Library Marketing Staff Picks
Our favorite new and forthcoming books!
Jennifer Parmelee Childs Recommends:
The Uses of Enchantment: A Novel by Heidi Julavits
Victim or Vixen? Liar or whore? These are questions posed in this psychological exploration of a young sixteen-year old girl learning to wield her sexuality, with devastating results to all involved. One day in 1985, young teenager Mary Veal disappears from field-hockey practice at her all-girls New England prep school. She reappears a few weeks later with little memory of what has happened to her, claiming she’s been abducted. Sent to a psychologist, Mary is a difficult patient, and her doctor begins to suspect that she has made the story of her kidnapping up, especially when he realizes her story has parallels to the account of a seventeenth century girl who was abducted by Indians and who caused her rescuer to be hanged as a witch. The narrative moves back and forth between 1985 and 1999 (when Mary returns home to attend her mother’s funeral) and the chapters set in 1985 are entitled “What May Have Happened.” And that is the intriguing thing about this novel—you are not certain until the end as to whether or not Mary is actually telling the truth. Was she abducted? Is there a man named “K” who has kept her all these weeks and perhaps, taken advantage of her? An enthralling and insightful look in the mid of a young girl testing her powers of sexuality, which led to a disastrous life-changing, incident . . . or may not have. You’ll have to read The Uses of Enchantment to know for sure.
0-385-51323-2 | $24.95 | Doubleday | HC | October
Erica McDonald Recommends:
Dark Angels: A Novel by Karleen Koen
This is the most enthralling piece of historical fiction I have ever read. I have often thought of myself as born into the wrong century. But would I have been able to survive the political scheming and romantic drama experienced by Alice Verney, a lady in waiting, during England’s Restoration period? Rich with period detail and a flow of events so captivating that you will find yourself thoroughly caught up in the drama and mysteries surrounding the scandalous court of Charles II. Alice’s pursuit of her own political and personal ambitions amongst the tangle of court intrigue will amaze and sadden you as the tables are turned against her. Will she find contentment with the turn of events? As a reader, you will find contentment elusive at the end of this novel, as you most assuredly will want it to never end!
0-307-33991-2 | $25.95 | Crown | HC | September
And not to missed:
Into a Paris Quarter: Reine Margot's Chapel and Other Haunts of St. Germaine
Now available in paperback and recommended for reading groups, the bestselling author of Le Divorce, explores the legendary Paris neighborhood she calls home: St.-Germain-des-Pres. With her delicious imagination and wry, opinionated voice, Diane Johnson offers this fascinating guide to a classic neighborhood as cosmopolitan as it is quintessentially French.
0-7922-6208-5 | $10.95 | National Geographic | TR | November
Sarah Pucillo Recommends:
The Glass Books of the Dream Eaters: A Novel by Gordon Dahlquist
As booklovers and avid readers, I am sure many of you have heard the line: “I have never read anything like this book before. This is the most original novel I have ever read.” And yet, that is exactly what I said when I finished reading this stunning novel. From the moment Miss Celeste Temple embarked on her journey to discover why her fiancé broke off their engagement, I was spellbound by the world Mr. Dahlquist created. His detailed descriptions of the characters’ actions allowed me to visualize full scenes and the exact layout of the mysterious Harschmort Manor where Miss Temple finds he fiancé involved in a seductive and mysterious experiment. AS the mystery surrounding the glass books unfolded, I tried to put together the pieces before the author revealed the details of the terrifying conspiracy to Miss Celeste Temple and her cohorts. Every time I thought I had guessed the outcome, a new twist was revealed and, as a reader, I was just as stunned as the characters. While many will try to classify this novel—this feat of the imagination—into a single genre, I believe it stands alone as a truly original, must-read work of fiction. If you do not believe me, then please read this novel and let me know if you know of another book that compares to Dahlquist’s The Glass Book of the Dream Eaters. Until I hear from you, I will continue to revisit this masterpiece of a novel.
0-385-34035-4 | $26.00 | Bantam | HC | August
Marcia Purcell Recommends:
Twentysomething Essays By Twentysomething Writers, Edited by Matt Kellogg and Jillian Quint
Just over a year ago this Department became involved
in the project that has produced Twentysomething Essays by Twentysomething
Writers. When I first read about this proposal I thought—what
a great idea! “Be specific. Be unique. We want you to tell us—and
by extension, the entire world—something we haven’t heard
before, something that defines you as a member of this burgeoning generation.
Make us laugh, make us think, make us mad—just don’t make
us yawn.” I think this goal has been achieved!
At every show at which we exhibit, hopeful faces appear and announce:
“I’ve written a book/play/collection of poems and I want
to get published.” In this collection are such young people filled
with passion, optimism, and hope, with dedication to writing and the
drive towards “writerly pursuits.”
I can’t say I LOVED every essay—obviously some were better (or more appealing to me) than others, but that’s human nature—and none made me yawn!
A big hug to this next generation of authors. It’s comforting in a world of emails, text messages and blogs to know that thousands submitted entries. Congratulations to this diverse bunch and to the editors, Matt Kellogg and Jillian Quint, who, with great good nature, describe themselves as “proud twentysomethings and indentured servants, er, assistants in the Penguin Random House editorial department.” Well done!
0-8129-7566-9 | $12.95 | Penguin Random House | TR | August
Courtney Russell Recommends:
The Last Town on Earth: A Novel by Thomas Mullen
I let myself be transported to 1918—to the small rural town of Commonwealth in the Pacific Northwest. Faced with the harsh realities of war and disease, and struggling to protect themselves, the people of Commonwealth vote to quarantine the town from the outside world. What drew me to this in the first place was the fact that the author was inspired by a historical footnote about towns that quarantined themselves during the flu epidemic—what a concept! Secondly, since I’m from the Pacific Northwest, I was further intrigued by the setting. Right away we meet Philip, an innocent teenager who was adopted by the town’s founder just years before. He stands guard with another man on the outskirts of town after the quarantine is enacted, and shots are fired when a soldier appears out of nowhere attempting to enter the town. Philip is one of the first to see how complicated life in their isolated town becomes after this happens. Faced with the horror of the flu epidemic and the long, dark shadows of WWI, their tight-knit, idyllic community seems to unravel. Events take place that affect the way people think and act towards on another, and we’re reminded of the fragility of life and human relationships—and how people gain or lose their “humanness” in times of dire straits. This is a very moving and powerful story, and will keep you guessing until the end.
1-4000-6520-8 | $23.95 | Penguin Random House | HC | August
Hannah Doherty Recommends:
The Whole World Over by Julia Glass
Although I’m fortunate to have a steady stream of wonderful books crossing my desk, it can nonetheless take me a minute or two to decide which one I’ll write about in each issue of Random Revelations. Since time is short this month, I’m very glad that I don’t have to struggle for even a moment this time to think of a recent book I loved: Julia Glass’s The Whole World Over grabbed me from the moment I picked it up, and didn’t let go until I’d read the whole thing, and its predecessor, Three Junes as well. The Whole World Over lives up to its title, for it is big sprawling over geographic and emotional terrain of all sorts, and satisfying as only a novel with broad-ranging characters and countless intricate plots and sub-plots can be. Greenie Duquette is a chef who owns a bakery in New York’s Greenwich village, creating gorgeous confections which function—as does all the food in the novel—to mirror and transform the complex relationships between the cook and those she cooks for. Children, lovers, employers and friends pass through Greenie’s kitchen, first in New York, and then in a serendipitous but risky turn of events, in the New Mexico governor’s mansion. Glass handles her characters with sensitivity, portraying marital strife, national tragedy, and personal crisis without disallowing the possibility of joy and reconciliation for the characters, all of whom manage to capture readerly sympathy even in their inevitable moments of weakness and fallibility. Rich and engaging, The Whole World Over is perfect reading for the long days of summer. Enjoy!
0-375-42274-9 | $25.95 | Pantheon | HC
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