

“Overheated: The Human Cost of Climate Change” by Andrew T. Guzman – “Overheated provides a lucid vision of the catastrophic consequences we will face if we fail to transition away from a fossil fuel-based economy. What give the book power is the perspective it provides, of a legal scholar who initially viewed climate change as an interesting topic for academic research, to a passionate advocate for tackling the greatest threat human civilization has yet faced. If you care about the future of our planet, read this book.” — Michael E. Mann, Director of Penn State Earth System Science Center

“The Sixth Extinction: An Unnatural History” By Elizabeth Kolbert – “The sixth mass extinction is the biggest story on Earth, period, and Elizabeth Kolbert tells it with imagination, rigor, deep reporting, and a capacious curiosity about all the wondrous creatures and ecosystems that exist, or have existed, on our planet. The result is an important book full of love and loss.” — David Quammen, author of The Song of Dodo and Spillover

ADULT AUDIO BOOK

“Babayaga” by Toby Barlow – “Paris 1959. Will, an American advertising exec working for a French agency, accidentally wanders into Cold War intrigue because some people mistakenly think he works for a different sort of agency, the CIA. He also accidentally wanders into an affair with a beautiful Russian woman, Zoya, who just happens to have killed her last lover because he was beginning to realize that, unlike most people, she doesn’t appear to age (because she’s a babayaga, a witch, dontcha know). As if all this weren’t complicated enough, Elga, who until very recently was Zoya’s friend and mentor, has solved the problem of police interest in her friend’s death by turning the investigating officer into, literally, a flea. Barlow’s second book, … delivers a helluva good time, a delicious mash-up of Cold War spy thriller, horror novel, and love story. It’s not laugh-out-loud funny, like, say, something by Christopher Moore, but it’s witty and charming and exceedingly light on its feet. …The novel is really something out of the ordinary. Pitt, David. 400p. AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2013.

DVD

“Captain Phillips”
“Dexter Season 4”
“Dexter Season 5”
“Downton Abbey Season 4”
“Foyles War: Sets 1-6 “
“Foyles War: Set 7”
“Freedom & Unity: The Vermont Movie”
“Game of Thrones: The Complete Season 3”
“Homeland Season 3”
“Planes”

MUSIC

“Midnight Memories” by One Direction

BOARD BOOK

“Kitten’s Winter” by Eugenie Fernandes
“Mr. Brown Can Moo. Can You?” by Dr. Seuss

PICTURE BOOK

“Again!” by Emily Gravett
“Berenstain Bears Visit the Dentist” by Stan Berenstain
“Children Make Terrible Pets” by Peter Brown
“A Color of His Own”  by Leo Lionni
“Eat Like a Bear” by April Sayre
“A Farmers Alphabet” by Mary Azarian
“Harriet, You’ll Drive Me Wild” by Mem Fox”
“Henny” by Elizabeth Rose Stanton
“How Rocket Learned to Read” by Tad Hills
“Jack the Builder” by Stuart J. Murphy
“Journey” by Aaron Becker
“Lifetime: The Amazing Numbers in Animal Lives” by Lola M. Schaefer
“Miss Brooks Love Books and I Don’t” by Barbara Bottner
“Mr. Putter and Tabby Pour the Tea” by Cynthia Rylant
“One Gorilla: A Counting Book” by Anthony Browne
“One Tiny Turtle” by Nicola Davies
“One Was Johnny: A Counting Book” by Maurice Sendak
“Rosie Revere: Engineer” by Andrea Beatty
“Rufus Goes to School” by Kim Griswell
“Splash of Red: The Life and Art of Horace Pippin” by Jen Bryant

JUVENILE FICTION

“Among the Free” by Margaret Peter Haddix – “Gr. 5-8. Ordered to kill an old woman, Luke–an illegal third child hiding out as a member of the organization he seeks to overthrow– flees, sparking a revolt that carries him back to Population Police headquarters, where he discovers a plot that forces him to make a life- altering choice. … Haddix focuses on philosophical issues, creating a bleak futuristic world populated with sketchy characters trotted out largely to demonstrate various opinions or behaviors. Still, there’s enough action to keep things from stalling amid Luke’s internal struggles…” John Peters. AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2006.

“The Cavendish Home for Boys and Girls” by Claire Legrand – “The too-serene-to-be-true town of Belleville harbors some creepy secrets in Legrand’s debut, a sinister and occasionally playful tale of suspense. Twelve-year-old perfectionist Victoria Wright has bouncy curls, a fixation on achieving straight As, and just one friend–unkempt, artistic Lawrence, who she considers her “personal project.” But when Lawrence disappears, and Victoria launches an investigation to find him, she discovers more frightening trouble than she imagined. Victoria unravels the mystery behind the titular home for children, which is run by the ageless Mrs. Cavendish and a fiendish gardener/assistant. Hair-raising adventures involving slimy hidden passageways, pinching swarms of cockroaches, mystery meat, and the wrath of cruel Mrs. Cavendish fill the pages. Legrand gives Victoria’s mission a prickly energy, and her descriptions of the sighing, heaving home–a character in itself–are the stuff of bad dreams. Watts’s b&w illustrations of spindly characters, cryptic shadows, and cramped corridors amplify the unsettling ambiance, and her roach motif may have readers checking their arms.” — Agent: Diana Fox, Fox Literary. PUBLISHERS WEEKLY, c2012.

“Escape from Mr. Lemoncello’s Library” by Chris Grabenstein – “…Twelve seventh-graders win a chance to spend an overnight lock-in previewing their town’s new public library–it’s a marvel of technological delights conceived by Luigi Lemoncello, the Willy Wonkalike founder of Mr. Lemoncello’s Imagination Factory, which is a source for every kind of game imaginable. During the lock-in the winners, who include game-lover Kyle Keeley and a group of multicultural classmates with a mix of aptitudes and interests, are offered a further challenge: “Find your way out of the library using only what’s in the library.” The winner will become spokesperson for the Imag-ination Factory. Book lovers will relish the lavish sprinkling of book titles and references while puzzle fans will enjoy figuring out the clues. A lighthearted parody of reality survival shows, the book reinvigorates the debate over the Dewey Decimal system and traditional library skills while celebrating teamwork, perseverance, and clever wits.” — Agent: Eric Myers, the Spieler Agency. PUBLISHERS WEEKLY, c2013.

“The Last Olympian” by Rick Riordan – “The week before his sixteenth birthday, a driver’s license is the last thing on Percy’s mind. After all, an impossibly huge and powerful giant is wreaking destruction across the Midwest as he strides toward New York City, which will soon be attacked by an army of Titans and assorted monsters bent on destroying Mount Olympus (secret access point: the Empire State Building). Percy and his demigod friends soon engage their enemies in an epic battle that will determine the fate of humanity as well as the gods. The novel’s winning combination of high- voltage adventure and crackling wit is balanced with scenes in which human needs, fears, and ethical choices take center stage. …Riordan’s imagination soars in the climactic battle scenes, which feature many Manhattan landmarks, yet he manages to bring the whole series to a satisfying close in the down-to-earth conclusion. …” —  Carolyn Phelan.  AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2009.

JUVENILE BIOGRAPHY

“I Am Abraham Lincoln” by Brad Meltzer – “Our 16th president is presented as an activist for human and civil rights. Lincoln resembles a doll with an oversized head as he strides through a first-person narrative that stretches the limits of credulity and usefulness. From childhood, Abe, bearded and sporting a stovepipe hat, loves to read, write and look out for animals. He stands up to bullies, noting that “the hardest fights don’t reveal a winner–but they do reveal character.” He sees slaves, and the sight haunts him. When the Civil War begins, he calls it a struggle to end slavery. Not accurate. The text further calls the Gettysburg ceremonies a “big event” designed to “reenergize” Union supporters and states that the Emancipation Proclamation “freed all those people.” Not accurate. The account concludes with a homily to “speak louder then you’ve ever spoken before,” as Lincoln holds the Proclamation in his hands.” — KIRKUS MEDIA LLC, c2013.

“Who Says Women Can’t Be Doctors? The Story of Elizabeth Blackwell” by Tanya Lee Stone – “You might find this hard to believe, but there once was a time when girls weren’t allowed to become doctors,” opens this smart and lively biography of Elizabeth Blackwell, the first female doctor in America. Stone develops Blackwell’s personality through childhood anecdotes–as a child Blackwell once slept on a hard floor just “to toughen herself up”–before detailing her career path. Priceman’s typically graceful lines and bright gouache paintings make no bones about who’s on the wrong side of history: those who object to Blackwell’s achievements are portrayed as hawkish ladies and comically perturbed twerps in tailcoats.” —  Author’s agent: Rosemary Stimola, Stimola Literary Studio. PUBLISHERS WEEKLY, c2013.

JUVENILE NON-FICTION

“Jane, the Fox and Me” by Jane Yolen – “The pain that cruel schoolmates inflict on solitary, book-loving girls is familiar territory, but Britt and Arsenault’s take on it is worth a second look. Tormented by her classmate Genevieve–“I stuck a fork in your butt, but you’re so fat you didn’t feel a thing!!”–Helene retreats into the pages of Jane Eyre. “Everyone needs a strategy,” she observes, “even Jane Eyre.” Arsenault (Virginia Wolf) uses velvety reds and blacks for Helene’s ruminations on Bronte’s novel; elsewhere, she renders landscapes, interiors, and portraits of Helene and her classmates in delicate grays. A small miracle presages change as Helene is approached by a wild fox on a school camping trip: “Its eyes are so kind I just about burst.” Then a classmate named Geraldine absconds (not entirely believably) from the mean girls and befriends Helene. Arsenault signals the change by introducing the fragile green of new leaves into her monochromatic landscapes. Subordinate characters are lovingly drawn, and time and place references (the McGarrigle Sisters, the Bay department store) add piquancy. More than a few readers will recognize themselves in Helene and find comfort.” —  PUBLISHERS WEEKLY, c2013.

“Locomotive” by Brian Floca – “Floca follows up the acclaimed Moonshot: The Flight of Apollo 11 (2009) with this ebullient, breathtaking look at a family’s 1869 journey from Omaha to Sacramento via the newly completed Transcontinental Railroad. The unnamed family is a launching point for Floca’s irrepressible exploration into, well, everything about early rail travel, from crew responsibilities and machinery specifics to the sensory thrills of a bridge rumbling beneath and the wind blasting into your face. The substantial text is delivered in nonrhyming stanzas as enlightening as they are poetic: the “smoke and cinders, / ash and sweat” of the coal engine and the Great Plains stretching out “empty as an ocean.” Blasting through these artful compositions are the bellows of the conductor (“FULL STEAM AHEAD”) and the scream of the train whistle, so loud that it bleeds off the page: “WHOOOOOOO!” Font styles swap restlessly to best embody each noise (see the blunt, bold “SPIT” versus the ornate, ballooning “HUFF HUFF HUFF”). Just as heart pounding are Floca’s bold, detailed watercolors, which swap massive close-ups of barreling locomotives with sweeping bird’s-eye views that show how even these metal giants were dwarfed by nature. It’s impossible to turn a page without learning something, but it’s these multiple wow moments that will knock readers from their chairs. Fantastic opening and closing notes make this the book for young train enthusiasts.” — Kraus, Daniel. AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2013.

“Lifetime: The Amazing Numbers in Animal Lives” by Lola M. Schaefer – “Schaefer combines her interest in animals and her fascination with numbers, using sparse text to introduce both animals and a numerical fact about a specific characteristic of each animal. An introduction provides the caveat that approximations differ depending on many factors in the life of the animal. The text is matter-of-fact, and the colors of the mixed-media illustrations subdued, but they complement each other in tone. It takes a bit to realize that Neal’s illustration for each animal matches the number Schaefer uses in the text. For instance, the illustration for sea horses has 1,000 “teeny-weeny, squiggly-wiggly baby sea horses.” (Feel up to counting all of them?) Thankfully, as part of the back matter, Schaefer adds detailed information about each animal and its life span, how she calculated the estimations she uses throughout the book, two animal math problems to solve, and more. Fills a clever niche for both animal science and mathematics.” — Petty, J. B. AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2013.

“Odd Duck” by Cecil Castellucci – “Chad is an odd duck, whereas Theodora is a normal duck; she just likes to do some things a little differently. But when the other ducks laugh at the “odd duck,” is it really Chad they’re making fun of? The creators’ separate works have long championed the individual, so it is no surprise that Varon’s gentle art and Castellucci’s nuanced writing combine in a sweet, quiet tale that celebrates the joys of being unique. Both have done graphic novels in the past; here, though, they use more of a hybrid style, alternating a more traditional picture-book layout with pages divided into panels and featuring speech bubbles. Fans of Varon’s work will love her trademark anthropomorphic characters, bright colors, and detailed but never cluttered pictures, which invite lingering over each page. Teen writer Castellucci’s name on the cover may convince some older readers to give this one a shot, but it is aimed squarely at elementary readers, who, hopefully, will soak up the message to embrace their own odd-duckness.” — Wildsmith, Snow. AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2013.

“Owly: The Way Home & the Bittersweet Summer” by Andy Runton – “In this nearly wordless bit of graphic fun, Runton tells two stories about Owly the little owl. In ‘The Way Home,’ lonely Owly rescues Wormy from a thunderstorm, and, after nursing him back to health, helps him find his way home. ‘The Bittersweet Summer’ tells a slightly more complicated story about friendship, as Owly and Wormy befriend two hummingbirds during the course of the spring and summer, and say goodbye to them when they migrate south for the winter. Owly is a delightfully sweet book. The whimsical black-and-white art is done with great facility for expressing emotion, and Runton’s reliance on icons and pictures in lieu of the usual dialogue makes the story perfect for give-and- take between children and their parents;” — Tina Coleman. AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2005.

YOUNG ADULT

“The Fault in our Stars” by John Green – “At 16, Hazel Grace Lancaster, a three-year stage IV–cancer survivor, is clinically depressed. To help her deal with this, her doctor sends her to a weekly support group where she meets Augustus Waters, a fellow cancer survivor, and the two fall in love. Both kids are preternaturally intelligent, and Hazel is fascinated with a novel about cancer called An Imperial Affliction. Most particularly, she longs to know what happened to its characters after an ambiguous ending. To find out, the enterprising Augustus makes it possible for them to travel to Amsterdam, where Imperial’s author, an expatriate American, lives. What happens when they meet him must be left to readers to discover. Suffice it to say, it is significant. …Beautifully conceived and executed, this story artfully examines the largest possible considerations—life, love, and death—with sensitivity, intelligence, honesty, and integrity. In the process, Green shows his readers what it is like to live with cancer, sometimes no more than a breath or a heartbeat away from death. But it is life that Green spiritedly celebrates here, even while acknowledging its pain. In its every aspect, this novel is a triumph….” — Cart, Michael.  AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2012.

“A Monster Calls” by Patrick Ness – “…As Conor watches his mother succumb to cancer, he is pummeled by grief, anger, isolation, helplessness, and something even darker. At night, when he isn’t trapped in a recurring nightmare too terrible to think about, he is visited by a very real monster in the form of a giant yew tree. The monster tells Conor three ambiguous, confusing stories, then demands a final one from the boy, one that ‘will tell me your truth.’ Meanwhile, Conor’s mom tears through ineffective treatments, and Conor simmers with rage: ‘Everybody always wants to have a talk lately.’ But all that really happens is a lot of pussyfooting around the central, horrible fact that his mother is dying, and what does the monster mean about ‘the truth’ anyway? A story with such moribund inevitability could easily become a one-note affair–or, worse, forgettable–but small, surgically precise cuts of humor and eeriness provide a crucial magnifying effect. Moreover, Ness twists out a resolution that is revelatory in its obviousness, beautiful in its execution, and fearless in its honesty. Kay’s artwork keeps the pace, gnawing at the edges of the pages with thundercloud shadows and keeping the monster just barely, terribly seeable. Sidestepping any trace of emotional blackmail, Ness shines Dowd’s glimmer into the deepest, most hidden darkness of doubt, and finds a path through.” — Ian Chipman.  AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2011.

ADULT FICTION

“The All-Girl Filling Station’s Last Reunion” by Fannie Flagg – “Aging daughter of the South Sookie Simmons Poole has trudged along cheerfully through life under the shadow of her overbearing mother, Lenore. Faced with empty-nest syndrome, Sookie knows she won’t be too bored, since Lenore lives right next door and still has her mail delivered to Sookie’s house. When a mysterious letter arrives, Sookie questions everything she ever knew about her family, and her story soon dovetails with that of a proud Polish family from Wisconsin. The Jurdabralinskis’ gas station was nearly shuttered when all the area men joined up during WWII, but the family’s four girls bravely stepped up. Eldest daughter Fritzi was already a great mechanic, having been a professional stunt plane pilot in the 1930s. When Fritzi joins the WASPS, an elite but downplayed female branch of the U.S. Air Force, the story really comes to life. ” — Rebecca Vnuk, AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2013.

“Atlas Shrugged” by Ayn Rand – “Atlas Shrugged is the astounding story of a man who said that he would stop the motor of the world–and did. Tremendous in scope, breathtaking in its suspense, Atlas Shrugged stretches the boundaries further than any book you have ever read. It is a mystery, not about the murder of a man’s body, but about the murder–and rebirth–of man’s spirit. ” — Amazon

“The Circle” by Dave Eggers – “Most of us imagine totalitarianism as something imposed upon us–but what if we’re complicit in our own oppression? That’s the scenario in Eggers’ ambitious, terrifying, and eerily plausible new novel. When Mae gets a job at the Circle, a Bay Area tech company that’s cornered the world market on social media and e-commerce, she’s elated, and not just because of the platinum health-care package. The gleaming campus is a wonder, and it seems as though there isn’t anything the company can’t do (and won’t try). But she soon learns that participation in social media is mandatory, not voluntary, and that could soon apply to the general population as well. For a monopoly, it’s a short step from sharing to surveillance, to a world without privacy. This isn’t a perfect book–the good guys lecture true-believer Mae, and a key metaphor is laboriously explained–but it’s brave and important and will draw comparisons to Brave New World and 1984. Eggers brilliantly depicts the Internet binges, torrents of information, and endless loops of feedback that increasingly characterize modern life. But perhaps most chilling of all is his notion that our ultimate undoing could be something so petty as our desperate desire for affirmation.” — Kier Graff,  AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2013.

“Doctor Sleep; A Novel” by Stephen King – “Iconic horror author King (Joyland) picks up the narrative threads of The Shining many years on. Young psychic Danny Torrance has become a middle-aged alcoholic (he now goes by “Dan”), bearing his powers and his guilt as equal burdens. A lucky break gets him a job in a hospice in a small New England town. Using his abilities to ease the passing of the terminally ill, he remains blissfully unaware of the actions of the True Knot, a caravan of human parasites crisscrossing the map in their RVs as they search for children with “the shining” (psychic abilities of the kind that Dan possesses), upon whom they feed. When a girl named Abra Stone is born with powers that dwarf Dan’s, she attracts the attention of the True Knot’s leader–the predatory Rose the Hat. Dan is forced to help Abra confront the Knot, and face his own lingering demons.” — Chuck Verrill, PUBLISHERS WEEKLY, c2013.

“The Gods of Guilt” by Michael Connelly – “Haller is contacted by a suspect in the murder of a prostitute Haller previously aided and thought had left the profession.The accused is a computer expert who worked with the victim in an online business. After deciding to take the case, Haller and his staff investigate and quickly discover a possible alternative motive for the prostitute’s death. As a result, Haller is forced to revisit past cases to find a way to defend his client. ” – Joel Tscherne, LIBRARY JOURNAL, c2013.

“The Goldfinch” by Donna Tartt – “Cataclysmic loss and rupture with criminal intent visited upon the young have been Tartt’s epic subjects…… In the wake of his nefarious father’s abandonment, Theo, a smart, 13-year-old Manhattanite, is extremely close to his vivacious mother–until an act of terrorism catapults him into a dizzying world bereft of gravity, certainty, or love. Tartt writes from Theo’s point of view with fierce exactitude and magnetic emotion as, stricken with grief and post-traumatic stress syndrome, he seeks sanctuary with a troubled Park Avenue family and, in Greenwich Village, with a kind and gifted restorer of antique furniture. Fate then delivers Theo to utterly alien Las Vegas, where he meets young outlaw Boris. As Theo becomes a complexly damaged adult, Tartt, in a boa constrictor-like plot, pulls him deeply into the shadow lands of art, lashed to seventeenth-century Dutch artist Carel Fabritius and his exquisite if sinister painting, The Goldfinch. Drenched in sensory detail, infused with Theo’s churning thoughts and feelings, sparked by nimble dialogue, and propelled by escalating cosmic angst and thriller action, Tartt’s trenchant, defiant, engrossing, and rocketing novel conducts a grand inquiry into the mystery and sorrow of survival, beauty and obsession, and the promise of art.” — Donna Seaman,  AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2013.

“Gone” by James Patterson and Michael Ledwidge – “Detective Michael Bennett is the only US official ever to succeed in putting  Perrine (a charismatic and ruthless Mexican strongman) behind bars – but now Perrine is out, vowing to find and kill Bennett and everyone dear to him.

Bennett and his ten adopted children are living on a secluded California farm, guarded by the FBI’s witness protection program. Perrine begins a campaign of assassinations, brazenly murdering powerful individuals across the country. The FBI has no clue where Perrine is hiding or how he is orchestrating his attacks. It is forced to ask Bennett to risk it all – his career, his family, his own life – to fight Perrine’s war on America.” — inside front cover

“The Longest Ride” by Nicholas Sparks – “After a car crash, 91-year-old Ira Levinson manages to survive because he imagines that he sees Ruth, the beloved wife he lost nine years earlier, sitting next to him and chatting about the life they shared. Meanwhile, Wake Forest College senior Sophia Danko is recovering from a broken heart when she meets a cowboy named Luke who promises to turn her life around (but what about that secret in his past?). Of course, the stories of these two disparate couples eventually intersect. A classic Sparks tearjerker.” — LIBRARY JOURNAL, c2013.

“The Lowland” by Jhumpa Lahiri – “Pulitzer Prize winner Lahiri’s (The Interpreter of Maladies) unparalleled ability to transform the smallest moments into whole lives pinnacles in this extraordinary story of two brothers–so close that one is “the other side” of the other–coming of age in the political tumult of 1960s India. They are separated as adults, with Subhash, the elder, choosing an academic career in the United States and the more daring Udayan remaining in Calcutta, committed to correcting the inequities of his country. Udayan’s political participation will haunt four generations, from his parents, who renounce the future, to his wife and his brother, who attempt to protect it, to the daughter and granddaughter who will never know him. ” — Terry Hong, LIBRARY JOURNAL, c2013.

“No Place for a Dame” by Connie Brockway – “In 1819, the Royal Astrological Society is definitely “no place for a dame,” but solitary astronomer Avery Quinn has discovered a new comet and will do anything to see her discovery recognized, even coerce the scandal-plagued son of her late mentor into helping her. His plan, however, is not what she anticipates–and neither are the stunningly successful but hilarious results. A brilliant heroine, far too well educated for her sex and her working-class birth, and a jaded, infamous nobleman foil multiple obstacles and end up as unlikely soul mates in a passionate love match he never saw coming. ” —  Kristin Ramsdell.  LIBRARY JOURNAL, c2013.

“The Prayer Box” by Lisa Wingate – “Journeys begin with one single step, as Tandi Reese discovers in Wingate’s masterful exploration of the road to redemption. Tandi is a single mother of two children with a checkered history. Flight from her adult past leads her to North Carolina’s Hatteras Island, a place where she’d found comfort during her tumultuous childhood, to a cottage owned by Iola Anne Poole, an older resident and sometime town pariah. When Iola dies, Tandi is charged with clearing the older woman’s large house–and in doing so comes across spiritual treasures beyond compare. At times both sweet and sad, soul-warming and heartbreaking, the accessible writing style and attention to detail serve to enrobe readers in the love poured into weaving together the lives of Iola and Tandi in a meaningful, rich way. Relatable characters and vivid portrayals of events both current and historical create an enchanting, memorable pilgrimage into the fullness of faith and love.” — Claudia Cross, PUBLISHERS WEEKLY, c2013.

“Queen’s Gambit” by Elizabeth Fremantle – “Intrigue, romance, and treachery abound in Fremantle’s debut novel as Katherine Parr, the sixth wife of Henry VIII, walks a fine line between passion and loyalty. Married to an aging king with a penchant for discarding wives, she must learn to navigate the often perilous intricacies, suspicions, and ambitions of a divided Tudor court. Though passionately in love with dashing courtier Thomas Seymour, Katherine shrewdly adapts to her new role, becoming a positive influence on Henry while arousing the ire of many of his advisors. Often fraught with danger, her ultimately successful balancing act earns her the title of “the one who survived.” —  Margaret Flanagan,  AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2013.

“Reckless Love” by Elizabeth Lowell – “After 13-year-old Janna Wayland’s father dies, leaving her alone in the brutal western wilderness, the herds of wild mustangs become her only companions. With her bright mind and expert survival skills, Janna manages to avoid the wandering bands of rogue Utes for six years. Ty MacKenzie, out to capture Lucifer, a legendary stallion, hasn’t been so lucky. Forced to run a gauntlet of misery as the captive of El Cascabel, a murderous renegade, Ty barely escapes with his life. Someone rescues Ty, gets him to safety, and tends to his wounds. Little does he know that the brave boy who saved him is actually a courageous woman, our Janna. Lowell is an exceptional writer, and her colorful tale of romance, danger, adventure, and mistaken identity, all set against the stunning background of the American West, will satisfy her longtime fans as well as entice a whole new readership.” — Shelley Mosley, AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2013.

“Red Sky Blue Moon” by Bruce Golden – “Bruce Golden’s gonzo police procedural of the future mixes aliens, sex and murder into a hard-punching satirical adventure that inserts its stilettos of critical wit so stealthily that you’ll die laughing.” — Paul Di Filippo/Hugo & Nebula Finalist, Back cover

“S.” by Jeffrey Abrams and Doug Dorst – “Fans of Abrams’s TV series Lost will delight in this multilayered and complex novel, coauthored with Dorst (Alive in Necropolis), which comes in a highly unusual package. A sealed slipcase holds a “library copy” of V.M. Straka’s 1949 book, Ship of Theseus, a title that calls to mind Plutarch’s famous paradox, which asks whether a ship that has had all its parts replaced is really the same ship. Virtually every artificially browned page in the book contains the marginal notes of students Jen and Eric, who share details of their lives and remark on the text (the notes are in different colors, allowing readers to distinguish between the authors). Their annotations and questions punctuate Straka’s story of a man known only as S., who’s been shanghaied and has lost his memory; footnotes lead the reader down more and more rabbit holes, as do multiple loose inserts such as photos, memos, postcards, and letters. For those in our online age able to accept the notion of a chat carried out by handwritten exchanges in a printed book, the Talmudic commentary will fascinate, even as clues are dropped early on that the resolution may be ambiguous. This is a must-read for literary puzzle fans…” —  Jay Mandel, PUBLISHERS WEEKLY, c2013.

“Someone” by Alice McDermott – “”Who is going to love me?” Marie asks her older brother, Gabe, after her heart is broken. “Someone,” he replies. How humble this pronoun is, and what a provocative title it makes. Readers who love refined, unhurried, emotionally fluent fiction will rejoice at National Book Award-winner McDermott’s return. McDermott (After This, 2006) is a master of hidden intensities, intricate textures, spiked dialogue, and sparkling wit. We first meet Marie at age seven, when she’s sitting on the stoop in her tight-knit, Irish-Catholic Brooklyn neighborhood, waiting for her father to come home from work. Down the street, boys play stickball, consulting with dapper Billy, their blind umpire, an injured WWI vet. Tragedies and scandals surge through the enclave, providing rough initiations into sex and death. Gabe becomes a priest. Marie works at a funeral home as a “consoling angel,” acquiring cryptic clues to the mysteries of life via teatime gossip sessions with the director’s wise mother and a circle of wryly knowing nuns. Eventually Marie finds joy as a wife and mother, while Gabe struggles with his faith and sexuality. A marvel of subtle modulations, McDermott’s keenly observed, fluently humane, quietly enthralling novel of conformity and selfhood, of “lace-curtain pretensions” as shield and camouflage, celebrates family, community, and “the grace of a shared past.”– Donna Seaman, AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2013.

“The Strangled Queen” by Maurice Druon – “Philip IV is dead and his great kingdom is in disarray. It seems the fatal curse of the Templars is plaguing the royal house of France.

His son has been enthroned as Louis X; but with his disgraced wife Marguerite imprisoned in the Chateau Gaillard for her adultery, Louis can produce no heir with which to secure the succession. But neither can he marry again while she lives….

The web of scandal, murder and intrigue that once wove itself around the court of the Iron King continues to draw in his descendents, as the destruction of his dynasty continues apace.” – back cover

“We Are Water” by Wally Lamb – “You can’t get much more affecting than two-time Oprah pick author Lamb, and here he nicely nails the zeitgeist with the story of outsider artist Anna Oh, a long married and the mother of three, who leaves her husband to marry her polished Manhattan art dealer, Vivica. With the approach of the wedding-set in Connecticut, where same-sex marriage has just been legalized-painful family issues boil to the surface. Anna, former husband Orion, and the children tell the story in alternating voices.” — LIBRARY JOURNAL, c2013.

“When the Marquess Met His Match: An American Heiress in London” by Laura Lee Guhrke – “A matchmaker finds love in When the Marquess Met His Match by Laura Lee Guhrke. American by birth, Lady Belinda Featherstone is aristocratic London’s best marriage broker. As a young widow, she makes a living by guiding other American heiresses to advantageous marriages. It’s a big surprise when Nicholas, Marquess of Trubridge, who has a reputation for running through money–and women–calls on her. Thirty-year-old Nicholas is desperate to find a rich wife to help end his financial woes. Belinda longs to turn the sexy, arrogant man away, but when a young family friend shows interest in the Marquess, she decides to save the youngster heartache by agreeing to find a suitable wife for Nicholas. Soon, however, the only woman Belinda wants to see in his arms is herself. Nicholas is equally attracted, but Belinda is not the super-wealthy wife he imagined–so a happily-ever-after appears elusive. A delicious, sensual read about two good people rediscovering themselves and their belief in love.” —  BOOKPAGE, c2013.

“The Whole Golden World” by Kristina Riggle – “Riggle’s latest…. follows high school senior Morgan Monetti’s affair with her married calculus teacher, T.J. Hill, and how it impacts several lives in the small town of Arbor Valley, Mich. Raised by emotionally absent high school principal Joe and his overbearing wife, Dinah (whose control issues stem from living with the fear of losing her now teenage special-needs twins), 17-year-old Morgan has always been treated as though she were older than she actually is. Feeling stifled by the idea of having to spend her college years near her family and hurt by being recently rejected by both her ex-boyfriend and a crush who turns out to be gay, Morgan begins confiding in her young, popular math teacher, whose insecurities have been exacerbated by his inability to conceive with his wife. Riggle shows how the inner turmoil of her characters eventually creates the situation at the heart of this novel. Dinah remains likable, despite frequently making excuses for her kids and always being ready for a fight. Though the author falters with the character of T.J., who comes off as a flat antagonist, the novel remains an entertaining read.” —  PUBLISHERS WEEKLY, c2013.

MYSTERY

“Bones of the Lost” by Kathy Reichs – “Bestseller Reichs draws on her experiences touring with the USO in Afghanistan for her captivating 16th novel featuring forensic anthropologist Temperance Brennan (after 2012’s Bones Are Forever). At home in Charlotte, N.C., the bone expert concludes that the death of an unidentified girl, 14 or 15 years old, was caused by foul play rather than a hit-and-run, as was previously suspected. The outraged Brennan urges homicide detective Erskine “Skinny” Slidell to investigate, knowing Slidell believes the girl to have been an undocumented immigrant, as well as possibly being a junkie and prostitute. Later in Afghanistan, Brennan oversees the exhumation of two unarmed Afghan villagers killed by a U.S. Marine to determine whether the victims were shot in the back or head-on. The two cases–and a third involving mummified dogs from Peru–give Reichs ample opportunity to provide detailed descriptions of forensic examinations, but it’s Brennan’s passionate and personal involvement that provides the excitement in this masterful tale.” — Jennifer Rudolph Walsh,  PUBLISHERS WEEKLY, c2013.

“The Countertenor Wore Garlic: A Liturgical Mystery” by Mark Schweizer – “Vicar Fearghus McTavish is a Calvinist Anglican priest with Scottish Presbyterian leanings–not exactly the perfect interim priest for St. Barnabas. So when the church participates in the town Halloween carnival, it’s only a matter of time before something goes terribly wrong. Suddenly there’s a dead body, and Hayden Konig has his hands full with a Congregational Enlivener, the Zombies of Easter Walk, and a town packed with adolescent vampires. “Hey,” says Hayden, “what’s the worst that can happen….?” — back cover

” Dust” by Patricia Cornwell – “…Scarpetta has reason to be jaded: She’s just returned from Connecticut, where she conducted 27 autopsies, “most of them children, and when I pulled off my bloody scrubs and stepped into the shower I refused to think about what I’d just done.” Teamed with a much more excitable Cambridge cop, she’s scarcely back home in Boston when she’s called to examine a corpse that’s turned up “out in the mud at one end of the athletic fields, what’s called Briggs Field,” as Cornwell curiously puts it. And not just any corpse, of course: The victim was a computer whiz who just happened to be involved in a complex lawsuit involving heaps of money and, as it develops, some shadowy connections to the federal government. Scarpetta’s husband, an FBI profiler, plays a more significant role in the tale than in other Cornwell whodunits precisely due to that Washington connection, but it takes a good while for Scarpetta to piece the puzzle together, with a parade of potential bad guys to choose from, including a rich dude who you know, just know, has to be bad because he owns “a shaving set made of mammoth ivory.” The red herrings and MacGuffins are standard mystery fare, complicated by Cornwell’s deep appreciation for the work of medical examiners in even the relatively simple matter of distinguishing a murder from a suicide, to say nothing of deciding who did the foul deed. The takeaway? “People still suck.” Yes, they do, and they do very bad things to each other. Stay tuned.” — KIRKUS MEDIA LLC, c2013.

“The Golden Egg” by Donna Leon – “Commissario Guido Brunetti, out of a sense of guilt and at the urging of his compassionate wife, investigates the suspicious death of a disabled man, Davide Cavanella, in Leon’s intriguing 22nd mystery featuring the crafty Venetian police inspector…. Davide’s mother is unwilling to discuss his death. Worse, there’s no official evidence of Davide’s existence: he apparently was never born and never went to school, saw a doctor, or received a passport. The colorful locals are uncooperative. Brunetti’s understanding of the Venetian bureaucracy, which operates smoothly on bribery and familial connections, allows his subordinates to enlist the help of various aunts and cousins, as is neatly shown in a subplot involving the mayor and his son. Appreciative of feminine charms, the deeply uxorious Brunetti amply displays the keen intelligence and wry humor that has endeared this series to so many.” — PUBLISHERS WEEKLY, c2013.

“The Last Good Kiss” by James Crumley – “Tough, hard-boiled, and brilliantly suspenseful, The Last Good Kiss is an unforgettable detective story starring C. W. Sughrue, a Montana investigator who kills time by working at a topless bar. Hired to track down a derelict author, he ends up on the trail of a girl missing in Haight-Ashbury for a decade. The tense hunt becomes obsessive as Sughrue takes a haunting journey through the underbelly of America’s sleaziest nightmares.” — Amazon.com

“The Luminaries” by Eleanor Catton – “From the acclaimed author of ‘The Rehearsal’ comes a novel about a young woman on trial for murder in nineteenth-century New Zealand. On a blustery January day, a prostitute is arrested. In the midst of the 1866 gold rush on the coast of New Zealand, this might have gone unnoticed. But three notable events occur on that same day: a luckless drunk dies, a wealthy man vanishes, and a ship’s captain of ill repute cancels all of his business and weighs anchor, as if making an escape. Anna Wetherell, the prostitute in question, is connected to all three men. This sequence of apparently coincidental events provokes a secret council of powerful townsmen to investigate. But they are interrupted by the arrival of a stranger: young Walter Moody, who has a secret of his own…” — Publisher Annotations

“Lying with Strangers” by Jonnie Jacobs – “Young Chloe Henderson was raised in foster homes. Aged out of the system when she turned 18, she moved in with her abusive boyfriend, Trace Rodriguez, hoping to make a life for herself and the child that they are expecting. While they’re out for a Sunday drive, Trace stops at a convenience store in San Francisco’s rundown Bayview neighborhood. He tells Chloe to wait in the car, but she goes in and interrupts a robbery in progress. Trace kills a customer and the clerk. Although horrified, Chloe is afraid of losing Trace and agrees to help him escape, thereby becoming an accomplice to the crime. The customer, Alameda County Assistant District Attorney Roy Walker, leaves behind a wife, Diana, and a son. As the case progresses, Diana learns that Roy has kept some very dark secrets from her. Then, after her son accidently runs into Chloe on his bicycle, Chloe and Diana connect and discover that their lives are linked in unexpected ways. ” —  Bibel, Barbara. AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2013.

“Murder as a Second Language: A Claire Malloy Mystery” by Joan Hess – “In Hess’s winning 19th Claire Malloy mystery…, Claire’s daughter, Caron, and Caron’s best friend, Inez, sign on as ESL tutors so they can put community service on their college applications. Claire also tries to volunteer at the Farberville, Ark., Literacy Council, but she winds up instead joining the board of directors. One of the ESL students, elderly Ludmila Grabowski, is found dead in a council storage room, and it appears as though she fell and hit her head against a copying machine, but someone appears to have dragged her body into a corner to try to conceal it. Claire’s new husband, Deputy Chief Peter Rosen, actually asks for her help in what becomes a murder case–which is a good thing, since she’s going to snoop anyway. Claire discovers that her fellow board members had plenty to hide as she investigates with her usual humor and panache.” —  Dominick Abel, PUBLISHERS WEEKLY, c2013.

“Storm Front” By John Sandford – “The seventh Virgil Flowers mystery finds the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension agent handed (by his boss, and star of his own series, Lucas Davenport) a curious case. Seems a local college professor stole a valuable artifact from an Israeli archaeological dig, returned home to the States, and then promptly vanished; an Israeli investigator is on her way, determined to track the man down and reclaim the artifact. As it turns out, the case isn’t as straightforward as it appears: other people seem pretty interested in the artifact (as evidenced by the violent break-in at the professor’s house), and Virgil can’t keep himself from thinking the Israeli investigator isn’t telling him the whole story. Kudos to Sandford for taking what could have been an ancient-mystery thriller a la Dan Brown (all the ingredients are here, including a secret that could shake the very foundations of Christianity) and playing it like a cop novel….” —  David Pitt, AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2013.

“Sycamore Row” by John Grisham – “Leave it to Grisham to make a battle about wills nail-bitingly suspenseful in his second novel featuring lawyer Jake Brigance….. It’s 1988, and Seth Hubbard, an elderly man dying of cancer, hangs himself after leaving detailed instructions for his funeral–and a handwritten will, penned the day before, that disinherits his children and gives 90% of his estate to his African-American caretaker, Lettie Lang. Since that unwitnessed document contradicts an earlier one, and Hubbard’s assets are north of $20 million, Brigance, who was asked by Hubbard in a note to represent his interests, has a battle on his hands when the disinherited lawyer shows up. The storyline takes several dramatic turns, even as why Hubbard was so generous to Lang, whom he was not close to, remains a mystery.” — David Gernert,  PUBLISHERS WEEKLY, c2013.

“Three Can Keep a Secret: A Joe Gunther Novel” by Archer Mayor – “Hurricane Irene and its devastating aftermath provide the backdrop for Mayor’s enjoyable 24th Joe Gunther novel …. During the chaos of the storm, mental patient Carolyn Barber (aka the Governor) goes missing from the Vermont State Hospital. Shortly thereafter, a once-prominent politician is found dead in his retirement home under suspicious circumstances. Special agent Joe Gunther and his stalwart investigators at the Vermont Bureau of Investigation suspect a link between Barber’s disappearance and the politician’s death. Meanwhile, a coffin unearthed by the storm that’s filled with stones instead of a body leads to a double missing-persons case. Joe and his team will stop at nothing to find a resolution to the cases, even if it means uncovering secrets best left in the dark. While the two different cases could be confusing to readers, Mayor handles each adeptly and shrewdly, bringing them to separate and startling conclusions.” — Molly Friedrich, Publisher’s Weekly

BIOGRAPHY

“I Am Malala: The Girl Who Stood Up for Education and was Shot by the Taliban” by Malala Yousafzai – “I Am Malala is the remarkable tale of a family uprooted by global terrorism, of the fight for girls’ education, of a father who, himself a school owner, championed and encouraged his daughter to write and attend school, and of brave parents who have a fierce love for their daughter in a society that prizes sons.” — inside front cover

“Mud Season: How One Woman’s Dream of Moving to Vermont Raising Children, Chickens, and Sheep & Running the Old Country Store Pretty Much Led to One Calamity after Another” by Ellen Stimson – “Anyone who has ever dreamed of leaving the city and taking their lives back to nature (and who hasn’t?) will find much to contemplate in this warm and hilarious tale of rural misadventure and small-town quirk, even if they have never chased a goat in a bathing suit or called 911 because there were cows in the road. Stimson’s voice is endearing: both in in its self-deprecation and its rapture, as she sings an only slightly conflicted love song to Vermont.” — Pam Houston, author of Contents May Have Shifted

ADULT NON-FICTION

“Behind the Beautiful Forever: Life, Death and Hope in a Mumbai Undercity” by Katherine Boo – “While the distance between rich and poor is growing in the U.S., the gap between the haves and have-nots in India is staggering to behold. This first book by a New Yorker staff writer (and Pulitzer Prize–winning reporter for the Washington Post) jolts the reader’s consciousness with the opposing realities of poverty and wealth in a searing visit to the Annawaldi settlement, a flimflam slum that has recently sprung up in the western suburbs of the gigantic city of Mumbai, perched tentatively along the modern highway leading to the airport and almost within a stone’s throw of new, luxurious hotels. We first meet Abdul, whose daily grind is to collect trash and sell it; in doing so, he has “lifted his large family above subsistence.” Boo takes us all around the community, introducing us to a slew of disadvantaged individuals who, nevertheless, draw on their inner strength to not only face the dreary day but also ponder a day to come that will, perhaps, be a little brighter. ” — Brad Hooper.  AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2012.

“The Bully Pulpit: Theodore Roosevelt, William Howard Taft, and the Golden Age of Journalism” by Doris Kearns Goodwin – “…. The complex relationship and soured political camaraderie between Roosevelt and Taft is beautifully played out over the course of the book in quotes and letters. When they angrily part ways it has ramifications for them and the country, eventually leading to Woodrow Wilson’s election. Though the book is primarily concerned with the intervening private lives of two politicians, a prominent second narrative emerges as Goodwin links both presidents’ fortunes to the rise of ‘muckraking’ journalism, specifically the magazine McClure’s and its influence over political and social discussion. Women figure largely in both narratives. In addition to journalist Ida Tarbell, both wives, Nellie Taft and Edith Roosevelt appear to have shaped history in their own ways. By shining a light on a little-discussed President and a much-discussed one, Goodwin manages to make history very much alive and relevant. Better yet–the party politics are explicitly modern.” —  Amanda “Binky” Urban,  PUBLISHERS WEEKLY, c2013.

“The Creative Family: How to Encourage Imagination and Nurture Family Connections” by Amanda Blake Soule – “When you learn to awaken your family’s creativity, wonderful things will happen: you’ll make meaningful connections with your children in large and small ways; your children will more often engage in their own creative discoveries; and your family will embrace new ways to relax, play, and grow together. With just the simple tools around you—your imagination, basic art supplies, household objects, and natural materials—you can transform your family life, and have so much more fun!” – inside front cover

“Double Down: Game Change 2012” by Mark Halperin and John Heilemann – “A fascinating account…Heilemann and Halperin serve up a spicy smorgasbord of observations, revelations, and allegations…The authors mix savvy political analysis in these pages with detailed reconstructions of scenes and conversations….Game Change leaves the reader with a vivid, visceral sense of the campaign and a keen understanding of the paradoxes and contingencies of history.” — Michiko Kakutani, The New York Times

“Flying Blind: One Man’s Adventures Battling Buckthorn, Making Peace with Authority, and Creating a Home for Endangered Bats” by Don Mitchell – “Don Mitchell has written a classic story of Vermont, of family, of farming and of the evolving, never romantic, always crucial story of the encounter between people and the larger world.” — Bill McKibben, author of Oil and Honey

“The Korean War: An International History” by Wada Haruki – “Wada Huruki, the doyen of international history in Japan, presents an engrossing new take on the Korean War, based on his reading of Korean, Russian, and Chinese as well as U.S. and Japanese sources. Wada’s book is an outstanding addition to the literature on the war and a useful corrective to the many accounts that focus primarily on the American role.” — O. A. Westad, editor, The Cambridge History of the Cold War

“Lawrence in Arabia: War, Deceit, Imperial Folly and the Making of the Modern Middle East” by Scott Anderson – “To historians, the real T. E. Lawrence is as fascinating as the cinematic version in Lawrence of Arabia is to movie fans. The many reasons interlock and tighten author Anderson’s narrative, yielding a work that can absorb scholarly and popular interest like. Start with Lawrence’s WWI memoir, Seven Pillars of Wisdom (1922). A rare-book collectible, it inspired many of the scenes in David Lean’s film and is also subject to cross-referencing interpretations of Lawrence’s veracity. For lyrical though Lawrence could be about Arab leaders and desert landscapes, he could also be enigmatically opaque about the truth of his role in events. Accordingly, Anderson embeds Lawrence and Seven Pillars in the wider context of the Arab revolt against Turkey, and that context is the British, French, German, and American diplomacy and espionage intended to influence the postwar disposition of the territories of the Ottoman Empire. Lawrence was Britain’s agent in this game, and the other powers’ agents, although none enjoy his historical celebrity, assume prominence in Anderson’s presentation. Its thorough research clothed in smoothly written prose, Anderson’s history strikes a perfect balance between scope and detail about a remarkable and mysterious character.”  –Gilbert Taylor, BOOKLIST

“Ski Pioneers of Stowe, Vermont: The First Twenty-Five Years” by Patricia L. Haslam, Charlie Lord and Sepp Ruschp – “The history of the development of the ski industry on Mt. Mansfield in Stowe, VT, the Ski Capitol of the East. Details and anecdotes of the process are told by two of the major players, Sepp Ruschp and Charlie Lord, (in their own words). Each trail, each building and each lift are chronicled. Through these documents donated to the Stowe Historical Society, we learn how trails were cut by hand, men were carried by horse and wagon, buildings (dorms, ski huts, camps, shelters, etc.) were erected as the needs became obvious and how Austrian, Scandinavian, and local natives carved a place in the style of skiing and ski instruction in Stowe, and how safety on the mountain drove the development of the first ski patrol. This is a very compelling story of passion, creativity, engineering, employing state and federal programs available at the time and hard work by a lot of people who came to work and settle in Stowe. There are 35 mini biographies of people who were there. Each are fascinating, educational, and entertaining.” — Amazon.com

“Thank You for Your Service” by David Finkel – “Head of the Washington Post’s national reporting team and both a Pulitzer Prize winner and a MacArthur Fellow, Finkel did an extraordinary job of explaining the Iraq War to us in The Good Soldiers, a best seller that followed the men of the 2-16 Infantry Battalion as they slogged through 15 months of the thunderous surge. Now he brings the war home, following many of the same men as they try to figure out how to engage again with both family and society, as if nothing had happened-and generally without the thanks so ironically cited in the title. One hopes that Finkel can wake us up to what we’ve done with a war we’ve kept at arm’s length.” —   LIBRARY JOURNAL, c2013.

“Zealot: The Life and Times of Jesus of Nazareth” by Reza Aslan – “In Zealot, Reza Aslan doesn’t just synthesize research and reimagine a lost world, though he does those things very well. He does for religious history what Bertolt Brecht did for playwriting. Aslan rips Jesus out of all the contexts we thought he belonged in and holds him forth as someone entirely new. This is Jesus as a passionate Jew, a violent revolutionary, a fanatical ideologue, an odd and scary and extraordinarily interesting man.” — judith Shulevitz, author of The Sabbath World

DVD

“2 Guns”
“Before Midnight”
“Bully”
“The Conjuring”
“The Croods”
“Despicable Me 2”
“Dexter The Third Season”
“Epic”
“Frankenweenie”
“Gettysburg and the Civil War”
“The Heat”
“How to Survive a Plague”
“JFK 50 Year Commemorative Collection”
“Man of Steel”
“Marvel’s Avenger”
“The Little Mermaid”
“Monsters University”
“Pitch Perfect”
“The Place Beyond the Pines”
“Turbo”
“Undefeated”

 MUSIC

“Fifty Shades of Grey: The Classical Album” by E. L. James

BOARD BOOK

“Elmo at the Zoo” by Lori Froeb
“Giraffes Can’t Dance” by Giles Andreae & Guy Parker-Rees

PICTURE BOOK

“Alfie Gets in First” by Shirley Hughes
“The Apple and  the Butterfly” by Iela and Enzo Mari
“Babar the King” by Jean De Brunhoff
“Battle Bunny” by Jon Scieszka and Mac Barnett
“Bats at the Ballgame” by Brian Lies
“Brush of Gods” by Lenore Look
“City Dog, Country Frog” by Mo Willems
“Click, Clack, Boo! A Tricky Treat” by Doreen Cronin and Betsy Lewin
“Count the Monkeys” by Mac Barnett and Kevin Cornell
“Dino-Baseball” by Lisa Wheeler
“How Big Could Your Pumpkin Grow” by Wendell Minor
“How to Count the Monkeys” by Mac Barnett and Kevin Cornell
“The Day the Crayons Quit” by Drew Daywalt
“Sesame Street: Elmo at the Zoo” by Lori Froeb
“Eloise: A Book for Precocious Grown-Ups” by Kay Thompson
“Five Little Monkeys Play Hide-and-Seek” by Eileen Christelow
“Flight of the Honey Bee” by Raymond Huber
“Herman and Rosie” by Gus Gordon
“Here I Am” by Patti Kim
“How to Hide a Lion” By Helen Stephens
“How to Train a Train” by Jason Carter Eaton
“I’m a Frog” by Mo Willems
“Koala Lou” by Mem Fox
“The Keeping Quilt” by Patricia Polacco
“Marc Brown’s Playtime Rhymes: A Treasury for Families to Learn and Play Together” by Marc Brown
“Old Mother Bear” by Victoria Miles
“Mr. Tiger Goes Wild” by Peter Brown
“Rain!” by Linda Ashman
“Richard Scarry’s Best Word Book Ever” by Richard Scarry
“Sing” by Joe Raposo
“Sophie’s Squash” by Pat Zietlow Miller & Anne Wilsdorf
“Tea Party Rules” by Ame Dyckman
“The Tortoise and the Hare” by Jerry Pinkney
“Unicorn Thinks He’s Pretty Great” by Bob Shea
“The Very Inappropriate Word” by Jim Tobin
“Year of the Jungle: Memories From the Home Front” by Suzanne Collins

JUVENILE FICTION

“Chickadee” by Louise Erdrich – “In this fourth installment, eight-year-old Chickadee’s abduction from the Ojibwe camp in the deep woods initiates a string of gripping adventures for the boy and a change to his family’s way of life. Every detail anticipates readers’ interest; they’ll absorb the history lesson almost by osmosis. Chickadee is a most sympathetic character–small in stature but big in heart. A map is appended.” —  THE HORN BOOK, c2013

“Lighthouse Family. The Storm” by Cynthia Rylant – “Pandora the cat is a lighthouse keeper, a lonely avocation until Seabold the dog is washed up on shore during a terrible winter storm. She rescues and nurses him back to health, and he is content to remain for a long winter’s respite from his travels in the no-longer lonely lighthouse. ‘Pandora and Seabold told each other stories of their lives and things they had read or seen and what they liked most in the world, or least.’ Through spring and summer, the two friends share a life, and ‘Everything at the lighthouse is different.’ But as September approaches, Seabold readies his boat to return to the sea, and ‘Pandora felt a small emptiness in her heart.’ One early fall day, a fierce storm blows in, and with it comes a small, strange vessel. Seabold rescues its occupants, three tiny orphan mice, and Pandora nurses them back to health. They join the dog and cat at the lighthouse, ‘And after that day, everything was changed. The lighthouse had a family.’… The Storm will captivate young chapter-book readers.” –Dona Ratterree, CAHNERS PUBLISHING, c2002.

“The Mystery of Meerkat Hill” by Alexander McCall Smith – “Young Precious Ramotswe hones her detective skills with some new friends. Pontsho and Teb are new in school, and Precious hopes to be their friend. By asking just a few careful questions, Precious finds out a lot. She learns that the children are poor and that their father had been killed by lightning. Precious is sensitive and empathetic, and soon the three–and the siblings’ pet meerkat, Kosi–are fast friends. Kosi is endlessly fascinating and very talented, Precious learns. It takes her keen observational skills and the natural talents of the meerkat to save Pontsho and Teb’s family from disaster. Fast-paced action is interspersed with family stories, making this an especially winning story for very young readers. Occasional direct address to readers harkens back to an earlier storytelling style. Stunning black-and-white illustrations, reminiscent of woodcuts and etchings, grace most spreads, adding an old-fashioned feel to the story. The map of Africa (with Botswana highlighted) on the first page provides welcome information. Precious is sensitive and grounded, open and understanding–perfect qualities for the detective she is destined to be. The mystery is easily solved, but it still requires that readers pay attention to the clues left along the way. Subtly dealing with social issues of poverty, Precious’ second outing as a youngster charms.”  KIRKUS MEDIA LLC, c2013.

“Sure Signs of Crazy” by Karen Harrington – …Harrington cuts right to the heart of her narrator’s grim situation: “You’ve never met anyone like me. Unless, of course, you’ve met someone who survived her mother trying to drown her and now lives with an alcoholic father.” Sarah Nelson was 2 when that happened; now she is turning 12 in a small Texas town and “looking for any signs of going crazy.” Don’t think this will be a hard sell to readers, though, for Harrington has created a protagonist who is, in her own way, as clear-eyed, tough-minded, and inspiring as any dystopian hero. Sarah faces down threats from all sides: “The more information I gather, the better I can defend myself against the world, against the brain inside me that may or may not be like hers.” And even as her father repeatedly fails her (as when he drank and slept through her birthday), Sarah finds allies and role models, from an English teacher to a home-from-college neighbor to Atticus Finch, who shows Sarah how to be a caring human being. Harrington doesn’t leave out humor–she has fun with Sarah’s romantic illusions–but makes it clear that it’s Sarah’s courage and urge to communicate that will push her beyond her traumatic childhood.” —  Abby Nolan, AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2013

“Words with Wings” by Nikki Grimes – “Ages 8-12. Through 70+ poems, Grimes introduces readers to Gabriella, a city girl who’s prone to daydreaming, frustrating her mother and alienating Gabby from her classmates. Several poems bring readers directly into Gabby’s daydreams, as she explains how a single word can set her mind whirling: “Say ‘concert,’/ and I’m somewhere/ in the past,/ sprawled out on the grass/ in Central Park,/ my head cozy/ in Mom’s lap,/ her head cozy/ on Dad’s shoulder.” Grimes packs substantial emotional heft into her poems, especially the way that Gabby’s parents’ separation weighs on her. Eventually, the right teacher and the right friend provide the support and encouragement Gaby needs, and even her mother’s attitude softens. Although Grimes hits the “importance of dreaming” theme a bit hard, her poems lovingly convey the rich inner life (and turmoil) of a girl in the process of finding her voice.” — Elizabeth Harding, PUBLISHERS WEEKLY, c2013.

JUVENILE BIOGRAPHY

“When the Beat Was Born: DJ Kool Herc and the Creation of Hip Hop” by Laban Carrick Hill – “As a child in Jamaica, Clive Campbell aspired to be a DJ. At 13, he moved to the Bronx, where he gained the nickname Hercules because he grew to be more than six feet tall. He shortened the name to Herc, added Kool, and is credited as a pioneer of hip hop. He created a new art form for his parties when he plugged in two turntables to create longer breaks for dancing and began chanting the names of his friends during the breaks. Hill’s descriptive writing is paired with Taylor’s vibrant artwork, which features large crowds dancing, close-up shots of breakdancing, or Herc’s hands masterfully spinning the dual turntables.” — Glynis Jean Wray,  SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL, c2013.

JUVENILE NON-FICTION

“The Animal Book: A Collection of the Fastest, Fiercest, Toughest, Cleverest, Shyest — and Most Surprising — Animals on Earth” by Steve Jenkins – “Jenkins compiles more than 300 animals, using a loosely encyclopedic format with sections covering topics like “Animal Extremes,” “Predators,” and “Animal Senses.” Jenkins’s always skillful use of cut- and torn-paper animal artwork appears throughout (several images comes from his earlier books), while factually detailed captions describe each subject, resulting in a vibrant juxtaposition of science and art. Fascinating creatures and characteristics abound: “Most deep-sea creatures cannot see red light. But the spotlight loosejaw can detect it, and it is the bizarre fish’s secret weapon.” A colossal squid’s eye (shown actual size) fills an entire spread, and Jenkins closes out the book with sections on the history of life on earth, additional animal facts, and a discussion of how he goes about creating books. In showcasing the riches and peculiarities of the natural world, Jenkins offers plenty to seize (and satisfy) readers’ curiosities.” —  PUBLISHERS WEEKLY, c2013.

“The Case of the Vanishing Honeybees” by Sandra Markle – “this attractive volume explores the world of honeybees and the mysterious malady that threatens them. After an opening in which a beekeeper discovers that most of the bees in his 400 hives are gone due to colony collapse disorder (CCD), the book describes how healthy honeybees pollinate flowering plants, gather nectar, and raise their young. The next section, which explains bee development, is particularly vivid and informative. Finally, Markle discusses the many possible causes of CCD, such as mites, fungi, pesticides, and the stressful conditions (overwork and poor diets) sometimes endured by bees in commercial hives. She also comments on the work of researchers exploring likely sources of the problem. Throughout the book, excellent color photos illustrate the text. … Markle’s latest makes a good deal of information accessible to a somewhat younger audience.” — Carolyn Phelan, AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2013.

“Castle: How It Works” by David Macaulay – “As the narrative begins, a castle stands on a hill, while would-be attackers skulk on another hill in the foreground. Short sentences offer plenty of intriguing information about the castle, its inhabitants, and their many means of defense. Readers are occasionally addressed informally, “Are you friend or foe?” Pretty soon, the attackers make their move. Despite their alarming weapons (battering rams, catapults), it’s clear that in the end, the defenders will prevail. The format is slightly larger than a typical book for beginning readers, giving a bit more scope for the illustrations: strong line drawings with color washes. The use of different perspectives and cross sections is particularly fine.” — Phelan, Carolyn. AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2012.

“Follow follow: A Book of Reverso Poems” by Marilyn Singer – “This companion to Mirror Mirror (2010) offers another fairytale-themed collection of free verse poems, each paired with its “reverso,” or the poem in reverse. For example, “The Little Mermaid’s Choice” begins “For love, / give up your voice. / Don’t / think twice,” and the accompanying reverso poem concludes with “Think twice! / Don’t / give up your voice / for love.” The punctuation often changes, as does the formatting, thereby offering up intriguing and inventive takes on each tale. Other reversos give varying perspectives, as in the case of “Ready, Steady, Go!,” which presents both the tortoise’s and the hare’s points of view. Beautifully rendered, richly hued illustrations artfully transition from depicting the first poem’s scenario to the second’s, and interweave fantastic and realistic details.” –Shelle Rosenfeld, AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2013.

“The Green Mother Goose: Saving the World One Rhyme at a Time” by Jan Peck and David Davis – “Classic nursery rhyme characters are recast in an eco- friendly platform. Yankee Doodle explores green transportation (‘Yankee Doodle went to school,/ A-riding in a carpool’), Old Mother Hubbard rethinks her buying habits when her dog rebuffs the junk food in her cupboard (‘She went to the market/ To buy only local./ Dog bounced and barked/ His approval was vocal’), and ‘Old King Coal’ has a change of heart: ‘Though he was a meanie,/ Now he is a greenie,/ And he works to keep our skies smoke-free.’ Matte collages incorporate newsprint, bottles, cans, and other recyclable materials. Peck and Davis deliver their missive with humor and a touch of snark, but the often self- righteous tone drains much of the fun.” – PUBLISHERS WEEKLY, c2011.

“A Seed is Sleepy” by Dianna Hutts Aston and Sylvia Long – “In this follow-up to ‘An Egg Is Quiet’ (2006), the creators offer another beautifully illustrated introduction to an aspect of the natural world. This time, the topic is seeds, and once again, Long’s masterful watercolors dominate each spread, which includes text on two levels. Short poetic phrases in large print, aimed at younger children, give seeds accessible, anthropomorphic qualities: ‘A seed is sleepy’; ‘A seed is adventurous.’ Paragraphs in smaller print, which tackle science concepts and expand on the phrases, are geared to older readers. The format, with little space devoted to text, doesn’t always allow for thorough explanations, and kids will need help with many facts and terms. But the elegant watercolor pictures, which include helpful charts depicting a seed’s growth into a plant, will pull children into the basic botany, while the pages filled with enticingly detailed seeds, both common and exotic, will encourage kids to wonder about the plant world’s mysterious, gorgeous spectrum of possibilities.” — Gillian Engberg.  AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2007.

“Miss Moore Thought Otherwise” by Jan Pinborough – “Pinborough introduces young readers to Anne Carroll Moore, the strong-willed woman whose vision of library services for children shaped the standards and practices of the New York Public Library (and the world) for more than a generation. Moore grew up reading and hearing stories in an era when children were not welcomed by public libraries; she later became a librarian (one of the few jobs open to unmarried women) and worked tirelessly to ensure that all children felt welcome at library programs and were able to check out books. The author treads lightly on legends of Moore’s formidable (and often forbidding) personality, playfully asserting that whenever Miss Moore “thought otherwise,” she got her way. Atwell’s cozy, folk-art-style paintings brim with period details and depict a multicultural clientele. Appended with an author’s note and sources, this makes an ideal addition to women’s history units. ” — Kay Weisman, AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2013.

“Your Skeleton is Showing: Rhymes of Blunder From Six Feet Under” by Kurt Cyrus – “A child helps a lost ghost dog in a graveyard “ventur[e] through the gloom / to try to find his master’s tomb.” As the twosome passes headstones, readers learn something about each grave-dweller’s demise (self-inflicted or accidental), the mourners they left behind, or the deceased’s afterlife. Black-and-white gothic-style illustrations, enhanced by pops of color and buoyed by characters’ cartoonish features, complement the dead-on pacing, tone, and content of these ghoulish yet funny rhyming poems. The dog reunites with its master while the child finds a new (living) canine companion in the spirited collection’s satisfying conclusion.” — Cynthia K. Ritter,  THE HORN BOOK, c2013.

YOUNG ADULT

” Anna and the French Kiss” by Stephanie Perkins – “Anna is not happy about spending senior year at a Paris boarding school, away from her Atlanta home, best friend Bridgette, and crush Toph. Adapting isn’t easy, but she soon finds friends and starts enjoying French life, especially its many cinemas; she is an aspiring film critic. Complications arise, though, when she develops feelings for cute–and taken–classmate Etienne, even though she remains interested in Toph. Her return home for the holidays brings both surprises, betrayals, unexpected support, and a new perspective on what matters in life–and love. Featuring vivid descriptions of Parisian culture and places, and a cast of diverse, multifaceted characters, including adults, this lively title incorporates plenty of issues that will resonate with teens, from mean girls to the quest for confidence and the complexities of relationships in all their forms.” — Shelle Rosenfeld. AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2010.

“Yummy: The Last Days of a Southside Shorty” by G. Neri – “In 1994, in the Roseland neighborhood of Chicago’s South Side, a 14- year-old girl named Shavon Dean was killed by a stray bullet during a gang shooting. Her killer, Robert ‘Yummy’ Sandifer, was 11 years old. Neri recounts Yummy’s three days on the run from police (and, eventually, his own gang) through the eyes of Roger, a fictional classmate of Yummy’s. Roger grapples with the unanswerable questions behind Yummy’s situation, with the whys and hows of a failed system, a crime-riddled neighborhood, and a neglected community. How could a smiling boy, who carried a teddy bear and got his nickname from his love of sweets, also be an arsonist, an extortionist, a murderer? Yet as Roger mulls reasons, from absentee parenting to the allure of gang membership, our picture of Yummy only becomes more obscure. …in the end readers are left with troubling questions and, perhaps, one powerful answer: that they can choose to do everything in their power to ensure that no one shares Yummy’s terrible fate.” — PUBLISHERS WEEKLY, c2010.

ADULT FICTION

“The Bone Season” by Samantha Shannon – “Shannon offers up a richly imagined debut, (in a book) about clairvoyants used as catspaws in the year 2059, two centuries after mysterious events changed the world. Paige Mahoney possesses the illegal and extremely rare power of dreamwalking, using it to serve a criminal syndicate in a London controlled by the organization known as Scion. She’s captured and sent to Sheol I, a hidden penal colony established in Oxford and maintained by the extradimensional Rephaim. Claimed by the enigmatic Warden Arcturus, she’s trained to be a weapon, all the while dreaming of rebellion and escape. When Paige is drawn into schemes both political and far-reaching, she must fight for her life. The internal mythology is complex and intriguing, the emotional struggle is captivating, and the pace rarely falters as Paige unravels the mysteries and dangers of her new home.” — David Godwin, David Godwin Associates. PUBLISHERS WEEKLY, c2013.

“First Sight” by Danielle Steel – “Fashion designer Timmie O’Neill runs a thriving empire, but she is all alone. After being orphaned as a girl, then losing her child to illness and her husband to divorce, she’s terrified of being abandoned until an emergency appendectomy during her Paris ready-to-wear shows brings French doctor Jean-Charles Vernier into her life. The two fall for each other immediately, sharing desires they’ve never shared with anyone else, but Jean-Charles is trapped in a floundering marriage. When he’s finally ready to divorce, his estranged wife is diagnosed with cancer, and Timmie is left alone again, this time with the secret that she’s carrying his child. Timmie is an intriguing heroine because her private anxieties and public success are at odds, and she doesn’t find peace until her late forties. Steel is one of the world’s most popular authors, and this poignant romance is sure to thrill her many loyal fans and reach many new readers, too.” — Walker, Aleksandra. AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2013.

“Lolita” by Vladimir Nabokov – “Awe and exhiliration–along with heartbreak and mordant wit–abound in Lolita, Nabokov’s most famous and controversial novel, which tells the story of the aging Humbert Humbert’s obsessive, devouring, and doomed passion for the nymphet Dolores Haze. Lolita is also the story of a hypercivilized European colliding with the cheerful barbarism of postwar America. Most of all, it is a meditation on love–love as outrage and hallucination, madness and transformation”. — back cover

“Never Go Back: A Jack Reacher Novel” by Lee Child – “After trekking back from the savage snowstorms of South Dakota, Jack Reacher finally returns to his old military police unit, eager to meet Maj. Susan Turner, the new commanding officer who helped him save the trapped victims in 61 Hours. However, Reacher finds out that Turner is under investigation for corruption and is awaiting trial for conspiracy. And that’s not all. The army drafts him back into service to face two trumped-up legal cases–homicide charges for assaulting an L.A. gangbanger for selling black-market weapons and a paternity suit from a former girlfriend alleging that Reacher fathered her 14-year-old daughter. Both parties are simply after his money. Harnessing his anger and brute strength, Reacher cunningly defends himself, promising to “never go back.” VERDICT As they snatch up Reacher’s 18th adventure, avid fans in more than 95 countries will again marvel at Child’s terse, hard-boiled style.” —  Jerry P. Miller. Cambridge, MA. 397p. LIBRARY JOURNAL, c2013.

“The Newcomer” by Robyn Carr – “Single dad and Thunder Point’s deputy sheriff “Mac” McCain has worked hard to keep his town safe and his daughter happy. Now he’s found his own happiness with Gina James…With an unexpected romance growing between them, they’re feeling like teenagers themselves–suddenly they can’t get enough of one another…. And just when they think things are really taking off, their lives are suddenly thrown into chaos.  When Mac’s long-lost ex-wife shows up in town, drama takes on a whole new meaning.”  — back cover

“Red Sparrow” by Jason Matthews – “The author, a veteran CIA field agent, liberally salts his thriller with realistic tradecraft, horrific villainy, and a stunning plot twists as the opponents vie for control…An intense descent into a vortex of carnal passion, career brutality, and smart tradecraft, this thriller evokes the great Cold War era of espionage…Readers of bloodthirsty spy and suspense will welcome this debut from a writer who supersizes his spies.” — Library Journal

“Rose Harbor in Bloom” by Debbie Macomber – ” Jo Marie Rose, a recent war widow, has opened a bed-and-breakfast in Cedar Cove. She is testy with curmudgeonly Mark, the handyman who procrastinated in putting her rose garden in until too late for it to be ready for her big open house, when every room is filled. Mary Smith, frail, weak, and bald from fighting breast cancer, has a secret reason for wanting to be in Cedar Cove. The other guests are celebrating the fiftieth anniversary of Annie Newton’s grandparents. Annie, a party planner getting over a broken engagement, is aghast to run into her teenage nemesis–the first boy she ever kissed. Then Jo Marie learns that it isn’t certain that her soldier husband perished in a helicopter wreck. Macomber’s legions of fans will embrace this cozy, heartwarming read.” — Tixier Herald, Diana. AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2013.

“William Shakespeare’s Star Wars” by Ian Doescher – “Two of the most creative minds in the universe collide with spectacular, hilarious and surprisingly touching insight into the original classic. This truly is Star Wars as you like it.” — Joe Schreiber, author of Star Wars: Death Troopers.  

MYSTERY  

“The Cuckoo’s Calling” by Robert Galbraith – “London PI Cormoran Strike’s final feud with his arguably insane fiancee leaves him camping in his office, wondering how his last two clients will keep him afloat and pay for his new secretary, Robin. When a childhood acquaintance asks him to investigate his supermodel sister’s apparent suicide, Strike finds a distraction from his problems that’s happily attached to a check. Lula Landry was surrounded by rabid paparazzi, a drug-addled social circle, a dysfunctional adopted family, and a shifty, newly found birth mother, making suicidal despair hard to dismiss. But with Robin’s surprisingly adept assistance, Strike dismantles witness statements, applying masterful deductive skills to find evidence of murder. This debut is instantly absorbing, featuring a detective facing crumbling circumstances with resolve instead of cliched self-destruction and a lovable sidekick with contagious enthusiasm for detection.” — Christine.  AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2013.

“The Devil’s Star” by Jo Nesbo – “A serial killer taunts Harry Hole in Nesbo’s… novel to feature the Oslo police detective to be made available in the U.S. (after Nemesis). Still suffering from alcohol-fueled demons and obsessed with hunting for evidence against a clearly dirty cop, Hole grudgingly agrees to help look into the murder of a woman whose finger has been amputated and a red diamond stuck under her eyelid. More bodies follow, with the murderer leaving identical five-pointed diamonds (the titular devil’s star) at each crime scene. At first the killings appear to be random, but Hole soon discovers an ominous pattern. Nesbo brilliantly incorporates threads from earlier novels, including Hole’s often tumultuous relationship with his lover, Rakel, without ever losing the current story’s rhythm. Even with–or perhaps because of–his flaws, Hole is arguably one of today’s most fascinating fictional detectives.” — PUBLISHERS WEEKLY, c2010.

“How the Light Gets In” by Louise Penney – “Gamache’s investigation into a murder will take him once again to the small, snow-covered Quebec village of Three Pines, where the last remaining member of a once-famous family of quintuplets planned to visit before someone broke into her Montreal home and clubbed her to death. This would be a worthy plot line in and of itself, but it quickly becomes subsumed in something larger, with repercussions that will be felt all the way up the Provincial hierarchy and beyond. Ambitiously plotted, sensitively staffed and beautifully written, How the Light Gets In handily elevates Penny’s already lofty bar.”– BOOKPAGE, c2013.

“NOS4A2” by Joe Hill – “Driving a 1938 Rolls-Royce, Charles Manx gathers deserving children and takes them to Christmasland, a place of endless games, cocoa, and gingerbread cookies that doesn’t appear on any map. Vic McQueen, the only kid to escape Manx’s macabre game, has unusual talents of her own. Now an adult, Vic must confront her worst nightmare to save her son before it is too late. VERDICT Hill delivers an intricate story line full of terror and courage that brings out the best and the very worst in his protagonists, characters you won’t soon forget. A book focused on Christmas may not be the most obvious summer read, but readers will feel the “chill” when they hear those first Christmas carols come September.” — Ala-Rusa Codes. LIBRARY JOURNAL, c2013.

ADULT NON-FICTION  

“Bunker Hill: A City, A Siege, A Revolution” by Nathaniel Philbrick – …Opening with the consequences of the Boston Tea Party, Philbrick depicts the arrival of British army and naval forces, the manifestation of the royal government’s intention to quash the burgeoning rebellion in Massachusetts. Its leaders, patriots like John Hancock, Samuel Adams, and Joseph Warren, provide the drama’s counterpoise to British officials. Having deployed his characters, Philbrick launches each side’s resort to military preparations and operations, a narrative that benefits from one of the author’s several imaginative services to readers, detailing in word and map the geography of Boston and environs at that time. Another audience benefit is Philbrick’s evocation of the look of patriot militias and British regiments, which enliven his crackling accounts of military movements that produced the Battles of Lexington, Concord, and Bunker Hill. Displaying, as in Mayflower (2006) and The Last Stand (2010), a superior talent for renewing interest in a famed event, Philbrick will again be in high demand from history buffs.” — Taylor, Gilbert. AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2013.

“Clean: Overcoming Addiction and Ending America’s Greatest Tragedy” by David Sheff – “How do we prevent kids from using drugs, and how do we effectively treat addiction? Clean cuts through the technical jargon and marketing nonsense to summarize our best knowledge on these topics. The case studies illuminate the challenging process of treatment and the remarkable changes that occur with recovery. Clean is a major contribution to our understanding of this disease and how to fight it.” –Richard A. Rawson, PH.D., professor and associate director, Integrated Substance Abuse Programs, Geffen School of Medicine, University of California at Los Angeles

“The Day of Battle: The War in Sicily and Italy, 1943-1944” by Rick Atkinson – “Flushed with the defeat of Rommel’s Afrika Corps in North Africa, Winston Churchill looked ahead to attacking ‘the soft underbelly of Europe.’ He believed that the conquest of Sicily, followed by a rapid advance up the Italian peninsula, could reduce the necessity for a massive invasion across the English Chanel. Atkinson…has written a comprehensive account of the campaign,…As he illustrates with masterful use of primary sources, British and American war planners were deeply divided over the necessity of the campaign. Once launched, Allied attacks were frequently improvised and poorly coordinated. Still, progress was made, ending with the liberation of Rome in June 1944. Atkinson conveys the confusion and grinding difficulty of the Allied advance as experienced by ordinary soldiers while also providing interesting insights into the character of some of the top commanders. Left unanswered is whether the high cost in men and materials justified the ground gained.” —  Jay Freeman. AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2007.

“The Guns at Last Light: The War in Western Europe, 1944-1945” by Rick Atkinson – “Spanning D-day to V-E Day, Atkinson culminates his three-volume epic of the U.S. Army in Europe during WWII. Readers of the prior volumes (An Army at Dawn, 2002; The Day of Battle, 2007) will discover a thematic continuation in this one, namely, criticism of American generalship. …. To describe the high command’s thinking concerning operations that turned into fiascoes, Atkinson funnels their postwar apologia through his appreciation of a particular battlefield situation, graphically conceptualized in this tome’s excellent cartography. While casting generals in the light of human frailty, Atkinson allocates anecdotal abundance to soldiers’ ground-war experiences. Emphasizing loss, he quotes many last letters from men destined to die. With a mastery of sources that support nearly every sentence, Atkinson achieves a military history with few peers as an overview of the 1944-45 campaigns in Western Europe.” — Taylor, Gilbert.  AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2013.

BIOGRAPHY

“Brain in a Jar: A Daughter’s Journey Through Her Father’s Memory” by Nancy Stearns Bercaw – “This is a gripping account of a family dealing with a tragic disease (Alzheimer’s) that continues to ravage the lives of countless victims and their families. …this book is not about Alzheimer’s. It is about a more universal subject, family, and how this one family and one daughter in particular managed to live in the deep shadow of Beau’s obsession.”– inside front cover

“To Sin Against Hope” by Alfredo Gutierrez – “Alfredo Gutierrez’s father, a US citizen, was deported to Mexico from his Arizona hometown… This occurred during a wave of anti-immigrant hysteria stoked by the Great Depression, but as Gutierrez makes clear….the war on Mexican immigrants has rarely abated. Barack Obama now presides over an immigration policy every inch the equal of Herbert Hoover’s in its harshness. His family experiences inspired Gutierrez to pursue the life of a Chicano activist. Kicked out of Arizona State University after leading a takeover of the president’s office, he later became the majority leader of the Arizona State Senate. Later still, he was a successful political consultant. He remains an activist, and in this engrossing memoir and essay, he dissects the racism that has deformed a century of border policy—leading to a record number of deportations during the Obama presidency—and he analyzes the timidity of today’s immigrant advocacy organizations. To Sin Against Hope brings to light the problems that have prevented the US from honoring the contributions and aspirations of its immigrants. It is a call to remember history and act for the future.” — Amazon.com

“The Patriarch: The Remarkable Life and Turbulent Times of Joseph Kennedy” by David Nasaw – “Engrossing and perceptive….Nasaw delves into archives, reconstructing virtually from scratch a multifaceted and ambiguous portrait of a figure who was for decades near the center of power in Hollywood and Washington, finance and diplomacy.” — The Washington Post  

DVD’s

“Game Change”
“The Great Gatsby”
“Iron Man 3”
“Homeland The Complete Second Season”
“Star Trek Into Darkness”  

BOARD BOOKS

“Bear Wants More” by Karma Wilson
“Little Blue Truck” by Alice Schertle
“Owl Babies” by Martin Waddell

PICTURE BOOKS

“Amelia Bedalia Hits the Trail” by Herman Parish
“Big Pumpkin” by Erica Silverman
“Don’t Let the Pigeon Stay Up Late” by Mo Willems
“Koala Lou” by Mem Fox
“Little Mouse” by Alison Murray
“Llama, Llama and the Bully Goat” by Anna Dewdney
“Owl at Home” by Arnold Lobel
“The Paper Princess” by Elisa Kleven
“Peck, Peck, Peck” by Lucy Cousins
“Pete the Cat: The Wheels on the Bus” by James Dean  

JUVENILE FICTION

“The Dogs of Winter” by Bobbie Pyron – “Set in Russia during the 1990s and loosely based on a true story, this absorbing novel tells of a vulnerable and suddenly homeless five-year-old boy. Ivan is taken in by a gang of children who beg and steal to survive, but soon he joins a pack of street dogs that become his surrogate family for the next two years. Foraging for food and protecting each other, they navigate the dangers of the city in winter and the forest in warmer weather. The opening pages of the first-person narrative, in which Ivan recalls the warmth of his early childhood with his mother and grandmother, provide insight into the emotional base that anchors him in the troubling, sometimes violent times to come. In the final chapters, the boy’s experiences when authorities separate him from the dogs and attempt to integrate him into human society seem even more painful than his previous adaptation to loss, privation, and fear. … Written with compassion as well as a grim, sometimes brutal realism, this novel offers a riveting story as well as material for reflection and discussion.” Phelan, Carolyn.  AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2012.

“Garfield Gets in a Pickle” by Jim Davis – “Garfield, the furry desperado, is at large again in this most-wanted new collection of comics. Whether he’s getting in a pickle or a jam, when it comes to trouble, the fat cat is always a glutton for punishment.” — back cover “I Funny” by James Patterson – “Jaime Grimm is sure he’s made a terrible mistake by competing in the Planet’s Funniest Kid Comic Contest. As he struggles to remember his routine, the novel flashes back in first person to how he got involved. For Jamie, comedy is serious business. It is also Jamie’s defense against his painful past. Pieces of this past are revealed slowly; Jaime’s confinement to a wheelchair and that he was the sole survivor of a car accident that killed his family. Jaime is elated when he wins the first round until rumors spread that he only won because of the judges’ pity-rumors his brutish cousin is spreading online. It is electrifying when Jaime wins the next round. This book addresses grief, coping, and first crushes.” — ABC-CLIO, INC., c2013.

“See You at Harry’s” by Jo Knowles – To 12-year-old Fern, her family has become little more than a random group of people who occasionally eat dinner together. Her dad is obsessed with the family restaurant, Harry’s; her mom is constantly meditating; her older siblings have their own busy lives; and three-year-old Charlie is the center of everyone’s world. And then . . . tragedy. In a flash the book changes course, and readers will be reaching for their hankies. The family implodes, and it takes many heart-wrenching pages before they are able to find their way back to one another. … As in John Corey Whaley’s award-winning Where Things Come Back (2011), the powerful bonds of family, so casually acknowledged in the everyday, can be crippling when broken. This is highly recommended for readers dealing with their own grief issues, but any teen can benefit from the reminder that family can be simultaneously humiliating and invaluable.” Colson, Diane.  AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2012.

“Stink and the Incredible Super-Galactic Jawbreaker” by Megan McDonald – “Stink discovers the power of the pen when he writes a letter of complaint to the manufacturer of a disappointing jawbreaker and receives a 10-pound box of the candies in response. The flurry of correspondence continues with more complaint letters, a thank-you note, and, eventually, a written apology. Like big sister Judy Moody, Stink sports a memorable name and a talent for self-expression. His predicaments and triumphs have a childlike air, and the quick-witted dialogue will keep readers entertained. ” — Carolyn Phelan. AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2006.  

JUVENILE NON-FICTION

“The Mystery of Darwin’s Frog” by Marty Crump “- Scientist Crump introduces Darwin’s frog, a species collected by Charles Darwin, though he knew nothing of their most surprising behavioral characteristic. Once the female lays eggs, she wanders off. The male takes over by fertilizing the eggs, protecting them, and, once the tadpoles hatch, slurping them into his vocal sac, where they develop for two months before they emerge from his mouth as tiny frogs. It has taken generations to solve various mysteries surrounding Darwin’s frogs, but now scientists face a more urgent question: Why is the species disappearing? …Clearly written and informative, this colorful book takes readers along as Crump studies the frogs in Chile and discusses their disappearing habitat as well as the virus that may be killing them. …” Phelan, Carolyn. AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2013.

“Waiting for Wings” by Lois Ehlert – “A beautifully woven blend of information about caterpillars, butterflies, and the gardens that attract them. Vibrant colors jump off of white backgrounds to show realistic-looking butterflies and flowers in Ehlert’s signature cut-paper-collage style….Open the front cover, however, and readers see a smaller internal page that actually blends its illustrations into the endpapers surrounding it. The pages then become increasingly larger until they are full sized to showcase the butterflies in search of a flower garden. Ehlert deftly documents the caterpillars’ life cycle. ” — Lisa Gangemi CAHNERS PUBLISHING, c2001.  

YOUNG ADULT  

“Ship Breaker” by Paolo Bacigalupi – “A fast-paced postapocalyptic adventure set on the American Gulf Coast. Nailer works light crew; his dirty, dangerous job is to crawl deep into the wrecks of the ancient oil tankers that line the beach, scavenging copper wire and turning it over to his crew boss. After a brutal hurricane passes over, Nailer and his friend Pima stumble upon the wreck of a luxurious clipper ship. It’s filled with valuable goods– a ‘Lucky Strike’ that could make them rich, if only they can find a safe way to cash it in. Amid the wreckage, a girl barely clings to life. If they help her, she tells them, she can show them a world of privilege that they have never known. But can they trust her? And if so, can they keep the girl safe from Nailer’s drug-addicted father? Exciting and sometimes violent, this book will appeal to older fans of Scott Westerfeld’s ‘Uglies’ series (S & S) and similar action-oriented science fiction.” –Hayden Bass, Seattle Public Library,  SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL, c2010.

ADULT FICTION

“And the Mountains Echoed” by Khaled Hosseini – “Saboor, a laborer, pulls his young daughter, Sari, and his son, Abdullah, across the desert in a red wagon, leaving their poor village of Shadbagh for Kabul, where his brother-in-law, Nabi, a chauffeur, will introduce them to a wealthy man and his beautiful, despairing poet wife. So begins the third captivating and affecting novel by the internationally best-selling author of The Kite Runner (2003) and A Thousand Splendid Suns (2007). An immense, ancient oak stands in Shadbagh, emblematic of the complexly branching stories in Hosseini’s vital, profound, and spellbinding saga of family bonds and unlikely pairings forged by chance, choice, and necessity. We meet twin sisters, one beautiful, one plain; one an invalid, the other a caretaker. Two male cousins, one a charismatic wheeler-dealer; the other a cautious, introverted doctor. A disfigured girl of great valor and a boy destined to become a plastic surgeon. Kabul falls and struggles to rise. Shadbagh comes under the rule of a drug lord, and the novel’s many limbs reach to Paris, San Francisco, and a Greek island. A masterful and compassionate storyteller, Hosseini traces the traumas and scarring of tyranny, war, crime, lies, and illness in the intricately interconnected, heartbreaking, and extraordinary lives of his vibrantly realized characters to create a grand and encompassing tree of life.”

“Apple Orchard” by Susan Wiggs – “Tess Delaney is a provenance specialist at an auction house. In addition to authenticating antique treasures, one of her specialties is locating works of art stolen by Nazis and returning them to their rightful owners. Her professional life is busy, but Tess lacks roots. She has no family except a usually absent mother, and her friendships tend to be superficial. Then the impossible happens. Tess is named heir to one half of an estate in Archangel, a small town in Sonoma County, California. The other half goes to a sister Tess never knew she had. Suddenly, she has family, and she’s not sure how to deal with it. Wiggs, who is known for her insightful, emotion-filled women’s fiction (The Ocean between Us, 2004; Table for Five, 2005), has again written a tale with universal appeal. The background story of the Danish resistance as well as recipes from that part of the world are a nice touch, and add depth and atmosphere to Tess’ story.” Mosley, Shelley. 432p. AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2013.

“Bad Monkey” by Carl Hiassen – “a shambolic comic tale of garden-variety Florida crime: a wealthy Medicare fraudster appears to have died in a boating accident. The only evidence of death is his arm, which is reeled in by a hapless vacationer. Enter Andrew Yancy, once and future Monroe County detective. He thinks the fraudster was murdered by his wife, and if he can prove it, he can get his old job back and leave restaurant inspections behind. Think of Yancy as a Hiaasenian knight aberrant. He means well, but many of his problems are hilariously self-inflicted. His efforts take him from Key West to Miami to Andros Island, Bahamas, and back again. A huge cast of characters and a stunningly polyfurcated plot offer Hiaasen room to wow readers with information on grave robbery, restaurant-kitchen horrors, autoerotic asphyxiation, and even tips for beating Homeland Security’s radar to fly into South Florida. And there is also a delightful interlude of canoodling on the tuna tower of a Key West charter boat as well as no-holds-barred portraits of the Dragon Queen–a loopy, libidinous, old Bahamian “woo-doo” practitioner–and the titular Bad Monkey. Plot convolutions twice cause him to insert multipage explanations of what’s going on, but as always, Hiaasen is laugh-out-loud funny and thoroughly entertaining. HIGH-DEMAND BACKSTORY: Hiaasen’s crime fiction crossed over to mainstream bestsellerdom early on in his career, and his fan base continues to grow.” Gaughan, Thomas. 336p. AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2013.

“A Delicate Truth” by John le Carre – “A Delicate Truth, begins in 2008 Gibraltar, where a covert operation pairing Brits and Americans goes stunningly wrong, leaving a young Muslim woman and her baby shot to bits on a seaside cliff. Detials of the botched operation are closely guarded and never released to the media. Fast-forward three years, and a couple of the principals find themselves in wildly disparate circumstances: One has been knighted for his foreign service work; the other has fallen on hard times, unable to reconcile his innate goodness with the Gibraltar carnage for which he was at least partly responsible. After a chance meeting in which the two compare notes about their respective parts in the operation, they resolve to pursue the matter further, deciding to go public with graphic evidence if necessary. They enlist the aid of Toby Bell, former personal secretary to the member of Parliament who signed off on the Gibraltar fiasco, and the three undertake an oh-so-covert investigation–one that, if they live through it, may well have the potential to topple governments. Line up at the bookstalls for this one, folks: It is le Carre at the top of his game.” 320pg. BOOKPAGE, c2013.

“Don’t Go“ by Lisa Scottoline – “When he deployed to Afghanistan for the Army Medical Corps, Mike Scanlon left behind an enviable life, with a beautiful wife, an infant daughter, and a prospering practice as a podiatrist/orthopedic surgeon. Six months later, a freak accident changes Mike’s world forever. As Mike struggles with the aftermath and searches for answers, he soon learns that his bad luck has only just begun. Despite an overwhelming share of tragedy, betrayal, and rejection, Mike maintains his unwavering love for his daughter, Emily. After a series of bad choices, Mike finds his life spiraling deeper into a hopeless quagmire of despair, eventually learning what it’s like to lose everything. Verdict This is not your typical Scottoline novel…it is Scottoline on steroids. In her first book featuring a male protagonist, Scottoline spins a compelling drama that reads like the literary lovechild of Jodi Picoult and Nicholas Sparks. Readers will fall in love with this war vet father who fights seemingly insurmountable odds, and his powerfully addictive story will haunt them long after the final page.” -Mary Todd Chesnut, Northern Kentucky Univ. Lib., Highland Heights. 384p. LIBRARY JOURNAL, c2013.

“Expats” by Chris Pavone – “The premature death of her parents turned Kate into a driven loner who never expected to find someone to love. After college, clandestine fieldwork for the CIA filled the void; then she met decent, somewhat nerdy Dexter Moore. Marriage and two young sons convinced her to transfer into intelligence analysis, but she never told Dexter about her CIA employment. But when Dexter is offered a job in Luxembourg with a private bank, Kate abruptly finds herself an expat mom. Housework and lunches with other expats don’t fulfill her, and she maintains the suspicious nature the CIA fostered. Soon, she focuses on expats Julia and Bill, as well as Dexter’s new, uncharacteristic behavior. Her spook instincts bear fruit: Julia and Bill aren’t what they seem; Dexter is up to something; and Kate must find out what it all means. The Expats is a stunningly assured first novel. Kate’s character, her CIA experiences, and her new life are examined in granular detail, all of which helps drive an intricate, suspenseful plot that is only resolved in the final pages. The juxtaposition of marital deceptions and espionage is brilliantly employed. European locales, information on private banks and cybercrime, and the particulars of expats’ quotidian but comfortable lives ooze verisimilitude. A must for espionage fans.” — Gaughan, Thomas. 336pg. AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2012..

“Ghostman” by Roger Hobbs – “The identity of “ghostman” Jack is so closely guarded that only a few people know he actually exists. When Jack is called in by some bad guys to clean up after a botched Atlantic City casino robbery, he finds himself uncomfortably close to exposure as he’s pursued by the FBI and a shadowy third party. That’s the plot, but the backstory is even better. Written by a freshly minted Reed College grad who names William Burroughs, Bret Easton Ellis, and Lee Child among his favorite authors, this book was bought in partial manuscript about a year ago and caused an uproar a few weeks later at Frankfurt. Rights eventually went to nine countries, and film rights have been sold as well. With a five-city tour to Los Angeles, New York, Portland (OR), San Francisco, and Seattle; don’t miss.” — 336p. LJ Prepub Alert Online Review. LIBRARY JOURNAL, c2012.

“The Hit” by David Baldacci – “What to do when a government assassin turns rogue? Colleague Will Robie, who debuted this year in Baldacci’s The Innocent, is tasked with doing him in but begins to see that the man has a point. He changes his mind, though, when a loved one lands in the rogue’s crosshairs. The title is undoubtedly prophetic.” — 448p. LJ Prepub Alert Online Review. LIBRARY JOURNAL, c2012.

“Inferno: A Novel” by Dan Brown – “Harvard symbologist Robert Langdon… returns in another thriller that invokes history, architecture, science, and conspiracy. Langdon wakes up in a hospital bed with no memory of the last two days. He’s surprised to find himself in Florence, Italy, and even more shocked to discover that someone is out to kill him for something he knows. The doctor treating him helps him to escape from an assassin, and the chase is on. Can Langdon follow clues that tie in to Dante’s epic masterpiece, The Divine Comedy, and stop a plot destined to change the world forever? Verdict Brown delivers an amazing and intense read that arguably is the best Langdon thriller to date. Everything a reader expects from Brown is here, plus a well-written thriller with jaw-dropping twists as well. ” –Jeff Ayers, Seattle P.L. 463p. LJ Xpress Online Review. LIBRARY JOURNAL, c2013.

“Life After Life” by Kate Atkinson – “Atkinson delivers a wildly inventive novel about Ursula Todd, born in 1910 and doomed to die and be reborn over and over again. She drowns, falls off a roof, and is beaten to death by an abusive husband but is always reborn back into the same loving family, sometimes with the knowledge that allows her to escape past poor decisions, sometimes not. As Atkinson subtly delineates all the pathways a life or a country might take, she also delivers a harrowing set piece on the Blitz as Ursula, working as a warden on a rescue team, encounters horrifying tableaux encompassing mangled bodies and whole families covered in ash, preserved just like the victims of Pompeii. Alternately mournful and celebratory, deeply empathic and scathingly funny, Atkinson shows what it is like to face the horrors of war and yet still find the determination to go on, with her wholly British characters often reducing the Third Reich to “a fuss.” From her deeply human characters to her comical dialogue to her meticulous plotting, Atkinson is working at the very top of her game. An audacious, thought-provoking novel from one of our most talented writers.” — Wilkinson, Joanne. 544p. AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2013.

“Orphan Master’s Son: A Novel” by Adam Johnson – “Johnson’s novel accomplishes the seemingly impossible: an American writer has masterfully rendered the mysterious world of North Korea with the soul and savvy of a native, from its orphanages and its fishing boats to the kitchens of its high-ranking commanders. While oppressive propaganda echoes throughout, the tone never slides into caricature; if anything, the story unfolds with astounding empathy for those living in constant fear of imprisonment–or worse–but who manage to maintain their humanity against all odds. The book traces the journey of Jun Do, who for years lives according to the violent dictates of the state, as a tunnel expert who can fight in the dark, a kidnapper, radio operator, tenuous hero, and foreign dignitary before eventually taking his fate into his own hands. In one of the book’s most poignant moments, a government interrogator, who tortures innocent citizens on a daily basis, remembers his own childhood and the way in which his father explained the inexplicable: ‘…we must act alone on the outside, while on the inside, we would be holding hands.’ In this moment and a thousand others like it, Johnson (Parasites Like Us) juxtaposes the vicious atrocities of the regime with the tenderness of beauty, love, and hope.” (Jan.). 458pg. PUBLISHERS WEEKLY, c2011.

“Sweet Salt Air” by Barbara Delinsky – “Friendship, romance, and her trademark New England setting–this time, an island off the coast of Maine–are all present and accounted for. The focus is on Nicole and Charlotte, girlhood friends who’ve been estranged for the past 10 years. They reunite at Nicole’s family’s summer home to collaborate on a cookbook, both of them harboring secrets. When Nicole reveals her husband, Julian, is suffering from multiple sclerosis, Charlotte comes clean that she and Julian shared a drunken one-night stand before he married Nicole. The affair resulted in a baby Charlotte gave up for adoption, a child whose stem cells hold the key to Julian’s recovery. Complicating matters further, Charlotte has fallen for the island’s enigmatic bad boy, Leo, who, it turns out, has penned a best-selling novel with a plot that closely mirrors their “lovers from different worlds” relationship. Leo’s tale ends on a sour note, placing his future with Charlotte in doubt. Never fear; Delinsky knows when a happy ending is in order.”  –Wetli, Patty. 416p. AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2013.

“The Week Before the Wedding” by Beth Kendrick – “…bride-to-be Emily McKellips anticipates a lovely seven days of festivities, capped off by her marriage to her fiance at a lakeside resort. Surgeon Grant Cardin is the perfect man, and his family is the perfect antidote to her dysfunctional childhood that led to some wild ways. But Emily has an MBA now, and is all things practical–nothing like the 22-year-old who married on a whim 10 years ago, divorcing a mere five months later. But the week is wreaking havoc on her nerves, with her many-times-married mom on the prowl, her best friend recalling crazier times and the unexpected appearance of her ex. How did he get there, and how fast can she get rid of him? But Ryan Lassiter has other ideas. Now a successful movie producer, he’s never forgotten the woman he wed. Will Emily be forced to choose between two good men? A romantic comedy with charming characters and laugh-out-loud scenes, this story is perfect for the upcoming wedding season.” — 336pg. BOOKPAGE, c2013.

“Whiskey Beach” by Nora Roberts – “Former criminal attorney Eli Landon moves into his family’s historic home, Bluff House. He’s glad to have left Boston, where he had been under suspicion for his wife’s unsolved murder. In the small community of Whiskey Beach, he meets Abra Walsh, another survivor of life’s slings and arrows. Her good-natured prodding and genuine, caring nature lead Eli to open up, and soon he’s at work on writing a book . . . and beginning to think more clearly about what may have happened to his late wife. With a modern-day murder to solve and an intriguing legend of treasure to spice things up, there are plenty of motives and suspects to keep the guesswork going. With her superb storytelling skills, Roberts fleshes out the world of Whiskey Beach with realistic secondary characters and chronicles the burgeoning romance between the two leads with a deft hand that will leave book lovers satisfied and smiling.” — 496pg. BOOKPAGE, c2013.

MYSTERY

“12th of Never” by James Patterson – “On her next “Women’s Murder Club” outing, Det. Lindsay Boxer must return to work directly after having a baby. An upcoming football player for the San Francisco 49ers has been accused of a particularly gruesome murder, and a dotty English professor is having nightmares about another gruesome murder that turns out actually to have happened. What might these cases have in common? Read the book.” 416p., LIBRARY JOURNAL, c2012.

“Death Without Company” by Craig Johnson – “What do you do when an old friend lies to you? Mari Baroja is found dead in Room 42 at the Durant Home for Assisted Living. Her demise isn’t too surprising, since the Basque woman was well over 70. Her neighbor in Room 32, however, insists she’s been murdered, and he ought to know. Lucian Connally retired as sheriff of Wyoming’s Absaroka County, and his irascible yammering at his protege Sheriff Walt Longmire …sets in motion an investigation that will peel away years of lies, reveal spirited dreams translated from the Crow, Cheyenne and Basque tongues and focus on the former Four Brothers Ranch-now mining methane gas for a million dollars a week. Soon Walt will link Mari to Charlie Nurburn, an abusive drunk thought to have died ages ago in Vista Verde, N.M. Why are the folks who duly mourned (or failed to mourn) him now targeted for death themselves? With some timely help from his foul-mouthed deputy Vic, Cheyenne barman Henry Standing Bear and new recruit Santiago Saizarbitoria, Walt finally unravels the tragic love story of Mari and Lucien and the violent ruckus her last will and testament has unleashed. Pile on thermal underwear, fire up the four-wheel drive and head for Durant. Walt and his idiosyncratic crew are terrific company-droll, sassy and surprisingly tenderhearted.” 288pg. VNU EMEDIA, c2006.

“Leaving Everything Most Loved: A Novel” by Jacqueline Winspear – “Months after Usha Pramal is murdered in London, Scotland Yard–having declared the crime a cold case–contracts with Maisie Dobbs for help. But the day before psychologist and investigator Maisie is to meet with Usha’s friend and fellow countrywoman Maya Patel, Maya is killed in the same manner as Usha. Maisie wonders who would have wanted to kill Usha, by all accounts an exceptionally beautiful, caring, and well-educated woman who comforted others with her touch and remedies. As Maisie looks into the status of Indian women in England, her own desire to travel deepens, leading to further conundrums involving both her would-be fiance, James Compton, and her business. The cross-cultural theme adds another dimension to Winspear’s London of 1933, with its lingering traces of World War I and ominous rumblings of World War II. This tenth Maisie Dobbs mystery continues the series’ high quality, capturing a time and place and featuring a protagonist as compassionate as she is intuitive. A fine historical mystery with broad appeal.” — Leber, Michele. 339p. AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2013.

“Ordinary Grace: A Novel” by William Kent Krueger – “Krueger (Trickster’s Point) has produced an elegiac, evocative, stand-alone novel. The summer of 1961 finds thirteen-year-old Frank Drum living in small-town New Bremen, Minn. He and his younger brother, Jake, idolize their older sister, Ariel, a talented church organist who’s also the “golden child” of their parents, WWII veteran and Methodist pastor Nathan and church music director Ruth. Nathan and Ruth befriend the accomplished musician Emil Brandt, a veteran left blinded by his service, who tutors Ariel in her music education. Meanwhile, Jake, who has a stutter, forms a close bond with Lise, Emil’s deaf older sister and caretaker, while Ariel dates Emil’s wealthy nephew, Karl. The Drums’ peaceful existence is shattered, however, when Ariel fails to return from a late-night party. In the aftermath of her disappearance, Karl comes under suspicion, Ruth undergoes a crisis of faith, and dark secrets about New Bremen come to light. The small-town milieu is rendered in picturesque detail, accurate down to period-appropriate TV programs, for what becomes a resonant tale of fury, guilt, and redemption.” Agent: Danielle Egan-Miller, Browne & Miller Literary Associates. (Mar.). 320p. PUBLISHERS WEEKLY, c2013.

“Wanted Man: A Jack Reacher Novel” by Lee Child – “Bestseller Child’s …novel … takes the ex-military policeman on a wild road ride that builds to a terrific slam-bang climax. While hitchhiking one winter night in Nebraska with a broken nose that makes him look more than usually disreputable, Reacher is picked up by two men and a woman wearing identical cheap blue shirts. The fun begins when clues suggest that the men in the car are responsible for the brutal murder of another man at an abandoned pump station. The role of the woman in the car remains unclear. Sheriff Victor Goodman is quick to call the FBI, which arrives in the person of Julia Sorenson, only the first of many agencies and agents heard from. While the erratic trip through America’s heartland doesn’t always follow a logical path, Reacher displays his acuity, patience, endurance, and military skills in the exhilarating fashion series fans have come to expect.”– Agent: Darley Anderson, Darley Anderson Literary. (Sept.). 416p. PUBLISHERS WEEKLY, c2012.

ADULT NON-FICTION

“Devil in the Grove: Thurgood Marshall, the Groveland Boys, and the Dawn of a New America” by Glibert King – “In 1951 Thurgood Marshall had already begun the Brown v. Board of Education case when he took on an explosive case to save the only survivor of the Groveland Four, young black men wrongfully accused of raping a white woman in central Florida. The young woman, estranged from her husband, concocted a rape accusation involving two black men recently returned from military service and two other, unrelated men. One of the accused was killed by a vigilante mob. After a reversal of their convictions, as they faced a retrying of the case, two others were killed by the sheriff charged with protecting them. King draws on court documents and FBI archives to offer a compelling chronicle of the accusation, which led to a paroxysm of violence against the black community in Groveland, reminiscent of the destruction of Rosewood, in 1923; brutal beatings that led to forced confessions; and the dramatic trial. Marshall, physically exhausted and facing threats to his life, was housed, fed, and protected by a black community encouraged by his presence as he battled to save the life of the last remaining member of the Groveland Four.” – Bush, Vanessa. 400pg. AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2012.

“Embers of War: The Fall of an Empire and the Making of America’s Vietnam” by Frerik Logevall – “Most American studies of the Vietnam War concentrate on the period following the introduction of U.S. combat units under President Johnson. However, contemporary Vietnamese accounts view the “American phase” as the concluding act of a prolonged nationalist struggle to gain independence from Western imperialism. Logevall,… leans toward the latter approach–that is, American involvement must be inseparably linked to the doomed French effort to maintain imperial control over Indochina. Of course, American policy makers insisted their goals were different; unlike the French, they wanted an independent South Vietnam free from both colonial and communist control. Yet, as Logevall eloquently illustrates, the U.S. followed essentially the same dreary path and made the same errors as its French predecessors. We failed to comprehend the nationalist yearnings of Vietnamese “communists” and were blind to their support among a wide swath of the people. That blindness led us to prop up hopelessly inept or hopelessly compromised Vietnamese “leaders” like Ngo Dinh Diem. This is a superbly written and well-argued reinterpretation of our tragic experience in Vietnam.” – Freeman, Jay. 880p. AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2012

“Homeowner’s Energy Handbook: Your Guide to Getting Off the Grid” By Paul Scheckel – “We all want to lower our energy bills, but alternative energy can be a bit daunting. This great manual is a fantastic introduction to what’s possible and practical… The first third of this intelligently organized book covers techniques for making existing homes more energy efficient before moving on to address solar, wind, and hydro energies as well as biofuels. All chapters feature how-tos, and the text is complemented by simple illustrations. Included are case studies exemplifying both good and bad experiences with alternative energy use. VERDICT Chock-full of practical advice and realistic assessments of alternative energy, this book is superior to others on the topic due to its accessibility, organization, and balance. Homeowners can easily pick and choose from projects without fear of becoming overwhelmed.” — Karen Ellis. 288p. LIBRARY JOURNAL, c2013.

“Natural Curious: A Photographic Field Guide” by Mary Holland – “Holland (Milkweed Visitors), a naturalist and wildlife photographer, has an oddball vision of nature that is both informative and entertaining. Her description of her home, where she stores beaver castor glands in her freezer and has a fecal bear plug on display in her living room, prepares the reader for a book that includes pictures of penile bones and other oddities–as well as plenty of natural beauty. Nearly 1,000 color photographs should help the newbie naturalists learn what to look for and where to find it. Readers will delight in images of a newt and spring peeper attempting to mate; remarkably vibrant robins eggs in a nest; and a loon chick swallowing a fish whole. Though Holland begins her calendar year in March, the start of the mating season as dictated by her Vermont home-base, she provides a simple algorithm for readers to adjust according to latitude. Months are color-coded and organized around species; amphibians, reptiles, birds, mammals, insects & arachnids give way to plants, and the detail provided about each group is astounding. For Holland and her readers, treasures abound.” —  Photos. (Oct.). 474pg. Web-Exclusive Review. PUBLISHERS WEEKLY, c2010

“Playful Learning: Develop Your Child’s Sense of Joy and Wonder” by Mariah Bruehl – “‘Playful Learning’ is the magic that takes place when we meld a child’s sense of joy and wonder with thoughtfully planned learning experiences. Through easy-to-implement, hands-on projects you can engage your child in fun and creative ways that encourage learning and impart the joy of discovery. In addition, discover ways to create a space conducive to learning and learn how to build a culture within your family that celebrates learning.” PUBLISHER ANNOTATION, c2011.

“Read With Me: Best Books for Preschoolers” by Stephanie Zvrin – “Read with Me is a practical introduction for parents and adult caregivers to books for preschoolers. Zvirin…has assembled this expert and invaluable collection. Nine sections, including “First Reads,” “Families,” “Friendships,” and “The Natural World,” contain richly annotated lists of recommended titles published during the last 10 years. Each entry includes bibliographic information and a recommended age range. The books have been selected from various “best” books lists, reviews, and librarian recommendations. A final section includes a brief list of titles recommended for beginning readers to read alone. In addition to the lists, Zvirin writes about the importance of reading aloud to preschoolers in developing a foundation for language development and offers a list of 17 “quick tips” for book sharing.” — Cart, Michael. 184pg. AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2012.

“Salt Sugar Fat: How the Food Giants Hooked Us” by Michael Moss – “A Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative reporter at the New York Times, Moss delivers an indictment of the processed-food industry. In fact, he’s been doing it pretty regularly in the pages of the Times, with challenges to USDA Food Safety Practices and stories of tainted meat that make your stomach clutch. Here, he takes the Big Three–salt, sugar, and fat–and shows how the food industry has used these basic, inexpensive ingredients to get us addicted to food that’s slowly killing us.” 448p. LJ Prepub Alert Online Review. LIBRARY JOURNAL, c2012.

“To the Bone: New and Selected Poems” by Sydney Lea – “Hunter, woodsman, spokesman for the unlucky, violent, and vile, Lea favors the concrete images of hardscrabble country life, guns, gray snow, and weeds. His practice is wary of self-conscious beauty or lyricism, and his inclination to forgive and even celebrate difficult people or intolerable situations has gradually become a more explicit Christianity, as in ‘Peaceable Kingdom’ or ‘Friendship.’ These very qualities, which tend to make his longer poems diffuse or tendentiously uplifting, give some of the shorter works a restrained elegance: ‘Now,/ despite the persistence of heat and quarrelEsuch shinings on water/ are fact. Or sublime.'” — Graham Christian, Andover-Harvard Theological Lib., Cambridge, Mass. CAHNERS PUBLISHING, c1996.

BIOGRAPHY

“Black Count: Glory, Revolution, Betrayal, and the Real Count of Monte Cristo” by Tom Reiss – “The Count of Monte Cristo is a classic tale of betrayal and revenge, penned by the renowned 19th-century author Alexandre Dumas. But it turns out the novel is not merely fiction; key plot developments were based on the true-life experiences of the author’s father. This is the premise of The Black Count, a new book by Tom Reiss that traces the incredible rise and precipitous fall of Thomas-Alexandre Dumas, the father of author Alexandre Dumas. In many ways, the life of the elder Dumas mirrors that of Edmond Dantes, the hero of The Count of Monte Cristo. In the novel, Dantes is falsely accused of being a supporter of Napoleon, who has been exiled from France. Dantes is imprisoned for 14 years before escaping and enacting revenge on his accusers. While some occurrences in Thomas-Alexandre Dumas’ life were not as dramatic as those of the fictional Dantes, other aspects were even more remarkable. Dumas was born in present-day Haiti to a French nobleman and a black slave. Brought to France by his father, the mixed-race Dumas became a general under Napoleon Bonaparte. But General Dumas’ fortunes abruptly changed. He was captured in Italy, thrown into a dungeon and left to rot. Though he was finally released, he died impoverished and embittered. Perhaps his revenge was achieved with his son’s writing of The Count of Monte Cristo, which takes a critical look at France’s tumultuous political climate. The Black Count is a thoroughly researched, lively piece of nonfiction that will be savored by fans of Alexandre Dumas. But The Black Count needs no partner: It is fascinating enough to stand on its own.” John T. Slania. 432pg. BOOKPAGE, c2012.

“Margaret Fuller: A New American Life” by Megan Marshall – “The mind has a light of its own,” wrote Margaret Fuller, and the radiance of her inner world vitalizes Marshall’s profoundly simpatico portrait of this path-breaking feminist and courageous journalist and writer. Marshall encountered Fuller while working on her acclaimed first book, The Peabody Sisters (2005), and she inhabits Fuller’s dramatic, oft-told story with unique intimacy by virtue of her fluency in and judicious quoting of Fuller’s extraordinarily vivid letters. Marshall conveys Fuller’s “passionate intensity,” “unusual intellect and outsized personality,” “expansive sympathy,” and extraordinary valor as she illuminates family struggles, social obstacles, and private heartache in conjunction with each phase of Fuller’s phenomenal achievements as an innovative teacher, lecturer, and editor. Marshall brings stirring historical and psychological insights to Fuller’s complicated relationship with Emerson and the other transcendentalists, her journey west and response to the horrific plight of Native Americans, her gripping dispatches on social ills as a front-page columnist for Horace Greeley’s New York Tribune, and her triumphs in Europe as “America’s first female foreign correspondent.” How spectacularly detailed and compassionate Marshall’s chronicle is of Fuller’s scandalous love for an Italian soldier, the birth of their son, her heroic coverage of the 1849 siege of Rome, and her and her family’s tragic deaths when their ship wrecks in sight of the American coast. A magnificent biography of a revolutionary thinker, witness, and writer.” Seaman, Donna. 496p. AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2013.

DVD’s

“Atlas Shrugged, Part 1”
“Cirque du Soleil: Worlds Away”
“Cloud Atlas”
“Hobbit: Unexpected Journey”
“Iron Man 3”
“Jack Reacher”
“Les Miserables”
“Mad Men: Season Four
“Mad Men: Season Five
“Silver Linings Playbook”
“True Blood: The Complete Fifth Season”

BOARD BOOKS

“Giant Jam Sandwich” by John Vernon Lord

PICTURE BOOKS

“Alex the Parrot: No Ordinary Bird” by Stephanie Spinner
“Building Our House” by Jonathan Bean
“Bunnies on Ice” by Johanna Wright
“Charley’s First Night” by Amy Hest
“Chicken Soup with Rice: A Book of Months” by Maurice Sendak
“Do Like a Duck Does!” by Judy Hindley
“Dogs on the Bed” by Elizabeth Bluemle
“Duck, Duck, Goose” by Tad Hills
“Everyone Can Learn To Ride A Bicycle” by Chris Raschka
“Grumpy Goat” by Brett Helquist
“Henry and the Cannons: An Extraordinary True Story” by Don Brown
“Kate and Nate are Running Late” by Kate Egan
“Lemonade in Winter: A Book About Two Kids Counting Money” by Emily Jenkins
“Let’s Go For A Drive!” by Mo Willems
“Lucky Ducklings” by Eva Moore
“Matchbox Diary” by Paul Fleischman
“Mice” by Rose Fyleman
“Monster’s Monster” by Patrick McDonnell
“Penny and Her Marble” by Kevin Henkes
“Pete the Cat and His Four Groovy Buttons” by Eric Litwin
Pouch! by David Ezra Stein
“Rabbit and Robot: the Sleepover” by Cece Bell
“Rooster’s Off to See the World” by Eric Carle
“Silly Sally” by Audrey Wood
“We’re Going on a Picnic” by Pat Hutchins
“Which is Round? Which is Bigger?” by Mineko Mamada
“You Can Do It!” by Betsy Lewin

JUVENILE FICTION

 “Captain Underpants and the Terrifying Return of Tippy Tinkletrousers” by Dav Pilkey – “Ages 7-up. A toast of “non-alckaholick wine” to the ninth Captain Underpants novel–and to Dav Pilkey’s refusal to coast. In fact, the title is something of a red herring since the true centerpiece of this installment is a lengthy flashback to “exactly five years, eleven days, fourteen hours, and six minutes ago,” when mopey kindergartner Harold Hutchins first met precocious George Beard, who sports an awesome Afro instead of his usual flattop. The boys face a nasty nemesis in the form of Kipper Krupp, the bullying sixth-grade nephew of Principal Krupp, but since Principal Krupp is years away from becoming the world’s greatest superhero, it’s up to the boys to defeat Kipper on their own. Their intricate and ingenious plan incorporates (and this is a short list) locker sabotage, fear of the paranormal, cheerleaders, pizza deliveries, a huge pair of pants, and the creation of the seminal comic “The Advenchers of Dogman.” Pilkey dials back the toilet humor considerably, but plenty of naughtiness is still afoot (there’s an extended riff on the hilarity of turning a “Brake Inspection” sign into “Bra Inspection”), and egregious misspellings abound. Supa!” (Aug.). 304p. PUBLISHERS WEEKLY, c2012.

“Down the Road” by Alice Schertle – “K-Gr 3 Hetty has never been down the dusty road ‘all by herself’ before, but one morning her parents decide she’s old enough to fetch eggs in town on her own. The way is long, and she makes up sing-song ‘walking words’ to amuse herself as she goes. She strides through a meadow, across a stream, and finally ‘Einto the cool shadows of Mr. Birdie’s Emporium and Dry Goods Store.’ On the way home, the eggs survive a close call but break when she is tempted to pick a ‘Papa-size’ apple. Crestfallen, she climbs the tree and sulks until her father comes looking for her. They share the delicious fruit, and then Mama joins them on their perch. The next day, it’s apple pie for breakfast instead of eggs. The lyrical, rhythmic text is rich with a warm, leisurely Southern feeling. Even when disaster strikes, there’s not much to worry about. The story is both timeless and old-fashioned; the tractor, cars, and truck waiting for repairs in Hetty’s yard and the credit card stickers in Mr. Birdie’s window ground the rural setting in the present. The watercolor illustrations radiate an almost beachlike quality of blinding light, as well as offer the shadowy relief of intense and subtle greens, blues, and browns. Hetty is a sturdy, charming African American girl with pigtails, ribbons, and overalls. This story is so cozy and sweet that it makes readers thirsty-but Lewis’s paintings go down like cool clear water.” Vanessa Elder, School Library Journal CAHNERS PUBLISHING, c1996.

“False Prince” by Jennifer A. Nielsen – “The royal family of Carthya has been poisoned, and among the various regents jockeying for the throne, Conner has the most ingeniously devious plan: to train four orphans, briefly and intensely, in all things royal, then choose one to impersonate the long-lost, presumed dead younger prince. The book’s brisk pacing underscores the sure-fire mix of adventure, mystery, and suspense.” — jh. 344pg. THE HORN BOOK, c2012.

“Fourmile” by Watt Key – “A gun-toting stranger, a jealous boyfriend, a woman caught in the middle, and the likelihood of violence–it sounds like something out of the Wild West, but this novel is set in modern-day rural Alabama. Key masterfully plots the story of home, family, and fate, and readers will race to the conclusion, sensing the trouble to come. An original and satisfying coming-of-age tale.”– ds. 228pg. THE HORN BOOK, c2013.

“LIar & Spy” by Rebecca Stead – “..another moving story of friendship, middle school problems, and life changes. When his father loses his job, seventh-grader Georges moves with his parents from their beloved home in Brooklyn to an apartment. There he meets Safer, who makes him a partner in his spying activity on the mysterious Mr. X. As he becomes involved in the espionage, Georges also struggles with bullies at school, lost friendships, and a strange new life with his father. All of these threads neatly come together. Certain symbols and themes recur throughout the story, such as the dots painted by his namesake Seurat; some themes overlap in Georges’ home, school and social lives. Each character is well-developed and memorable; their problems are not easily solved or trivialized. Ms. Stead prompts readers to think about reasons for lying, and to understand that there are different kinds of falsehoods.” MaryAnn Karre, 192pg. ABC-CLIO, INC., c2013.

“Little Dog Lost” by Marion Dane Bauer – “Grades 3-6. A stray on the streets of the small town of Erthly, little dog Buddy remembers her happy bond with a boy, whose family moved away to a city apartment where there was no room for Buddy. Then Buddy’s new owner shooed her out, and she left, head low, / tail tucked, / airplane ears sagging. But Buddy is not the only stray in Erthly who is lonely and lost: So many lives / filled / with longing. There is Charles Larue, a shy, reclusive caretaker of a mansion. Does he have a dark secret? And then there is Mark, a young boy whose father took off before he was born, who desperately wants a dog and falls instantly, helplessly in love with Buddy, feeling the snuffle of warm breath / against his palm. But Mark’s mother, who is mayor of Erthly, says no to a pet. The town kids want a dog park, and they organize a rally to support their cause, but can Mark confront his mom? Illustrated with occasional, expressive black-and-white drawings, mostly from Buddy’s viewpoint of the world from the ground up, the rapid, immediate free verse will grab readers first with the longing and loneliness and then, in contrast, the boy and dog in bliss. Great for sharing with pet lovers.” Rochman, Hazel. 240p. AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2012.

“One and Only Ivan” by Katherine Applegate – “Gr 3-7. This tender tale of friendship and hope is narrated by a silverback gorilla living at The Big Top Mall, a shabby, circus-themed roadside attraction. For years, Ivan was passively content. He had his art, unlimited bananas, and his friends: Stella (an elephant), Bob (a stray dog), and Julia (a human child). Ivan’s eyes are finally opened to his deplorable surroundings when he loses a friend due to neglect. The last straw is when he witnesses the attraction’s owner abusing Ruby, a newly acquired baby elephant. Thus, Ivan is inspired to take action. With some help from his human friends, his dream of a better life for all the Big Top’s animals just might come true. The character of Ivan, as explained in an author’s note, is inspired by a real gorilla that lived through similar conditions before being adopted by Zoo Atlanta. Applegate makes a powerful statement about the treatment of animals–especially those living in captivity–and reminds readers that all creatures deserve a safe place to call home. Castelao’s delightful illustrations enhance this lovely story, and the characters will capture readers’ hearts and never let go. A must-have.” — Alissa J. LeMerise, Oxford Public Library, MI. 305p. SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL, c2012.

JUVENILE NON-FICTION

“Leave Your Sleep: A Collection of Classic Children’s Poetry” – “K-Gr 3. In 2010, Merchant released a successful album of 30 classic children’s poems that she set to music. Nineteen of these poems are now brought together in this anthology consisting of a delightful range of American and British poets from Ogden Nash and Edward Lear to Rachel Field and Jack Prelutsky. The jaunty selections feature horses, elephants, dancing bears, and wonderfully empowered children. McClintock’s detailed paintings bring inviting color and fun to the verses in both spot art and full spreads. A full-length CD of the recordings is included, making this a feast of enchanting sounds, words, and visuals-a magnificent package for any poetry collection. Back matter includes photographs of the poets included, credits and more information about the poems and the music.–Julie Roach, Cambridge Public Library, MA. Blair Christolon. 48p. SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL, c2013.

 “Little White Duck: A Childhood in China” by Na Liu – “Grades 4-7. Graphic memoirs are a cornerstone of the graphic-novel format, but rarely are they written with children as the primary audience. In eight short stories, Liu has done just that, giving younger readers a glimpse into her life growing up in China just after the death of Chairman Mao. By linking her stories to a teaching by Confucius that says one learns in three ways–by studying history, by imitating others, and through one’s own experience–Liu shows how her parents survived the famine during China’s Great Leap Forward, how the death of soldier Lei Feng influenced the behavior of Liu and her sister, and how a trip to the countryside to visit her relations helped Liu realize just how privileged her life in the city was. The stories are vivid even without Martinez’s bold artwork that evokes both traditional Chinese scrolls and midcentury propaganda posters. The result is a memoir that reads like a fable, a good story with a moral that resonates.” Volin, Eva. Booklist Online. AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2012.

YOUNG ADULT

 “Apothecary” by Maile Meloy – “Ages 10-up. When the House Committee on Un-American Activities targets Janie’s television writer parents, the 14-year-old and her family flee from Los Angeles to London. There, Janie meets Benjamin, a ‘defiant’ classmate, and his father, the neighborhood apothecary, who is involved in much more than hot water bottles and aspirin. In fact, he is part of a long line of apothecaries who have discovered miraculous secrets– truth serums, invisibility, amazing physical transformations–and he is now working with scientists on an incredible plan that has global ramifications with regard to the escalating tensions between the Soviet Union and the United States. Some readers may need to brush up on cold war history to fully appreciate the stakes, but even those with a vague understanding of the times will be quickly swept up in this thoroughly enjoyable adventure, filled with magic, humor, memorable characters, and just a bit of sweet romance. With evocative, confident prose and equally atmospheric spot art from Schoenherr, adult author Meloy’s first book for young readers is an auspicious one. Readers will hope they haven’t heard the last from Janie and Benjamin.” (Oct.). 368pg. PUBLISHERS WEEKLY, c2011.

“The Running Dream” by Wendelin Van Draanen – ” Sixteen-year-old Jessica is the track team’s star sprinter until tragedy strikes: the team van is struck, killing one runner and demolishing Jessica’s right leg. The book begins with Jessica refusing to acknowledge the result: a stump. But she is slowly reintroduced to life, which involves being fitted for a prosthesis, returning to school, and dealing with the usual–tough teachers, mean girls, and one really hot, sensitive, supportive boy. It’s a classic problem novel in a lot of ways; accordingly, Van Draanen inserts setbacks with narrative precision, the most affecting of which (surprisingly) is the insurance battle that Jessica’s parents face. Overall, though, this is a tremendously upbeat book, with Jessica’s family, friends, and community coming together (the track team raises funds to buy Jessica a $20,000 running leg). Even a subplot involving Jessica’s friendship with the cerebral palsy-afflicted Rosa is not as treacly as it could have been. Van Draanen’s extensive research into both running and amputees pays dividends–readers will truly feel what it’s like to walk (or run) a mile (or 10) in Jessica’s shoes. Daniel Kraus. 352pg. AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2011.

“Walking Into the Wild” by Nancy Means Wright – “Growing up in wartime is never easy; through the eyes of a rebellious teenager, we experience the return of a group of courageous young people to take up life again in Vermont after the horrors of the American Revolution have displaced and scattered their family. Their journey through unsettled wilderness filled with bears and wolves makes an exciting background for sibling rivalry, loyalty, and secrets. Unforgettable.” (Ida H Washington, co-author Carleton’s Raid.)

ADULT FICTION

“Aviator’s Wife: A Novel” by Melanie Benjamin – “Talented historical novelist Benjamin has a knack for picking intriguing, if somewhat obscure, women in history and making them utterly unforgettable. Told from the perspective of Anne Lindbergh, wife of the famed aviator Charles, her third novel (after The Autobiography of Mrs. Tom Thumb) doesn’t disappoint. When Anne first meets Colonel Charles Lindbergh in 1927 he’s a hero, world-famous after completing his cross-Atlantic flight; Anne is a simple college girl living in the shadow of her radiant older sister Elisabeth. To everyone’s surprise, then, it’s Anne who catches Charles’s eye. And so begins their enthralling journey together. Intimately depicting their marriage of duty and partnership in the air, as well as the horrific kidnapping and murder of first child Charles Jr., this is less love story than voyeuristic glimpse at one of the 20th century’s most captivating men through the eyes of the woman who knew him best. In true Benjamin style, it’s Anne who captures us all in this exquisite fictional take on an iconic marriage.” — Agent: Melanie Jackson, the Melanie Jackson Agency. (Feb.). 402p. Web-Exclusive Review. PUBLISHERS WEEKLY, c2013

“Andalucian Friend” by Alexander Soderberg – “a tale of cutthroat mob bosses and the extraordinary lengths to which they will go to one-up one another. Unwittingly (and unwillingly) at the center of the action is Sophie, a nurse and single mom whose charitable instincts toward her patient–the leader of a crime ring–could wind up costing her the thing she values most in life: her teenage son. Told largely in flashback, the story takes place to a great degree in Sweden, but the electrifying final chapters are set in Spain’s Costa del Sol, culminating in a car/motorcycle gunfight that just begs for a film adaptation. Soderberg writes exceptionally well-drawn and sympathetic characters, demonstrates an easy familiarity with diverse European locales, and has the chops to move a story along with the best of them. All in all, The Andalucian Friend is yet one more compelling reason to read Scandinavian suspense novels, some of the finest in the genre today.” — BOOKPAGE, c2013.

“Fever” by Mary Beth Keane – “In this compelling historical novel, the infamous Typhoid Mary is given great depth and humanity by the gifted Keane… Irish immigrant Mary Mallon is eager to better her station in life and unafraid of hard work. When she is finally made a head cook, she is hired by some of the best families in Manhattan but unwittingly leaves a trail of disease in her wake. A “medical engineer” ultimately identifies her as a healthy carrier of typhoid fever and quarantines her on North Brother Island, where she is separated from her lifelong companion, Alfred Briehof, and forced to live in isolation. She is released three years later under the condition that she never cook again. But her inability to understand her condition, her passion for cooking, and the income she had become used to all conspire to lure her back into the kitchen. Keane not only makes of the headstrong Mary a sympathetic figure, she also brings the New York City of the early twentieth century to teeming life, sweeping readers into the crowded apartment buildings, filthy bars, and dangerous sweatshops of Upper Manhattan. Most movingly of all, she tells a great love story in depicting Mary and Alfred’s flawed but passionate relationship. A fascinating, often heartbreaking novel.” — Wilkinson, Joanne. AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2013.

“The Fifth Assassin” by Brad Meltzer – “National archivist Beecher White (The Inner Circle, 2011) returns in another heart-pounding thriller set in Washington, D.C. As if he were spinning plates, Meltzer balances almost too many characters’ stories simultaneously: the evil president who is about to be assassinated; the elusive first love, Clementine, and her insane father, Nico; and Marshall, suspected killer and Beecher’s wounded childhood friend. Also in the mix are four seemingly random murders modeled on presidential assassinations and a secret spy ring initiated by George Washington. Beecher narrates sections of the story as he races from crime scenes to hospitals and even to Camp David, setting a frantic pace that will leave readers breathless and tense. Interlaced with Beecher’s narration are short snippets in an omniscient voice that matter-of-factly yet chillingly describes the killer, who calls himself the Knight and wears a white plastic mask. As the story nears its climax (Will there be a fifth presidential assassination?), we are still guessing about the Knight’s identity and his bizarre motives. This roller-coaster car should come with a seatbelt!.” — Baker, Jen. 384p. AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2013.

“In One Person” by John Irving – “Prep school. Wrestling. Unconventional sexual practices. Viennese interlude. This bill of particulars could only fit one American author: John Irving. His 13th novel (after Last Night in Twisted River) tells the oftentimes outrageous story of bisexual novelist Billy Abbott, who comes of age in the uptight 1950s and explores his sexuality through two decadent decades into the plague-ridden 1980s and finally to a more positive present day. Sexual confusion sets in early for Billy, simultaneously attracted to both the local female librarian and golden boy wrestler Jacques Kittredge, who treats Billy with the same disdain he shows Billy’s best friend (and occasional lover) Elaine. Faced with an unsympathetic mother and an absent father who might have been gay, Billy travels to Europe, where he has affairs with a transgendered female and an older male poet, an early AIDS activist. Irving’s take on the AIDS epidemic in New York is not totally persuasive (not enough confusion, terror, or anger), and his fractured time and place doesn’t allow him to generate the melodramatic string of incidents that his novels are famous for. In the end, sexual secrets abound in this novel, which intermittently touches the heart as it fitfully illuminates the mutability of human desire.” — Agent: Dean Cooke, the Cooke Agency. (May). 448p. PUBLISHERS WEEKLY, c2012.

“Iron King” by Maurice Druon – “This first book in a seven-part historical series that chronicles the beginnings of the Hundred Years’ War and the fall of the Capetian kings sets the foreboding mood and relentless slow-march tempo that drives the characters forward to their dooms or noble destinies. At its heart is the French monarch, Philip the Fair (1268-1314), grandson of Saint Louis, who rules with an iron fist; it’s his persecution of the Knights Templar, including burning its Grand Master at the stake, that sets the stage for his downfall. Adding to the intrigue is Druon’s marvelous depiction of the swirl of those lives that move around him. The Iron King can be only as strong as those who serve him, after all. VERDICT Seasoned with sex, betrayal, brutal warfare, cold pragmatic calculating, and curses from the lips of martyrs dying at the stake, this tale cuts a memorable swath through the reader’s imagination. The flavor of the times, the smells, sounds, values, and superstitions give this work a fine readability as well as a sensation of reality. With an introduction by George R.R. Martin, who cites this French epic series as an influence on his Game of Thrones, Druon’s acclaimed work (first published in 1955) will find an audience with fans of historical fiction and Martin.” — Russell Miller, Prescott P.L., AZ. 368p. LIBRARY JOURNAL, c2013.

“The Lower River” by Paul Theroux – “Theroux (Hotel Honolulu) draws on personal experience and literary antecedents (think Heart of Darkness) for his latest adventurous tale. Ellis Hock, 62, has a marriage in shambles, an estranged daughter, and a failing business. Hoping to escape the modern world and put his money and time to good use, he leaves Massachusetts for a place rich with fonder memories—a village in the Lower River district of Malawi, where Ellis served with the Peace Corps for four years in his 20s. But Malabo is not the quaint community that he left decades ago—the people are more suspicious and reticent. Perhaps interaction with Western NGOs has changed them, or maybe it’s just that Hock’s youthful optimism has dimmed with age. But the village remembers him—the mzungu who doesn’t fear snakes—and Hock finds himself ensnared in a situation far more complex than anything he expected. A somewhat slow exposition and occasional repetition aside, Theroux successfully grafts keen observations about the efficacy of international aid and the nature of nostalgia to a swift-moving narrative through a beautifully described landscape.” — Agent: Jin Auh, the Wylie Agency. (May). 336p. PUBLISHERS WEEKLY, c2012.

“O’Brien’s” by Peter Behrens – “Behrens makes it clear early on in his latest historical novel that the O’Brien men are a restless group. What follows is the story of railroad magnate Joe O’Brien and his marriage and family, from the late nineteenth century in the Canadian wilderness to John F. Kennedy’s run for president. Behrens chooses illuminating segments of the characters’ lives to present, skipping years to the next significant period and switching the focus to different family members without losing the thread of the story. The novel is an epic along the lines of Middlesex in the way it follows a family through time and examines the results of their actions. Also the author of the award-winning novel The Law of Dreams (2006), Behrens keeps dialogue at a minimum, instead exploring the internal lives of the characters amid richly imagined surroundings. A brooding novel, engrossing in its scope and detail, The O’Briens keeps sight of the family’s personal stories amid the larger history of much of the twentieth century.” — Thoreson, Bridget. 400pg. AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2012.

“Private Berlin” by James Patterson – “At Private, an investigative firm that has an office in Berlin, one of its agents has disappeared. Now, the Private team is taking a look at the cases Chris Schneider was working on for clues to his disappearance. Their investigation leads them to an abandoned Nazi slaughterhouse where their hope vanishes. Someone very dangerous and depraved is at work in Berlin and he’s just getting started.” — Private (Grand Central Publishing) series, 448pp.,

“Until the End of Time” by Danielle Steel – “Steel’s two-part story of reincarnation and everlasting love will satisfy fans of gentle romance and women’s fiction. In the 1970s, famous fashion-show producer Jenny falls in love with lawyer Bill, and they marry, despite his family’s objections. Bill decides to attend divinity school, and they end up living in Wyoming after a church offers Bill a position. There tragedy strikes. In the second story, Amish Elizabeth takes care of her widowed father and brothers while secretly writing a book at night. Bob is an independent publisher looking for a winning read. They fall in love and struggle to be respectful of her father and Amish traditions while seeking to publish the book and be together. Could it be that Elizabeth and Bob are Jenny and Bill come back to life for a happier ending? This gentle, inspirational story is very different from Steel’s usual style, but her loyal readers will enjoy it just the same, as will anyone looking for a clever and sweetly dramatic romance.” — Alessio, Amy. 336p. AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2013.

“A Week in Winter” by Maeve Binchey- “Located in western Ireland on a cliff overlooking the Atlantic Ocean, Stone House is run down and neglected. When Chicky Starr decides to buy the property and turn it into a hotel, the town thinks she’s gone crazy. The project brings unexpected peace and understanding to Chicky and her staff, and after months of tireless work, Stone House is ready for business. The first out-of-towners arrive with disappointment, disgrace, and doubt, but nearly all experience a catharsis on the cliffs and trails and in the gardens that can be found in the surrounding countryside. Verdict Written in a style similar to that in Whitethorn Woods, this title features Binchy’s unsurpassed storytelling as she weaves together the lives and experiences of her characters. Finished shortly before Binchy’s death in 2011, this final offering will please many of the author’s fans, … this tale of love, friendship, redemption, growing up, and moving on is a lovely swan song for the beloved author.” —  Vicki Briner, City Coll. Lib., Fort Lauderdale, FL. 320p. LIBRARY JOURNAL, c2013.

MYSTERY

“Good Cop” by Brad Parks – “This is the fourth outing for Carter Ross, the New Jersey newspaper reporter with a strong sense of justice, a passion for journalism, and a self-deprecating sense of humor. Carter is awakened early one morning by a phone call from his boss, who orders him to follow up on a cop killing. Carter visits the widow and learns a lot about the victim, none of which makes sense when he is later told that the cop took his own life. The widow is adamant that her husband was murdered, but when her preacher pulls his support from the investigation, Carter knows something is up. He keeps digging, despite being shot at, while his current flame and previous girlfriend complicate his life further. Meanwhile, there is another story line involving gun smuggling that eventually intersects with the cop killing, making for a thoughtful look at gun laws in New Jersey that, in light of the Sandy Hook massacre, becomes even more compelling and disturbing. This is a tautly written page-turner with charm and humor, a terrific combination that is sure to appeal to David Rosenfelt and Janet Evanovich fans.” — Alesi, Stacy. 352p. AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2013.

“Guilt: An Alex Delaware Novel” by Jonathan Kellerman – “The only clue to a buried baby’s identity is a vintage Duesenberg. The new owners of the fixer-upper Victorian in LA’s posh Cheviot Hills area are appalled when a storm reveals an old metal hospital box containing the skeleton of a dead baby in their yard. The LAPD’s Milo Sturgis, who catches the case, drags along his pal, consulting psychologist Alex Delaware (Victims, 2012, etc.). Tracking down former house tenants turns up a pediatric nurse often visited late at night by someone driving a rare Duesenberg, whose ownership leads to a late doctor with severe war wounds who may have provided abortions back in the days before Roe v. Wade. The case is further complicated when another baby, more recently buried, is found in a nearby park with a woman, possibly its mother, lying dead nearby. Would a serial killer space his crimes over 50 years apart? Would he even have the appetite for murder so many years later? The new infant’s bones have been picked clean by flesh-eating beetles, then coated with beeswax. The woman turns out to be a missing nanny whose last job was for superstars Prema Moon and Donny Rader, now sequestered on their vast estate with their four adopted kids. The couple’s marriage is a sham, their estate manager turns up with a bullet in his head, and another of their nannies has also departed without notice. After Alex tails Prema, she decides that she’ll pay $300 for a 45-minute session with him, and that lets loose a three-hankie tale of marital woe that ends with Milo and a forensic crew surrounding the film stars’ living complex. Too slick, too generous with coincidences and too cute by far. One pet pooch in particular is so endearing she ought to be in a Disney movie.” — 400pg. KIRKUS MEDIA LLC, c2013.

“Six Years” by Harlen Coben – “In the prologue to this Kafkaesque stand-alone from bestseller Coben (Stay Close), Jake Fisher, a political science professor at Lanford College in Massachusetts, promises the love of his life, Natalie Avery, to leave her and the man she’s about to wed, Todd Sanderson, alone. For six years Jake keeps his promise, until he sees Todd’s obituary, flies to the deceased’s Palmetto Bluff, S.C., funeral, and finds that the widow is not Natalie. This is merely the first of many shocks. He later gets the brush-off from Natalie’s sister, and when he tries to revisit the retreat in Kraftboro, Vt., that Natalie was attending when they fell in love, he’s told there is (and was) no such place. Surprising secrets among Jake’s friends and colleagues propel him on a trail of violence and labyrinthine deception. Coben has achieved greater suspense in other thrillers, but this ranks among his strangest and most ingenious plots. 5-city author tour. Agent: Lisa Erbach Vance, Aaron Priest Literary Agency. (Mar.). 400p. PUBLISHERS WEEKLY, c2013.

“Suspect” by Robert Crais – “Expect the expected in this stand-alone crime thriller from Shamus Award-winner Crais (The Two Minute Rule). Maggie, a weapon-detecting German shepherd who was seriously traumatized in Afghanistan after an IED killed her human partner and she was shot by a sniper, is struggling as a new member of the LAPD K-9 Platoon. LAPD officer Scott James–who was traumatized after unidentified gunmen killed his partner, Stephanie Anders, and seriously wounded him–makes it his mission to get past Maggie’s defenses to make her functional again. An attractive female detective assists James after his own return to form enables him to take a more active role in investigating who gunned down Anders. Dog lovers who believe the animals are superior to humans in every way will find this lukewarm tale of redemption inspiring.” — Author tour. Agent: Aaron Priest, Aaron M. Priest Literary Agency. (Jan. 22). 320p. PUBLISHERS WEEKLY, c2012

“Touch and Go: A Novel” by Lisa Gardner – “This no-holds-barred stand-alone from Thriller Award-winner Gardner opens with the brutally efficient kidnapping of the Denbe family–father Justin, wife Libby, and 15-year-old daughter Ashlyn–from their exclusive Back Bay townhouse. Law enforcement officials who get quickly involved include corporate investigator Tessa Leoni (from 2011’s Love You More) and series lead Boston Det. Sgt. D.D. Warren (Catch Me, etc.). When the trail leads out of state, New Hampshire county cop Wyatt Foster and FBI special agent Nicole Adams get on the case. Gardner effectively alternates between the physical and emotional disintegration of the family under the pressure of their captivity and the efforts of Leoni and company to dig into the secrets of Denbe Construction, its key employees, and its finances, as well as to locate the Denbes. The suspense builds as the action races to a spectacular conclusion and the unmasking of the plot’s mastermind.” — Agent: Meg Ruley, Jane Rotrosen Agency. (Feb.). 400p. PUBLISHERS WEEKLY, c2012

ADULT NON-FICTION

“The Second Atlas of Breeding Birds of Vermont” edited by Rosalind B. Renfrew – “”This beautiful and comprehensive atlas will be an essential reference for land managers, birders, and anyone who cares about the nature of Vermont. Revealed in these pages are trends and changes, even a few surprises, in bird populations during the last few decades.” — (David Sibley, author and illustrator of The Sibley Guide to Birds )

“Duct Tape Parenting: A Less is More Approach to Raising Respectful, Responsible & Resilient Kids” by Vicki Hoefle – “Moher of five and professional parenting educator Hoefle shares the secrets to her success in dealing with typical behavioral problems in this hard-to-put-down, Adlerian Psychology-based parenting manual. She claims her method will improve relationships and create independent, thoughtful, resilient, and, of course, well-behaved children. But how to accomplish this feat? Stay calm, say nothing, have “radical faith” in your children. In other words, the titular duct tape is for the parents, not the kids. Calling attention to problematic behavior, Hoefle says, makes a harmless weed grow into something much worse: a long-term attention-getting scheme, or a deep-seated personality trait. As long as it’s not a dangerous behavior or situation, Hoefle suggests that parents ignore it. When siblings fight, when a child is caught stealing, or when kids stall and slow down the morning, sit back and see what happens when you say nothing at all. Hoefle’s strategy, which is an extreme form of natural consequences parenting, may seem irresponsible to some, but it clearly comes from the heart and is full of helpful tips even for those who find themselves in disagreement with the book’s main assertion. And perhaps the proof is in the pudding–Hoefle did survive five kids, sanity intact.” — (Aug.). 224p. Web-Exclusive Review. PUBLISHERS WEEKLY, c2012.

“Future: Six Drivers of Global Change” by Al Gore – “Former Vice President Gore draws links and offers cautionary advice for individuals and governments alike in this exhaustive, historically-grounded argument about six concepts that he believes will exert the greatest influence on humanity’s future. The global economy, the proliferation of the Internet and intelligent machines, a shift in the balance of global power, unsustainable growth and consumption, the rise of biotechnology, and the relationship between man and Earth’s ecological systems are the broad areas explored here. With echoes of his previous books’ calls for restrained consumption and the reestablishment of a “healthy and balanced relationship” between humanity and the natural world, Gore (The Assault on Reason) makes the seemingly contradictory argument that a properly restrained democratic capitalism “can serve the world better than any other economic system.” Particularly interesting sections cover the effect of the Internet and the globally-integrated economy on cultural and national identity, the potential for advances in biotech to disrupt “the ecological system within our bodies,” and possibilities for combating global warming. Gore’s strengths lie in his passion for the subject and in his ability to take the long view by putting current events and trends in historical context, and they outweigh the dry tone and occasionally contradictory arguments.” —  Agent: Andrew Wylie, The Wylie Agency. (Feb.). 592p. Web-Exclusive Review. PUBLISHERS WEEKLY, c2013.

“Gun Guys: A Road Trip” by Dan Baum – T”o explore America’s gun culture, Baum,…traverses the country talking to gun owners, shooting instructors, gun advocates, gun control supporters, and even a former gang member who used a gun to kill someone. As a “stoop-shouldered, bald-headed, middle-aged” Jewish Democrat, Baum isn’t your typical gun owner, but he admits to having an “obsession” with guns and has one on his person for much of his road trip. Crisscrossing America he finds a lot of inconsistencies, like gun owners who think the government is coming for their guns despite the fact that “guns laws were getting looser everywhere” or gun control groups pushing for new legislation without understanding how guns work or the historical ineffectiveness of gun control. Though he tries to find diversity among the gun owners he interviews, many just spout antiliberal dogma or “play the role of victim,” so these encounters become repetitive. It’s when the tone of the book shifts from travelogue to narrative, with stories like those of Tim White, who “used a gun in his criminal undertakings”; Rick Ector, an industrial engineer who turned gun carrier after a mugging; and Brandon Franklin, a young New Orleans man who was shot while trying to defend the mother of his children, that Baum’s skill as a writer and journalist is revealed. Overall, this is a very balanced accounting of both sides of America’s gun issue, and while Baum doesn’t have all the answers, his solution that both sides come together to promote gun safety is both admirable and prudent. Baum can be lauded for trying to find an accommodating solution to the problem of guns, but no doubt gun lovers and gun haters both will vehemently disagree with him.” — (Mar.). 336p. PUBLISHERS WEEKLY, c2013.

 BIOGRAPHY

“Black Russian” by Vladimir Alexandrov – “Born in Mississippi, in 1872, to former slaves, Frederick Bruce Thomas became rich and famous “against all odds,” but Alexandrov is the first to discover just how high the stakes were. In this magnetically appealing, unforgettable biography, Alexandrov tracks Thomas as he works his way cross-country as a waiter, bellhop, and personal valet, then takes “the extraordinary step” of sailing to Europe in 1894. Thomas thrived in the absence of racism in France, Germany, and Italy, then settled in Russia, a land of nearly no people of African descent, where he achieved international renown as a brilliantly innovative and strategically charming nightclub owner. He married a German woman and started a family, but as the world went to war and the Bolsheviks came to power, questions about Thomas’ citizenship became dangerously complicated. Exiled and destitute in volatile Constantinople, he worked his way up again, bringing the first black jazz musicians to Turkey. But swindlers, an outraged ex-wife, a racist American diplomat, and political unrest landed him in debtors’ prison, where he died at 55 and was promptly forgotten. In his assiduously researched, prodigiously descriptive, fluently analytical, and altogether astonishing work of resurrection, Alexandrov provides uniquely focused accounts of racial struggles in America and decadence and bloodshed in Europe and Russia while insightfully and dynamically portraying a singular man.” — Seaman, Donna. 336p. AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2013.

“My Beloved World” by Sonia Sotomayor – “U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sotomayor, born poor in the South Bronx and appointed to the federal bench as its first Hispanic justice, recounts numerous obstacles and remarkable achievements in this personal and inspiring autobiography. Her path to the highest court in the land was rife with difficulties, but it wasn’t circuitous–from an early age, Sotomayor was determined to become a lawyer. To reach her goal she overcame diabetes, the language barrier (her Puerto Rican family spoke Spanish at home), the early death of her beloved alcoholic father, and–in the academic and professional worlds–the disparaging of minorities. In some respects, her story–that of a second-generation immigrant rallying familial support, educational opportunities, and plenty of ambition and discipline to realize the American dream–is familiar, but her extraordinary success makes her experience noteworthy. Sotomayor is clear-eyed about the factors and people that helped her succeed, and she is open about her personal failures, foremost among them an unsuccessful marriage. Regardless of political philosophies, readers across the board will be moved by this intimate look at the life of a justice. 16 pages of photos.” — Agent: Peter Bernstein, Bernstein Literary Agency. (Jan. 16). 320p. PUBLISHERS WEEKLY, c2012.

 DVD’s

“American Experience: Death and the Civil War”
“Anna Kerenina”
“ARGO”
“Beasts of the Southern Wild”
“Brave”
“Dexter Season 2”
“Downton Abbey: Season 3”
“Games of Thrones: Season 2”
“Life of Pi”
“Lincoln”
“Sound of Music”
“Wreck-It Ralph”

BOARD BOOKS

“Bella Loves Bunny” by David McPhail

PICTURE BOOKS

“500 Hats of Bartholomew Cubbins” by Dr. Seuss
“Adele & Simon” by Barbara McLIntock
“Arabella Miller’s Tiny Caterpillar” by Clare Jarrett
“Back to Front and Upside Down” by Claire Alexander
“Creepy Carrots” by Peter Brown
“Each Kindness” by Jacqueline Woodson”
“The Fantastic Jungles of Henri Rousseau” by Michelle Markel
“Infinity and Me” by Kate Hosford
“Lemonade in Winter” by Emily Jenkins
“Llama, Llama Red Pajama” by Anna Dewdney
“Looking at Lincoln” by Maira Kalman
“Max’s Chocolate Chicken” by Rosemary Wells
“Ollie” by Olivier Dunrea
“Overboard” by Sarah Weeks
“Picture a Tree” by Barbara Reid
“Sleep Like a Tiger” by Pamela Zagarenski
“Take Me Out to the Yakyu” by Aaron Meshon
“There’s Going to be a Baby” by John Burningham
“This is Not My Hat” by Jon Klassen
“Tuesday” by David Wiesner
“We’re Going on a Bear Hunt” by Michael Rose

JUVENILE FICTION

“The Big,Big, Big Book of Tashi” by Anna & Barbara Feinberg & Kim Gamble – “Imported from Australia, this rollicking omnibus unites seven books, many of them bestsellers Down Under, and their popularity is easy to understand. A boy named Jack describes his new friend, Tashi, who arrives one day on the back of a swan from a magical country populated with giants, dragons, ghosts and all sorts of other things that go bump in the night. Tashi mesmerizes Jack (and Jack mesmerizes his parents) with tales of his exploits about outwitting a succession of deliciously horrible villains (‘I’ll pluck out your nose hairs, one by one,’ a bandit threatens Tashi. Sometimes Tashi tells a story, to Jack; sometimes Jack recounts a Tashi adventure to his parents. In an amusing role reversal, Jack’s parents hang breathlessly on their son’s every word (‘So tell us,’ Jack’s father says. ‘After Tashi tricked those giants and teased the bandits, how did he meet these ghosts?’), and the dialogue between the storyteller and his audience invisibly tightens the narrative tension. Teasers end each tale (‘ So that’s the end of the story,’ said Jack sadly. And everyone was safe and happy again.’ Yes,’ said Tashi, that is, until the bandits arrived’ ‘). Appearing one or two to each page, Gamble’s playful b&w drawings are an integral part of the fun, making this outsize volume a prime choice for shipping to summer camp with newly independent readers. Best of all, the answers to those cliffhangers are only a turn of a page away.” —  Ages 6-10. 448pg. (May) CAHNERS PUBLISHING, c2002.

“Boy on Cinnamon Street” by Phoebe Stone – “Grades 6-8. Louise and the quirky cast of characters in this novel will win your heart. When Louise receives a letter from a secret admirer, she automatically assumes it’s from the pizza delivery boy. Louise and her best friend Reni set out to get his attention, but this is only a distraction in Louise’s life. There are suppressed memories regarding the death of her mother, her abandonment by her father, and the fact that she will never be tall. Through it all, Reni’s brother stands on the side, as do Louise’s grandparents. The plot is somewhat predictable, but readers will enjoy figuring things out before Louise. This is a lovely, leisurely read for a long afternoon.” — Esther Keller, JHS 278 Marine Park, Brooklyn, New York.  ABC-CLIO, INC., c2012

“Center of Everything: A Novel” by Linda Urban – “Ages 9-12. The poignancy that characterized Urban’s A Crooked Kind of Perfect and Hound Dog True is also present in this novel about wishes and regret. Months after her grandmother’s death, 12-year-old Ruby Pepperdine composes a winning essay honoring her New Hampshire town’s namesake: Capt. Cornelius Bunning, inventor of the doughnut. Ruby should be ecstatic that she gets to read her essay in front of the whole community on Bunning Day, but her mind is on other things, especially how she didn’t listen to her grandmother’s final words before she died. Ruby thinks that maybe if she wishes hard enough, “everything will be back to how it is supposed to be,” but making a wish the right way is a tricky business. In a story whose winding plot echoes the doughnut shape that fascinates Ruby, Urban traces how Ruby discovers connections among dissimilar phenomena, including the nature of relativity, everyday sounds, and being part of a community. Ruby’s large imagination and even bigger heart are beautifully evoked as the sixth-grader finds a way to keep the memory of her grandmother alive.” — (Mar.). 208p. PUBLISHERS WEEKLY, c2013.

“Jinx” by Sage Blackwood – “Grades 4-7. Nearly abandoned in a forest by his stepfather, young orphan Jinx lands, instead, in the home of a wizard, Simon. There Jinx, who has always had an ability to see others’ feelings in colors and symbols, develops the ability to communicate with the forest’s trees. But after Simon performs a spell, Jinx loses his capacity as an emotional seer. Setting out into the forest to look for a counterspell, Jinx joins company with a girl and a boy, both of whom are suffering under their own curses. In this expertly paced, beautifully written book, Blackwood elevates familiar fantasy elements with exquisitely credible characters who inhabit a world filled with well-drawn magic and whimsy–witches travel by butter churn, for example. Rounding out the exciting story are terrifying dangers, delightful bouts of wordplay, and vivid settings that will appeal to readers’ imaginations, senses of humor, and desire for fair play. … this exciting, thought-provoking debut will leave readers eager for follow-up adventures.” — Goldsmith, Francisca. 368p. AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2013.

“Mighty Miss Malone” by Christopher Curtis – “Responding to readers’ pleas that he write a book with a female main character, Curtis traces the path that led Deza’s family to homelessness. It’s 1936 in Gary, Ind., and the Great Depression has put 12-year-old Deza’s father out of work. After a near-death experience trying to catch fish for dinner, Roscoe Malone leaves for Flint, hoping he’ll find work. But Deza’s mother loses her job shortly after, putting all the Malones out on the street. As in his previous books, Curtis threads important bits of African-American history throughout the narrative, using the Joe Louis-Max Schmeling fight to expose the racism prevalent even among people like the librarian who tells Deza that Louis is ‘such a credit to your race.’ Though the resolution of the family’s crisis is perhaps far-fetched, some readers will feel they are due a bit of happiness; others will be struck by how little has changed in 75 years for the nation’s have-nots.” — (Jan.) 320pg. PUBLISHERS WEEKLY, c2011

“One for the Murphys” by Lynda Mullaly Hunt – “Ages 10–up. When 12-year-old Carley Conners is put into foster care, she is angry and distrustful of the picture-perfect Murphy family. Carley’s mother is in the hospital after a savage beating by Carley’s stepfather, and while Carley has forgotten some details of that night, she partly blames herself for what happened. Mrs. Murphy works hard to gain Carley’s trust, and Carley comes to love her foster mother deeply. Life with the Murphys contrasts with Carley’s old life of poverty with a mother who often dismantled her confidence. At times melodramatic and perhaps overly emotionally manipulative, Hunt’s debut novel is nothing if not a tearjerker—scenes at home with the Murphy family, as well as those in which Carley builds a tentative friendship at school, are undeniably affecting. Hunt’s writing is strong and her characters well-developed and believable; if Carley’s narration and frequent quips sometimes read as too polished, readers will still be drawn into this story of a girl’s struggle against the ingrained belief that she is undeserving of kindness and generosity.” — Agent: Erin Murphy, Erin Murphy Literary Agency. (May). 240p. PUBLISHERS WEEKLY, c2012.

“Shadow on the Mountain” by Margi Preus – “Ages 10-14…. Preus (Heart of a Samurai) delivers a riveting story about teenage freedom fighters in WWII Norway. Espen and the other members of his soccer team hope to continue to enjoy the game they love following the Nazi invasion, but both Espen’s teammates and rivals are soon pulled into the resistance movement as rations are cut and their families assaulted. Espen is drafted to be a courier for the resistance, while his younger sister, Ingrid, starts sneaking ration cards to starving Norwegians. Preus ably develops a large cast of characters, rendering them with persuasive vulnerabilities and showing how each is transformed by the war. Espen’s skiing missions for the resistance combine the thrilling aspects of an outdoor adventure story with political peril and the threat of violence. An author’s note with photographs of the real-life inspiration for Espen, Erling Storrusten (as well as appendices on code breaking and invisible ink), bring the truth behind the powerful story into startling focus.” — Agent: Stephen Fraser, Jennifer De Chiara Literary Agency. (Sept.). 286p. Web-Exclusive Review. PUBLISHERS WEEKLY, c2012.

 JUVENILE NON-FICTION

“Bomb: The Race to Build and Steal the World’s Most Dangerous Weapon” by Steve Sheinkin – “Ages 10-up. In his highly readable storytelling style, Sheinkin … weaves together tales of scientific and technological discovery, back-alley espionage, and wartime sabotage in a riveting account of the race to build the first atomic weapon. The famous (Robert Oppenheimer) and infamous (spy Harry Gold) headline an enormous cast of characters, which also includes Norwegian resistance fighter Knut Haukelid, whose secret wartime missions prevented Hitler from acquiring an atom bomb. B&W portraits of key players appear in photo-montages that begin each of the book’s four sections. Sheinkin pulls from numerous sources to supply every chapter with quotations that swiftly move the narrative forward. Suspenseful play-by-play moments will captivate, from the nuclear chain reaction test at the University of Chicago to the preparations for and dropping of the first bomb over Hiroshima. In a “genie out of the bottle” epilogue, details of the Cold War’s escalating arms race and present-day weapons counts will give readers pause, especially Sheinkin’s final thoughts: “It’s a story with no end in sight. And, like it or not, you’re in it.” A must-read for students of history and science.” — (Sept.). 272p. PUBLISHERS WEEKLY, c2012.

“Darwin” by Alice McGinty – “Ages 6-9. Darwin and the natural world that fascinated him come into clear focus in this picture-book biography that pairs accessible text with handsome woodcut art. Tinted with watercolors, Caldecott Medalist Azarian’s (Snowflake Bentley) illustrations convey the era in which Darwin lived and his devotion to his work (a humorous scene shows Darwin and his brother fleeing the shed where they conducted chemistry experiments, as green gas billows out). Especially compelling are Azarian’s depictions of the young naturalist’s five-year voyage aboard the HMS Beagle; he’s seen excavating fossils and encountering rare species on the Galapagos Islands. McGinty (Thank You, World) includes excerpts from Darwin’s correspondence and notebook entries, which illuminate his private concerns and self-questioning. The author also effectively incorporates Darwin’s thoughts into her own writing; after the publication of The Origin of the Species, he ‘braced himself for the worst. Would people say his work was not complete? Would they believe he was speaking out against the church?’ These complementary narratives provide a solid portrait offering insight into Darwin’s inner self as well as his accomplishments.” —  (Apr.). 48pg. PUBLISHERS WEEKLY, c2009.

“Fairy Ring: or, Elsie and Frances Fool the World” – by Mary Losure – “Ages 10–up. In 1920, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle published photographs in the widely read Strand magazine that he believed proved the existence of fairies. The pictures had been taken a few years earlier by two cousins, nine-year-old Frances Griffiths and 15-year-old Elsie Wright. Tired of adults teasing them about Frances seeing fairies, Elsie borrowed her father’s camera and produced photos showing the girls interacting with dainty winged creatures in the valley behind Elsie’s house. After experts declared the pictures genuine and Conan Doyle’s article appeared, it wasn’t long before events spiraled out of control and led to a myth that lasted more than 60 years. Losure’s first book for children details the events that led the girls to their fame and adds the personal recollections of those involved from their own later writings. Accompanied by the famous photos, the story is written in an accessible narrative style that includes the attitudes of the time and explains historical items like the use of hatpins and how cameras of the period worked. An intriguing glimpse into a photo-doctoring scandal well before the advent of Photoshop.” — (Mar.). 192p. PUBLISHERS WEEKLY, c2012.

“Hilda and the Bird Parade” by Luke Pearson – “Ages 6-up. Following the events of Hilda and the Midnight Giant,…tiny blue-haired Hilda and her mother are settling into the fictional town of Trolberg. It’s a far cry from their idyllic mountain home: Hilda’s mother is nervous about letting her daughter roam free, and the local kids’ idea of a good time is to pull pranks on neighbors and throw rocks at birds. When a large, black bird is left injured and amnesiac after being hit by one such rock, Hilda tries to help it remember how to fly as well as find her own way home. Although Trolberg initially seems grim (down by the docks, the bird scares Hilda with a story about a rat king, to which she responds, “You can’t remember who you are but you can remember that?”), Pearson shows how Hilda’s optimism, curiosity, and self-assuredness help her make the most of this unfamiliar new setting. The reds, golds, and blues in the palette (Hilda’s signature colors) hint at the way her outlook transforms the town from intimidating and rundown to a place where magical, wonderful things can happen.” — (Apr.). 44p. PUBLISHERS WEEKLY, c2013.

“Molly by Golly! The Legend of Molly Williams, America’s First Female Firefighter”  by Dianne Ociltree – “Ages 7-10. Ochiltree and Kemly share the little-known story of Molly Williams, an African-American woman who, in the early 1800s, went from cooking for New York City’s volunteer firefighters to battling blazes alongside them as the first female firefighter. The men of Fire Company No. 11 adore Molly’s hasty pudding and apple tansey, but when a fire breaks out during a blizzard, she races outdoors to warn the neighborhood, then helps haul out the pumper engine, carry buckets, and combat the fire. Kemly’s snow-streaked illustrations show Molly as a woman of determination and strength, and a sense of both danger and heroism radiates from the story.” –(Sept.). 32p. PUBLISHERS WEEKLY, c2012

“Temple Grandin: How the Girl Who Loved Cows Embraced Autism and Changed the World” by Sy Montgomery – “Grades 4-8. It isn’t easy to describe how the mind of someone with autism works, but Montgomery’s biography effectively breaks the disorder down for a younger audience while introducing the extraordinary life of activist Temple Grandin. When Grandin was a child, she was withdrawn and unable to communicate. In 1950, at the age of three, she received an unheard-of diagnosis: autism. Grandin’s mind thinks visually, in pictures, much the way it is believed that animals think. As such, she is empathetic to their needs and has advocated for the humane treatment of livestock by redesigning cattle facilities to be cruelty-free

“The World’s Greatest Lion” by Ralph Helfer – “Grades 1-3. A lion cub–who would later be known as Zamba–lost both of his parents in a fight with an intruder on the African grasslands. After escaping “the brute” and being rescued, Zamba was sent to the Africa U.S.A. ranch where, under animal behaviorist Ralph Helfer’s care, he grew so gentle that he earned starring roles in Hollywood, eventually becoming the well-known mascot of MGM Studios, or “Leo the Lion.” However, it was not until a flood threatened the animals at the ranch that Zamba really earned his nickname, “world’s greatest lion.” This picture book reunites the creators of The World’s Greatest Elephant (2007) with mixed results. Helfer’s attempts to get inside Zamba’s head–“Zamba didn’t know quite what to make of the small, cramped space”–stretch the boundaries of truth, and there’s no author’s note to help sort fact from fiction. But Caldecott Honor-winning Lewin (Peppe the Lamplighter, 2004) fills his spreads with glorious images of African animals, highlighting the bonds that can unexpectedly form between different species. Kelley, Ann. 40p. AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2012.

YOUNG ADULT

“Beyond Courage; The Untold Story of Jewish Resistance During the Holocaust” by Doreen Rappaport – “Grades 7-12. With all the shelves of Holocaust books about the millions lost in the genocide, this is one of the few histories to focus in detail on Jewish resistance across Europe–those who fought back and saved others. The intricate deceptions are as compelling as the confrontations, and the underground escape stories make for thrilling adventure. The horror of what was left behind is always present: the ghettos, the camps, the transports, the Jews who did not support armed resistance, and those who did not get away, including some who fled to forests and starved to death or were murdered by their anti-Semitic neighbors. In addition to the chapters on the Warsaw Ghetto and Theresienstadt, there are also lots of lesser-known accounts of incredible resistance. In the Vilna Ghetto, arms were hidden in the library, the cemetery, in walls, and in wells. Always there are stories of the survivors’ guilt, as with a man who left his mother to die alone. The uncluttered book design helps make the detailed history accessible, with spacious type on thick, high-quality paper and portraits, photos, and prints on every page, all meticulously documented in extensive chapter notes and a bibliography. That many young people played important roles in the resistance is a special draw for YAs. An important addition to the Holocaust curriculum.” –  Rochman, Hazel. 240p. AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2012.

“Dodger” by Terry Pratchett – “Grades 8-12. On a stormy night in early Victorian London, an able young man named Dodger rises from the sewers in response to a scream, fights off two thugs, and rescues a damsel in distress. Dodger continues to rise throughout the novel, as his love for the mysterious lady motivates this tosher (scavenger for lost coins and other treasures in London’s sewers) to elevate himself and leads him to a closer acquaintance with a string of historical figures, including Dickens, Disraeli, and ultimately, the queen and her consort. While most writers would be well advised not to include such characters in their books, Pratchett manages to humanize them without diminishing them or throwing the story off-kilter. However lowly Dodger’s origins, he remains the most memorable character in the book. Living by his wits and unencumbered by conventional morality, this trickster hero expertly navigates the underbelly of his city as he carries out a bizarre scheme resulting in justice and mercy. The temptation to quote sentences, whole paragraphs, and possibly entire chapters is almost irresistible, because the pleasure of reading the novel is in the language as much as in the characters and well-researched period setting. Often amusing, this Victorian romp of a novel is lovingly crafted and completely enjoyable.” — Phelan, Carolyn. 368p. AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2012.

“Matched” by Allie Braithwaite Condie – “Gr. 9-12. ‘Do not go gentle into that good night.’ Cassia’s feelings of security disintegrate after her grandfather hands her a slip of paper just before his scheduled death at age 80. Not only does she now possess an illegal poem, but she also has a lingering interest in the boy who fleetingly appeared on her viewscreen, the one who wasn’t her match, the man she will eventually marry. What’s worse, she knows him–his name is Ky, and he is an orphan from the Outer Provinces. How could she love him as much as Xander, her match and best friend since childhood? The stunning clarity and attention to detail in Condie’s Big Brother-like world is a feat. Some readers might find the Society to be a close cousin of Lois Lowry’s dystopian future in The Giver (1993), with carefully chosen work placements, constant monitoring, and pills for regulating emotional extremes. However, the author just as easily tears this world apart while deftly exploring the individual cost of societal perfection and the sacrifices inherent in freedom of choice.” — Courtney Jones. 384pg. AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2010.