|
September 7, 2010 Talk of the Town
|
|
The Last Lie
|
|
Stephen White
|
|
Dutton
|
|
“Stephen White books just get better and better. Psychologist Alan Gregory and his wife, a deputy district attorney is back with their friend, police detective Sam Purdy, in one of White's best books ever. This time the three of them must find a rapist and murderer who strikes close to home.”
|
|
Star Island
|
|
Carl Hiassen
|
|
Knopf
|
|
“Carl Hiassen is the king of plots where the villain gets his comeuppance with the most twisted punishment imaginable. Star Island is almost as good as his masterpiece Skin Tight. One of Hiassen's most beloved characters, Skink, is back. Only in Florida can a former governor disappear into the swamp land and return in such delightful, mysterious and sometimes bloody ways that create havoc on villains that is always justified - at least in the minds of Hiassen's fans.”
|
|
The Red Queen
|
|
Philippa Gregory
|
|
Touchstone
|
|
“The bestselling author of The Other Boleyn Girl has started a new historical series, this time featuring the Plantagenets or The Cousins' War. The Red Queen is the second in The Cousins' War books and follows the story that Gregory started with her previous book The White Queen. We recommend reading her books in order to gain the most enjoyment and education about the struggles for power and sexual conquest in England.
|
|
Mockingjay
|
|
Suzanne Collins
|
|
Scholastic Press
|
|
“Suzanne Collins is the most exciting writer to come along since Stephanie Meyer! What Meyer did with her Twilight series Collins is doing with her Hunger Games books in this engaging series about Katniss Everdeen who escaped the Games and now will determine the success of the rebellion.”
|
|
They Came to Nashville
|
|
Marshall Chapman
|
|
Vanderbilt University Press
|
|
“Only Marshall Chapman has the talent and fabulous reputation in the music business to author this book. They Came to Nashville is the book to own about the music business. Kris Kristofferson, Emmylou Harris, Don Henry, Willie Nelson and Beth Nielsen Chapman are just a few of the stars who share with Chapman the ups and downs of why they came and stayed or not in Nashville.”
|
|
Dracula's Guest A Connoisseur's Collection of Victorian Vampire Stories
|
|
Michael Sims
|
|
Walker
|
|
“Michael Sims owns the stories of the Victorian era as he proved in his Gaslight mysteries. Now Sims proves the science behind vampires and their role in literary cultural and romantic terms. We loved this book. Sims is the best.”
|
|
Half Broke Horses
|
|
Jeannette Walls
|
|
Simon & Schuster
|
|
“Jeannette Walls follows up her memoir, the runaway bestseller The Glass Castle, with the incredible story of her grandmother, Lily Casey Smith. Walls' grandmother Smith helped her father train or break horses when she was a teenager and then survived a trip out West by herself, The Great Depression and taught school. Half Broke Horses is the perfect selection for any book club.”
|
|
Three Stations
|
|
Martin Cruz Smith
|
|
Simon & Schuster
|
|
“Arkady Renko is back, finding crimes in Russia where no one else admits they exist. This time a seeming drug overdose ties directly to the billionaires Nijinksy Fair, as Renko investigates the Moscow superrich.”
|
|
The Miracle of Mercy Land
|
|
River Jordan
|
|
Waterbrook
|
|
“What if you found a book that is a tell-all about the place you live? What would you do? Mercy Land works for a publisher who finds such a book. River Jordan, the author of The Messenger of Magnolia Street, has written another book that is impossible to put down. We loved it and recommend that your book club put The Miracle of Mercy Land at the top of your list.”
|
|
Ape House
|
|
Sara Gruen
|
|
Spiegel & Grau
|
|
“Water for Elephants is one of the best books of this decade. Does Sara Gruen have another great book in her? The answer is yes as she proves with her newest book Ape House where a lab is bombed and the animals wind up on a reality television show using sign language. Forget “Dancing with the Stars” and “American Idol.” Ape House is the real thing - at least symbolically.”
|
|
Building One Fire Art and World View in Cherokee Life
|
|
Smith & Strickland
|
|
Univ. Oklahoma
|
|
“This detailed view of Cherokee philosophy through the lens of Cherokee art is a beautiful and refreshing teaching. The four messengers, their colors and traits, resonate in these art works.”
|
|
Porcelain on Steel Women of West Point's Long Grey Line
|
|
Donna McAleer
|
|
Fortis
|
|
“West Point, the United States Military Academy, is an intimidating and illuminating process for young soldiers to be military leaders. This fascinating story is told from the point of view of the young women who have succeeded at West Point and beyond.”
|
|
Interstate 69 The Unfinished History of the Last Great American Highway
|
|
Matt Dellinger
|
|
Scribner
|
|
“Interstate 69 is the story of the unfinished federal superhighway that would connect Canada to Mexico through Michigan, Indiana, Kentucky, Tennessee, Mississippi, Arkansas, Louisiana and Texas. This book is a great addition for the collector of Americana.”
|
|
Ford County Stories
|
|
John Grisham
|
|
Bantam
|
|
“Grisham takes us back to the setting of his first novel, A Time to Kill, with these stark and disquieting short stories about murder, theft, lawyers and the wrong side of town.”
|
|
The Green Corn Rebellion
|
|
William Cunningham
|
|
Univ. Oklahoma
|
|
“The setting of this important story is World War I in rural Oklahoma, and the personal and community relationship among the farmers, the banks and the government. This book will remind the reader of The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck.”
|
|
The First Rule
|
|
Robert Crais
|
|
Putnam
|
|
“Elvis Cole and his partner, Joe Pike, are the bad guys' worst nightmare, especially if they are the organized criminals from the former Soviet Union. A great thriller!”
|
|
Preaching with Sacred Fire
|
|
Simmons & Thomas
|
|
Norton
|
|
“These anthologies of church sermons from 1750 to the present highlight the savagery of the slave trade and slavery and relate directly to issues of freedom and liberty for all. While Martin Luther King, Jr. and Malcolm X may be the most familiar names, the work of dozens of others is not overlooked. Preaching with Sacred Fire is a compelling study of important American history.”
|
|
Beyond Katrina A Meditation on the Mississippi Coast
|
|
Natasha Trethewey
|
|
Univ. Georgia
|
|
“This personal report by renowned poet Natasha Trethewey tells a vivid picture of the Gulf Coast reliance on tourism and gambling that helps keep many of its residents in a state of poverty while documenting the damage from Hurricane Katrina.”
|
|
The Great Fire of Rome
|
|
Stephen Dando-Collins
|
|
DaCapo
|
|
“Did Nero really set fire to Rome in 64AD? More than just a convenient slam against a failed emperor, this book solves the historical puzzle and is interesting reading.”
|
|
The Children's Book
|
|
A. S. Byatt
|
|
Vintage
|
|
“Another superbly written work by the author of Possession. This runaway view of reality and art in pre-World War I England and Europe will dazzle you.”
|
| August 3, 2010 Talk of the Town |
| Tough Customer |
|
Sandra Brown |
|
Simon & Schuster |
|
“Investigator Dodge Hanley is in for a wild ride when he hears from a former love, Caroline King. Fans of Sandra Brown will welcome the return of Hanley whom she introduced to us in her best selling book, Smash Cut.
|
| The Glass Rainbow |
|
James Lee Burke |
|
Simon & Schuster |
|
“Burke scores another bull's eye with yet another tale of corruption and abuse in southern Louisiana. James Lee Burke is still the best crime novelist working today.”
|
| Lives Like Loaded Guns Emily Dickenson and her Family's Feuds |
|
“We will never look at a poetry book by Emily Dickenson the same again! We loved this tell-all biography. Lives Like Loaded Guns is the best literary biography we have read since Louisa May Alcott - The Woman Behind Little Women.”
|
| Promise Not to Tell |
|
Jennifer McMahon |
|
Harper |
|
“If you like truly weird and disturbing books then Jennifer McMahon's latest, Promise Not to Tell should be right down your alley.”
|
| The Island |
|
Elin Hilderbrand |
|
Reagan Arthur Books |
|
“Are you looking for an author who can tell stories as well as Anne River Siddons and Dorthea Benton Frank? Then curl up in your favorite chair and prepare to fall in love with Elin Hilderband. Four women spend a month on an island off the coast of Nantucket. Their lives and the lives of their lovers will never be the same.”
|
| Democracy's Lawyer Felix Grundy of the Old Southwest |
|
J. Roderick Heller, III |
|
LSU Press |
|
“Felix Grundy left Kentucky after serving as its chief justice to be elected to Congress and then the senate from Tennessee. Grundy later served as attorney general of the United States and mentored President James K. Polk. Grundy was a brilliant lawyer and a leading political figure in the slave states. A must-have for any collector of Southern and Tennessee history.”
|
| Captive Queen |
|
Alison Weir |
|
Ballantine |
|
“It is about time that someone wrote a great novel about one of the most powerful women of all time - Eleanor of Aquitaine. Alison Weir, the fabulous author of The Lady Elizabeth, is just the writer to write Captive Queen. Two thumbs up from us.”
|
| Jericho's Fall |
|
Stephen L. Carter |
|
Vintage |
|
“Stephen L. Carter is one of the most interesting writers to come along in years. All of his books, starting with the incredible Emperor of Ocean Park, are unforgettable. Jericho's Fall is intriguing story of espionage that will haunt the reader for a long time.”
|
| Damaged |
|
Alex Kava |
|
Doubleday |
|
“FBI criminal profiler Maggie O'Dell investigates a fishing cooler full of body parts in Pensacola, Florida in this fast-paced, twist and turn crime story.”
|
| Ice Cold |
|
Tess Gerritsen |
|
Ballantine |
|
“If you like the new TNT Rizzoli & Isles series, then read the Tess Gerritsen books about these characters. The books are always better than the television shows and this romp through a Wyoming medical conference by the Boston medical examiner is exceptional.”
|
| The Starlet |
|
Mary McNamara |
|
Simon & Schuster |
|
“Mary McNamara is real Hollywood insider because she is an entertainment report for the L. A. Times. Who knows what actor The Starlet is based on, and it surely is a fun read.”
|
| The Love Song of A. Jerome Minkoff & Other Stories |
|
Joseph Epstein |
|
Houghton Mifflin |
|
“The perfect book for the fan of short stories and wonderful writing.”
|
| My Father's Tears & Other Stories |
|
John Updike |
|
Ballantine |
|
“The last work of fiction by award-winning John Updike is a great introduction for those who have not read his work and the perfect addition for anyone who collects Updike books.”
|
| Uptown Downtown in Old Charleston Sketches and Stories |
|
Louis D. Rubin, Jr. |
|
South Carolina |
|
“No city says 'Old South' quite like Charleston. Rubin, who grew up in Charleston, explains who was acceptable and who was not according to the rigid, and sometimes horrific, standards that may or may not be used in the Charleston of today.”
|
| Strip |
|
Thomas Perry |
|
Houghton Mifflin |
|
“When you get on the wrong side of a strip-club owner who employs thugs for security, you'd better be smart or lucky, and Joe Carver, the new guy in Los Angeles, is both. Mix in a sharp L.A. police detective who is juggling a large financial problem with a small personal bigamy problem, and you get the usual brilliant crime story by Thomas Perry.”
|
| Hitler's War - The War That Came Early |
|
Harry Turtledove |
|
Del Ray |
|
“What if British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain had refused to sign the Munich Accord? Turtledove, the master of alternate history, brilliantly explores the changes that would have made in WWII in this fictional account.”
|
| Stone's Fall |
|
Iain Pears |
|
Spiegel & Grau |
|
“This may be the best crime story of the year set among the disaster of world finance and dark personal secrets, as the richest man in the world falls, or is pushed, from a window.”
|
| The Poacher's Son |
|
Paul Doiron |
|
Minotaur |
|
“This debut work focuses on the relationship between a father and a son exploring an old prisoner-of-war camp in Maine. In the tense suspense thriller, they must deal with the local legend that two Germans escaped and were still hiding in the area.”
|
| Await Your Reply |
|
Dan Chaon |
|
Ballantine |
|
“A brother has been missing 10 years, a student has run off with her teacher and another has just discovered that he was adopted. The intersection of these three events and people produce a novel about identity and dependence that changes their lives.”
|
| The Case of the Man Who Died Laughing |
|
Tarquin Hall |
|
Simon & Schuster |
|
“An important Indian scientist dies in a cloud of mysticism. Vish Puri, 'India's Most Private Investigator' who is a real twist on the Sherlock Holmes model, solves the crime in delightful fashion.”
|
| July 6, 2010 Talk of the Town |
| Sizzling Sixteen |
|
Janet Evanovich |
|
St. Martin's Press |
|
“Janet Evanovich keeps churning out the winning detective novels featuring New Jersey bounty hunter Stephanie Plum. More family secrets equal more mysteries for Plum with suspenseful and often hilarious results. Evanovich is addictive!”
|
| Storm Prey |
|
John Sandford |
|
Putnam |
|
“John Sandford rolls a perfect strike again with this combined Lucas Davenport/Virgil Flowers team that guards Davenport's wife who was almost an eyewitness to the hospital pharmacy robbery.”
|
| Blockade Billy |
|
Stephen King |
|
Simon & Schuster |
|
“Baseball plus Stephen King plus a twisted ending. It just doesn't get better than this.”
|
| You Don't Know Me Reflections of My Father, Ray Charles |
|
Ray Charles Robinson, Jr. |
|
Crown |
|
“Everybody knows Ray Charles. Well at least we know the songs, Georgia on My Mind, Unchain My Heart, Hit the Road Jack and What I Say. This is the story of the man - all of his unbelievable talent and personal failures - told by his oldest son. Compelling.”
|
| Mr. Peanut |
|
Adam Ross |
|
Knopf |
|
“David and Alice Pepin are husband and wife who love each other - or do they. When a spouse imagines the death of the other are they guilty of murder? A page turner from a brilliant new writer.”
|
| The Lion |
|
Nelson DeMille |
|
Grand Central |
|
“Nelson DeMille is back on track with his latest thriller in a contest of wills and violence between a Libyan terrorist and John Corey.”
|
| 61 Hours |
|
Lee Child |
|
Delacorte |
|
“Lee Child is the best suspense writer alive today. Every Jack Reacher book is a stop-right-this-instant-and-read-it kind of adventure. This time good old American know-how of the 1940s becomes the key to a narco-terrorism plot of the modern day as Reacher solves problems in a snow bound Dakota town. The ending makes you eager for the next installment in the Reacher saga.”
|
| Who Fears Death |
|
Nnedi Okorafor |
|
DAW/Penguin |
|
“Become familiar with the name of writer Nnedi Okorafor. She is sure to be a finalist for the Pulitzer if not the winner. The main character's name Onyesonwu means “Who Fears Death” and this woman was born as the result of a crime. Her life is a combination of mysticism, mystery and faith and Onyesonwu's story is one that will stay with reader for a long time.”
|
| An Echo in the Bone |
|
Diana Gabaldon |
|
|
|
“Gabaldon continues her Outlander series with a story of 18th Century Highlander Jamie Fraser and his surgeon wife Claire Randall Fraser as supporters of the American Revolution - primarily because of Claire's 20th Century knowledge where their daughter lives.”
|
| Broken |
|
Karin Slaughter |
|
Delacorte |
|
“Thank you Karin Slaughter for returning to your Grant County series featuring police officer Lena Adams and Dr. Sarah Linton. These are your best stories and this investigation of the Grant County police is riveting.”
|
| The Facebook Effect |
|
David Kirkpatrick |
|
Simon & Schuster |
|
“Every person under 40 knows Facebook and every person has heard of it. The Facebook Effect is for those of us who have barely heard of it and it takes the Facebook story from the 19-year-olds in a Harvard dormitory room to Facebook's social Web site and business media number one role in the universe. Is a Twitter book next?”
|
| The Castaways |
|
Elin Hilerbrand |
|
Back Bay/Little Brown |
|
“The Castaways is perfect summer escapism.”
|
| That Old Cape Magic |
|
Richard Russo |
|
Vintage |
|
“Richard Russo proves again with That Old Cape Magic why he is one of today's best story tellers. If you liked Russo's other best sellers - Empire Falls and Bridge of Sighs then you will not be disappointed with That Old Cape Magic. A must selection for bookclubs everywhere.”
|
| That Thing Around Your Neck |
|
Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie |
|
Anchor |
|
“A must have book for the lover of short stories.”
|
| Cumlaude |
|
Cecily von Ziegeasar |
|
Hyperion |
|
“Cumlaude takes the rich and beautiful out of the private schools of New York and into college. Cecily von Ziegeasar is the author of The Gossip Girl Series and does a grand job of showing the underside of the haves in a world where have-nots want to have their way, too.”
|
| Remembering Nashville |
|
Jan Duke |
|
Trade Paper Press |
|
“A classic collection of 19th and 20th Century photographs of Nashville landmarks and watermarks through the years.”
|
| The Passage |
|
Justin Cronin |
|
Ballantine |
|
“The most talked-about novel of 2010 where our civilization crumbles and a good man, helping a six-year-old, sets out to rebuild. This is a great adventure epic reminiscent of The Stand by Stephen King and Earth Abides by George Stewart.”
|
| Della |
|
Chuck Barris |
|
Simon & Schuster |
|
“Chuck Barris, who is famous for his television programs “The Gong Show” and “The Dating Game” is no stranger to controversy and notoriety. Della - A Memoir of My Daughter may be more outrageous than his memoir Confessions of a Dangerous Mind. It is not an easy or uplifting book to read.
|
| My Life from Scratch |
|
Gesine Bullock-Prado |
|
Broadway |
|
“One of the best memoirs ever about food and baking.”
|
| The Get Healthy Go Vegan Cookbook |
|
Neal Barnard & Robyn Webb |
|
Lifelong Book |
|
“How can any dish taste great without cheese? You would be surprised and delighted with the offerings from authors Barnard and Webb.”
|
| June 1, 2010 Talk of the Town - Beach Reading |
| The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest |
|
Stieg Larsson |
|
Knopf |
|
“The most-anticipated book of 2010 is finally here and well worth the wait. Be forewarned that you must read all of Larsson's books in order. Start with The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo and follow it with The Girl Who Played with Fire. Is there another Larsson book out there somewhere? We hope so!”
|
| Deliver Us From Evil |
|
David Baldacci |
|
Grand Central |
|
“Baldacci always shoots straight to the number one spot on any best seller list and Deliver Us From Evil is no exception. Bad guy Evan Waller, who appeared in Baldacci's The Whole Truth, is back again, crazier than ever and this time he is hunted by two determined agents. We love Baldacci.”
|
| This Body of Death |
|
Elizabeth George |
|
Harper |
|
“Thomas Lynley is back as perhaps Scotland Yard's sexiest detective and this time he must solve one of London's weirdest murders. His colleagues Barbara Havers and Winston Nkata return as well. Fans of Elizabeth George will not be able to put down This Body of Death.”
|
| The Burning Wire |
|
Jeffery Deaver |
|
Simon & Schuster |
|
“Lincoln Rhyme returns to solve what appear to be terrorists bombing attacks in New York and at the same time works to solve a high profile case in Mexico. The best Deaver book yet!”
|
| Beat the Reaper |
|
Josh Bazell |
|
Back Bay/Little Brown |
|
“Bazell is the new Michael Crichton except with more dark humor and sarcasm. This is the most outrageous, and interesting, novel we have read this year.”
|
| Changes |
|
Jim Butcher |
|
ROC/New American/Penguin |
|
“This is Michael Connelly on speed in a combination mystery, revenge, bloodlust burner of a story!”
|
| Deep Shadow |
|
Randy Wayne White |
|
Putnam |
|
“A routine scuba dive turns deadly and the possible helpers on shore are just waiting with evil intent as author White reminds us again that he is the reincarnation of John D. MacDonald.”
|
| The Third Rail |
|
Michael Harvey |
|
Knopf |
|
“Chicago under siege makes for a fast-paced thriller as women on the el are murdered and a church is subjected to chemical warfare. Harvey has the ear for good guy/bad guy dialogue that may help make up for the recent loss of the great Robert Parker.”
|
| The Big Short |
|
Michael Lewis |
|
Norton |
|
“Lewis is the only honest reporter about Wall Street who can write about the bad guys in a sensible and knowledgeable way. This is the true story of the most recent crash of Wall Street and it names names.”
|
| Hellhound on his Trail |
|
Hampton Sides |
|
Doubleday |
|
“Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was assassinated by James Earl Ray in Memphis in 1968. This is the chilling story of how Ray, inspired by the political venom of George Wallace, stalked Dr. King and then managed to escape all of the way to London, England before he was captured.”
|
| An Ordinary Man |
|
Paul Rusesabagina with Tom Zoellner |
|
Viking |
|
“This autobiography of a true hero tells how and why Rusesabagina was willing and able to save lives during the genocide in Rwanda in 1994. If you want the real story of the movie “Hotel Rwanda” then read An Ordinary Man.”
|
| The Winner's Brain |
|
Jeff Brown & Mark Fenske with Liz Neporent |
|
Da Capo |
|
“If you believed in The Seven Habits by Covey then this book is at least one better since it is the “eight strategies great minds use.” According to these authors it's not IQ, money, family or luck; instead your success is determined by the neuroscience of your brain. Did we mention that these authors are neuroscientists? Read it if you believe it.”
|
| Nashville's Inglewood |
|
Crystal Hill Jones, Naomi Manning, Melanie Meadows |
|
Arcadia |
|
“If you recognize the Marching 100 as the name of the high school band at Isaac Litton, then you will enjoy this history of the section of Nashville along Gallatin Road where they call themselves Inglewood and are quick to say not East Nashville.”
|
| Change Your Age |
|
Frank Wildman |
|
Da Capo |
|
“Want to change your age? Author Wildman says you can, by other ways than simply lying about it, with this series of exercise and attitudes.”
|
| The Serialist |
|
David Gordon |
|
Simon & Schuster |
|
“A ghost writer is confused by art versus reality when three young women are murdered using the same modus operandi as the killer in his latest book. This is a frightening and fascinating debut mystery.”
|
| Kaboom |
|
Matt Gallagher |
|
Da Capo |
|
“If you want the inside soldier's view of the most recent Iraq War, read this first person account of Gallagher's 15-month deployment. When the Army shut down his blog from Iraq, there were Congressional inquiries.”
|
| The Leopard's Wife |
|
Paul Pickering |
|
Simon & Schuster |
|
“This fictional account of military conflict in the Congo forces a classical pianist to flee for his life and to become a witness to the atrocities.”
|
| Her Fearful Symmetry |
|
Audrey Niffenegger |
|
Scribner |
|
“Another magical story from the author of The Time Traveler's Wife that comes out in paperback this month. In London a pair of twin sisters and a pair of lovers are both “betwixt and between” in this love story that is a ghost story.”
|
| Little Bee |
|
Chris Cleave |
|
Simon & Schuster |
|
“Just out in paperback, Little Bee is the book everyone is talking about. A young Nigerian girl, Little Bee, runs away to England and is rescued by Sarah. Put this on your bookclub discussion list. The relationship between these two women is sure to be talked about by readers for years to come.”
|
| Women Food and God |
|
Geneen Roth |
|
Scribner |
|
“It takes someone who has gained and lost more than a 1,000 pounds in her lifetime to write the best book that has been written this century about why we often overeat.”
|
| The Man Who Loved Books Too Much |
|
Allison Hoover Bartlett |
|
Riverhead |
|
“Why is collecting books one of today's most popular compulsions or addictions? The Man Who Loved Books Too Much is part mystery, part thriller and part science. Proving once again that criminals are really stupid - or are they?”
|
| Mushroom in the Sand |
|
Farsheed Ferdowsi |
|
Wingspan |
|
“Iranian born Dr. Ross Shaheen is living the American dream with his family in the suburbs of San Francisco. Shaheen has an international reputation based on his work in nuclear research at Berkley and is respected by all. Then he is taken away from his comfortable life in the United States to go to Iran where he must confront and resolve conflicting ideas. Mushroom in the Sand is a book you will not soon forget.”
|
| The Mapping of Love and Death |
|
Jacqueline Winspear |
|
Harper |
|
“If you like Elizabeth Peter's character Amanda Peabody, then you will love Winspear's Maisie Dobbs. How refreshing to have a female protagonist who is clever, insightful and who just happens to live and solve crimes between World War I and World War II. Winspear is the best mystery writer to come along since Elizabeth Peters.”
|
| Fatally Flaky |
|
Diane Mott Davidson |
|
Avon |
|
“Love to read about great food and murder at the same time? Diane Mott Davidson is one cool culinary writer and in this book, Goldy Schulz is a caterer who solves murders while whipping up the best food in Colorado.”
|
| Mennonite in a Little Black Dress |
|
Rhoda Janzen |
|
Holt |
|
“Mennonite in a Little Black Dress is sure to be the book that is in everyone's hands this summer. Rhoda Janzen shares what happened to her when she turned 40, her husband leaves her and then she is in an accident. Best memoir since A Girl Named Zippy by Haven Kimmel and Don't Lets Go To the Dogs Tonight by Alexandra Fuller.
|
| The Heretic's Wife |
|
Brenda Rickman Vantrease |
|
St. Martin's |
|
"The third book in the absolutely astounding historical series by Vantrease. If you like historical fiction, this is the must read book of 2010. Vantrease continues her story in Tudor England featuring women and men who searched for the truth frequently at the cost of their lives.”
|
| April 6, 2010 Talk of the Town - Spring Reading |
| The Shadow of Your Smile |
|
Mary Higgins Clark |
|
Simon & Schuster |
|
“Mary Higgins Clark continues to prove why she is one of today's best-loved mystery writers. The Shadow of Your Smile is Clark at her best, this time with a spellbinding story of one woman's fight to share a secret with a Dr. Monica Farrell. The results are catastrophic for some and life-changing for others.”
|
| Deception |
|
Jonathan Kellerman |
|
Ballantine |
|
“A teacher at an exclusive private school in the Brentwood area of Los Angeles is found dead after she has reported sexual harassment against three other teachers. Who killed her; a student, a teacher or a parent? Another great and complex mystery for Alex Deleware and Lt. Sturgis that they solve despite interference from the upper ranks of the police department.”
|
| The Postmistress |
|
Sarah Blake |
|
Amy Einhorn Books |
|
“Two women are linked during World War II, one in England and one in the United States. Both are reacting to a world war in an unforgettable story that will stay with the reader a long time. We loved it.”
|
| Think Twice |
|
Lisa Scottoline |
|
St. Martin's Press |
|
“You know how you want to blame your bad actions on an imaginary twin? What if you really had an identical twin who was evil and who switched places with you without your permission? That is what happens to attorney Bennie Rosato when her evil twin Alice Connelly kidnaps Rosato and wreaks havoc in Scottoline's fabulously entertaining Think Twice. Block out the time to read this best seller in one sitting.”
|
| Horns |
|
Joe Hill |
|
Morrow |
|
“Waking up from a hangover is bad enough, but when wealthy, well-bred Ig Perrish awakens with a pair of horns growing out of his head, his life takes on whole new meanings.”
|
| The Man From Beijing |
|
Henning Mankell |
|
Knopf |
|
“A massacre in a small Swedish town links to a family murder in Nevada. The criminal investigation leads to Africa and China and involves the 150-year-old slave trade between China and the United States. Author Mankell writes the Kurt Wallander mysteries that star Kenneth Branagh on television.”
|
| Conspirata |
|
Robert Harris |
|
Simon & Schuster |
|
“Robert Harris wrote the book that the current movie The Ghost Writer is based on, and if you loved the story like we did then you will eagerly read Conspirata. This time his novel of political espionage and suspense is set in ancient Rome when a new consul is coming to power. Harris has a keen eye and detailed storytelling for the conspiracies, plots, loves and power plays in the Roman Republic.”
|
| The Bone Thief |
|
Jefferson Bass |
|
Morrow |
|
“Dr. Bill Brockton and his graduate assistant Miranda Lovelady are thrown into another horrible murder with twists and turns that will leave you on the edge of your seat. The writing team of Dr. Bill Bass and Jon Jefferson have done it again with another murder featuring the real life “Body Farm” at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville.”
|
| King, Ship and Sword |
|
Dewey Lambdin |
|
St. Martin's Press/Thomas Dunne |
|
“The brightest stars in the galaxy of English military historical novels are Forester's Hornblower, Cornwell's Sharpe and Lambdin's Captain Alan Lewrie. In this 16th novel Lewrie rejoins his wife, travels to Paris to meet First Consul Napoleon and engage in just the kind of adventures that Lambdin's fans are eagerly waiting for.”
|
| Abraham Lincoln Vampire Hunter |
|
Seth Grahame-Smith |
|
Grand Central |
|
“If Jane Austen can defeat the zombies, surely President Lincoln can protect us from the vampires who have killed his mother. His lifetime mission of vengeance may even save the Union!”
|
| Relapse |
|
Nikki Turner |
|
Ballantine |
|
“Beijing Lee is one powerful woman who can control everything in her world except for one thing. Another great urban story from Nikki Turner the “Queen of Hip-Hop Lit.”
|
| The Lost City of Z |
|
David Grann |
|
Vintage |
|
“This thrill-a-minute page-turner is about one of the last of the Victorian Explorers, Percy Fawcett, as it traces his all-consuming quest with his son to discover a lost city in the Amazon rainforest. From cannibals to life-threatening geography to probably mythical animals this book seizes your attention and never lets go.”
|
| The Walk |
|
Richard Paul Evans |
|
Simon & Schuster |
|
“Alan Christofferson is one of these people who has it all: beautiful wife, successful business, his health and good luck. When all he holds dear disappears, Christofferson goes on the walk from Seattle to Florida. Another story that will tug at your heart from the author of The Christmas List.”
|
| The Cross Gardener |
|
Jason F. Wright |
|
Penguin |
|
“When you see a cross along the highway, do you know it is often the place where a death has occurred due to an accident? Jon Bevan puts a cross up at the site where his family was killed and meets the “Cross Gardener.” This gardener changes the direction of Bevan's life and this story of redemption and second chances will stay with you for a long time.”
|
| The Boy who Would be Shakespeare |
|
Doug Stewart |
|
Da Capo |
|
“In this true account it's the year 1795 and a young 19-year-old legal assistant discovers an original manuscript by William Shakespeare - or does he? The entire British Empire demands to know every aspect of the claim and discovery. Eventually, the play is produced at Drury Lane Theatre in London. Due to all of the mysteries that still surround Shakespeare and his writing, this web of deception, or astounding discovery, fascinates everyone who ever read and loved Shakespeare.”
|
| Contested Will - Who Wrote Shakespeare? |
|
James Shapiro |
|
Simon & Schuster |
|
“Beginning in the 1800s numerous experts from Mark Twain to Sigmund Freud have questioned the true identity of the author we know as William Shakespeare. At various times, parts of the literary community and historians have nominated Christopher Marlowe, Francis Bacon or the Earl of Oxford as the educated person who actually wrote Shakespeare's plays and sonnets. Surely you don't think it was the uneducated and unsophisticated lad from Stratford on Avon who penned the Western world's best dramas?”
|
| Lighting Out for the Territory How Samuel Clemens Headed West and Became Mark Twain |
|
Roy Morris, Jr. |
|
Simon & Schuster |
|
“Many of us agree that Mark Twain is the premier American writer. One reason for that belief is Twain's sharp use of the frontier and the West almost as a character in his stories. How did Samuel Clemens arrive at the knowledge and attitudes that created Mark Twain? This biography of how he reinvented himself, failed at numerous jobs and still forged a successful writing career will hold your attention as you learn more about America as well as about Twain.”
|
| Every Dog Has a Gift |
|
Rachel McPherson |
|
Tarcher Penguin |
|
“Dog lovers will adore Every Dog Has a Gift. Rachel McPherson takes us on a journey with dogs as they visit classrooms and hospitals where they change many lives for the better. A great book.”
|
| The Mighty Queen of Freeville |
|
Amy Dickinson |
|
Hyperion |
|
“If you are a fan of the radio show Wait Wait...Don't Tell Me! then you know the witty and entertaining panelist Amy Dickinson. But, did you know her advice column is in more than 150 newspapers? This is Dickinson's own story which is the perfect book for everyone.”
|
| High Heat |
|
Tim Wendel |
|
Da Capo |
|
“A fascinating search for the secret of how to pitch a fast ball, how to mix it up and just who was the fastest American baseball pitcher of all time. High Heat is a great chance to get away from the money and finance of major league baseball and focus on the players, managers and scouts.”
|
| It's What's Inside the Lines that Counts |
|
Fay Vincent |
|
Simon & Schuster |
|
“The heroes and the stories of baseball in the 1970s and 1980s as told to the former commissioner of baseball Fay Vincent by the stars themselves - Seaver, Weaver, Williams, Marichal, McCovey, Baylor, Smith and Ripken. This is the third volume in the Baseball Oral History Project covering the 1930s through the 1980s.”
|
| The Sundance Kid |
|
Donna Ernst |
|
Oklahoma |
|
“The real Sundance Kid of Butch Cassidy friendship fame was Harry Longabaugh. Before Cassidy and Sundance died (probably in Bolivia in 1908), Sundance homesteaded in Colorado and was a cowboy in Wyoming and Canada. But, of course, where this book comes alive is during the posse chases, the Pinkerton challenges, and the bank and train robberies.”
|
| Motoring: The Highway Experience in America |
|
John Jakle & Keith Sculle |
|
Georgia |
|
“America really is different and in large part that's due to our love affair with the automobile and the open road. There are dozens of fascinating factoids in this journey - the first convenience store in 1927 in Dallas, the first motorized bus service in 1914 in Long Beach, California, the first toll road in 1908 in Long Island and a hundred others we don't need to know about that we see on the road every day.”
|
| March 2, 2010 Talk of the Town - Salute to Women's History Month |
| The Heretic's Wife |
|
Brenda Rickman Vantrease |
|
St. Martin's Press |
|
"The third book in the absolutely astounding historical series by Vantrease. If you like historical fiction, this is the must-read book of 2010. Vantrease continues her story in Tudor England featuring women and men who searched for the truth frequently at the cost of their lives.”
|
| Imperfect Birds |
|
Anne Lamott |
|
Riverhead |
|
“Anne Lamott, best-selling author of Traveling Mercies and Crooked Little Heart, is one of the best writers today. Imperfect Love is a compelling story of love and redemption within the confines of a family unit. Heartrending and heartbreaking and, like all of Lamott's books, it is impossible to put down.”
|
| The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks |
|
Rebecca Skloot |
|
Crown |
|
“Do you own your own cells and body parts? This author, who teaches at the University of Memphis, answers "no" as she details the 60-year story of Henrietta Lacks, a poor Southern tobacco farmer whose cells were harvested by modern medicine without her knowledge or consent and became the first “immortal” human cells used in medical research. Today there are more than 50 million tons of her cells used in multi-billion dollar cancer, virus, polio, cloning, and in vitro fertilization investigations, and Lacks and her family never saw a dime. An outstanding book about a terrible secret.”
|
| Twenties Girl |
|
Sophie Kinsella |
|
Dial |
|
“Kinsella is the queen of chick lit –Twenties Girl is smart, sassy and the ultimate beach read.”
|
| Lynching & Spectacle Witnessing Racial Violence in America, 1890-1940 |
|
Amy Louise Wood |
|
UNC Press |
|
“It was not that long ago that people in the United States were hanging each other based purely on the color of their skin. Lynching and Spectacle is a well-researched, well-written account of the horrors we inflicted upon each other and a worthy read.”
|
| Angelology |
|
Danielle Trussoni |
|
Viking |
|
“There is a reason Oprah picked Angelology as one of her top books. Danielle Turssoni has written an unforgettable book. This book has it all; history, religion, demons, angels and humans. The Nephilim are a mixed race, not just any race but are a combination of angels and humans. When a Catholic Nun finds out that she is a Nephilim, nothing can stop her from following her destiny. Angelology is sure to be as big a runaway seller as the The Da Vinci Code.
|
| Secrets of Eden |
|
Chris Bohjalian |
|
Shaye Areheart |
|
“Chris Bohjalan proved in his best seller Midwives why he is such a great writer. Domestic violence is horrible and in Secrets of Eden domestic violence leads to the murder and suicide of a couple, or does it? You will not really know until the very end of another unforgettable book by Bohjalian.”
|
| Ancient Wisdom, Modern Kitchen |
|
Mika Ono, Yuan Wang & Warren Sheir |
|
Da Capo |
|
“The must-have book about traditional Chinese cooking and healing.”
|
| J. Percy Priest & His Amazing Race |
|
Rebecca Stubbs |
|
Createspace |
|
“One of Nashville's finest elected officers, Congressman J. Percy Priest, never lost sight of the fact that he was a public servant. Author Rebecca Stubbs has written a book that every collector of Southern and Tennessee history should own.”
|
| A Reliable Wife |
|
Robert Goolrick |
|
Algonquin |
|
“When a rich widower, Ralph Truitt, advertises for a wife in Wisconsin in 1907 he expects someone suitable and perhaps a little dowdy to share his life. Catherine Land is anything but that and when she responds in person to Truitt their life becomes unpredictable. Part mystery, part love story, A Reliable Wife is sure to be on bookclub lists everywhere.”
|
| Nashville By Design - Architectural Treasures |
|
Christine Kreyling Photography by Bob Schatz |
|
Forest Hills Press |
|
“Looking for that perfect gift book? Nashville By Design - Architectural Treasures is one of the most beautifully photographed books ever and the narrative written by Christine Kreyling is superb.”
|
| Repairers of the Breach Memoirs of a Missionary Nagasaki, Japan 1948-1951 |
|
Margery L. Mayer |
|
Mayer |
|
“Margery Mayer reached out to the Japanese just after World War II in an effort to build peace. This is the personal account of a missionary who lived what she preached.”
|
| Mudbound |
|
Hillary Jordan |
|
Algonquin |
|
“Mudbound is unforgettable and powerful. Two families, one black and one white, must co-exist and work their land in Mississippi together after World War II. When two members of the family strike up a friendship, things are never the same for them or their community.”
|
| Looking for Salvation at the Dairy Queen |
|
Susan Gregg Gilmore |
|
Three Rivers |
|
“We loved this book by Susan Gregg Gilmore, and not just because she lives in Nashville! Looking for Salvation at the Dairy Queen is funny, poignant and impossible to put down. Catherine Grace Cline is the daughter of a Baptist minister. Nothing is what is seems in her so-called simple uncomplicated life in Ringgold, Georgia. If you liked The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd then you will love Gilmore's Looking for Salvation at the Dairy Queen. Just be sure to have soft serve ice cream available while reading this book!”
|
| The Piano Teacher |
|
Janice Y. K. Lee |
|
Penguin |
|
“Trudy Liang lives in Hong Kong in 1942 and has an affair with an Englishman named Will Truesdale. Matters get complicated when Clair Pendleton comes to Hong Kong in 1952 and becomes a piano teacher to an affluent family. The consequences of the affair between Liang and Truesdale impact the life of Pendleton in ways that will stay with the reader for a long time. We read The Piano Teacher in one sitting.”
|
| The Witch of Cologne |
|
Tobsha Learner |
|
Forge |
|
“The daughter of a Rabbi has a powerful gift and is hunted down and persecuted in 17th Century Germany. The Witch of Cologne is an eloquent historical novel with strong characters.”
|
| The Spellmans Strike Again |
|
Lisa Lutz |
|
Simon & Schuster |
|
“We love the dysfunctional Spellman family. Thank heavens Lisa Lutz is back with another book featuring our favorite private ditzy detective Isabel Spellman.“
|
| Satch, Dizzy & Rapid Robert The Wild Saga of Interracial Baseball Before Jackie Robinson |
|
Timothy Gay |
|
Simon & Schuster |
|
“In that great movie A League of Their Own, the women are the baseball stars and that history has been mostly forgotten much like the integrated baseball barnstorming tours of the 1930s and the 1940s. This book is brilliant in the pitching duels of Satchel Paige against Dizzy Dean and all the other stars.”
|
| The Girl Who Chased the Moon |
|
Sarah Addison Allen |
|
Bantam |
|
“Enchanting and romantic escapism in North Carolina – we think this is the perfect beach read.”
|
| Healing Sands |
|
Nancy Rue & Stephen Arterburn |
|
Thomas Nelson |
|
“Rue and Arterburn have created an unforgettable lead character in Ryan Coe, whose life as a photojournalist is blown to pieces by a mysterious death. Is Coe responsible and what must she do to get her life back on track? Healing Sands is a real page turner.”
|
| Birds of a Feather (a Maisie Dobbs Mystery) |
|
Jacqueline Winspear |
|
Penguin |
|
“Hooray for Jacqueline Winspear! Maisie Dobbs is a smart good-looking detective in post World War I London who uses psychology to solve murder mysteries. If you like your protagonist with more brains than brawn then you will love the Maisie Dobbs books. We do!”
|
| The Secret History of the Mongol Queens |
|
Jack Weatherford |
|
Crown |
|
“Genghis Khan and his Mongol cavalry conquered Asia, the Middle East and Eastern Europe and only the great Khan's death in 1227 A. D. saved Western Europe. Here is the inside story of the family struggle between his daughters and his daughters-in-law about the succession of power, and how Queen Manduhai successfully leads the Mongol army that provoked the building of the Great Wall of China. It is about time she was recognized for being a bloody and cool lady.”
|
| Frankenstein |
|
Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley |
|
Penguin |
|
“The world's best and best-written horror story, published anonymously in the 19th century because of prejudice against women writers.”
|
| February 3, 2010 Talk of the Town - Salute to Black History Month |
| Changing My Mind Occasional Essays |
|
Zadie Smith |
|
Penguin |
|
“Zadie Smith, the award-winning author of White Teeth proves why she is one of our best writers in this collection of non-fiction essays. Smith opines on everything from deceased author David Foster Wallace to Katherine Hepburn and President Barack Obama. A great read.”
|
| Known to Evil |
|
Walter Mosley |
|
Riverhead |
|
“We love Walter Mosley. Leonid McGill is one of today's most interesting mystery characters and the new characters who appear with McGill are as much fun to follow as those featuring our favorite Mosley character - Easy Rawlins, who starred in Mosley's bestseller Devil with the Blue Dress.”
|
| Jericho's Fall |
|
Stephen L. Carter |
|
Knopf |
|
“Our only complaint about Stephen L. Carter is that he does not turn out new books fast enough. We read The Emperor of Ocean Park in one sitting, same thing with New England White and Palace Council. All that Carter needs is Denzel Washington to star in the movie of one of his novels and things will be perfect. Carter uses his knowledge of politics and government to keep us on the edge of our seat in Jericho's Fall.”
|
| In My Sister's House |
|
Donald Welch |
|
Ballantine |
|
“Two sisters fight for control of Legends, one of Philadelphia's most successful nightclubs. One sister lives on the straight and narrow, the other, not so much. Which sister will be successful?”
|
| The Darkness A Vampire Huntress Legend |
|
L. A. Banks |
|
St. Martin's Griffin |
|
“Vampire lovers will find this book delicious! L. A. Banks has written a great series in the Vampire Huntress Legend. Read them all.”
|
| Act Like A Lady - Think Like a Man What Men Really Think about Love, Relationships, Intimacy, and Commitment |
|
Steve Harvey |
|
Amistad |
|
“Who knew that Steve Harvey, one of our favorite comedians, would also turn out to be a best-selling author? Every couple should read and discuss Act Like a Lady early on to see if their relationship will last!”
|
| The Help |
|
Kathryn Stockett |
|
Amy Einhorn Books/Putnam |
|
“Written by a white southern woman about African-American women who served as 'the help' in Mississippi during the 1960s. There is a reason this book remains at the top of the best seller list.”
|
| Unholy - The Slaves Bible |
|
David Charles Mills |
|
Ghetto Kids Enterprises |
|
“David Charles Mills is currently the associate director for state policy and legislative affairs for Vanderbilt University. Unholy - The Slaves Bible is based upon an edition of the Hebrew and Christian Bible that used scripture to justify the institution of slavery. Unholy - The Slaves Bible is a book that is worthy of reading and discussing so that we do not repeat our mistakes of the past. We hope that Mills will continue to write about history and social issues.”
|
| The Civil Rights Movement in Tennessee: A Narrative History |
|
Bobby L. Lovett |
|
University of Tennessee Press |
|
“Tennessee originated much of the movement for change in the history of the modern Civil Rights advances as Dr. Lovett, Tennessee State University history professor, illustrates with events and heroes from Memphis, Nashville and Knoxville.”
|
| Love of Freedom Black Women in Colonial & Revolutionary New England |
|
Catherine Adams & Elizabeth H. Pleck |
|
Oxford |
|
“A fascinating and in-depth narrative of discrimination and hardship that happened in the North as it did in the South. The American Revolution was very different for women than it was for men. Women, especially African-American women, sought freedom from slavery as well as spiritual and family freedom in this well-researched study of the African diaspora from Africa to New England.”
|
| God Don't Like Ugly |
|
Mary Monroe |
|
Dafina/Kensington |
|
“Best friends Annette Goode Davis and Rhoda O'Toole have a lot going on, especially helping Annette save her marriage. Monroe is one of the best writers today, especially when she tells it like it really is - and especially for women.”
|
| Dying in the Dark A Tamara Hayle Mystery |
|
Valerie Wilson Wesley |
|
One World/Ballantine |
|
“Valerie Wilson Wesley, an editor for Essence magazine, has created one of today's most fascinating characters. Wesley's creation - Tamara Hayle, is smart, sexy and a private detective. In Dying in the Dark, Hayle must confront a death that has haunted her since childhood. This novel is spellbinding.”
|
| Cotton Comes to Harlem |
|
Chester Himes |
|
Vintage Crime/Random |
|
“No one does it better than Himes. His crime and detective novels are truly the best and set the standard for crime classics.”
|
| Roll, Jordan Roll The World The Slaves Made |
|
Eugene Genovese |
|
Pantheon/Random |
|
“This is a landmark book of American history that changed the nation's view about the master-slaves myths of the South and accurately explained and showed the cruelty and immorality of the slavery system.”
|
| Lost Delta Found |
|
John Work, Lewis Wade Jones, Samuel Adams Jr., Robert Gordon & Bruce Nemerov |
|
Vanderbilt University |
|
“A brilliant work as the editors restored the research of Fisk University scholars, who joined Alan Lomax in Coahoma County, Mississippi to document the social and cultural history of the amazing music by Muddy Waters and others. Like the ending in the movie “Raiders of the Lost Ark,” their research was lost in the Library of Congress archives until rescued in recent years.”
|
| W.E.B. Du Bois |
|
David Levering Lewis |
|
Henry Holt |
|
“This is already the classic work from the life of the firebrand revolutionary, writer, scholar and political activist Du Bois who helped create the NAACP and who traveled in a Jim Crow car to attend Fisk University.”
|
| The Mind of Frederick Douglass |
|
Waldo Martin Jr. |
|
North Carolina |
|
“Douglass' crusades for abolition of slavery, education of blacks and women's rights were revolutionary during his 19th century lifetime. His moral passion and wisdom inspired President Abraham Lincoln and other leaders like Susan B. Anthony.”
|
| The Dream Keeper & Other Poems |
|
Langston Hughes |
|
Scholastic |
|
“The poetry of Langston Hughes has survived the test of time. It is beautiful.”
|
| Maya Angelou - The Poetry of Living |
|
Margaret Courtney-Clarke |
|
Potter |
|
“A photographic and written narrative of Maya Angelou giving poetry readings around the United States that includes thoughts from her friends along with pages of her poetry. Inspirational.”
|
| Dancing in the Streets Confessions of a Motown Diva |
|
Martha Reeves & Mark Bego |
|
Hyperion |
|
“The lead singer of Martha Reeves and the Vandellas tells all. Reeves started out as a secretary at Motown and while she sang she observed what it took to be successful in the music business. Play her records (or CDs) while reading this great book.”
|
| Pride - The Charley Pride Story |
|
Charlie Pride & Jim Henderson |
|
Morrow |
|
“A classy story about a class-act singer. Charley Pride shares the ins and outs of a successful country music star who happens to be African-American.”
|
| Temptations |
|
Otis Williams & Patricia Romanowski |
|
Putnam |
|
“Everyone has a favorite song by the Temptations. This book by Otis Williams, one of the original members of the Temptations, is a page-turner.”
|
| Our Kind of People Inside America's Black Upper Class |
|
Lawrence Otis Graham |
|
Harper Collins |
|
“An inside look at debutantes Jack and Jill Links and all of the requirements to be part of the high levels of society. A must-read to be really informed.”
|
| Where Peachtree Meets Sweet Auburn |
|
Gary M. Pomerantz |
|
Penguin |
|
“Fascinating Atlanta history of five generations of the Dobbs family, descendants of slaves and the Allen family, former slave owners.”
|
| January 13, 2010 - Talk of the Town |
|
The Lacuna
|
|
Barbara Kingsolver
|
|
Harper/Harper
Collins
|
|
“Kingsolver proves why she stays at the top of the best seller list and is a favorite of bookclubs in this coming of age story during the McCarthy era.”
|
|
Under the Dome
|
|
Stephen King
|
|
Scribner
|
|
“King is simply the best as he returns to his early form which equals scary at its very finest. Under the Dome is his best book since The Stand.”
|
|
U is for Undertow
|
|
Sue Grafton
|
|
Putnam
|
|
“U should be for unbelievable. We fight over who gets to read her newest book first. U is one of the best of her alphabet mysteries and Kinsey Millhone continues to fascinate us.”
|
|
The Swan Thieves
|
|
Elizabeth Kostova
|
|
Little Brown
|
|
“The Historian was one of the best books in recent years and in The Swan Thieves, Kostova proves she has more than one best seller in her repertoire. The Swan Thieves will zip to the top of the best-seller list.”
|
|
Stones into Schools: Promoting Peace with Books, Not bombs, in Afghanistan
|
|
Greg Mortenson
|
|
Viking
|
|
“Mortenson, the author of the wildly successful Three Cups of Tea, is a true hero and role model through his efforts to promote peace. He has helped build more than 130 schools in Afghanistan and Pakistan by focusing on education for young girls. This book should be required reading for the National Security Council, the CIA and everyone who is concerned about Afghanistan.”
|
|
Louisa May Alcott The Woman Behind Little Women
|
|
Harriet Reisen
|
|
Holt
|
|
“We predict this will be the best biography of 2010. Louisa May Alcott is fascinating and was way ahead of her time. She was the one of the few in her family of two parents and four girls who was not afraid to work and earn money. The real story behind one of the best novels ever, Little Women, is compelling, beautiful and heartbreaking. You will be sorry when this biography ends of a life that ended too soon.”
|
|
Puttering About in a Small Land
|
|
Philip K. Dick
|
|
TOR
|
|
“An overwhelming indictment of Los Angeles suburban life in this sensitive and catastrophic story of two couples and their children. Many of Dick's stories have been produced into very successful movies such as Blade Runner, but this is the frightening society that Dick is warning us about in his other novels.”
|
|
The American Rifle A Biography
|
|
Alexander Rose
|
|
Bantam Dell/Delta
|
|
“From George Washington through every American war up to Afghanistan, the rifle has been the primary offensive weapon of every soldier. This irresistible history is both deadly and insightful.”
|
|
Shades of Grey
|
|
Jasper Fforde
|
|
Viking
|
|
“This is your typical boy-meets-girl thriller with one big exception - this time the girl tries to murder the boy! In a near monochrome world of grey, your status and future depends on what colors you can perceive in this wildly successful mixture of art, literature and suspense.”
|
|
101 Optimal Life Foods
|
|
David Grotto
|
|
Bantam Books
|
|
“The must-have reference book to save your life.”
|
|
Food Matters
|
|
Mark Bittman
|
|
Simon & Schuster
|
|
“Save the world and watch your weight at the same time with 'sane eating' by focusing on the right kind of basics.”
|
|
The Other Brain
|
|
R. Douglas Fields
|
|
Simon & Schuster
|
|
“A great summary of the cutting edge of science and how it is revolutionizing medicine and health by focusing on Albert Einstein's brain 30 years after his death.”
|
|
Lark and Termite
|
|
Jayne Anne Phillips
|
|
Vintage/Knopf/
Doubleday
|
|
“Love and family as seen through the eyes of Lark, a teenage girl, who is the primary caretaker of her younger brother, Termite. Thought provoking and a sure pick for bookclubs in 2010.”
|
|
Trial by Fire
|
|
J. A. Jance
|
|
Simon & Schuster/
Touchstone
|
|
“Returning heroine, Ali Reynolds, takes a temporary job running the press office for the Yavapai County Police Department in Arizona. Bestselling author Jance puts Reynolds in a tough and dangerous spot in solving a horrific murder.”
|
|
Too Many Murders
|
|
Colleen McCullough
|
|
Simon & Schuster
|
|
“McCullough, the author of The Thorn Birds, successfully mixes historical fiction, (1960s Connecticut) with the basic rules of a whodunit mystery where a dozen separate murders are committed on the same date. One of her best books yet.”
|
|
Funeral for a Stranger
|
|
Becca Stevens
|
|
Abingdon
|
|
“Nashville priest and activist Becca Stevens finds herself officiating at the funeral of a stranger. Funeral for a Stranger is a wonderful collection of essays that is the perfect book to share with someone on any occasion.”
|
|
The Last Founding Father
|
|
Harlow Giles Unger
|
|
Da Capo
|
|
“A fascinating account of the life and politics of James Monroe who was only 18 when the Declaration of Independence was signed. Monroe served in the Continental Army, the Virginia Legislature, as Secretary of State, Secretary of War and as our Fifth President. Learn more than you ever knew about Monroe, who authored the Manifest Destiny surge of the United States as far as the Rocky Mountains and created the Monroe Doctrine.”
|
|
The Disappeared
|
|
M. R. Hall
|
|
Simon & Schuster
|
|
“A great British mystery where two boys disappeared seven years ago. Now one has been declared 'presumed dead' and coroner Jenny Cooper leads the inquest investigation. A brilliant debut thriller that explores religion and bias while Cooper suffers from a dysfunctional family. Author Hall is a true Hitchcock-type storyteller.”
|
|
The Making of African-America
|
|
Ira Berlin
|
|
Viking
|
|
“Just in time for the celebration of Black History Month, author Berlin has written an unsettling description of how the slave trade, the failure of reconstruction, the automation of industry and the Voting Rights Act have changed the landscape of minority presence and participation in America. A great synthesis of some of the most important issues in our history.”
|
|
Following Isabella: Travels in Colorado then and Now
|
|
Robert Root
|
|
University of Oklahoma
|
|
“An expression of the true beauty of the Rocky Mountains as Root retraces the life and travels of Isabella Bird who was the author of A Lady's Life in the Rocky Mountains.”
|
|
Lady Vernon and Her Daughter: A Jane Austen Novel
|
|
Jane Rubino & Caitlen Rubino-Bradway
|
|
Crown/Random
|
|
“Jane Austen fans can celebrate. Authors Rubino and Rubino-Bradway take the plot of Austen's novella Lady Susan and have expanded it into a full feature novel. Lady Vernon and Her Daughter is most worthy to be read.”
|
|
A Rainbow In the Night
|
|
Dominique Lapierre
|
|
Da Capo
|
|
“The epic story of the birth, failure and resurrection of the Union of South Africa from the early days of the Dutch invaders to Nelson Mandela. Disturbing but powerful.”
|
|
Bloodroot
|
|
Amy Greene
|
|
Knopf
|
|
“The most exciting debut novel of the year. A story of generations, love and identity.”
|
| Click Here for 2009
Click Here for 2008
Click Here for 2007
Click Here for 2006
Click Here for 2005
Click Here for 2004
|
