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1. The
Stupidest Angel: A Heartwarming Tale of Christmas Terror
By Christopher Moore
"In The Stupidest Angel, Moore presents a reunion of some of his
kookiest characters for an unforgettable holiday tale. An endangered fruitbat,
a warrior princess, a stoned constable, and a truly thick (but beautiful)
angel have a hair-raising adventure that will make you laugh out loud
and enjoy Christmas in a new way." --Eric Robbins, Apple Valley Books,
Winthrop, ME
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Case
Histories: A Novel
By Kate Atkinson
"A literary page-turner that explores the enormous cost, over time, of
four unresolved crimes on the lives of the survivors. A beautifully crafted,
tender, witty look at the precarious, ephemeral nature of life and the
way love makes us vulnerable to unspeakable pain." --Sheila Daly, Barrett
Bookstore, Darien, CT
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How
To Be Lost
By Amanda Eyre Ward
"Three sisters muddle through their 1950s childhoods in haphazard fashion
-- until the youngest girl disappears. Now grown, when one of them, the
narrator, sees a photograph of her missing sister and sets off in pursuit
of her, the entire family hurtles out of somnambulism and into real life.
An engrossing and touching novel about ties that bind us -- for good or
ill." --Betsy Burton, The King's English, Salt Lake City, UT
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Double
Shot
By Diane Mott Davidson
"Double Shot is a delicious new mystery featuring the fully caffeinated
caterer/sleuth Goldy Schulz and her gang of friends and family. This is
another perfect blend of crime, craziness, and cooking!" --Shelley Robson,
Enchanted Forest Books, Forest City, IA
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The
Darling
By Russell Banks
"Hannah Musgrave's participation in the radical Weather Underground forces
her to live unconnected to family or friends. Fleeing the country, she
settles in Liberia and becomes a witness to the brutality and destruction
of civil war. This riveting novel, vividly told, is set in the'70s and
'80s but addresses current issues of terrorism, values, and depravity."
--Ann Carlson, Harborwalk Books, Georgetown, SC
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A
Thousand Days in Tuscany: A Bittersweet Adventure
By Marlena De Blasi
"Chef/writer Marlena De Blasi embraces her new life in Tuscany with a
passion that sucks the reader right into the soil, food, and people of
San Casciano dei Bagni. A year of discoveries, wonderful fresh food, and
commitment to a place all make this book a delight." --Becky Milner, Vintage
Books, Vancouver, WA
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Banishing
Verona: A Novel
By Margot Livesey
"Like her previous novel, Eva Moves the Furniture, Livesey's latest work
proves her talent as one of the finest contemporary writers. Banishing
Verona is a suspenseful and quirky love story that is lyrical and beautifully
written." --Tim Huggins, Newtonville Books, Newton, MA
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Gilgamesh:
A New English Version
By Stephen Mitchell
"More than 1,000 years before Odysseus voyaged home from the Trojan War,
the Sumerian king Gilgamesh faced epic struggles over wielding his power
wisely; facing his demons and his gods bravely; and, finally, accepting
the weaknesses that made him human. Stephen Mitchell's translation makes
this ancient story come vividly to life." --Nina Barrett, Women & Children
First, Chicago, IL
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Skinny-Dipping:
A Novel of Suspense
By Claire Matturro
"Lilly Rose Cleary is an attorney for a Florida law firm that represents
physicians in malpractice cases. When her clients begin to turn up dead,
and she herself is attacked, she must buckle down to solve the mystery.
Sit back and enjoy the ride in this wonderfully entertaining novel." --Susan
Diffenderfer, Tall Tales Book Shop, Atlanta, GA
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Queenan
Country: A Reluctant Anglophile's Pilgrimage to the Mother Country
By Joe Queenan
"Joe Queenan applies skewering wit to his adventures in England. From
a cab ride through Liverpool in search of an authentic Beatles experience
to an argument in an Edinburgh pub, where he tried in vain to defend Paul
McCartney's 'Ebony and Ivory,' Queenan gives us a unique look at British
history through an American pop culture lens. It's a hilarious spectacle."
--Robert Sheard, Bookshop by the Lakes, West End, NC
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In
the Land of Second Chances: A Novel
By George Shaffner
"This sly, slightly feminist fable tells the tale of a mysterious stranger
who arrives in a town and brings a message of hope, love, and faith to
those who, perhaps, do not know they need it. Humor and charm abound and
readers of Life of Pi or Peace Like a River will appreciate this first
novel." --Hester Jeswald, Sarasota News & Books, Sarasota, FL
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The
Stowaway: A Novel
By Robert Hough
"The Stowaway is a spiritual and courageous story of a Romanian stowaway
and the sailors on board the containership Maersk Dubai who choose life
with justice over intimidation. I was captivated by the rich language
and pure integrity of Hough's sea story. A must-read for all adventure
lovers!" --Jill A. Johnson, Beagle Books, Park Rapids, MN
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Cheat
and Charmer: A Novel
by Elizabeth Frank
"Two sisters live quite different lives during the McCarthy era in Hollywood,
and we are observers of their most private and tormented struggles with
marriage, sex, screenwriting, and life in the wake of blacklisting. Frank's
novel is a rich and thought-provoking story." --Cyndy Gardner, Chapter
One Book Store, Hamilton, MT
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The
Twelve Little Cakes
By Dominika Dery
"An utterly charming memoir of a girl growing up in Soviet-controlled
Czechoslovakia during the 1970s. What should be a bleak account of the
daughter of dissidents is instead a warm, funny story that shows the power
of love and a strong family." --Carol Dunn, Northwind Book & Fiber, Spooner,
WI
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Darwin's
Wink: A Novel of Nature and Love
By Alison Anderson
"I got lost in the island worlds created in this novel -- the physical
island on which the novel is set, the emotional islands the two main characters
create around themselves, and the island of love they both come to inhabit.
Give this one a try!" --Andrea Avantaggio, Maria's Bookshop, Durango,
CO
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Light
on Snow
By Anita Shreve
"A tragedy forces a father and his daughter to leave their life in the
city and seek refuge in a rural community. The discovery of an abandoned
infant, however, forces both parent and child to work through unresolved
grief and face buried memories. The novel weaves a tender, almost fragile
story about new beginnings and the ways in which people overcome loss
with love and courage." --Susan Harrison, The Country Bookshop, Southern
Pines, NC
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The
Pirates! in an Adventure with Scientists: A Novel
By Gideon Defoe
"This witty, hilarious novel had me laughing out loud more than any book
I've read in recent memory. After the Pirate Captain and his men are deceived
into capturing Charles Darwin and HMS Beagle, their adventures take them
to London, where, disguised as scientists ... well, you'd better just
read the book! Arrrgh!" --Carol Schneck, Schuler Books & Music, Okemos,
MI
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The
Pacific and Other Stories
By Mark Helprin
"Few contemporary writers display Helprin's knack for creating mesmerizing
and memorable characters. His stories about people's ability to adapt
reflect a certain wisdom and grace, and I was totally immersed in each
character and the drama of their lives. This is a fantastic collection
of short stories." --Emery Pinter, Chapter 11, Atlanta, GA
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Bahamarama
By Bob Morris
"Journalist Bob Morris' new mystery features former Miami Dolphins linebacker
Zack Chasteen, lately out of prison and back in trouble, with a kidnapped
former girlfriend. This is a great read. I couldn't put it down!" --Will
Balk, Jr., Bay Street Trading Co., Beaufort, SC
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The
Amateur Marriage: A Novel
By Anne Tyler
"This is the less-than-simple story of a marriage that might have been
a mistake, but maybe wasn't. There are no easy answers, no pat ending;
just wonderful characters you care about, get exasperated with, and, ultimately,
wish well." -- Anne Whalen, Brookline Booksmith, Brookline, MA
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Going
Postal: A Novel of Discworld
By Terry Pratchett
"What will it be? Dying or running the post office in Ankh Morpork? It
doesn't seem like much of a choice to con man Moist von Lipwig. But when
Moist throws himself into it with all his flair and style, he gets help
from some unusual places. Scathingly funny social satire that kept me
up late reading-and laughing!"-Carol Schneck, Schuler Books & Music, Okemos,
MI
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Men
and Cartoons: Stories
By Jonathan Lethem
"Jonathan Lethem's writing contains the mystical allure of a unique literary
voice emerging from the younger generation of American writers. His latest
collection of stories is irresistible and reads effortlessly."-Brian Case,
Book House of Stuyvesant Plaza, Albany, NY
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Look
For Me
By Edeet Ravel
"A love triangle set in modern Israel-Palestine from the author of the
notable Ten Thousand Lovers. Dana Hillman's life is complex -- her husband
has been missing for 11 years, she demonstrates in peace marches, and
her father has returned to Belgium to marry again following the death
of her mother. And just as she discovers leads about the whereabouts of
her husband, she falls in love with another man. Ravel again explores
the struggle of those living in war in the modern world." -- Lillian
Kinsey, Bohannons' Books With a Past, Georgetown, KY
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Something
Dangerous
By Penny Vincenzi
"What a wonderful, rousing epic of a book. There's romance, deception,
and family secrets-all set during the time leading up to and during World
War II. Now, I have to go back and read No Angel, which starts the Lytton
family history."-Roberta Kiemele, Lake Country Booksellers, White Bear
Lake, MN
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Garbo
Laughs
By Elizabeth Hay
"A moving novel, with memorable characters, amazing voices, wonderful movie
trivia, and literary allusions. It made me laugh. It made me cry. It was
like no other book I remember."-Andy Lillich, University of Oregon Bookstore,
Eugene, OR |
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Kiss
Them Goodbye
By Stella Cameron
"Stella Cameron's vivid characters come to life in this 'twisted' murder
mystery that's rife with deep, dark secrets-and where everyone has a motive
for murder. If you enjoy murder mysteries with a romantic twist, you'll
truly enjoy this book."-Stephanie Geyer, Village Bookstore, Menomonee
Falls, WI
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Popular
Music from Vittula
By Mikael Niemi, Laurie Thompson (Translator)
"Popular Music From Vittula is bound to become a classic of cold-weather
literature. Jack London with the imagination of a Borges might have produced
a work so wise and witty in weather so unpleasant, but, probably, only
Mikael Niemi, with his intrepid translator, Laurie Thompson, could have
made so much art out of so much ice. It's like the invention of ice cream."-Paul
Ingram, Prairie Lights Books, Iowa City, IA
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True
Cross
By T.R. Pearson
"When I read the first paragraph, I knew that this one was worth waiting
for. Like all of Pearson's books, this story of small-town life in Virginia
deserves to be read, and read again. Pearson always makes me feel as if
I am sitting on a porch listening to him tell his stories."-Marie Peerson,
Crosshaven Books, Birmingham, AL
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Ada
Blackjack: The True Story of Survival in the Artic
By Jennifer Niven
"This is a well-researched story of an amazing Inuit woman and an Arctic
exploration that was doomed from the beginning."-Gary Mundinger, The Corner
Shelf, Culpeper, VA
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Cutty,
One Rock: Low Characters in Strange Places, Gently Explained
By August Kleinzahler
"Nine linked essays from a poet who grew up in New Jersey, down the street
from Mafia don Albert Anastasia and comedian Buddy Hackett. The longest
essay in the book, on Kleinzahler's relationship with his doomed older
brother, beautifully echoes a preceding essay in which he links Eros with
delusion, reckless conduct, and strife. This is a reasonable enough conclusion
given his wacky and difficult family. (Is there any other kind?) This
is the most vivid and engaging autobiographical writing I've read since
Mary Karr's The Liar's Club." -Karl Pohrt, Shaman Drum Bookshop, Ann Arbor,
MI
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The
F-Word: Feminism in Jeopardy - Women, Politics and the Future
By Kristin Rowe-Finkbeiner
"Kristin Rowe-Finkbeiner's account of the tenuous state of women's rights
in the U.S. is a must-read for all women ages 18 - 35. It's a man's world,
unless women vote."-Meredith Schreiber, Powell's City of Books, Portland,
OR
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Killing
the Buddha: A Heretic's Bible
By Peter Manseau and Jeff Sharlet
"Killing the Buddha is like nothing you have read before. This religious
pilgrimage across America contains some of the finest writing I've ever
read-plus a travelogue of America's kinkiest sects and religious sideshows.
The contributing writers represented are among the most intriguing to
be found. I couldn't put this book down."-Mamie Potter, Quail Ridge Books,
Raleigh, NC
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The
Last Duel: A True Story of Crime, Scandal, and Trial by Combat in Medievil
France
By Eric Jager
"In 1386, Jean de Carrouges accused Jacque LeGris of brutally raping his
wife, Marguerite. The case was taken before the King, where Carrouges
challenged LeGris to a duel to the death. Not only would the outcome determine
LeGris' guilt or innocence, if LeGris were to win, it would signify that
Marguerite was lying, and she would be immediately burned at the stake
for her false accusation. Jager's tale is absorbing and his scholarship
superb."-Barbara Hoagland, The King's English, Salt Lake City, UT
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Shanghai
Diary: A Young Girl's Journey from Hitler's Hate to War-Torn China
By Ursula Bacon
"In her unusual memoir, Bacon tells the story of her family's journey
from Germany to Shanghai to escape Nazism. Her experiences as a child
in Shanghai are mesmerizing, and the frank writing style is refreshing.
This is a story of hope, courage, imagination, and inspiration. A must-read
for everyone!"-Laurie Spitzer, Armchair Books, Port Orchard, WA
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A
Splendor of Letters: The Permanence of Books in an Impermanent World
By Nicholas A. Basbanes
"A book to chew, ruminate, and peruse at length. Basbanes questions, offers
multiple perspectives and historic references, and discusses the use of
technology in the world of books and documents."-Becky Milner, Vintage
Books, Vancouver, WA
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West
of Them: A Mother, A Daughter and a Journey Past Paradise
By Tara Bray Smith
"I can't remember a book hitting me harder than this memoir. It's the
story of a fifth-generation, white Hawaiian family trying to reconnect,
as Smith searches for her drug addict mother, who is living on the streets
of Honolulu. A heartrending first book, unlike anything I've ever read."-Marcia
Rider, Capitola Book Cafe, Capitola, CA
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