New Items ~ November 2019

FICTION

Before the devil fell by Neil Olson.  Equal parts engaging and creepy, this twisty tale examines how secrets and regret can continue to reverberate through generations.  Possibly too creepy for late-night reading.

The bone fire by S.D. Sykes.  Oswald de Lacy brings his family to a secluded island castle to escape the Black Death, but soon a murder within the household proves that even the strongest fortress isn’t free from terror in 14th century England.

A book of bones by John Connolly.  Charlie Parker’s pursuit of his nemesis peaks in this seamless, expansive, and chilling blend of police procedural and gothic horror tale.

Cantoras by Carolina De Robertis.  In the shadow of a violent dictatorship, five queer women find the courage and strength to live their truth.

Chilling effect by Valerie Valdes.  A hilarious, offbeat space opera that skewers everything from pop culture to video games and features an irresistible foul-mouthed captain and her motley crew.

Cilka’s journey by Heather Morris.  A 16 year old, who sleeps with a concentration camp commandant in order to survive, is sentenced to a Siberian prison camp where she cares for the ill.

The Dutch house by Ann Patchett.  The story of the indelible bond between two siblings, the house of their childhood, and a past that will not let them go.

Full throttle by Joe Hill.  In a collection of short fiction, Hill dissects timeless human struggles in 13 tales of supernatural suspense, including “In the Tall Grass”, one of the 2 co-written with Stephen King.

The girl who lived twice by David Lagercrantz.  Mikael Blomkvist helps Lisabeth Salander put her past behind her.

The giver of stars by Jojo Moyes.  An extraordinary story of five women’s journey to deliver books to people who never had any, expanding horizons and changing their lives.

The guardians by John Grisham.  Cullen Post, a lawyer and Episcopal minister, antagonizes some ruthless killers when he takes on a wrongful conviction case.

Imaginary friend by Stephen Chbosky.  A pleasing book for those who like to scare themselves silly, one to read with the lights on and the door bolted.

The lying room by Nicci French.  A married woman’s affair with her boss spirals into a dangerous game of chess with the police when she discovers he’s been murdered and she clears the crime scene of all evidence.

The man who saw everything by Deborah Levy.  Multiple versions of history collide – literally – in a story that defies gravity in a daring, time-bending novel.

The nugget by P.T. Deutermann.  A novice naval aviator grows into a hero in this authentic World War II adventure.

The pursuit by Joyce Carol Oates.  A young woman is haunted by a past she doesn’t understand in this powerful story of domestic violence.

Random act by Gerry Boyle.  When Maine’s favorite reporter, Jack McMorrow, heads out to the hardware store on a routine errand, little does he know that he’s about to witness a murder that will have vicious repercussions.

Robert B. Parker’s The Bitterest Pill by Reed Coleman.  The opioid epidemic has reached Paradise, and Police Chief Jesse Stone must rush to stop the devastation.

Salvaged by Madeleine Roux.  A woman on the run.  A captain adrift in space.  One of them is infected with an alien parasite.  In this dark sci-fi thriller, a young woman must confront her past so the human race will have a future.

The shape of night by Tess Gerritsen.  A woman tries to outrun her past and is drawn to a coastal village in Maine – and to a string of unsolved murders.

The secrets we kept by Lara Prescott. During the Cold War, members of the CIA’s typing pool aid its mission to smuggle the banned book Doctor Zhivago behind the Iron Curtain.

Tuesday Mooney talks to ghosts by Kate Racculia.  A dying billionaire sends one woman and a cast of dreamers on a citywide treasure hunt in this irresistible novel.

The twisted ones by T. Kingfisher.  When a woman clears out her deceased grandmother’s home in rural North Carolina, she finds long-hidden secrets about a strange colony of beings in the woods.  It’s The Blair Witch Project meets The Andy Griffith Show.

The water dancer by Ta-Nehisi Coates.  This captures the brutality of slavery and explores the underlying truth that slaveholders could not dehumanize the enslaved without also dehumanizing themselves.

Who are you, Calvin Bledsoe? by Brock Clarke.  An exuberant comic novel involving explosions, secret agents, religious fanatics, and a hapless narrator dragged around Europe by his long-lost aunt.

What happens in Paradise by Elin Hilderbrand.  Irene Steele visits the island of St. John to get to the bottom of the mysterious life and death of her husband.

The world that we knew by Alice Hoffman.  A rabbi’s daughter creates a mystical Jewish creature that is sworn to protect a 12 year old girl in World War II Europe.

NONFICTION

Beautiful on the outside by Adam Rippon.  The former Olympic figure skater shares his underdog journey from beautiful mess to outrageous success in this big-hearted memoir.

The body by Bill Bryson.  A head-to-toe tour of the marvel that is the human body.

The book of gutsy women by Hillary Clinton.  Profiles of women from around the world who have blazed trails and challenged the status quo.

Dog is love by Clive Wynne.  Why and how your dog loves you.

Face it by Debbie Harry.  As the lead singer of the group Blondie, Harry tells her story of a woman who made her own path and set the standard for a generation of those to follow.

From the periphery by Pia Justesen.  This consists of narratives of everyday people who describe what it’s like to be treated differently by society because of their disabilities.

The girls by Abigail Pesta.  The inside story of how serial predator Larry Nassar got away with abusing hundreds of gymnasts for decades – and how a team of brave women banded together to bring him down.

Home work by Julie Andrews.  Continuing her life story that she began in her first book, Home, Andrews here gives a memoir of her Hollywood years.

If these walls could talk by Jerry Remy.  Stories from the Boston Red Sox dugout, Locker room, and press box.

Inside out by Demi Moore.  The star chronicles the rocky relationships, body image issues, and public perception that affected her attempts to balance family and fame.

The last pass by Gary Pomerantz.  Looking back on his life, Boston Celtics Bob Cousy regrets his failure to understand the struggles that his teammate Bill Russell, the NBA’s first Black superstar, was going through during the years they played together in racist Boston.

Me by Elton John.  In his first and only official autobiography, the music icon reveals the truth about his life, from his rollercoaster lifestyle to becoming a living legend.

Plagued by fire by Paul Hendrickson.  Frank Lloyd Wright was America’s most famous architect.  He was a genius, an egotist, and a man tormented by conscience and regret.

River of fire by Helen Prejean.  This describes her life as a nun, starting with her entrance into a convent in 1957 at the age of 18 and ending in 1982 when she began her work with abolishing the death penalty.

You throw like a girl by Don McPherson.  This is a call to action that has the potential to provoke conversation and change and is a unique crossover of sports memoir and astute social commentary about the blind spot of masculinity.

CHILDREN’S BOOKS

PICTURE BOOKS

Big boys cry by Jonty Howley

Bruce’s big storm by Ryan Higgins

Dasher by Matt Tavares

The end of something wonderful by Stephanie Lucianovic

The favorite book by Bethanie Deeney Murguia

Grandpa’s top threes by Wendy Meddour

Have you seen my blankie? by Lucy Rowland

Hop up! Wriggle over! by Elizabeth Honey

I’m a gnome by Jessica Peill-Meininghaus

If I could give you Christmas by Lynn Plourde

A letter to my teacher by Deborah Hopkinson

The proudest blue : a story of Hijab and family by Ibtihaj Muhammad

The scarecrow by Beth Ferry

The shortest day by Susan Cooper

A stone sat still by Brendan Wenzel

 CHAPTER BOOKS

All the impossible things by Lindsay Lackey

Big break : Julie 1974 by Megan McDonald

Look both ways : a tale told in ten blocks by Jason Reynolds

No ordinary sound: Melody 1964 by Denise Patrick

Other words for home by Jasmine Warga

The spirit of aloha: Nanea 1941 by Kirby Larson

The tyrant’s tomb by Rick Riordan

GRAPHIC NOVELS

The Bad Guys in superbad by Aaron Blabey

The Bad Guys in the Big Bad Wolf by Aaron Blabey

Best friends by Shannon Hale

Chick & Brain : Smell my foot! by Cece Bell

Dog Man. For whom the ball rolls by Dav Pilkey

Guts by Raina Telgemeier

Mighty Jack and Zita the spacegirl by Ben Hatke

The okay witch by Emma Steinkellner

Stargazing by Jen Wang

 NON-FICTION

Are robots aware they’re robots? World Book answers your questions about technology

Big book of monsters : the creepiest creatures from classic literature by Hal Johnson

Can cats swim even if they don’t like water? World Book answers your questions about pests and other animals

Cat encyclopedia for kids by Joanne Mattern

Dr. Seuss’s Horse Museum by Dr. Seuss

From seed to sunflower by Camilla de la Bedoyere

Is the milky way made out of milk? World Book answers your questions about outer space

Lionel Messi by Anthony Hewson

Sidney Crosby by Kevin Frederickson

Steph Curry by Kevin Frederickson

Todd Gurley by Anthony Hewson

The truth about crocodiles : Seriously funny facts about your favorite animals by Maxwell Eaton

 DVDS

Aladdin with Will Smith

The best Christmas gift (Veggie Tales)

Daniel Tiger’s neighborhood.  It’s a beautiful day in the neighborhood

Missing link with Hugh Jackman

Sesame Street. 50 years and counting

Toy story 4 with Ivan Shavrin

Notes from Booklist, Publishers Weekly, Kirkus, Library Journal, and New York Times Book Review.