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Staff Picks and Book Reviews

At Home with Handmade Books

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Author: 
Erin Zamrzla
Genre: 
Crafts & Hobbies
Bookseller: 
Kristen

This beautiful, high-quality book contains a range of projects to inspire you - most using repurposed materials.  The clearly laid out instructions for Japanese stab bindings are a huge bonus.  Take your love of books to a new level!

Lying Awake

Author: 
Mark Salzman
Genre: 
Fiction
Literary Fiction
Psychological Fiction
Religious Fiction
Bookseller: 
Beth

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A quiet book:  A cloistered nun is faced with a difficult decision that tests hre faith.  Beautifully written.

Rebecca

Author: 
Daphne du Maurier
Genre: 
Fiction
Classics
Romantic Fiction
Suspense
Gothic Fiction
Bookseller: 
Rachel O.

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An amazing novel!  The new Mrs. de Winter recounts her experience as the bride of a man she hardly knows.  Constantly in the shadow of the seemingly perfect first wife Rebecca, the second Mrs.

To Kill a Mockingbird

Author: 
Harper Lee
Genre: 
Fiction
Classics
Domestic Fiction
Bookseller: 
Rachel O.

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Waiting For Columbus

Author: 
Thomas Trofimuk
Genre: 
Fiction
Psychological Fiction
Literary Fiction
Bookseller: 
Nora

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A beautiful mystery of a book - tender and clever, totally surprising.

Their Eyes Were Watching God

Author: 
Zora Neale Hurston
Genre: 
Fiction
Literary Fiction
Classics
Bookseller: 
Renee

My all-time favorite.  A delicious love story.  Gives me goose bumps every time I read it.  More this book to the top of your list.

The Heroine's Bookshelf

Author: 
Erin Blakemore
Genre: 
Literary Criticism
Bookseller: 
author unknown

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This little book gives insight into how women can tap into their inner strength and live with intelligence and grace.  If you love literature, remember these heroines:  Lizzy Bennet in Pride and Prejudice,

Blindspot

Author: 
Jane Kamensky, Jill Lepore
Genre: 
Fiction
Historical Fiction
Humorous Fiction
Romantic Fiction
Bookseller: 
Kristen

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A smart, rollicking comedic romance that never patronizes the reader.  Great for anyone looking for a fun but still compelling read.

The Shadows (Books of Elsewhere #01)

Author: 
Jacqueline West
Genre: 
fiction
juvenile fiction
middle grade
sci fi/fantasy
Bookseller: 
Rachel O.

cover imageOlive is a misfit, even in her own family, but when her parents by an old house with lots of paintings and antique furniture, she finally begins to feel like she belongs.

The Road of Lost Innocence

Author: 
Somaly Mam
Genre: 
nonfiction
memoir
Bookseller: 
Rachel O.

cover imageThis is the true story of a girl's journey from sexual slavery to freedom, and her mission to rescue others like herself.

Tinkers

Author: 
Paul Harding
Genre: 
fiction
historical fiction
literary fiction

cover imageWhen you travel with a tinker, by horse and cart, through early 20th century rural New England, you will learn the intricacies of building a bird nest, the workings of a clock, how to pull a tooth or give

Blue Nude

Author: 
Elizabeth Rosner
Genre: 
fiction
literary fiction
Bookseller: 
Nora

cover imageI read this book in just two sittings. Art, politics, redemption: a beautiful book.

American Gods

Author: 
Neil Gaiman
Genre: 
fiction
sci fi/fantasy
mythology
Bookseller: 
Kristen

cover imageAmerican Gods contains both the magical and the mundane, a fantastic world of divine beings and bizarre happenings and a world of prisons, rundown roadside attractions, and quaint small towns.

The Lace Reader

Author: 
Brunonia Barry
Genre: 
fiction
literary fiction
contemporary fiction
mystery & suspense
Bookseller: 
Kristen

cover imageTowner Whitney hails from a family of Salem women who can read the future in lace, and who have guarded a history of secrets going back generations - secrets that are only now coming to light.

Rosemary Gladstar's Herbal Recipes for Vibrant Health

Author: 
Rosemary Gladstar
Genre: 
green living
health
herbalism
nonfiction
parenting
Vermont authors
Bookseller: 
Kristen

cover imageGet set for winter with an array of recipes to boost immunity, calm coughs, sooth dry skin, and generally keep yourself healthy.

The Sound of a Wild Snail Eating

Author: 
Elisabeth Tova Bailey
Genre: 
nonfiction
philosophy
science
nature
essays
Bookseller: 
Heather

cover imageWhat experience might move a person to watch the life of a snail in a terrarium? Bailey shares her observations of a tiny mollusk from her bedside.

Too Much Happiness

Author: 
Alice Munro
Genre: 
fiction
short stories
Bookseller: 
Heather

cover imageCanadian writer Munro's collection of stories show how women can transcend the most difficult of circumstances.

Burning Bright: Stories

Author: 
Ron Rash
Genre: 
fiction
literary fiction
short stories
Bookseller: 
Katie

cover imageRash's expertly crafted stories of Appalachia will resonate with you long after you've read them.

Very Valentine

Author: 
Adriana Trigiani
Genre: 
fiction
humorous fiction
Bookseller: 
Katie

cover imageMeet Valentine Roncalli: She's the "funny one" in her deeply Italian family. A mix of humor, fashion, and relationships.

The Blade Itself

Author: 
Joe Abercrombie
Genre: 
fiction
sci fi/fantasy
Bookseller: 
Tod

cover imageThe First Law series - my favorite new fantasy series. Epic in scale, but driven by well-drawn characters and intricate plotting, set in a very well-done sword & sorcery world.